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The Hopkins Conundrum: A Tragic Comedy About Gerard Manley Hopkins and Five Shipwrecked Nuns
Tim Cleverley inherits a failing pub in Wales, which he plans to rescue by enlisting an American pulp novelist to concoct an entirely fabricated "mystery" about Gerald Manley Hopkins, who composed "The Wreck of the Deutschland" nearby. Blending the real stories of Hopkins and the shipwrecked nuns he wrote about with a contemporary love story, while casting a wry eye on the Dan Brown industry, The Hopkins Conundrum is a highly original mix of commercial fiction, literary biography, and satirical commentary.
288 pages, Paperback
First published May 11, 2017
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247 people want to read
About the author
Simon Edge
12 books43 followersSimon Edge read philosophy at Cambridge and had a long career as a newspaper journalist and critic. He is the author of five novels, mostly satirical comedies with a historical theme: The Hopkins Conundrum, a ‘tragic comedy’ based on the life of the poet Gerard Manley Hopkins; The Hurtle of Hell, an atheist comedy featuring God as one of the main characters; A Right Royal Face-Off, about the rivalry between the painters Thomas Gainsborough and Sir Joshua Reynolds, mixed with a satirical modern story; Anyone for Edmund?, a political satire about the discovery of England’s long-lost patron saint; and The End of the World is Flat, described by novelist Jane Harris as ‘Animal Farm for the era of gender lunacy, with jokes’. He lives in Suffolk.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
January 28, 2018
Not A Conundrum, A Hat Trick
Three in one - you get a very sympathetic biography of the rather "difficult" poet Hopkins, a tragic shipwreck tale, and a cheerful bright romantic comedy that includes a brutal send up of the Dan Brown/ DaVinci phenomenon. (As a bonus there are also a lot of sly observations about the Welsh setting, including a rousing defense of Welsh bardic poetry, and a rural Welshman who ends up the wisest of them all.)
This is a sneaky book because while there are three threads separated in time and theme and style , (and even told in alternating chapters), the three threads twist around each other and subtly compete for the reader's attention. We start with the tale of recently divorced Tim and his half-hearted attempt to make a go of a practically abandoned Welsh countryside pub. Tim and his former wife broke up, ostensibly, over things like her mindless obsession with a book exactly like "The DaVinci Code". At the same time we join a group of nuns boarding a ship to America that we know is doomed to wreck and take them with it. We also open our tale of Gerard Manley Hopkins and his fraught monastic life. Where will this go?, which tale will take the lead?, how much of the nun's piety and Hopkins' declamations about poetry will I be able to stand?
Well, this is where the author plays about. Tim's scheme to build a DaVinci Code mystery around his pub and Manleys' days in the same Welsh Valley adds the first round of energy and laugh out loud humor. But then the shipwreck tale becomes rather gripping. Then the Hopkins tale grabs the reader as Gerard becomes a more interesting and sympathetic character than merely a writer of underappeciated and sometimes incoherent poetry. Romance enters Tim's picture and the rom-com seems to be winning, except the shipwreck starts to come to a head, but for the fact that Hopkins becomes even more interesting. And so it goes.
By the end there's been some romantic farce with a bright and charming heroine and a rueful Tim who has ended up being schooled in the ways of women and life. The tragic shipwreck has been even more melancholy and tragic than expected. And somehow Hopkins has ended up the lovely and complex and sympathetic center of this surprising book.
As I said, a stunning, entertaining, very funny, very touching, and always surprising hat trick. A nice find.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
Three in one - you get a very sympathetic biography of the rather "difficult" poet Hopkins, a tragic shipwreck tale, and a cheerful bright romantic comedy that includes a brutal send up of the Dan Brown/ DaVinci phenomenon. (As a bonus there are also a lot of sly observations about the Welsh setting, including a rousing defense of Welsh bardic poetry, and a rural Welshman who ends up the wisest of them all.)
This is a sneaky book because while there are three threads separated in time and theme and style , (and even told in alternating chapters), the three threads twist around each other and subtly compete for the reader's attention. We start with the tale of recently divorced Tim and his half-hearted attempt to make a go of a practically abandoned Welsh countryside pub. Tim and his former wife broke up, ostensibly, over things like her mindless obsession with a book exactly like "The DaVinci Code". At the same time we join a group of nuns boarding a ship to America that we know is doomed to wreck and take them with it. We also open our tale of Gerard Manley Hopkins and his fraught monastic life. Where will this go?, which tale will take the lead?, how much of the nun's piety and Hopkins' declamations about poetry will I be able to stand?
