Downturn Abbey

Downturn Abbey is a 2013 novel by Irish journalist and author Paul Howard and the thirteenth in the Ross O'Carroll-Kelly series.[1][2]

Downturn Abbey is also the title of a column in the satirical magazine Private Eye.
Downturn Abbey
Cover
AuthorPaul Howard
IllustratorAlan Clarke
Cover artistAlan Clarke
CountryRepublic of Ireland
LanguageEnglish
SeriesRoss O'Carroll-Kelly
Set inDublin, 2011–12
Published26 September 2013
PublisherPenguin Books
Media typePaperback
Pages400
ISBN978-1-84488-292-2
823.92
Preceded byThe Shelbourne Ultimatum 
Followed byKeeping Up with the Kalashnikovs 

The title is a reference to Downton Abbey and the ongoing economic downturn.

Plot

Ross becomes a grandfather and his teenage son Ronan becomes a father. Honor is dropped from one of Fionnuala's Hallmark Channel films and is expelled from school. Charles and Fionnuala's divorce comes through. Sorcha throws a Downton Abbey-themed party. Ronan falls in with a local gangster. Fionnuala moves into "mommy porn" with Fifty Greys in Shades, and begins a relationship with Oisinn.

Reception

In the Irish Independent, Ian O'Doherty wrote that "despite all the well-rendered social observations, there is an inevitable, and not unwelcome, familiarity to some of the scenes of chaos. Perhaps Ross has stopped being that scathing postcard from the edge of madness of old and become a more comfy, annual family newsletter."[3]

Writing in The Irish Times, John Boyne praised the book, saying that "The Ross novels show no signs of running out of steam and are already the most sustained feat of comic writing in Irish literature." and praising the portrayal of Ross and Fionnuala's appearance on Miriam Meets "It’s the aggressive relationship between mother and son that provides one of the most unexpectedly moving scenes in the novel. […] when Fionnuala denies that her son is her top achievement Ross feels "suddenly hurt by that. It’s like I’ve been kicked in the stomach." And when she goes on to admit that the lack of warmth or affection between them was down to her, it's a genuinely moving moment."[4]

Downturn Abbey won the International Education Services Popular Fiction Book of the Year Award at the Irish Book Awards.[5][6][7][8][9]

References
  1. O'Carroll-Kelly, Ross (September 26, 2013). Downturn Abbey. Penguin Books Limited. ISBN 9780241962800 – via Google Books.
  2. Gorman, Clare (June 1, 2015). The Undecidable: Jacques Derrida and Paul Howard. Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ISBN 9781443883597 – via Google Books.
  3. "Review: Paul Howard 'Downturn Abbey'". Independent.ie.
  4. Boyne, John. "Downturn Abbey, by Ross O'Carroll-Kelly". The Irish Times.
  5. "Authors on shortlist for book awards". Independent.ie.
  6. "Doyle's commitment to our favourite soul band wins Novel of the Year". Independent.ie.
  7. "Bord Gais Energy Irish Book Award Winners". Independent.ie.
  8. Mackin, Laurence. "Roddy Doyle's 'The Guts' named novel of the year". The Irish Times.
  9. "Literati out in force at book awards as Roddy Doyle scoops novel of the year". www.irishexaminer.com. November 27, 2013.
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