A perfect blend of farce, literature, mystery and love, bound together by stunning observation and side-splitting humour

Hugely entertaining

A joy to read . . . Deliciously quirky!

What a fabulous read! Written with verve and wit

As quirky as its title suggests, this is a delightfully funny literary adventure

A crime comedy that imparts truths about love, family and friendship

A perfectly crafted and lighthearted read . . . Extremely amusing

A restlessness would overtake me when I was separated from the book

No modern novelist is better at charting the precariousness of middle-class life

Coe creeps up stealthily, delivering a book bursting with narrative coups and delicious ironies. Presenting a picture of an ailing country close to collapse, despite the apparent health suggested by its millionaires' mansions and its confidently callous politicians, the book scares rather than laughs us into calling for reform

Coe intriguingly depicts the social grievances of modern Britain

My first Jonathan Coe book but it won't be the last...gloriously insane...It takes you into another space and time....Very beautiful

It's dispiriting that, for a country that prides itself on its sense of humour, Coe has not been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize.....Read Number 11 to see what an odd country Britain has become

[Coe] has a fine ear for dialogue and mastery of comic plot: this is first-class entertainment

The country needs Number 11....[Coe's] take-down of modern Britain proves he's still the UK's premiere national lampoon

Number 11 is undoubtedly a political novel. It is also an interrogation of the purposes and efficacy of humour in exposing society's ills

A richly enjoyable, densely textured and thought-provoking entertainment, Number 11 might not feature in many Kensington mansions, Swiss bolt-holes or private jets this winter. But perhaps it should'

What Victorians called "a condition of England" novel...This sequel is a very good book indeed - let's hope that Coe goes for a trilogy

Richly textured

Undoubtedly a political novel. It is also an interrogation of the purposes and efficacy of humour in exposing society's ills

[A] state-of-the-nation address

Jonathan Coe has taken aim at the absurdity of modern life

Looks as if it might be the most propulsive New York novel since Bonfire of the Vanities.

His New York City is ablaze, with fireworks, trashcan infernos and the burning Bronx.

A fantastic achievement; mesmerising, addictive in a way that a book this long really shouldn’t be, and full of intrigue. Hallberg’s writing is clear, insightful, and accessible; for all that it runs to almost 1,000 pages, each sentence has been crafted just so.

An epic of New York…a kind of punk Bleak House.

This magnificent first novel is full to bursting with plot, character, and emotion, all set within the exquisitely grungy 1970s New York City...Graceful in execution, hugely entertaining, and most concerned with the longing for connection, a theme that reaches full realization during the blackout of 1977, this epic is both a compelling mystery and a literary tour de force.

The very-damn-good American novel.

A vivid immersive novel.

Clocks in at a cool 944 pages, but we breezed through it in no time. It’s the story of a shooting in Central Park and its effect on ‘70s New York – the city’s scuzzy, punky peak.

Glitzy, gritty storytelling.

An outstanding novel… what an accomplishment.

Ambitious and assured – and stunningly good.

An American epic…But don’t wait for the movie. There’s writing here that’s too good to miss.

The biggest and boldest novel of this generation

Approach as you would a box set or a Shirley Conran novel - in stages. It's glitzy, gritty storytelling that is worth sticking with.

A fantastic achievement; mesmerising, addictive in a way that a book this long really shouldn't be, and full of intrigue. Hallberg's writing is clear, insightful, and accessible; for all that it runs to almost 1,000 pages, each sentence has been crafted just so.

This year’s most exciting fiction debut is a wild ride through the grimy, glorious city of the 1970s...a book that is truly that great, rare thing: a wholly inhabitable universe, reflecting back our lives while also offering an exhilarating escape from them

Expert storytelling, lyricism and authenticity…Fans of Donna Tartt’s The Goldfinch: you’re going to love this book

The hype is justified: this is the year’s must-read book

A gripping, atmospheric and authentic take on the decade when the Big Apple seemed almost rotten to the core

For almost a thousand pages, he swirls around a single tragedy — the shooting of a college student in Central Park — sweeping up tangential characters and making every one of them thrum with real life until the lightning strikes, the electric grid overloads and the city goes mad on that dark summer night in 1977.

The grit of the city provides an equal lure. As garbage blows, graffiti scrawls, and street fashions strut through Vinyl and City on Fire, who wouldn't swoon?

A vast cast of characters and intricate sub-plots, City on Fire has been compared to everything from Bleak House to the early work of Jonathan Franzen. Not to mention nods to Don DeLillo and Tom Wolfe.

Despite being a debut, it shows a technical maturity matched to a playful, sexy wit… A thriller, albeit an extremely clever and stylish one.

Imaginative debut… His eyes for the tiny things that make up life suggests better is to come.

This is one of those enormous books that might, if you’re luck, grab you and keep hold for days and days.