John Banville – författare

A SUNDAY TIMES AND TLS BOOK OF THE YEAR, SHORTLISTED FOR THE AN POST IRISH BOOK AWARDS 2025FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW AND THE SEAEverything was a puzzle, everything a trap set to mystify and hinder me. . .Winter 1899, and strange things are afoot. As the new century approaches, English hack writer Evelyn Dolman marries Laura Rensselaer, the daughter of a wealthy American plutocrat. But in the midst of a rift between Laura and her father, Evelyn's plans for a substantial inheritance look to be dashed.Arriving in Venice for their belated honeymoon at Palazzo Dioscuri - the ancestral home of the charming but treacherous Count Barbarigo - the couple are met by a series of seeminglyotherworldly occurrences, which exacerbate Evelyn's already frayed nerves. Is it just the sea mist blanketing the floating city, or is he really losing his mind?'A marvellous and rewarding novelist . . . He is a magician, really.' THE SCOTSMAN'Banville has a grim gift of seeing people's souls.' DON DeLILLO'The most eminent innovator in Irish fiction of the last 50 years.' IRISH TIMES'One of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'Banville writes prose of such luscious elegance.' NEW YORK TIMES

* Vinnare av Guinness Peat Aviation Award 1989 *»Farligt fulländad prosa.« | Don DeLillo»Mästerlig roman, vars poetiska kvaliteter, aristokratiska ironi och sinne för stor smärta påminner om Vladimir Nabokovs Lolita.« | Washington PostFreddie Montgomery är en före detta universitetslärare i statistik. Nu sitter han häktad i ett smutsigt fängelse i Dublin, misstänkt för mord. Fängelset har han börjat kalla för »hemma« och nu är han redo att berätta sin historia. Så följer den hisnande dokumentationen om en människa som undan för undan släpper spärrarna för en förtvivlan utan mått eller mål. Om hur han och hans fru Daphne, som länge levt över sina tillgångar, funnit på dumdristiga sätt att hantera sitt växande pengabehov. I en spiral av händelser hamnar Freddie i situationen där han kliver över gränsen till det värsta brottets avgrund.Läsarens problem blir till sist detsamma som domarens: Talar Freddie ens ett uns sanning?John Banvilles roman Motivet [The Book of Evidence, 1989] har jämförts med Vladimir Nabokov, Albert Camus och Fjodor Dostojevskij och räknas i dag till en av de stora brittiska romanklassikerna. I översättning av Eva Sjöstrand och med ett nyskrivet efterord av litteraturvetaren och John Banville-forskaren Joakim Wrethed.JOHN BANVILLE [f. 1945] är en irländsk författare, dramatiker och journalist. Belönad med priser såsom Booker Prize, Austrian State Prize for European Literature, Franz Kafka Prize, Prince of Asturias Award, Guinness Peat Aviation Award och Irish PEN Award.»Inte lättvindigt tar jag till jämförelser med böcker som Albert Camus Främlingen och Fjodor Dostojevskijs Brott & straff, men det är frestande efter att ha läst John Banvilles svindlande roman.« | Publishers Weekly»Som upphostad från helvetet.« | The New York Times Book Review

A MASTERFUL TALE OF BETRAYAL AND CORRUPTION BY THE MAN BOOKER PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR OF THE SEA'Banville is one of the writers I admire the most' Hanya Yanahigara, author of A Little Life 'A brilliant feat of literary ventriloquism' The Times Having fled Rome and a stultifying marriage, Isabel Osmond is in London, brooding on the recent disclosure of her husband's shocking, years-long betrayal of her. What should she do now, and which way should she turn, in the emotional labyrinth where she has been trapped for so long? Reawakened by grief and the knowledge of having been grievously wronged, she determines to resume her youthful quest for freedom and independence. Soon Isabel must return to Italy and confront her husband, and seek to break his powerful hold on her. But will she succeed in outwitting him, and securing her revenge?Mrs Osmond is a masterly novel of betrayal, corruption and moral ambiguity, from the Man Booker Prize-winning author of The Sea. 'A worthy sequel ... His book is not only an impressive recreation of James's atmospheres and pacing, but also full of minor cliff-hangers and page-turning suspenses that keep you guessing' Observer'John Banville is one of the best novelists in English, and an expert ventriloquist, among other things ... Mrs Osmond is both a remarkable novel in its own right and a superb pastiche' Guardian 'John Banville is simply the finest writer at work today, a prolific prose stylist whose work has only deepened in quality throughout his career' John Boyne

