Silver Swan [Paperback]

Ben Black (AKA John Banville) (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 2, 2007

This is the second Quirke novel from Man Booker prize-winning John Banville, writing as Benjamin Black. Time has moved on for Quirke, the world-weary Dublin pathologist first encountered in "Christine Falls". It is the middle of the 1950s, that low, dishonourable decade; a woman he loved has died, a man whom he once admired is dying, while the daughter he for so long denied is still finding it hard to accept him as her father. When Billy Hunt, an acquaintance from college days, approaches him about his wife's apparent suicide, Quirke recognises trouble but, as always, trouble is something he cannot resist. Slowly he is drawn into a twilight world of drug addiction, sexual obsession, blackmail and murder, a world in which even the redoubtable Inspector Hackett can offer him few directions.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Benjamin Black is the pen name of acclaimed author John Banville, who was born in Wexford, Ireland, in 1945. His novels have won numerous awards, including the Man Booker Prize in 2005 for The Sea. He lives in Dublin.

Product Details

• Paperback: 288 pages
• Publisher: Picador; Airside ed edition (November 2, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0230701345
• ISBN-13: 978-0230701342
• Product Dimensions: 8.4 x 5.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,365,412 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Benjamin Black, the pen name of acclaimed novelist John Banville, is the author of Christine Falls and The Silver Swan. Christine Falls was nominated for both the Edgar Award and Macavity Award for Best Novel; both Christine Falls and Silver Swan were national bestsellers. Banville lives in Dublin.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing, April 23, 2011

By 

Frank McGrath (Ireland) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Silver Swan (Quirke 2) (Kindle Edition)

The story is simple - The body of Deirdre Hunt (aka Laura Swan) body is found, apparently drowned, at Sandycove, and her husband asks Quirke, the pathologist at the Mercy Hospital, to cover up - and make the death appear an accident rather than suicide. Quirke complies, but being the nosy type , he investigates, and uncovers a lot more. There is the mysterious Sufi "healer" - Dr Kreutz - she was seeing, and the playboy Leslie White.

Apart from following Quirke's thought processes, the outstanding quality of this novel lies in the precision of its description: "A gust of wind shook the trees, scattering a handful of diamond drops." Loved it.