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Fursey #1
The Unfortunate Fursey
The Devil himself has launched a determined offensive on the sanctified precincts of tenth-century Clonmacnoise-and the unfortunate Brother Fursey becomes his unwitting ally. Expelled from the monastery, Fursey is propelled into a wider world of evil and intrigue, where he must come to terms with his new life as an unwitting, ineffectual and persecuted sorcerer.
Mervyn Wall has created an irresistable blend of satire, comedy and fantasy. The gentle, self-effacing Fursey is one of the greatest antiheroes of fiction.
Mervyn Wall has created an irresistable blend of satire, comedy and fantasy. The gentle, self-effacing Fursey is one of the greatest antiheroes of fiction.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1947
10 people are currently reading
370 people want to read
About the author
Mervyn Wall
19 books6 followersMervyn Wall was born in Dublin in 1908. He attended Belvedere College, a Jesuit school for boys in Dublin, and obtained his B.A. from the National University of Ireland in 1928. He worked in the Irish civil service from 1934-1948 and later for Radio Éireann as Programme Officer. In 1957 he became Secretary of the Arts Council of Ireland, a post he held until his retirement in 1975. Though he published a number of novels, short stories, and plays, Wall is best remembered for his two comic fantasies centering on the medieval monk Fursey, which have been republished several times and praised by critics such as E. F. Bleiler and Darrell Schweitzer. Wall died in 1997.
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Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews
August 28, 2021
Satanic creatures, wicked spirits… The Unfortunate Fursey is a Gothic novel turned inside out… Black humour is in abundance…
And the prince of darkness turns out to be a truly gallant being…
Servants of evil are many and of extreme ugliness…
For his inability to outwit the devil, simpleminded and frightened Fursey is expelled from the monastery and his life turns into a picaresque trip… Witch’s husband, sorcerer’s apprentice – Fursey, in his own peculiar way, starts learning the ways of the world…
And very soon Fursey finds out that the clergy is more sinister and villainous than any hellborn brutes – they torture and burn and grant no quarter…
Warriors of mythical holiness need mythical evil foes – in this way all the demons are born…
And the prince of darkness turns out to be a truly gallant being…
“‘To show you that I am not ungenerous,’ the Devil tells Fursey, ‘but am willing to repay your hospitality, I should like to do something for you. Purely as a matter of accounting and to keep my books straight, I shall, of course, require your soul in exchange. It’s not a very valuable soul, its market value would be small; but you won’t find me haggling over the price. Are you perhaps a lover of beauty?’
“The demon waved his hand, and a queue of desirable females began to move monotonously across the cell from the door to the far wall, where they disappeared through the plaster. The monk gave vent to a deep groan and closed his eyes tightly…”
Servants of evil are many and of extreme ugliness…
“Yes,” said the friar, “a bad case of werewolves. Some thirty citizens had disappeared leaving no evidence of whither they might have betaken themselves. A heap of skeletons, picked clean of flesh, was found in the backyard of a town councillor. This, as you may imagine, gave rise to suspicion, and I had him watched. It transpired that three town councillors were involved. Every evening at sundown the spirit of the wolf took possession of them, and they repaired to the forest. They were small, paunchy men, and to see them coursing through the woods, naked and on all fours, was a remarkable sight.”
For his inability to outwit the devil, simpleminded and frightened Fursey is expelled from the monastery and his life turns into a picaresque trip… Witch’s husband, sorcerer’s apprentice – Fursey, in his own peculiar way, starts learning the ways of the world…
Before long they were eating and drinking merrily. Fursey thought she was the pleasantest person he had ever met. Women as they had existed in his imagination, and as he had seen them from afar, were creatures endowed with an evil comeliness in order to tempt men; but this amiable old lady was so hideous that she was not like a woman at all. He could converse easily with her and found it pleasant to do so, as conversation with a woman was a new experience for him.
And very soon Fursey finds out that the clergy is more sinister and villainous than any hellborn brutes – they torture and burn and grant no quarter…
“We have had ample evidence that the countryside is abounding fearfully in witches and wizards. They will have us all properly bedevilled unless we take immediate steps to thwart their direful and insupportable activities. I believe this man, Fursey, to be the Master and Prince of the satanic coven which operates in this neighbourhood. The good God has delivered him into our hands. Nothing remains but to torment him as grievously as can be devised, prior to burning him alive and scattering his ashes to the wind.”
