Shade - Tapa dura

'There are cinematic elements to Shade ... Jordan has a vivid sense of place, and languidly evokes the summer days of Nina's childhood in Ireland.' -- Daily Telegraph 20040522 'A mystery where the culprit is never in doubt. Written with exceptional attention to detail, with the passion and economy of one who knows and loves language, it is a lyrically beautiful chronicle of a death foretold' -- Sunday Herald 20040501 'With this fierce, dark and yet luminous novel, Neil Jordan once again demonstrates that he is one of Ireland's most talented artists' -- John Banville 20040501 '[A] beautiful, multi-layered novel ! his most poetic, most moving book to date' -- The Sunday Tribune 20040501 'Shade is a beautifully written book, and is constructed perfectly; in short, it is everything that you could want from a novel ... This tale is everything that contemporary writing should be - formal experimentation in a genuine exploration of narrative and self.' -- Gregor Shepherd 20040501 'This book is an absorbing read of dream-like intensity. I was left with the sense of having travelled somewhere both strange and recognisable; and teased with the tantalising sense of shades just beyond the edges of my vision.' -- Lesley Glaister, Waterstone's Books Quarterly 20040322 'Romantic ... lyrical ... a novel of atmosphere ... it succeeds powerfully' -- The Sunday Times 20040501 'Jordan has a vivid sense of place, and languidly evokes the summer days of Nina's childhood in Ireland.' -- Daily Telegraph 20040522 'So good it leaves one wondering why he bothers making movies. His belief in language is absolute, as is his mastery of it. Jordan doesn't waste words and the ones he uses are invariably the right ones ! The novel's beauty lies in the writing, particularly in the graceful, painterly prose of the descriptive passages. It is Thomas Hardy deferring to William Trevor. This is a very good book, possessing an elegiac resonance' -- The Irish Times 20040501 'Compelling, intriguing, at once a human drama and a fascinating metaphysical mystery, Shade courses its way, like the river Boyne that runs through it, steadily, patiently, but thankfully, never predictably, before reaching its final, heartbreaking denouement. Triumphant.' -- Peter McCabe 20040501 'Shares with Jordan's best films a twisting narrative which teasingly unravels its own mysteries' -- Marie Claire's Book of the Month 20040501 'Jordan writes with a filmmaker's eye, creating a very visual, fluid portrait of childhood idylls and imaginary friendships ! his portrayal of an early Edwardian family torn apart by war and disillusionment is authentic and often funny, with brilliant pen-portraits ! He is a master of mood, insight and perception' -- Scotland on Sunday 20040501 'Extraordinary ! Few writers can convey human loneliness in quite such an achingly spare, unsentimental form. Let us hope that Jordan's screen commitments do not keep him from the page for another 10 years' -- The Independent 20040501 'A very impressive piece of work indeed. The narrative is well crafted, the characters are achingly credible and the writing is poetic in the finest sense of the word ! Exquisitely wrought images of turn-of-the-century Ireland litter the text' -- The Sunday Telegraph 20040501 'A deeply atmospheric ghost story' -- The Bookseller 20040222 'Shade has a compelling cast of characters eager to crawl under your skin ... Neil Jordan knows how to spin a yarn, dropping perfectly-timed emotional bombshells ... His evocations of rural childhood adventure, unrequited love, loneliness and enduring friendship are all beautifully drawn' -- The List 20040624 '[A] brief summary doesn't do justice to the dizzying complexity of the plot as narrative voices shift and time frames blur ... Jordan's prose is lyrical and elegiac ... It gives the novel a curiously hushed quality' -- Zembla 20040601 'Jordan effortlessly threads together syntax with superior skill and provides a story as compelling as any psychological thriller.' -- The Irish Post 20040601 'Beautifully written and haunting.' -- Nottingham Evening Post 20040601 'As well as being a haunting and powerful novel, Shade ... has a cinematic quality that compels the reader to visualise the events.' -- Big Issue 20050509 'An intriguing story' -- Bradford Telegraph & Argus 20050514 'A lyrical, immaculately told drama' -- Good Housekeeping 20050501 'Extraordinary ! Few writers can convey human loneliness in quite such an achingly spare, unsentimental form.' -- The Independent 20040501 'Shade is a beautifully written book, and is constructed perfectly ... everything that you could want from a novel.' -- Gregor Shepherd 20040501 'Neil Jordan once again demonstrates that he is one of Ireland's most talented artists' -- John Banville 20040501 'Extraordinary ... an enormously powerful book. I'd stake a bet it'll win him prizes' -- Daily Telegraph 20040501 'Romantic ... lyrical ... a novel of atmosphere.' -- Sunday Times 20040501 'He recreates the drained landscape with the vivid care of a Dutch painting, and infuses it with longing... Powerfully visual' -- Observer 20040501 'A very impressive piece of work indeed.' -- Sunday Telegraph 20040501 'His cinematic sensibility yields prose of the most bewitching kind' -- Sunday Times 20050529 'Although Jordan obsessively describes the Irish landscape, it's his dialogue and characterisation that shine' -- Independent on Sunday 20050515 'Desperately compelling ... Meditative and compulsive, Shade continues to haunt long after the book is closed.' -- Observer 20050522

Nina Hardy has been murdered. She died in the house where she grew up, killed by George, her childhood friend. But her body is never found, and she remains, a silent shade, watching the events of her own afterlife. As her brother and best friend meet and remember their childhood lives together, a remarkable story unfolds. Shade is at once an unforgettable portrait of childhood, a powerful story of love in its many forms, and a moving tragedy of lost innocence. Written with astonishing insight and perception, it confirms Neil Jordan as one of the most mesmerising voices in contemporary fiction.