Description

WINNER OF THE SUNDAY TIMES AUDIBLE SHORT STORY AWARD

‘A gripping novel and a sharp, entertaining examination of the nature of art and its power to inspire and corrupt’ Roddy Doyle

Nessa McCormack’s marriage is coming back together again after her husband’s affair. She is excited to be in charge of a retrospective art exhibit for one of Ireland’s most beloved and enigmatic artists, the late sculptor Robert Locke. But the arrival of two outsiders imperils both her personal and professional worlds: a chance encounter with an old friend threatens to expose a betrayal Nessa thought she had long put behind her, and at work, an odd woman comes forward claiming to be the true creator of Robert Locke’s most famous work, The Chalk Sculpture.

As Nessa finds the past intruding on the present, she must decide whether she can continue to live a lie – or whether she’s ready to face the consequences once everything is out in the open. In this gripping debut, Danielle McLaughlin reveals profound truths about love, power, and the secrets that rule us.

Publisher Review

A gripping novel and a sharp, entertaining examination of the nature of art and its power to inspire and corrupt * Roddy Doyle * In The Art of Falling, McLaughlin adds to literature something fresh and vital: a real, unbeautified narrative about a woman's career and life. Truths withheld are part of that life, as they are part of the narrative . . . but none are withheld from the reader. The truths hit home, powerfully. A propulsive, disquieting, arrestive novel by a master of social realism * Caoilinn Hughes * There are very few writers who can craft characters with the depth and subtlety Danielle McLaughlin brings to her writing. The Art of Falling is a delicate slow burn of a novel. It is a big novel sitting within a close and small frame; a book of unspoken regrets and long-kept secrets and the slow revelation of humanity. There are shades here of Alice Munro at her finest. Like Munro, McLaughlin is best when writing those quiet moments which resonate long after the event * Jan Carson * Remarkable . . . This engaging and evocative work will stay with readers * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *