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Tomahawk Theme by Safe As Milk
Kerry’s debut novel, Swansong, published by Jonathan Cape, is OUT NOW.
“Swansong is the real thing, right from the start: spiky, strange and contemporary, but always with a dark undertow of myth and folklore tugging at its telling. The voice jags at...

Kerry’s debut novel, Swansong, published by Jonathan Cape, is OUT NOW.

“Swansong is the real thing, right from the start: spiky, strange and contemporary, but always with a dark undertow of myth and folklore tugging at its telling. The voice jags at you, and the plot grips: this is a brilliant novel by a writer - and musician - of frankly alarming talent.” – Robert Macfarlane

‘An enigmatic novel rich in detail… [Andrew’s] sensitivity to the character of sound and to the everyday musicality of the world resonates in her writing…her sentences and passages are as finely crafted and nuanced as her songs’ The Guardian

“[An] assured, immersive and atmospheric first novel” - The Independent (iPaper)

“centred on a witty, sharp and irreverent student, Polly Vaughan… memorably eerie moments… beautifully lyrical and steeped in local folklore” - Times Literary Supplement

“A dark, glittering, contemporary take on the traditional folk song Molly Bawn that frames heart-bruised emotion in tactile prose… Andrew gives us words that sing.” - The Herald

“A darkly captivating tale of myth, magic and sinister secrets” - Mail on Sunday

“a very striking debut novel… It is a swift, lithe and engaging read and promises more - and perhaps more idiosyncratic - work to come… Polly is a gobbier, sadder version of Alan Warner’s Movern Callar or the schoolgirls of The Sopranos… [the crossover] between the naturalistic and the supernatural… is done with singular elegance.’ - Scotland on Sunday

‘Elegant, eerie and strange, this is a brilliantly chilling debut’ - Psychologies

“Like the great storytelling tradition it extends so elegantly, Swansong is all about transformation, whether through love, rage, fear or desperation: a chilling tour de force that draws the old gods and demons from the land, and lets them loose in the most unexpected ways. It is also an utterly compelling psychological thriller, a book you will simply refuse to put down until the last piece of its extraordinary puzzle falls into place. Essential reading.” – John Burnside

‘An atmospheric and disquieting tale’ - Tatler

’[A} confident and atmospheric debut… Rooted in Celtic mythology and written with exquisite precision, the novel possesses a lyrical, dreamlike quality. - Daily Mail

“I loved Swansong: a subtle, supernatural tale told in a present-day voice, unsettling right from the start. The writing is so vivid and charged with energy, it’s truly a remarkable novel.” – Shirley Collins

‘a mesmerising blend of folklore, myth, ancient tunes, new tunes, poetry, sass, wit, innocence, wisdom, independent women and men in trouble… it’s a corker on so many levels and trust me, well worth the read.’ Max Reinhardt, Late Junction, BBC Radio 3

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4 months ago
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3 notes

  1. milsm82 said: Swansong is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time. I was drawn into the story at once, and found Polly to be a remarkable character. There was something endearing almost about her, as she tried to come to terms with her past, and form new bonds in her present. There was something haunting about the book as a whole, with the Celtic myth coming in at regular points, interwoven very well with Polly’s own viewpoint.
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