A Washington Post Book of the Year
A masterpiece.
Masterly. Sublime. This is a literary thriller of the highest order.
A masterpiece.
A spectacular, thrilling novel. Magnificent.
A novel that will make your heart sing.
Magnificent. O’Connor’s language flows with a beauty worthy of Rome itself.
Brilliantly done.
SO beautifully written, a masterclass in ‘voices’ and an EXTREMELY TENSE thriller. It is magnificent.
Gripping. A masterful and seamless blend of fact and fiction.
Riveting.
Electrifying.
O’Connor is on stellar form with this ensemble thriller… while the story’s inbuilt tension urges you on, it’s the sheer vigour of O’Connor’s beautifully turned phrases that really makes the book sing… an expert storyteller.
Superb. I’ll be stunned if I read a better novel this year.
Expertly plotted… Brilliantly paced… O’Connor brings vividly to life a man who stands up to be counted. It is hard not to be captivated by his presence in this hugely satisfying book, from its explosive beginning to its bittersweet end.
An Amazon.Com Editors’ Pick, 2023
A mesmerising story of valour and deep human kindness.
A tale worth re-telling, adorned as it is by the brilliants of O’Connor’s impressionistic writing.
A masterwork… so urgent, so incredibly alive… A searing and beautiful example of storytelling’s infinite importance.
Gripping, compelling and utterly brilliant. O’Connor’s gift for exquisite language shines through.
I was utterly engrossed from start to finish. The writing hums with energy. Such a gloriously vivid depiction of a Rome that is both familiar and altogether strange. And a powerful story of ordinary humans showing extraordinary bravery and tenacity. Bravo!
I can’t begin to tell you how much I enjoyed it. Everything about it spoke to me. The characters, the location and the story itself. It is that rare thing, a literary page-turner. There were times when I was almost reading with my eyes closed because I couldn’t handle the suspense. Rome at such a difficult time, but full of beauty and courage. My Father’s House is a terrific read.
Joseph O’Connor is a very great artist and storyteller.
Breathtakingly good writing. O’Connor puts you right there, centre stage in the story, and never lets you go.
A compelling work of fiction.
There are few living writers who can take us back in time so assuredly, with such sensual density, through such gorgeous sentences. Joseph O’Connor is a wonder.
Intensely atmospheric, immersive and thrilling.
A thrilling new novel, and a brilliant description of Rome during wartime.
A very powerful and gripping book, and a terrific evocation of Rome at this time.
Hugely impressive and utterly haunting.
Riveting… a storytelling tour de force. This is top-drawer WWII fiction.
O’Connor’s phrasings are a special joy… A deeply emotional read.
A hugely entertaining book about the grand scope of friendship and love, it is also, movingly – at times, astonishingly – a story of transience, loss and true loyalty.
O’Connor is a masterful storyteller. Superb!
Triumphant.
Glorious.
Impressive and pleasurable. The diverse ventriloquism of My Father’s House evokes the city in peril with wonderful vitality.
Superb craftsmanship. Finally – and triumphantly – My Father’s House is an intimate drama that illuminates both the fragility and the wonder of unlikely human connections forged in adversity and, in some cases, enduring for a lifetime.
A triumph, the first literary classic of 2023. It’s the kind of hold-my-calls story that armchairs were invented for and will doubtless have won awards by the end of the year.
A thriller of engrossing urgency.
Thrilling… Based on true events, this tense, gripping narrative is rendered in beautifully evocative prose.
The novel’s evocative scene-setting, its propulsive narration and its powerful depiction of bravery and unity in extremis, all make for an engrossing read.
Precisely choreographed. We follow the characters eagerly through high-stakes jeopardy.
O’Connor is a fine novelist… By any standards an extraordinary tale.
Rome is perhaps the ideal setting for a historical novel, and Joseph O’Connor explores its mysteries in gripping detail.
An irresistible work of historical fiction.
A masterpiece.
Never has the incredible story of Monsignor Hugh O’Flaherty been fictionalised in such a vividly immersive experience. A powerful work of art.
Multi-voiced and multi-layered, doused generously in authorial genius.
