'This is Joseph O'Connor's best book. It is shocking, hilarious, beautifully written, and very, very clever.' Roddy Doyle

'A terrific story...A stealthily gripping narrative' Daily Telegraph

'A triumph...A spectacular breakthrough...it raises the bar for contemporary Irish fiction' Sunday Times

'A thrilling tale-O'Connor's prose - unfailingly gripping - keeps the story moving furiously' The Times

'His most substantial and impressive novel to date. Sad and funny, Star of the Sea tacks and veers in surprising directions, but follows a subtly plotted course to its final satisfying landfall' Irish Times

'There is so much that is memorable in the Star of the Sea - grounded upon well researched, vivid, unprejudiced empathy' Sunday Telegraph

'Sensitive, thoughtful and rich with the spoils of its author's plunder of the past' Irish Independent

'Stunningly accomplished' Guardian