'Billy Gray was my best friend and I fell in love with his mother.'Alexander Cleave, an actor who thinks his best days are behind him, remembers his first unlikely affair as a teenage boy in a small town in 1950s Ireland: the illicit meetings in a rundown cottage outside town; assignations in the back of his lover's car on sunny mornings and rain-soaked afternoons. And with these early memories comes something sharper and much darker - the more recent recollection of the actor's own daughter's suicide ten years before. Ancient Light is the story of a life rendered brilliantly vivid: the obsession and selfishness of young love and the terrifying shock of grief. It is a dazzling novel, funny, utterly pleasurable and devastatingly moving in the same moment.'Illuminating, funny, devastating. A meditation of breathtaking beauty and profundity on love and loss and death' Financial Times'Banville perfectly captures the spirit of adolescence. A luminous, breathtaking work' Independent on Sunday'Startlingly brilliant. Terrific - full of sadness and yearning' Sunday Telegraph

Inspired by the true story of Anthony Blunt and the Cambridge Five spy ring, The Untouchable is a beautifully crafted novel by John Banville, author of the Booker Prize-winning The Sea.Victor Maskell has been betrayed. After an announcement in the House of Commons and the hasty revelation of his double life of wartime espionage, his disgrace is public, his knighthood revoked, his position as curator of the Queen’s pictures terminated.There are questions to be answered. For whom has he been sacrificed? To what has he sacrificed his life?‘The Untouchable is an engrossing, exquisitely written and almost bewilderingly smart book . . . It’s the fullest book I’ve read in a very long time, utterly accomplished, thoroughly readable, written by a novelist of vast talent’ – Richard Ford, author of Independence Day

Inspired by the crimes of Malcolm Macarthur in Ireland, 1982, The Book of Evidence by John Banville is a gripping portrait of a cold, deceptive and utterly unprecedented killer, shortlisted for the Booker Prize.'Banville writes a dangerous and clear-running prose and has a grim gift of seeing people's souls' – Don DeLillo, author of White Noise and LibraFreddie Montgomery has committed two crimes. He stole a small Dutch master – an unattributed painting of a middle-aged woman – from a wealthy family friend. And he murdered a chambermaid who caught him in the act, bludgeoning her to death with a hammer.An eccentric narcissist, he has little to say about the woman he killed. He travels through life without any apparent remorse. He killed her, he says, because he was physically capable of it. It made sense to him.However, as he narrates his testimony, there is one thing he cannot understand. One thing he would desperately like to know. Why did he want to steal the painting?'Remarkable' – Ruth Rendell, author of the Inspector Wexford novelsThe Book of Evidence is the first in John Banville's acclaimed Frames Trilogy. It is followed by Ghosts and Athena.

Told with lyrical prose, John Banville's Birchwood is the elegiac story of the aristocratic decline of an eccentric family riddled with dark secrets.Once the big house on an Irish estate, Birchwood has turned into a baroque madhouse for its ruined inhabitants. One disaster succeeds another, until young Gabriel Godkin runs away to join a travelling circus and look for his long-lost twin sister. Soon he discovers that famine and unrest stalk the countryside, and Ireland is ruined too.

**THE DROWNED - THE CHILLING NEW STRAFFORD & QUIRKE MURDER MYSTERY - OUT NOW**THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER'Outstanding.' Irish Independent'Exquisite.' Daily Mail'Hypnotic.' Financial Times'This is crime fiction for the connoisseur.' The Times'The body is in the library,' Colonel Osborne said. 'Come this way.'Detective Inspector St John Strafford is called in from Dublin to investigate a murder at Ballyglass House - the Co. Wexford family seat of the aristocratic, secretive Osborne family.Facing obstruction from all angles, Strafford carries on determinedly in his pursuit of the murderer. However, as the snow continues to fall over this ever-expanding mystery, the people of Ballyglass are equally determined to keep their secrets.'A typically elegant country house mystery.' Guardian'A well-crafted story, peopled by superbly well-drawn characters, and put together in the finest prose . . . Masterly.' Irish IndependentReaders are gripped by Snow:***** 'A wonderfully imaginative twist on the country house murder mystery.'***** 'A chilling, strange elegiac story - mesmerising and rather horrifying.'***** 'Kept me hooked until the last page!'John Banville's book Snow was a Sunday Times Bestseller w/c 20-11-2021John Banville's book Snow was a Sunday Times Bestseller w/c 27-11-2021

