NI Books - for Northern Ireland writers

 Review by Jonathan Traynor With Simon Maltman’s Short Grift there is a sense of taking zeitgeist and mocking it amidst blood stained pages. Yet, for all the murders and madness there is a wit withing the finely crafted pages. Maltman’s considerable track record of publications notwithstanding this a glorious collection of short stories that interprets modern events and cultural touchstones, such as Port Merrion’s Prisoner, with an Ulster twist (are baked beans part of an Ulster Fry?) Leaving aside the content Maltman’s tight prose allows one to absorb each story in and of itself and the character’s motivations, or lack thereof. Slay Ride, for example, is a dark, witty and murderous Christmas tale with a twist. However, Devolution Z is a zombie tale with its rotting feet planted firmly in Stormont’s Parliament Buildings. Any follower of Northern Ireland politics will find it impossible not to smile at the character traits laid bare. That the tales range from the 19 th Centur...

. Four books published, more to come  Interview by Jonathan Traynor Author Christopher Owens has risen to prominence in recent years with a series of books that have earned acclaim and praise for their themes and settings, as well as powerful but flawed characters. With four books under his belt, and a further one set for release in 2027, he has spoken about his work, and how he bases much around Belfast. Christopher’s writing journey began, when aged just 12, he read Eoin McNamee’s Resurrection Man. “At the time, the film had just come out and there was a huge controversy around it for a variety of reasons,” he explained. “I ended up reading the book at the age of 12, and I would safely say that it changed my life, even though I probably only understood about one third of it. “But I think that feeling is quite important: that feeling of if this is what books can do, this is something I want to do. Not long after I started writing short stories of my own, not very good ones...