Under Fragile Stone

It is one of the best books of the year and Oisín McCann once more takes us on a mind-blowing journey through the unique landscape of his imagination

Oisín McCann once more takes us on a mind-blowing journey through the unique landscape of his imagination, a world where society has degenerated into tribal units of arcane habits and customs, where the ancient gods have once more manifested themselves, a world where Taya and Lorkin of the shape-changing Myunan tribe are desperately trying to rescue their parents trapped in a collapsed iron mine under the sacred mountain, Abasaleth.

The pace of the narrative is superb, developing on many levels and involving many strands of action that at all times meld together and allow readers to imagine their own landscapes and images, feeding off many of their own cultural memories.

The book is full of intriguing new characters such as Rug, the cloaked and hooded stranger who will not show his face, Harsk, the exorcist whose belief in his god, Barsk, who triggers off the disaster on Mount Abasaleth, the terrifying Seneschal creatures, who live underground, and their blind brigade, the ladies with the lanterns. Or are they really human women? Questions to ask, questions to be answered as we move from one brilliant set-piece to another.

The book intrigues from beginning to end. It is one of the best books of the year, a real page turner. Readers into long narratives will be enchanted and engrossed by each of its 384 pages.

Under Fragile Stone by Oisín McGann. from O'Brien Press. €7.95

Tony Hickey

Tony Hickey has been nominated for The Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award 2006 ? More: www.alma.se