Yes, the mayhem quotient is off the charts in Bill's debut novel, but there is much more to Donnybrook than characters maimed and murdered in nightmarish ways. The cast is memorable, the dialogue crackles, the tension is unrelenting – and it all happens for a reason. . . You'll be riveted by the depravity while marveling at Bill's skill at telling this testosterone-fueled tale. –Dave Astor, The Washington Post
Bill is a master of conveying life in rural, blue-collar Middle America without pandering to or stereotyping his subjects. Rather, he writes with striking compassion for the kind of casually violent people you'd want on your side during the apocalypse. –Brittany Shoot,
The Rumpus In the world of faces punched, crank snorted, guts shot, and whiskey pounded, Frank Bill is king, and
Donnybrook sets him up as the poet laureate of the apocalypse. Steeped in nonstop action, dark human need, and the coming end of civility in America, this novel is a stunning debut from an author more than willing to hold society still while it stares in the mirror. –Christopher Krovatin,
Revolver Bill is one hell of a storyteller. –
Kirkus With an authority that reveals his many years in these rural towns, Frank Bill shows us in vivid details the places and sensations of life on the fringe . . . Above and beyond the fighting and betrayal–the broken arms, shattered teeth, and bloodstained canvas–Bill is able to make us care about these men. . . With an unflinching eye, Frank Bill has created a dark world, one of desperation and loss, showing us a part of the country, and humanity, that we would be smart to avoid. –Richard Thomas,
The Nervous Breakdown Bill's work is stark and visual . . . He crafts the book's many fight scenes with the grace of a choreographer, placing each character in the right place at the right time . . . The thought of what might come next [after
Donnybrook] speaks to Bill's ability to hook his readers and keep them coming back. Just don't expect to leave him without taking a beating. –Jeremy Estes,
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