Well, this is where the author plays about. Tim's scheme to build a DaVinci Code mystery around his pub and Manleys' days in the same Welsh Valley adds the first round of energy and laugh out loud humor. But then the shipwreck tale becomes rather gripping. Then the Hopkins tale grabs the reader as Gerard becomes a more interesting and sympathetic character than merely a writer of underappeciated and sometimes incoherent poetry. Romance enters Tim's picture and the rom-com seems to be winning, except the shipwreck starts to come to a head, but for the fact that Hopkins becomes even more interesting. And so it goes.
By the end there's been some romantic farce with a bright and charming heroine and a rueful Tim who has ended up being schooled in the ways of women and life. The tragic shipwreck has been even more melancholy and tragic than expected. And somehow Hopkins has ended up the lovely and complex and sympathetic center of this surprising book.
As I said, a stunning, entertaining, very funny, very touching, and always surprising hat trick. A nice find.
(Please note that I received a free advance ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)
January 7, 2025
"Tragic" in the subtitle relates to the 19th century part of the novel, with its vivid account of terrified nuns clustering in the saloon of the wrecked Deutschland, not daring to go up on deck to await possible rescue, and insights into the frustrations of Hopkins' life. The "Comedy" is that of Tim, the owner of an unsuccessful pub in a small Welsh village hoping to scam his way into making Hopkins' monastery into a tourist attraction. I found the pub and its landlord so unappealing that the book spent several years on my shelf before I chose it to kick off my tbr-takedown challenge. The story takes a turn for the better with the apperance of Chloe, a true Hopkins fan, and the comedy has a happy ending.
August 2, 2020
An odd but entertaining tale about a poet, some nuns, and a man who inherits a pub
Making me realise I knew less than nothing about Gerard Manley Hopkins, this is an entertaining book telling three interwoven stories.
Making me realise I knew less than nothing about Gerard Manley Hopkins, this is an entertaining book telling three interwoven stories.
Read
March 4, 2018Thoroughly enjoyable, an illuminating look at the life of a certain poet that I (and I'm not alone) tended to avoid, and how the repercussions of his actions in the past set a new agenda in the present. I loved the book which is a very impressive debut. I look forward to more from Simon Edge.
August 2, 2018
I'm so grateful this book had three story lines. Oddly, the two based on real events I found more interesting than the barkeep. If it was only about the barkeep it would have gotten a lower star count. There were times when I found him so annoying. But before I could properly feel strongly against him, we're with someone else and I'm back to being entertained.
January 18, 2021
In The Hopkins Conundrum, we have three stories in one, very cleverly woven together and beautifully written by Simon Edge.
In one strand, we learn about well-meaning Tim, who, after the devastating breakup of his marriage, inherits a failing pub and rushes off to Wales, The Red Lion and its lone customer, as fast as he possibly can. However, Alun Gwynne (his barfly, singular) with his pint and a half a night, is not bringing in the sort of money to keep the pub alive. Tim needs a hook to bring in the tourists.
As it turns out, Gerard Manley Hopkins, writer of complicated and ethereal poetry, underrated and misunderstood in his time, wrote ’The Wreck Of The Deutschland’ just down the road from Tim’s bar. If he can just convince an American writer of conspiracy theories that there are hidden messages in the verse (a la Da Vinci Code), he can make a fortune.
And we slip into Hopkins's story, in the late 1800s. Gerard Manley Hopkins has come to the area to dedicate his life to God. He is a fish out of water on a few levels. He is a convert in a Catholic order, an Englishman in Wales, and a gay man in the 1800s. However, it is during his time in Wales that he finds an outlet for his poetic side, and writes the story of a terrible shipwreck which hit the area some years before.
And here, we meet the five German nuns who sailed aboard the ill fated ship. When The Deutschland runs aground in a storm, the water comes pouring in and the lifeboats are summoned. But when Sister Henrica sees two of the lifeboats, loaded with seafarers, snatched under a wave with all souls lost, she can’t bring herself to tell her fellow nuns, or the panicking tourists, what she has seen. But can they be saved when they insist on staying below deck and praying?
Some beautiful observations here. I especially liked this passage about what it’s like to be an outsider:
'He has imagined them watching him ever since he arrived here, and at first he brushed the thought away, telling himself that this is his own townie prejudice against small places, and everyone has much better things to do than sit around spying on him. He has almost convinced himself of this when Alun Gwynne will say, “I hear you’ve been to the supermarket, landlord” or “Did you enjoy your walk up the hill?” - which is enough to make him barricade himself indoors.’