Warriors of mythical holiness need mythical evil foes – in this way all the demons are born…
January 22, 2018
Sometimes it happens that I find a book that on opening and reading only a few pages, I know is a perfect fit. This book, along with The Return of Fursey, is one of those.
It is a mix of silly and darkly serious, and the author has done such a great job that I fell in love with Fursey from the beginning. It is whimsical yet satirical; entertaining while thought provoking, and should not be written off simply because it came out of the 1940s. I'm telling you, this one and its companion are beyond excellent.
I've posted about it here, along with The Return of Fursey, with absolutely no spoilers. I loved this book, I loved the characters, and more than that, I loved Wall's delightful imagination.
http://www.oddlyweirdfiction.com/2018...
It is a mix of silly and darkly serious, and the author has done such a great job that I fell in love with Fursey from the beginning. It is whimsical yet satirical; entertaining while thought provoking, and should not be written off simply because it came out of the 1940s. I'm telling you, this one and its companion are beyond excellent.
I've posted about it here, along with The Return of Fursey, with absolutely no spoilers. I loved this book, I loved the characters, and more than that, I loved Wall's delightful imagination.
http://www.oddlyweirdfiction.com/2018...
September 16, 2020
I don’t write reviews. This is my second time.
This was a delightful story following a character that you want to see succeed. You know he will be okay no matter what, but still you cheer him on. Fursey is a good man in the purest sense of the word good. I like that.
The supporting characters were well-crafted and popped into my head like paintings. My brain had little voices for them. They weren’t good, but I like that too.
This is another book I’ve recommended to my mother. She enjoyed it as well. Genetics maybe? If you read it and like it as well I’ll abandon the heredity theory.
Peace and love to you.
Lizz
This was a delightful story following a character that you want to see succeed. You know he will be okay no matter what, but still you cheer him on. Fursey is a good man in the purest sense of the word good. I like that.
The supporting characters were well-crafted and popped into my head like paintings. My brain had little voices for them. They weren’t good, but I like that too.
This is another book I’ve recommended to my mother. She enjoyed it as well. Genetics maybe? If you read it and like it as well I’ll abandon the heredity theory.
Peace and love to you.
Lizz
September 23, 2025
Нет слов. Великолепный роман, первый из двух, и все, что о нем говорят, вполне заслуженно: это действительно шедевр фантазии, смешной и превосходно музыкально написанный. И, как любой идиосинкратический ирландский роман (взять тех же Стивенза или О'Брайена), его просто интересно читать, потому что никогда не знаешь, что произойдет на следующей странице. Гений ирландских рассказчиков-фабулистов прошлого века, боюсь, ныне безвозвратно утрачен. Рад буду ошибаться, конечно, но подобные Уоллу или тем двум классикам мне что-то не попадались.
August 11, 2008
I read this book years ago: it's a perfectly well written, enjoyable and funny satire of Irish Catholicism in the 1950's although set in medieval Ireland.
Want to read
July 22, 2015This is copy 48 of 100 stamped numbered copies w/postcard.
April 25, 2022
A really enjoyable 10th century Irish comedy. Reminded me of Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch although predates it by over 60 years. A few crafty digs at the Irish church along the way also. No idea why this is isn;t more widely read. Accessible and fun
September 4, 2021
This was Mervyn Wall's first, and by some way best known, novel, first published in 1942.
Its hero, the titular Fursey, is a rotund, ineffectual lay brother in the medieval monastery of Clonmacnoise. When the monastery begins to swarm with uninvited demons, it is in the cell of the trembling, dumbstruck Fursey that they take refuge from the holy water and exorcisms of the other monks.
Its a Black-Adder-esque romp through an 11th century Ireland filled with goblins, imps, witches, vampires and more. Though searching for some sort of moral, or satirical aspect, is tempting, the author himself recommended that the best way to enjoy it was to just take it as a bit of fun.
Its perhaps a bit long at 300 pages, some of the humour does wear a bit thin, but to balance that, it is a quite unique blend of fantasy, warm mirth and good nature.
