The Rules of Revelation

Lisa McInerney Press Reviews

'THE RULES OF REVELATION is not only a glorious, bold, funny state-of-the-nation novel, but a beautiful and painful love story too' SALLY ROONEY

It's got all the crackle and verve and mad vivid life we've come to expect but it's so open-hearted and warm, too, and utterly engrossing - it's her best work to date, which is really saying something -- KEVIN BARRY

Sharp and satisfying . . . McInerney's world is a compelling sleazy demi-monde of drug dealers, sex workers and property developers, and she has a pleasing disdain for minimalism: here you'll find big characters and lots of them - Guardian

[Lisa McInerney has] high-voltage verve and an acute understanding of Ireland . . . [she is] a richly savage writer and an incisive chronicler of her home country - The Times

No other writer captures the pained, complex lives of damaged young men and women in contemporary Ireland like McInerney does. With her savage wit and caustic eye there's no shirking of the ugly truths of Irish society and the havoc wreaked on innocent lives. This is a raw, intense novel, full of tenderness, humour and above all humanity. -- MARY COSTELLO

Unsparing, unsentimental, but deeply affectionate...THE RULES OF REVELATION is stylish and relentlessly original -- NICOLE FLATTERY

THE RULES OF REVELATION is a perfect end to one of the best trilogies in modern Irish literature. McInerney's writing moves from the tragic to the hilarious with a dazzling deftness, examining a post-Crash Ireland - and its hypocrisy in how it shapes class, art, and feminism - with a gimlet eye. A triumph -- LOUISE O'NEILL - Irish Examiner

Sardonic, sexy, witty, lanky with a winsome smirk, which breaks into a long-stride run for the pure pleasure of it - and it is a pleasure to observe - The Spectator

Bristles with snap, crackle and pop . . . [Rules of Revelation] showcases a writer who isn't afraid to raise her voice . . . frank, gutsy and not for the faint-hearted - Irish Independent

An enthralling and expansive novel. There is no mistaking the brilliantly inventive, savage, technicolour bounce of McInerney's prose -- COLIN BARRETT

The characters, the dialogue, the wit and humanity - everything about this book glows -- RODDY DOYLE

Impressive . . . As in its predecessors in this, the most essential English-language fiction cycle since St Aubyn's Patrick Melrose novels, The Rules of Revelation's scenes are so alive and real, so insidiously affecting, that they weirdly engage most of the senses. -- GAVIN CORBETT

Flesh and blood, [McInerney's characters] are filled with the same contradictions and insecurities we all possess. On every page, we see how love, death and art inform their personalities . . . McInerney is a talented writer and has a way of injecting fun, farce and pathos when least expected - Sunday Independent Review

Lisa McInerney writes beautifully, her swooping prose offset by her brisk, blunt and unaffected dialogue - TLS

Few [Irish writers] have their finger on the pulse of contemporary society as strongly as Lisa McInerney. She propels the story via an energetic combination of irreverent dialogue, intimate vernacular and a vivid socio-political backdrop . . . you'll get a genuine sense of modern Ireland post-marriage equality and abortion referendums. You'll also get warmth, humour and an engaging love story amid all the division. - Sunday Business Post Review

The Rules of Revelation makes its own music, bold and bawdy, as it chases the demons and dragons that tease, thwart and titillate a quartet of women, all living in that city by the Lee - RTE Guide

A belting read of drink, drugs, music and finally getting to grips with the past - The Gloss Mention

Bright, funny and inventive with a chart-topper's swagger . . . McInerney's set is as Cork as Barry's Tea and just as strong - Irish Times

There's a gang of powerful young women writers in Ireland right now. But the one they should all be looking up to is Lisa McInerney . . . [she] is a fine writer who knows how to sharpen a sentence, and make every word count. She also writes brilliantly about music . . . Take a deep breath and hear this. Lisa McInerney's Cork trilogy is a major Irish literary achievement. And The Rules of Revelation is a riveting and essential read. - Hot Press Magazine

McInerney's observations on both gender politics and Ireland's perpetual identity crisis remain acute - Daily Mail

A literary feast . . . when it comes to fine writing [McInerney] is both architect and interior designer in her craft . . . [McInerney's] novels are rich with intriguing individuals of varying morals - Connaught Tribune

Bright and inventive, the dialogue funny, sharp and revealing of character - Irish Times Culture

The rollercoaster conclusion to the Women's prize-winning 'unholy trinity' of big-hearted, sharp-mouthed novels set amid Cork's seamy underbelly. A sideways look at modern Ireland, and a comic treat - Guardian

A belting read of drink, drugs, music and finally getting to grips with the past - The Gloss

Remarkable . . . It's hard to imagine anyone making a better go of creating a world this rich and real than McInerney - RTE Culture