Limerick author and comedian Caimh McDonnell, aka CK McDonnell, on his new supernatural novel The Stranger Times
Limerick-born comedian and author Caimh McDonnell has been having a little supernatural fun in his latest book, The Stranger Times. Here, he tells Gail Bell the inspiration behind his change of pace , why he thinks he has been looking in the wrong direction for aliens and the problems of having a name that no-one can pronounce. Caimh McDonnell s latest book The Stranger Times is out now. Picture by Carla Speight Gail Bell
The Limerick author goes under CK McDonnell for the first time with this book
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Standup comedian and writer Caimh McDonnell’s first novel as CK McDonnell,
The Stranger Times(Bantam, £14.99), has already been optioned for TV, and it’s not hard to see why. It’s a filmic romp with great characters, a jet-propelled plot, and a winning premise. The Stranger Times is a down-at-heel newspaper staffed by a gallery of lovable hacks and edited by a cynical, splenetic alcoholic. Based in a derelict Mancunian church, the paper covers wacky supernatural, occult and bizarre stories – think the Fortean Times run on a shoestring. Fleeing a failed marriage, university dropout Hannah Willis is taken on by the paper – and promoted to assistant editor within two hours of landing the job. After investigating a series of strange deaths, Hannah and her colleagues learn that the tall stories they trade in might have some basis in fact, and soon find themselves on the receiving end of malign forces. McDonnell combines gonzo humour and neat character studies in the first vol
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