Hostages

by Oisín Fagan

A bomb is born, lives, and dies in a demented rural school; Ireland experiences a rain of corpses falling from the sky; a strange tribal matriarchy on the banks of the River Boyne is threatened with extermination. In these five long stories the world breaks down in an endless cycle of hunger, desperation, violence, and domination. This is a truly radical vision of a dysfunctional yet stubbornly hopeful world, quite unlike any other in contemporary fiction.

Genres: Short Stories, Fiction, Irish Literature, Ireland

320 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2016

Reviews

[Matt Wake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to the folks at A Book Upstairs in Dublin who recommended this to me when I asked for something good in contemporary Irish fiction.

This a collection of short stories by a young new writer left me breathless. It's difficult to describe the genre as Fagan seems to have mastered dystopia, sci-fi and realistic fiction, and then just messed with them. A hip new J.G. Ballard is the closest I can get.

Enjoyed every word and wished there were more!

[Gurldoggie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very strong collection of stories, bitter and funny, brave and vulnerable. They are mostly set in a disturbing future Ireland, but the vision and language are very grounded and contemporary. A gifted young writer to watch.

[Sharon Keely · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll read most new Irish writing, but sci-fi is not my thing. That said, I got a lot further with this collection of stories than anything else I've read in the genre.

[Nadine in California · Rating 5 out of 5]

After finishing Fagan's Nobber I was so impressed that I practically stood and saluted. So funny, so visceral, so appallingly delightful! After my almost-salute I immediately bought this one, his first and only other book. While I wasn't quite as stratospherically thrilled this time, I was still well in 5 star territory. My favorite story is "The Costellos", my least favorite (but still very good) "The Sky Over Our Houses". I won't even try to describe this author's voice, but I'll quote a cover blurb from Joseph O'Connor that says it perfectly: Think Flan O'Brien on rocket fuel. It's funny, disconcerting, weird, shocking, a jaw-dropping flashmob of brilliantly written characters dressed as a full-scale riot. To that I might add a hint of James Joyce writing science fiction on acid. So. (This last sentence is a habit I picked up from the story "No Diamonds.")

[Orchid · Rating 5 out of 5]

Seriously. This collection of novellas was amazing. I love how with each story we progressed into a more surreal and futuristic world till we got to the last story and we were in a realm that seemed completely detached from our own. Each story were wonderfully written and highly entertaining. Plus I definitely enjoyed learning some Irish slang words, particularly in the first story.

[Pearl · Rating 3 out of 5]

Hit and miss. I love Fagan's writing, Nobber was one of my favourite reads last year but I lost the plot with some of these short stories. Really got to give points for experimentation though. I loved 'Being Born', 'Costellos' and 'Hostages' but couldn't quite get to grips with 'The Sky over our Houses' and 'The Price of Flowers'.
If I was rating this on just 'Hostages', it'd be a 5/5 so wickedly dark and funny, a complete standout for me.
Some quotes from the short story 'Hostages' which had me cackling include:
'she beat the holiness out of him once and for all, and when he came back he was grand and back to normal, and he didn't have a lisp anymore'
'by the time the kettle had boiled the revolution was over'
'dropped as hard as Sligo techno'
'he was just a virgin minus one'
This most definitely makes me want to read more of Fagan's work, I just didn't quite get on with it as well as I did Nobber.

[Cían · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining. Good descriptive language and an abstract blend of irishisms and dystopian fantasy. Definitely one of the most unique collections of stories I have ever read.
Felt as though stories changed pace too often however going from slow descriptive scenes into too rapidly advancing active scenes. Took me out of the story during these rapid changes.

[John OWENS · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastically absurd collection of stories any irish person can relate to and even non-irish people will find hilarious, interesting and just a wonderful read ! You just never know what might be lying ahead !

[John Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Modern Ireland through a violent filter of science fiction, celtic mysticism and political theory. Incredibly vivid with a hypnotising power. Fantastic.

[Noelle Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really different and thought-provoking. I can read pretty quickly normally but this book forced me to slow down and focus on every word. I loved the use of language in this, each word adding to the complex layers of these surreal stories in a familiar landscape, that's off kilter from the worls we know.

[Aine · Rating 3 out of 5]

As I prefer more character-driven work, these stories weren’t really for me, though I could appreciate how imaginative they were. The exception was “The Sky Over Our Houses”, which had a real truth about how a close Irish community would react to unusual occurrences.

[Ardan Hennessy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book of short stories situated in a strange yet familiar landscape of Co. Meath. Enjoyed each one but for various reasons.

Highly recommend if you like mind bending dystopias.

[Eimhin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as good as Nobber but still scratches that Flann itch like no b other author I've read.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

Maybe just a little too gory dystopian sci-fi for my liking, despite its occasional dark humour

[Liam Ostermann]

I can't resist adding that this author is brilliant!

[Shane C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book very exciting new author. The stories lie between satire horror scifi and humour. There is usually some part of the story that has an unexplained quality sometimes it revealed and others left to its mystery. The costellos story is the strongest and last one is where the fantasy goes off the scale and looses it's way. His endings need a little work but I look forward to a full length novel from him in the future. For fans of kevin barry and Donal Ryan.

[Anna McGlynn · Rating 5 out of 5]

From the get-go, this book ensnared me. Five stories capture the positive features and flaws of Mother Eire and it's inhabitants/hostages so astutely that it dumbfounds, enrages and pulls at your heart (through your tear ducts) all at once. Stunning.