'Deeply atmospheric.'MICK HERRON'A joy to read.' SUNDAY TIMES'The ultimate page-turner.' IRISH INDEPENDENTThe sumptuous, propulsive, sun-kissed follow up to the bestselling Snow, from the Booker Prize winning author.'He wanted to know who she was, and why he was convinced he had some unremembered connection with her. It was as simple as that. But he knew it wasn't. It wasn't simple at all.'When Dublin pathologist Quirke glimpses a familiar face while on holiday with his wife, it's hard, at first, to tell whether his imagination is just running away with him. Could she really be who he thinks she is, and have a connection with a crime that nearly brought ruin to an Irish political dynasty?Unable to ignore his instincts, Quirke makes a call back home and Detective St John Strafford is soon dispatched to Spain. But he's not the only one on route: as a terrifying hitman hunts down his prey, they are all set for a brutal showdown.Praise for Snow:'Superb ... crime fiction for the connoisseur.' The Times'Outstanding.' Irish Independent'Exquisite.' Daily Mail'Hypnotic.' Financial Times'Compelling.' Sunday Times'Superb to the last drop.' Independent

THE BRAND NEW STRAFFORD AND QUIRKE MURDER MYSTERY FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW. A CHILLING MUST-READ.'Banville is one of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'Haunting . . . compelling.' DAILY MAIL'Richly atmospheric.' IRISH INDEPENDENT'Suspenseful.' OBSERVER'A brilliant detecting team.' IRISH EXAMINER He had seen drowned people. A sight not to be forgotten.1950s, rural Ireland. A loner comes across a mysteriously empty car in a field. Knowing he shouldn't approach, but unable to hold back, he soon finds himself embroiled in a troubling missing person's case, as a husband claims his wife may have thrown herself into the sea.Called in from Dublin to investigate is Detective Inspector Strafford, who soon turns to his old ally - the flawed but brilliant pathologist Quirke - a man he is linked to in increasingly complicated ways.Praise for Snow:'Superb . . . crime fiction for the connoisseur.' The Times'Outstanding.' Irish Independent'Exquisite.' Daily Mail'Compelling.' Sunday Times'Superb to the last drop.' IndependentOn UK bestseller list w/e 13/11/2021-27/11/2021 for Paperback Fiction

THE BRAND NEW STRAFFORD AND QUIRKE MURDER MYSTERY FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW. A CHILLING MUST-READ.'Banville is one of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'Haunting . . . compelling.' DAILY MAIL'Richly atmospheric.' IRISH INDEPENDENT'Suspenseful.' OBSERVER'A brilliant detecting team.' IRISH EXAMINER He had seen drowned people. A sight not to be forgotten.1950s, rural Ireland. A loner comes across a mysteriously empty car in a field. Knowing he shouldn't approach, but unable to hold back, he soon finds himself embroiled in a troubling missing person's case, as a husband claims his wife may have thrown herself into the sea.Called in from Dublin to investigate is Detective Inspector Strafford, who soon turns to his old ally - the flawed but brilliant pathologist Quirke - a man he is linked to in increasingly complicated ways.Praise for Snow:'Superb . . . crime fiction for the connoisseur.' The Times'Outstanding.' Irish Independent'Exquisite.' Daily Mail'Compelling.' Sunday Times'Superb to the last drop.' IndependentOn UK bestseller list w/e 13/11/2021-27/11/2021 for Paperback Fiction