From North Wales, The Present, 33% in, The Hopkins Conundrum by Simon Edge
A very clever story, combining historical fiction and contemporary romantic comedy, I really enjoyed this story. Thoroughly original, funny and heartfelt, I look forward to reading more from this author.
In one strand, we learn about well-meaning Tim, who, after the devastating breakup of his marriage, inherits a failing pub and rushes off to Wales, The Red Lion and its lone customer, as fast as he possibly can. However, Alun Gwynne (his barfly, singular) with his pint and a half a night, is not bringing in the sort of money to keep the pub alive. Tim needs a hook to bring in the tourists.
As it turns out, Gerard Manley Hopkins, writer of complicated and ethereal poetry, underrated and misunderstood in his time, wrote ’The Wreck Of The Deutschland’ just down the road from Tim’s bar. If he can just convince an American writer of conspiracy theories that there are hidden messages in the verse (a la Da Vinci Code), he can make a fortune.
And we slip into Hopkins's story, in the late 1800s. Gerard Manley Hopkins has come to the area to dedicate his life to God. He is a fish out of water on a few levels. He is a convert in a Catholic order, an Englishman in Wales, and a gay man in the 1800s. However, it is during his time in Wales that he finds an outlet for his poetic side, and writes the story of a terrible shipwreck which hit the area some years before.
And here, we meet the five German nuns who sailed aboard the ill fated ship. When The Deutschland runs aground in a storm, the water comes pouring in and the lifeboats are summoned. But when Sister Henrica sees two of the lifeboats, loaded with seafarers, snatched under a wave with all souls lost, she can’t bring herself to tell her fellow nuns, or the panicking tourists, what she has seen. But can they be saved when they insist on staying below deck and praying?
Some beautiful observations here. I especially liked this passage about what it’s like to be an outsider:
'He has imagined them watching him ever since he arrived here, and at first he brushed the thought away, telling himself that this is his own townie prejudice against small places, and everyone has much better things to do than sit around spying on him. He has almost convinced himself of this when Alun Gwynne will say, “I hear you’ve been to the supermarket, landlord” or “Did you enjoy your walk up the hill?” - which is enough to make him barricade himself indoors.’
From North Wales, The Present, 33% in, The Hopkins Conundrum by Simon Edge
A very clever story, combining historical fiction and contemporary romantic comedy, I really enjoyed this story. Thoroughly original, funny and heartfelt, I look forward to reading more from this author.
September 11, 2020
This is something of a tour de force. A brilliant juggling act in which the author expertly keeps three 'balls' in the air without dropping one of them even once. It's like reading three novels at once or three novels in one - which is certainly something of a novel experience for me! The really impressive aspect of the book is that the author combines highly enjoyable comedy (including romantic comedy) with the deepest tragedy all in one work. He does this through the rather clever trick of telling the three different but interrelating stories in three different time frames. It may not be totally original but he pulls it off with great aplomb. The comedy - which is always almost impossible to do - he does very adroitly. The tragedy of the shipwreck he describes with terrifying power - the power lying not just in the vivid physical description of the wreck itself but the humane characterisations of the doomed passengers, especially of course the five nuns. The other tragic story is the story of GM Hopkins himself - who like the tragic nuns, it seems to me, was also doomed, in the sense that he not only 'failed' as a poet during his lifetime, but seems to have been profoundly unhappy as both a man and a priest as well. I say this as a great admirer of his work and despite his own apparent declaration of having had a happy life on his tragically early deathbed. To sum up, perhaps the two best compliments I can pay this brilliant novel is that, one, I came away thinking it should have been written by David Lodge and, two, I'll definitely be reading more by Simon Edge ...
August 3, 2017
A very enjoyable yarn that satisfyingly combines the real history of poet Gerard Manley Hopkins, five nuns on board a sinking Victorian ship, and a modern day parody of the Dan Brown books. The central story sees Tim Cleverly inherit a small rural pub in Wales and its one regular. In a desperate attempt to drum up more custom he starts to invent a Dan Brownesque plot with the obscure poetry of Hopkins, the story of the nuns, a Vatican cover up of missing documents and a gullible American author. The only thing Tim hadn't planned on, apart from needing an actual mystery, was the appearance of Chloe as his new love interest.
We switch between a biography of Hopkins, the ill fated sea voyage and the modern day antics in the pub. All three tales are convincingly handled, and since Tim has no real aptitude for his cunning plot, there is plenty of humour.
We switch between a biography of Hopkins, the ill fated sea voyage and the modern day antics in the pub. All three tales are convincingly handled, and since Tim has no real aptitude for his cunning plot, there is plenty of humour.
