I really liked the sound of this one when I first read the information so I'm delighted to share my thoughts on Brouhaha by Ardal O'Hanlon today for my stop on the blog tour. My thanks to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for inviting me and to the publisher for my review copy.
The Blurb
The razor-sharp, violent and darkly comic satire on the politics and close-kept secrets of small-town Ireland from actor, comedian and writer Ardal O’Hanlon.
Dove Connolly is dead. That’s not good for anyone in Tullyanna, never mind Dove.
Now his best friend Sharkey is home asking awkward questions about Dove’s death, about the strange graphic novel he left behind, and, most of all, about Sandra. Sandra Mohan. Missing now for over a decade, whereabouts unknown.
This, however, is a town dead-set on keeping its secrets. And Sharkey is already drawing attention from all the wrong quarters…
A mystery, a black comedy, and a satire on Ireland’s tangled politics of memory, Brouhaha is an edgy, funny and fierce novel set in a small town on the Irish border during the transition to peace. And peace doesn’t come easy in these parts.
My Review
I haven't read Ardal O'Hanlon's previous novel, Talk of the Town, but as mentioned above, as soon as I read the blurb for Brouhaha I knew I wanted to give it a go. Sandra Mohan went missing ten off years ago. Her boyfriend of sorts, Dove Connolly and his best mate Philip Sharkey were chief suspects in her disappearance, both declaring their innocence. When no evidence was found and no charges were brought, Sharkey hoped stocks and left, keeping in touch with no one but his mother. But, now, Dove's death has brought Philip home to Tullyanna, determined to discover the truth about his friend's demise but also about what happened to Sandra. Because he is convinced Dove had found out something...
It took me a while to get used to O'Hanlon's writing style. The novel is written in the third person but very much as you would expect someone to be telling you the tale orally. Indeed, the author makes the occasional comment directly to the reader. So, the writing feels quite relaxed, with often long sentences going off at a slight tangent, perhaps to give us some background information or local knowledge, just as would be the case of someone was relaying the story, perhaps to a rapt audience in the corner of the local pub. If there is an audio book made of Brouhaha I would love to hear Ardal O'Hanlon himself narrate it - his voice would be perfect for it, particularly for the nuances of the Irish voices and phrases.
As well as Philip Sharkey, we also meet ex Garda officer Kevin and local journalist Joanne, both of whom are fascinated, some might say obsessed, by Sandra's case, and both of whom are determined to discover the truth. This unlikely trip give us the main characters for the story (together with Five and Sandra who both look large) but they are joined by a very colourful cast, not least Fergal Coleman, standing for the forthcoming council elections. All of these characters, and the many others, are brilliantly described - how they look, their mannerisms, their habits. I must confess to having a little soft spot for Philip, carrying as he does guilt over Dove's death but also a steely determination to find the truth.
There is plenty of humour to be found in the pages, sometimes gentle, sometimes dark, but there's lots of it. This seems to be a good place to share my favourite wee bit from the book, apologies to those of a sensitive nature:
'...some little dingleberry of a thought chafing away at the arse end off his mind.'
Sorry, it just tickled me because it was a word I hadn't heard in ages. 😂
There's politics too as the Troubles are fresh in the memory and the folks of Tullyanna include both Protestants and Catholics, Nationalists and Unionists. There's plenty of history and legend and the scene setting is very detailed, perhaps too many details at time.
And, of course, at the centre of it all is the story. And it's a story that sends us down a few blind alleys before we find out the truth. I loved the graphic comic that Dove left for Philip - the imagination of that from the author, the little in jokes, The clues that only the two men would understand because they knew each other so well - brilliant. And it's a story that I found really quite emotional and affecting.
As many of you know, I mainly read crime thrillers, and in Brouhaha, there is a crime, or two, at the centre. But it's a story about people, relationships, friendship bonds, love, determination, small town living and finding the truth. It's entertainingly written, full of humour and warmth. But there is definitely mounting tension as we progress towards the end of a the book with the occasional spot of peril thrown in. And it's very touching. It took me a wee while to get into to it but enjoyed it once I had.
I haven't read Ardal O'Hanlon's previous novel, Talk of the Town, but as mentioned above, as soon as I read the blurb for Brouhaha I knew I wanted to give it a go. Sandra Mohan went missing ten off years ago. Her boyfriend of sorts, Dove Connolly and his best mate Philip Sharkey were chief suspects in her disappearance, both declaring their innocence. When no evidence was found and no charges were brought, Sharkey hoped stocks and left, keeping in touch with no one but his mother. But, now, Dove's death has brought Philip home to Tullyanna, determined to discover the truth about his friend's demise but also about what happened to Sandra. Because he is convinced Dove had found out something...
It took me a while to get used to O'Hanlon's writing style. The novel is written in the third person but very much as you would expect someone to be telling you the tale orally. Indeed, the author makes the occasional comment directly to the reader. So, the writing feels quite relaxed, with often long sentences going off at a slight tangent, perhaps to give us some background information or local knowledge, just as would be the case of someone was relaying the story, perhaps to a rapt audience in the corner of the local pub. If there is an audio book made of Brouhaha I would love to hear Ardal O'Hanlon himself narrate it - his voice would be perfect for it, particularly for the nuances of the Irish voices and phrases.
As well as Philip Sharkey, we also meet ex Garda officer Kevin and local journalist Joanne, both of whom are fascinated, some might say obsessed, by Sandra's case, and both of whom are determined to discover the truth. This unlikely trip give us the main characters for the story (together with Five and Sandra who both look large) but they are joined by a very colourful cast, not least Fergal Coleman, standing for the forthcoming council elections. All of these characters, and the many others, are brilliantly described - how they look, their mannerisms, their habits. I must confess to having a little soft spot for Philip, carrying as he does guilt over Dove's death but also a steely determination to find the truth.
There is plenty of humour to be found in the pages, sometimes gentle, sometimes dark, but there's lots of it. This seems to be a good place to share my favourite wee bit from the book, apologies to those of a sensitive nature:
'...some little dingleberry of a thought chafing away at the arse end off his mind.'
Sorry, it just tickled me because it was a word I hadn't heard in ages. 😂
There's politics too as the Troubles are fresh in the memory and the folks of Tullyanna include both Protestants and Catholics, Nationalists and Unionists. There's plenty of history and legend and the scene setting is very detailed, perhaps too many details at time.
And, of course, at the centre of it all is the story. And it's a story that sends us down a few blind alleys before we find out the truth. I loved the graphic comic that Dove left for Philip - the imagination of that from the author, the little in jokes, The clues that only the two men would understand because they knew each other so well - brilliant. And it's a story that I found really quite emotional and affecting.
As many of you know, I mainly read crime thrillers, and in Brouhaha, there is a crime, or two, at the centre. But it's a story about people, relationships, friendship bonds, love, determination, small town living and finding the truth. It's entertainingly written, full of humour and warmth. But there is definitely mounting tension as we progress towards the end of a the book with the occasional spot of peril thrown in. And it's very touching. It took me a wee while to get into to it but enjoyed it once I had.
The Author
‘Growing up in the border region, I’ve always been captivated by the language and deadpan character and dark humour of the people and the place. In trying to capture that I’ve tried to write the sort of book I love to read - pacy, thrilling, edgy, insightful, funny, and humane and I really hope people enjoy it.’
Thank you x
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