'Banville is one of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'Beautifully written and intriguing.' GUARDIANHe had seen drowned people. A sight not to be forgotten.1950s, rural Ireland. A loner comes across a mysteriously empty car in a field. Knowing he shouldn't approach, but unable to hold back, he soon finds himself embroiled in a troubling missing person's case, as a husband claims his wife may have thrown herself into the sea.Called in from Dublin to investigate is Detective Inspector Strafford, who soon turns to his old ally - the flawed but brilliant pathologist Quirke - a man he is linked to in increasingly complicated ways.Readers were gripped by The Drowned:'Addictive and atmospheric' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Remarkable . . . it took my breath away' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Another flawless Strafford and Quirke mystery' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'Outstanding, Banville is the best crime writer out there' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐On UK bestseller list w/e 13/11/2021-27/11/2021 for Paperback Fiction

'Hypnotic.'SUNDAY BUSINESS POST'Crime writing of the highest quality.'DAILY MAILThe Sunday Times bestselling author of Snow and April in Spain returns with Strafford and Quirke's most troubling case yet.1950s Dublin. The body of a young woman is discovered in a lock-up garage, an apparent suicide. But pathologist Dr Quirke and Detective Inspector Strafford soon suspect foul play.The victim's sister returns from London to help the two men, but, with relations between them increasingly strained, and their investigation taking them back to events from the final days of the Second World War, can they join the pieces of a hidden puzzle before it's too late?'Atmospheric and sinister with simmering tension . . . Once you start reading, it's impossible to stop.'DAILY EXPRESS'Addictive.'DAILY TELEGRAPHReaders are gripped by The Lock-Up:***** 'A real page-turner. . . Highly recommend!'***** 'Crime writing at its finest'***** 'Quite spectacular! John Banville is a wonderful writer'***** 'I had an absolute blast reading this novel. I genuinely didn't want it to end.'

'A compelling thriller.'DAILY MAIL'Superb.'SUNDAY TIMESThe Sunday Times bestselling author of Snow and April in Spain returns with Strafford and Quirke's most troubling case yet.1950s Dublin. The body of a young woman is discovered in a lock-up garage, an apparent suicide. But pathologist Dr Quirke and Detective Inspector Strafford soon suspect foul play.The victim's sister returns from London to help the two men, but, with relations between them increasingly strained, and their investigation taking them back to events from the final days of the Second World War, can they join the pieces of a hidden puzzle before it's too late?'Atmospheric and sinister with simmering tension . . . Once you start reading, it's impossible to stop.'DAILY EXPRESS'Addictive.'DAILY TELEGRAPHReaders are gripped by The Lock-Up:***** 'A real page-turner. . . Highly recommend!'***** 'Crime writing at its finest'***** 'Quite spectacular! John Banville is a wonderful writer'***** 'I had an absolute blast reading this novel. I genuinely didn't want it to end.'**THE DROWNED - THE CHILLING NEW STRAFFORD & QUIRKE MURDER MYSTERY - AVAILABLE FOR PRE-ORDER NOW**

A SUNDAY TIMES AND TLS BOOK OF THE YEAR, SHORTLISTED FOR THE AN POST IRISH BOOK AWARDS 2025FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW AND THE SEAEverything was a puzzle, everything a trap set to mystify and hinder me. . .Winter 1899, and strange things are afoot. As the new century approaches, English hack writer Evelyn Dolman marries Laura Rensselaer, the daughter of a wealthy American plutocrat. But in the midst of a rift between Laura and her father, Evelyn's plans for a substantial inheritance look to be dashed.Arriving in Venice for their belated honeymoon at Palazzo Dioscuri - the ancestral home of the charming but treacherous Count Barbarigo - the couple are met by a series of seeminglyotherworldly occurrences, which exacerbate Evelyn's already frayed nerves. Is it just the sea mist blanketing the floating city, or is he really losing his mind?'A marvellous and rewarding novelist . . . He is a magician, really.' THE SCOTSMAN'Banville has a grim gift of seeing people's souls.' DON DeLILLO'The most eminent innovator in Irish fiction of the last 50 years.' IRISH TIMES'One of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'Banville writes prose of such luscious elegance.' NEW YORK TIMES

A SUNDAY TIMES AND TLS BOOK OF THE YEAR, SHORTLISTED FOR THE AN POST IRISH BOOK AWARDS 2025FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW AND THE SEA'Memorable and disturbing.' GUARDIAN'A slyly fashioned work of art.' IRISH TIMESEverything was a puzzle, everything a trap set to mystify and hinder me. . .Winter 1899, and strange things are afoot. As the new century approaches, English hack writer Evelyn Dolman marries Laura Rensselaer, the daughter of a wealthy American plutocrat. But in the midst of a rift between Laura and her father, Evelyn's plans for a substantial inheritance look to be dashed.Arriving in Venice for their belated honeymoon at Palazzo Dioscuri - the ancestral home of the charming but treacherous Count Barbarigo - the couple are met by a series of seeminglyotherworldly occurrences, which exacerbate Evelyn's already frayed nerves. Is it just the sea mist blanketing the floating city, or is he really losing his mind?'A marvellous and rewarding novelist . . . He is a magician, really.' THE SCOTSMAN'Banville has a grim gift of seeing people's souls.' DON DeLILLO'The most eminent innovator in Irish fiction of the last 50 years.' IRISH TIMES'One of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'Banville writes prose of such luscious elegance.' NEW YORK TIMES

'Maybe it was time I forgot about Nico Peterson, and his sister, and the Cahuilla Club, and Clare Cavendish. Clare? The rest would be out of my mind, but not the black-eyed blonde . . . 'In 1950s L.A., business is slow, and Private Detective Philip Marlowe is restless and lonely as ever. Then a new client arrives. Young, beautiful and expensively dressed, Clare Cavendish wants Marlowe to find her former lover.Caught under the spell of this black-eyed blonde, Marlowe also finds himself tangling with one of L.A.'s richest families. It's not long before he finds out just how far they will go to protect their fortune.

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW 'Absorbing' The Times'Gripping' ScotsmanQuirke's pathology department, set deep beneath 1950s Dublin, is his own gloomy realm: always quiet, always night, and always under his control. Until, late one evening, he stumbles across a body that should not be there.The investigation he opens uncovers a dark secret at the heart of the city's high Catholic network - a secret with the power to shake his own family and everything he holds dear.Praise for the Quirke Series:'A joy to read.' Sunday Times'Darkly dangerous [with] flinty humour.' Daily Telegraph'Beguiling characters and evocative settings . . . Impeccable.' The Times

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW'Banville is one of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'More than a touch of genius.' THE TIMES Newspaper magnate Richard Jewell is found dead at his country estate, a shotgun still in his hands. Few see his demise as cause for sorrow, but before long, Quirke realizes that, rather than the suspected suicide, 'Diamond Dick' has been murdered.Suspicion soon falls on one of Jewell's biggest rivals, but as Quirke gets to know Jewell's beautiful, enigmatic wife, his fragile sister and those who work for the family, it becomes clear that not everything in this household is as it seems.Praise for the Quirke Series:'A joy to read.' Sunday Times'Darkly dangerous [with] flinty humour.' Daily Telegraph'Beguiling characters and evocative settings . . . Impeccable.' The Times

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW'Banville is one of my favourite writers alive.' REBECCA F. KUANG'More than a touch of genius.' THE TIMES As a deep, bewildering fog cloaks Dublin, a young woman named April is found to have vanished. Flawed pathologist Quirke responds to a request to help find her. Speaking with those who knew her, he begins to realize that there may have been more behind the young woman's secrecy than he could have imagined.When a disturbing discovery is made, the complex web of love, lies, jealousy and dark secrets that April spun her life from finally begins to unravel.Praise for the Quirke Series:'A joy to read.' Sunday Times'Darkly dangerous [with] flinty humour.' Daily Telegraph'Beguiling characters and evocative settings . . . Impeccable.' The Times

FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SNOW'Stunning' Independent'Impressive' Irish TimesWhen spring storms descend on 1950s Dublin, a body is found in a canal, and pathologist Quirke must find the truth behind this brutal murder. The investigation leads him into the dark heart of the organisation that really runs this troubled city: the church. As Quirke's traumatic childhood in a priest-run orphanage returns to haunt him, he must face his greatest trial yet.Praise for the Quirke Series:'A joy to read.' Sunday Times'Darkly dangerous [with] flinty humour.' Daily Telegraph'Beguiling characters and evocative settings . . . Impeccable.' The Times