July 12, 2022
This book kept me away from Twitter for over a day and not many books can do this. Simon Edge is an excellent story teller. In this romantic comedy he gives genuine insights into the poetry and character of Gerard Manly Hopkins, researches the events provoking Hopkins' famous poem, captures very neatly the clever ways a cynic might exploit Hopkins' legacy (and it is clever) and offers the possibility of a more appropriate and respectful alternative, but mainly he sees a rather boyish male character through something like a belated coming of age with a lot of help from others. He does all that in a light hearted and gentle way. Everything that happens leads us to expect something predictable and the only thing that turns out as expected is that it always makes me smile... maybe not the shipwreck but everything else.
November 11, 2022
It would be a quite an achievement to write a successful novella based on Gerard Manley Hopkins, so different is his life and outlook from most of us in our time. To combine this with a romantic comedy-caper and an account of the actual wreck of the Deutschland is remarkable. The three stories are all linked but are quite different in tone and style. Not only are they each effective in themselves - the story of the wreck, particularly, is quietly horrific and terrifying, almost putting you on board the stricken ship - but they work together to make a satsifying whole.
The Hopkins Conundrum is a great shortish read - both enjoyable and insightful. Not only that, it's also informative - I learned something about Hopkins, his poetry and even St Winifred's Well from this book. It was free on Kindle when I downloaded it.
The Hopkins Conundrum is a great shortish read - both enjoyable and insightful. Not only that, it's also informative - I learned something about Hopkins, his poetry and even St Winifred's Well from this book. It was free on Kindle when I downloaded it.
January 1, 2019
An odd juxtaposition of a man searching for meaning and love while trying to con his way to financial success, and the story of some German Roman Catholic nuns running from the Reformation into their faith-determined deaths.
There are things to think about. What is the point of a life? What are the effects of the stories we tell ourselves?
I imagine the relation of the two stories to one another is not as clearly delineated as a great many readers would prefer. But if you like to sit and ruminate about why and what, this is a fine book to practice on.
There are things to think about. What is the point of a life? What are the effects of the stories we tell ourselves?
I imagine the relation of the two stories to one another is not as clearly delineated as a great many readers would prefer. But if you like to sit and ruminate about why and what, this is a fine book to practice on.
May 7, 2019
The Hopkins Conundrum is a novel with three interlocking strands. One of these is about Gerard Manley Hopkins the Victorian poet and Jesuit priest. The second tells the story of the wreck of the Deutschland - the subject of his most famous poem. The final thread is a romantic comedy about Tim Cleverly who has inherited a failing pub just down the road from where Hopkins wrote his masterpiece.
Tim's a likeable character and his schemes to increase trade at his pub lead him to learn about Hopkins - a clever device by the author to educate those of us who know little about him or his work. Add to that his dramatisation of the story of the shipwreck and the fate of the five nuns fleeing Germany's anti-Catholic laws and suddenly there's a lot to learn from what is ultimately a highly enjoyable feel-good easy read. It's very cleverly done and definitely an author to keep an eye on.
Tim's a likeable character and his schemes to increase trade at his pub lead him to learn about Hopkins - a clever device by the author to educate those of us who know little about him or his work. Add to that his dramatisation of the story of the shipwreck and the fate of the five nuns fleeing Germany's anti-Catholic laws and suddenly there's a lot to learn from what is ultimately a highly enjoyable feel-good easy read. It's very cleverly done and definitely an author to keep an eye on.
June 27, 2023
Clever, enjoyable and touching
The weaving together of three strands - Tim (Notso) Cleverley and his attempt to rescue a life that seems to be nothing like he hoped in all its parts, the life of Gerard Manley Hopkins, and the playing out of the fate of the doomed nuns in the wreck of the Deutschland - is beautifully accomplished. I enjoyed the real feel for the life and work of Hopkins that played through this, and warmed to Tim as his schemes go first awry and he is then rescued.
The weaving together of three strands - Tim (Notso) Cleverley and his attempt to rescue a life that seems to be nothing like he hoped in all its parts, the life of Gerard Manley Hopkins, and the playing out of the fate of the doomed nuns in the wreck of the Deutschland - is beautifully accomplished. I enjoyed the real feel for the life and work of Hopkins that played through this, and warmed to Tim as his schemes go first awry and he is then rescued.
April 28, 2025
Unexpectedly fun
I began reading this after a search for Hopkins, and a light satire seemed just the thing. All the perspectives work together beautifully, and even though Tim's annoyed me a bit at first, I was rooting for his happiness before long.