Its hero, the titular Fursey, is a rotund, ineffectual lay brother in the medieval monastery of Clonmacnoise. When the monastery begins to swarm with uninvited demons, it is in the cell of the trembling, dumbstruck Fursey that they take refuge from the holy water and exorcisms of the other monks.
Its a Black-Adder-esque romp through an 11th century Ireland filled with goblins, imps, witches, vampires and more. Though searching for some sort of moral, or satirical aspect, is tempting, the author himself recommended that the best way to enjoy it was to just take it as a bit of fun.
Its perhaps a bit long at 300 pages, some of the humour does wear a bit thin, but to balance that, it is a quite unique blend of fantasy, warm mirth and good nature.
February 9, 2024
Just magnificent - warm, funny, silly and with a satirical bite that simmers perpetually under the very funny gags. Full of wonderful moments, I suspect my favourite bits are every time the Devil calls his fellow demons “the boys” (far funnier than the lads, and yes I have thought about this for some time) and the Gentle Anchorite stuff, but really there’s not a duff moment in the whole thing. A comic masterpiece and already one of my very favourite books ever
October 18, 2015
A wonderful funny satire of the State of the Church in Ireland. Fursey is one of the earliest and most unlikely heroes but utterly sympathetic. He is a victim of a series of most unfortunate events which give rise to a novel as funny now as when it wa first published in the mid 1940s.
October 20, 2021
Absolutely delightful, funny, and bonkers.
April 10, 2021
Weird book, strangely charming
July 19, 2023
I think it's remarkable (and upsetting) that I should have lived so long without knowing about Fursey. Not without reading Fursey—there are plenty of wonderful books out there I haven't read yet, but hope to—but without even knowing about Fursey. And I'm not one of those who sits and waits and stumbles across books, no, I'm an avid reader of books about books, whether it's the best 100 books in Horror, or Modern Fantasy, or Science Fiction, or things Jo Walton liked, etc. etc. etc. and yet somehow until this year I'd Never Even Heard of This Book!
Yet it reads like a classic. It should be sitting there on the shelf alongside the ones I had heard of, The Sword in the Stone, Kingdoms of Elfin, Titus Groan, and so on. In particular, it strikes me (despite being set in rural ancient Ireland) as belonging to the strain of particularly urbane fantasy somewhat popular in the 1920s and 30s, such as James Branch Cabell e.g. Jurgen or Thorne Smith e.g. Topper, though it would be a bit late for that party it's still the right sort of guest.
The version I read came with a terrible introduction from critic Michael Dirda that assumed that "many readers" would already be familiar with the story, despite moments later going on about how rare and obscure it was, despite moments later going on about details of the plot from start to finish. That's too many despites, and luckily I realised in a paragraph or two how spoilerish this introduction would get and I skipped it and read it afterward. Publishers: reign in your celebrity introductionists, please, or at least promote them to afterwordists if they're going to be naughty.
As for the work itself, I loved it. It was a terrific read. I'm terrifically excited, because I'd sort of assumed I'd gotten to everything I'd especially like by now (in the category of "old books that have been around for a long time") and would have to devote myself entirely to new things that have just been written. And the new things, thanks to current razor-sharp marketplace tactics, are all so similar to one another, they're boring. Ten years ago it was adult thrillers with unreliable narrators, five years ago it was symmetrical covers with leaves or vines or trees around the edges, now it's woke bi-racial non-binary teenager romances, and soon it will all be something else. But in the past they seemed to branch out more.
(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)
Yet it reads like a classic. It should be sitting there on the shelf alongside the ones I had heard of, The Sword in the Stone, Kingdoms of Elfin, Titus Groan, and so on. In particular, it strikes me (despite being set in rural ancient Ireland) as belonging to the strain of particularly urbane fantasy somewhat popular in the 1920s and 30s, such as James Branch Cabell e.g. Jurgen or Thorne Smith e.g. Topper, though it would be a bit late for that party it's still the right sort of guest.
The version I read came with a terrible introduction from critic Michael Dirda that assumed that "many readers" would already be familiar with the story, despite moments later going on about how rare and obscure it was, despite moments later going on about details of the plot from start to finish. That's too many despites, and luckily I realised in a paragraph or two how spoilerish this introduction would get and I skipped it and read it afterward. Publishers: reign in your celebrity introductionists, please, or at least promote them to afterwordists if they're going to be naughty.
As for the work itself, I loved it. It was a terrific read. I'm terrifically excited, because I'd sort of assumed I'd gotten to everything I'd especially like by now (in the category of "old books that have been around for a long time") and would have to devote myself entirely to new things that have just been written. And the new things, thanks to current razor-sharp marketplace tactics, are all so similar to one another, they're boring. Ten years ago it was adult thrillers with unreliable narrators, five years ago it was symmetrical covers with leaves or vines or trees around the edges, now it's woke bi-racial non-binary teenager romances, and soon it will all be something else. But in the past they seemed to branch out more.
(Note: I'm a writer, so I suffer when I offer fewer than five stars. But these aren't ratings of quality, they're a subjective account of how much I liked the book: 5* = an unalloyed pleasure from start to finish, 4* = enjoyed it, 3* = readable but not thrilling, 2* = disappointing, and 1* = hated it.)
October 18, 2021
A masterpiece.
October 28, 2023
3.2
Justice for Albert
Justice for Albert
March 16, 2025
live laugh love satan is just the best
June 23, 2022
Amusing adventures with Fursey, Albert and plenty of demons. Fun!
September 1, 2020
How very fortunate that I got around to reading The Unfortunate Fursey, after putting it off for months. I'm very glad I didn't wait any longer to get around to it! This was such a delightful fantasy novel where none of the usual tired tropes come into play. There's no "chosen one" prophesy, no quest for a sacred blade that is the only thing to defeat a foe, and no final battle to determine the fate of the world. Instead it has a bunch of wild things happen to a truly hapless monk named Fursey. There is a "learning your abilities" scene, but that goes horribly wrong and is abandoned by Fursey at the first opportunity.
The Unfortunate Fursey is a sly tale that starts with an abbey being haunted by all manner of foul creatures. Hippogriffs, cacodemons, poltergeists, and even the Prince of Darkness all come to infest the abbey. Luckily the Abbot and his monks can recite the words to exorcise them, unluckily the assorted devilry find the one monk with a stutter who cannot recite the words, and take up residence in his room. Fursey, the monk is quickly expelled from his abbey, and Satan and his entourage just decide to hang with Fursey which annoys the monk to no end. After departing the company of ol' Scratch, Fursey finds himself forcibly married, forcibly made into a sorcerer and persecuted by the local government. All of these mishaps culminate in a biting last chapter that makes a mockery of the priorities of the modern church and government, using a 9th century setting.
I really enjoyed this one, it was a quick read, breezy, and one of the few books to make me laugh out loud at parts. It all takes place with an extremely simple man, who doesn't quite get all of the ramifications of the supernatural taking place, but knows all he wants to do is save his soul. Certain highlights for me were (aside from the masterful last chapter) the Devil's rousing defense of Fursey during a witchcraft trial, which only serve to get Fursey further tortured (accidentally), and the discussion of military tactics of the backwards Irish city states. After this, I'm looking forward to the sequel, The Return of Fursey
The Unfortunate Fursey is a sly tale that starts with an abbey being haunted by all manner of foul creatures. Hippogriffs, cacodemons, poltergeists, and even the Prince of Darkness all come to infest the abbey. Luckily the Abbot and his monks can recite the words to exorcise them, unluckily the assorted devilry find the one monk with a stutter who cannot recite the words, and take up residence in his room. Fursey, the monk is quickly expelled from his abbey, and Satan and his entourage just decide to hang with Fursey which annoys the monk to no end. After departing the company of ol' Scratch, Fursey finds himself forcibly married, forcibly made into a sorcerer and persecuted by the local government. All of these mishaps culminate in a biting last chapter that makes a mockery of the priorities of the modern church and government, using a 9th century setting.
I really enjoyed this one, it was a quick read, breezy, and one of the few books to make me laugh out loud at parts. It all takes place with an extremely simple man, who doesn't quite get all of the ramifications of the supernatural taking place, but knows all he wants to do is save his soul. Certain highlights for me were (aside from the masterful last chapter) the Devil's rousing defense of Fursey during a witchcraft trial, which only serve to get Fursey further tortured (accidentally), and the discussion of military tactics of the backwards Irish city states. After this, I'm looking forward to the sequel, The Return of Fursey
August 14, 2018
Charming but incisive satire of Irish Catholicism, combining dry wit with flights of fancy. The book manages to pack a lot of biting commentary into its jaunty, picaresque narrative. If you enjoy the gleeful dismantling of dogma as much as I do, then this is a book for you.
February 9, 2018
Como Terry Pratchett y Monty Python antes de Terry Pratchett y Monty Python.
Esta pequeña joya publicada originalmente en 1946, y rescatada por Valancourt books, es una sátira fantástica ambientada en una Irlanda del siglo X en la que los demonios, las brujas y los hechiceros son tan reales como el pan y la mantequilla.
Empezando por el personaje principal, Fursey, un antihéroe que no hace más que intentar evitar a toda costa tomar las riendas de su vida, la novela ofrece personajes y situaciones memorables.
Aparte de ser muy divertida (con grandes dosis de humor negro), la novela es sobre todo una demoledora crítica a la sociedad católica irlandesa de los años 40. No obstante, como buen clásico, la crítica tiene cierta lectura universal, en el sentido de recoger muy bien esa sensación incómoda que tiene uno a veces de que estaría mejor en cualquier otra parte que en su propio país:
“The country is all right,” replied the Devil. “The only thing that’s wrong with it, is the people that are in it.”
Buenísimo.
Esta pequeña joya publicada originalmente en 1946, y rescatada por Valancourt books, es una sátira fantástica ambientada en una Irlanda del siglo X en la que los demonios, las brujas y los hechiceros son tan reales como el pan y la mantequilla.
Empezando por el personaje principal, Fursey, un antihéroe que no hace más que intentar evitar a toda costa tomar las riendas de su vida, la novela ofrece personajes y situaciones memorables.
Aparte de ser muy divertida (con grandes dosis de humor negro), la novela es sobre todo una demoledora crítica a la sociedad católica irlandesa de los años 40. No obstante, como buen clásico, la crítica tiene cierta lectura universal, en el sentido de recoger muy bien esa sensación incómoda que tiene uno a veces de que estaría mejor en cualquier otra parte que en su propio país:
“The country is all right,” replied the Devil. “The only thing that’s wrong with it, is the people that are in it.”
Buenísimo.
March 16, 2024
What a strange weird mix of Disney’s Sword and the Stone, Baudolino, and maybe some Monty Python. Can’t say that I was particularly attached or intrigued about any character, but the plot certainly keeps things moving.
January 20, 2019
Симпатично, но Пратчетт избаловал: до него читалось бы совсем на ура, а после - уже и темп не тот, и повороты не так чтобы. Но. Как предшественник, да еще и аж 1948ого года - отлично, chapeau.
July 1, 2020
I’m not really into fantasy book, but even so I’m surprised I’ve not heard of this one before. It’s clever, funny and a biting satire on the pompous, self righteous and ignorant religious.
November 21, 2020
An amazing combination of fantasy and satire about a monk plagued by supernatural entities and misadventures. Julian Casey's narration was brilliant.
February 2, 2023
dnf @ 140. Just too meh to be worth continuing.
June 23, 2024
I love this book! The farcical historical humor found in the films of Monty Python have delighted millions through the years and I think many fans of those films would also love Mervyn Wall’s The Unfortunate Fursey and its sequel The Return of Fursey. I love them both and adore the incredible cast of wild characters that populate the misadventures of poor, simple Fursey’s hapless journeys. I cannot recommend this book and its sequel enough. It is perhaps my favorite book of all time, rivaling Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Paperbacks From Hell, and John Dies At the End for laugh out loud humor. What a delight it is to read and reread! Check it out and its sequel.
April 4, 2022
A very fun and funny read! Fursey was a alarmingly out of character at the end and I think his romance with Maeve could have been built up more but I still enjoyed the story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Want to read
January 6, 2008as soon as my copy arrives from the UK, I'm in business.
Displaying 1 - 28 of 28 reviews