I removed a star for the suggestiveness about Hopkins' personal life and attractions. I admit that I haven't read extensive biographies about him, but I do doubt that he would like to have been remembered in that way.
That's a fairly minor part of an otherwise fun novel that I didn't expect to like as much as I did.
I began reading this after a search for Hopkins, and a light satire seemed just the thing. All the perspectives work together beautifully, and even though Tim's annoyed me a bit at first, I was rooting for his happiness before long.
I removed a star for the suggestiveness about Hopkins' personal life and attractions. I admit that I haven't read extensive biographies about him, but I do doubt that he would like to have been remembered in that way.
That's a fairly minor part of an otherwise fun novel that I didn't expect to like as much as I did.
July 28, 2020
I loved the way that Edge mixes his historical with his fiction. The two strands of history are well woven into the charming story of a North Wales publican trying to get his business up and running. It’s funny and reminded me how much I loved Hopkins poetry at Uni. A real winner for me and as it’s by an Indie Publisher it fits with my desire to support small businesses and highlight indie publishers - you can buy straight from the Publisher’s website as well.
September 21, 2021
This book is well rated overall, so it clearly works for a lot do people, but despite having high hopes for it, I was incredibly disappointed by it. A wonderful premise with good prose could not save it from the strange narrative choices: unnecessary side plots that added nothing to the story, a completely unjustified (logically or narratively) romance, and two main plots that seemed totally unrelated in the end. I wanted to love this but I really ended up disliking it, sadly.
September 4, 2017
This was a very pleasant read, three stories merged into one. This is not my usual sort of read, and admittedly it did take me a little while to get into it, as the chapters flipped from one story to another, but once I got the hang of it I did find it enjoyable and all three stories were well-written and interesting.
September 10, 2017
I liked this novel by Simon Edge. Switching between the various plots took some getting used to, especially as the Hopkins story jumps forward ten years at one point, but each individual story helps flesh out details in the other stories. Edge does a nice job of furthering poetry appreciation, and it was humorous.
February 17, 2020
This is what I tweeted to the author, a few moments ago:
@I just finished The Hopkins Conundrum at a gallop! I loved how you entwined the three story threads so beautifully; the poignant and tragic with the bright and playful. Looking forward to reading your other two!"
Which pretty much covers it.
@I just finished The Hopkins Conundrum at a gallop! I loved how you entwined the three story threads so beautifully; the poignant and tragic with the bright and playful. Looking forward to reading your other two!"
Which pretty much covers it.
May 31, 2023
I miraculously finished this book about a day before I went to a lecture in St Beuno’s — just like the characters in the novel. I really enjoyed all the Hopkins segments, which were surprisingly faithful. It was nice seeing him stubborn and gormless and love-struck in turns. The rest of it is inconsequentially sweet and inoffensive, albeit hetero. Thoroughly enjoyed overall.
September 2, 2025
This gets an extra star purely because the first Hopkins chapter is really good and it made me reread ‘The Wreck of the Deutschland’ (how is that poem so good!? How!?), but mostly it just made me wish I was reading Hopkins instead because oh god did I not care about the stupid Da Vinci Code plot and its deeply unpleasant, one-note characters.
September 3, 2019
Very enjoyable read combining the three stories of the poet, shipwreck and the new pub owner. I’m not sure why I haven’t given it a 5 , i think further books will find that X factor that makes it a five.
June 6, 2017
Loved it - knew of Hopkins from schooldays but this presented him in a totally different light and made me want to go back and look at his poetry.
September 8, 2018
Great storytelling
Simon Edge brings a delightful comic touch to weighty themes such as religion, death and being Welsh. I highly recommend this book.
Simon Edge brings a delightful comic touch to weighty themes such as religion, death and being Welsh. I highly recommend this book.
February 8, 2019
Highly recommended. A cleverly woven tale
August 27, 2019
Real and unreal
Interesting combination of fact and fiction and quite effective. I found the historical passages a little pedestrian - the research showed through.
Interesting combination of fact and fiction and quite effective. I found the historical passages a little pedestrian - the research showed through.
April 17, 2020
Loved it! A story told from three perspectives, over two time zones, and beautifully intertwined to make one very happy reader.
October 25, 2020
Enjoyable tale.
Amusing in parts and now I know a bit about the works of Gerard Manley Hopkins.
And that’s enough for me !
Worth reading though.
Amusing in parts and now I know a bit about the works of Gerard Manley Hopkins.
And that’s enough for me !
Worth reading though.
Read
April 3, 2021I enjoyed it. Felt like it could have used a bit more of an edit, but enjoyed the story.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews