The Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice

by Ronan Ryan

If you enjoy Paul Murray's SKIPPY DIES, or THE WORLD ACCORDING TO GARP, you will want to read THE FRACTURED LIFE OF JIMMY DICE by Ronan Ryan. Jimmy is born a twin, and while he doesn't know it, his nearest sibling has stayed with him forever, overseeing the drama of his life played out and acting as a narrative voice.

As a young boy, aged seven, Jimmy loses a lower limb to an attack dog - the first of many disasters that shape him for the future. Jimmy is a chancer who becomes a wilful man unafraid to stand up to a notorious Dublin gangster. He's also a young man with heart and belief: a loyal son, a good friend, a courageous brother and a sweet and passionate lover.

Part love story, part coming of age, The Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice is also the story of a life in the changing streets of Ireland, from the days of the Troubles to the boom and bust years and Dublin today.

448 pages, Paperback

First published January 26, 2017

About the author

Ronan Ryan is an Irish writer, based in Dublin, who has also lived in France, Japan, the US, Singapore, Australia, England, Scotland, and New Zealand. His debut novel, The Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice, published by Tinder Press in 2017, was one of the Irish Independent Review’s ‘Books of the Year’ and a finalist for The Lascaux Prize. His work has appeared in The Irish Times, Narrative, Boston Review, Banshee, The Lonely Crowd, and elsewhere, and was a finalist for the Tobias Wolff Award, the Tucson Festival of Books Literary Award, the Shooter Story Competition, the Solstice Literary Contest, the Slippery Elm Prose Contest, the Narrative Winter Story Contest, the Machigonne and Breakwater Fiction Contests, and the ScreenCraft Cinematic Book Competition. He has an MSc in Creative Writing from the University of Edinburgh and a PhD in English Literature from Victoria University of Wellington, and he has won The Well Review Award, Bursary Awards in Literature from the Arts Council of Ireland and Dublin City Council, and Writer in Residence posts at the Centre Culturel Irlandais in Paris, the Kerouac House in Orlando, the Heinrich Böll Cottage on Achill Island, and the Užupis Arts Incubator in Vilnius.

'Ryan is a bold and brilliant new voice in Irish fiction. With a narrative that is both unique and spellbinding - he is a rising star' (Cat Hogan, author of They All Fall Down)

'An engaging coming of age story told from a truly unique perspective. The Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice is readable, thought provoking and highly entertaining.' (Sinéad Crowley, author of Can Anybody Help Me?)

‘A brilliant debut. Edgy fast paced and clever. With his cinematic prose, Ronan Ryan takes you on many adventures which never fail to hold your attention. A fresh exciting new voice to be savoured.’ (Hina Belitz, author of Set Me Free)

'An Irish epic with a potent post-millennial hum and a wave-like momentum that becomes insidiously addictive.' (Irish Independent)

'Expertly experimental. Ryan has talent to burn.' (Irish Examiner)

'Hugely engaging... warm, sincere and big-hearted. A wonderful debut from an Irish talent.' (Image Magazine)

'Brimming with affection, wisdom and texture, this coming-of-age saga announces the 36-year-old as one of the more accomplished newcomers in Irish fiction.' (Sunday Independent)

'Ryan's imaginative novel is full of adventure and told with compassion...a compelling account of a family's fortunes.' (The Irish Times)

‘Combines a sweet romance with a coming-of-age story that will appeal to fans of Roddy Doyle and Lisa McInerney.’ (Irish Country Magazine)

'Highly experimental, the debut is well and thoughtfully written. We'll be hearing more from Ronan Ryan.' (Books Ireland)

Reviews

[Bookread2day · Rating 5 out of 5]

Twitter@favouritenovels Wow never read such an unusual novel. It certainly had my full attention from page one. Thirty-five years ago, twins are born one alive, and one dies, but the twin who died, remains with the twin that is alive and tells this story. Splendidly written. The author Ronan Ryan deserves an award for The Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice. Remember the name of this author Ronan Ryan as I am sure you will all be hearing more from this author.

[Juha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Awesome first novel! I was hooked from the start and thoroughly enjoyed it. Having lived in Dublin in the past I loved the author taking me on a trip down memory lane. I really got the sense of authenticity for the plot and characters. Great character development!

[Deb · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just wow. No words. Best thing I've read in a long time. A coming of age story for our time. Poignant, heartbreaking, beautiful and thought provoking don't even begin to do it justice. Read it.

[Gemma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic read from an up and coming writer. Couldn't put the book down from the minute I picked it up .Cannot recommend it highly enough

[Carolyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me laugh and cry and nearly broke my heart in the best way. It was such a page turning cathartic read. Highly recommend it. The characters are still floating around in my head, they feel real to me and as an avid reader I know that means this book is something special. Clear your schedule and check this out, my favorite book of 2017 so far. Excited to see what this author does next.

[Ken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful story from a new Irish author, brilliantly told.
Set in Ireland, the encounters of Jimmy Dice draw you in from the first sentence and hold you spellbound throughout this novel. You will not want to leave this book down until you reach the end.

[Andy N · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extraordinary brilliant start from Roan Ryan with this debut novel!

Jimmy Dice isn’t the luckiest of individuals as his life is complicated, to say the least. Coming from a loving but troubled family, he loses a leg to a dog attack, three fingers to a gambling match gone wrong, the love of his life to suicide and he lives ignorant to the fact he had a twin brother that died at birth. Even though his life seems like a bottomless pit of unfortunate events, Jimmy grows up to be a man that faces life unafraid and stands up for what he believes in. This is the story of a young man that lives through the worst and uses his experiences to become someone with a good heart, courageous and loyal to a fault.

I completely fell in love with this story. Although the story seems depressive, it’s not, it’s a story of hope, loss and about standing up no matter how many times life knocks you down.

The story takes place in Dublin, Ireland where the reader accompanies the constant changes of the life in the streets of this beautiful but dangerous city. I never had the pleasure of visiting Dublin yet, but I fell in love with it just by reading the descriptions. It was refreshing for me to read a novel that takes place in Europe, especially one with such history and background.

The characters are incredible and for me, they are the best part of this novel. The Ronan Ryan created and explored each character in depth, gave them all unique traits, personalities and thoughts that truly brought this novel to another level. Each character is very easy to understand and relate to and they are important as they all have an influence on the main character’s life and his decisions. Jimmy is definitely my favourite character: he faces life with such a spirit and conviction that it’s impossible not to root for him all the way. Instead of falling into depression, much like his mother, Jimmy learns very early that in life every moment counts and it’s a blessing to actually be able to live it. So he’s gentle, caring but also strong and passionate. He is an inspiration to me and I admire Ryan for creating such a brilliant and memorable character.

Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice is a tale of loss, hope and love in the life of a brave man that tries to find his place in an ever-changing world. Everyone should this novel, it’s a reminder that life has both good and bad phases but learning from them makes us grow and appreciate the small moments with the people we love and not focus so much on material things. It deserves all its 5 stars.

I want to thank the author Ronan Ryan for sending me a paperback edition of his book in exchange for an honest review.

[Shahedah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

This is an interesting, unusual and enjoyable read, with (mostly) complex characters that drew me in. It’s pretty long though and some bits I flew through while others dragged, and overall it took me quite a while to finish. There was more graphic violence and shock value than I was expecting and probably more than necessary, but it is balanced with some lovely, intimate and very real, human moments. I feel like I’ve tended to read a lot of books lately that fall squarely into either Plot-driven or Character-driven, whereas this certainly had both. Ryan’s writing style is easy and evocative, and I expect to see more good things from him.

I was honestly unconvinced by the narrative device (told by the consciousness of the protagonist’s stillborn twin who shares his body), until the very end where it came together. At that point I was pleasantly surprised and mildly impressed!

Liked:
- Learning about Ireland and its history.
- The concept of a ‘fractured life’ and how this was manifested in many different ways.
- The siblings and their relationships.
- Seb. He was just lovely.

Disliked:
- SO many characters! It was nice to have a multi-generational story but constantly jumping back and forth between them got a bit confusing and drew the story out longer than it needed to be. I’m not sure if it would have been better in a linear progression? Though that wouldn’t really fit with the narrator so I’m not sure...
- The diary entries. This felt like an awkward way of changing perspective because the author realised his original approach wouldn’t work here. Also in the copy I had I found the font choice really difficult to read :|
- Elizabeth was the only female character who had depth that wasn’t a bit cliche - the rest of the females tended to be either sexualised, crazy, damaged, or disapproving religious ‘prudes’. Even Elizabeth was sort of borderline but she turned out alright.

(SPOILER ALERT)
I would have liked a little more closure for the ending, like knowing how Nicole died, and seeing a tragic/horrific comeuppance for Tighe. Finally (assuming I read the end right) I would have preferred for it to have been the twin that ‘emerges’ at the very end.

Side note: why are there so many books with characters who lose theirs finger/s or hands?!? Or is it just my personal reading selection that has taken me down this trajectory?

[Paula Gill · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great story, great read and great characters. 3 1/2 stars from me.

[Jennifer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This debut novel is a book about characters and it is truly a stunning work. The characters make you fall in love, and yet, there are times you are appalled and shocked by their actions. It is a book that keeps you questioning and draws you back to reread scenes. I strongly recommend this story and hope for much more to come from this author.

[Ann Patton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fractured life of Jimmy Dice resulted in a fractured book for me. It felt like the author was just trying out different styles of writing with this one novel including through a person who doesn't really exist to a diary style of writing. It just felt too crammed, way too much dysfunction in one family. The love story piece was nice but too drawn out....overall I struggled through this one.

[Erika Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved

[Nayoung Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely enjoyed the Jimmy's personality through the read. Just the way he sees the life and carries his wounds. He is a lovable guy as the story carries on. For me, he had this impression of some people who naturally good-hearted and kind even if when they don't realize that. Like the time he wouldn't tell about the truths behind of him losing his leg, or decided to cut his fingers because he knows that his family is at stake, or offering to mind the baby in between Tighe and Isabel. There are different presentations of forms love in the book as well, that it's amazing how the love let him down and heals him at the same time. (we are all like that, aren't we)

To some wounds that he had, it might take up more time to heal but I'm positive that he'd overcome or rather carry with him without much sorrow in the end of the book.

Love the value of 'the life goes on' and the message the book itself gives. I mean I did feel bad for Jimmy and his whole situations but he gets to live again, and I think it's somewhat comforting to know that we can't do much of controls for things sometimes.

As much as I loved the whole story of Jimmy's journey, I think the last few monologues from his body-less twin sister's were the perfect way of summarize the whole theme of the book. That we 'get' to have the life and no matter how unfortunate situations or hardships might have lied in front of us, we also have all the delights and happiness coming within.

[Amanda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Jimmy Dice's life is definitely fractured, in fact his life is definitely not straightforward, or easy.
Born in Ireland to Eamon and Grace, Jimmy is unaware that he had a twin who died at birth. It is the lost twin who narrates various parts of the novel,
Jimmy doesn't seem to have much luck, losing his lower leg in a dog attack and three of his fingers when a spot of gambling goes wrong. He doesn't have much luck in love either, when the love of his life , Nicole commits suicide leaving him unable to move on and fall in love with someone else.
What Jimmy does have is a family that only wants the best for him even if the family is fractured and somewhat dysfunctional. His mother Grace is haunted by her own mother's mental illness and struggles with the rigours of motherhood, succumbing herself to the ravishes of depression.
Elder brother Tighe is focused and driven but hides dark secrets. Sister Elizabeth is expected to succumb to mental illness like her mother and grandmother but remains remarkably sane.
What the Fractured Life of Jimmy Dice is, is a novel of hope, love, loss and ultimately of a young, sensitive man trying to make sense of himself in a fast changing world.
A little strung out in places, but a well written debut novel.

[Oliver · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book takes you on a generational story that can pull you away from the story that has your attention. As the title would suggest this book is about the tragic life of Jimmy ‘Dice’. However becomes a story about the tragic story of the Diaz family. Although I enjoyed the book, stopping a section of the book that had my full attention to go 60/70 years in the past threw me off more then once. The book is from a peculiar perspective of Jimmys twin who died at birth but resides within jimmy with the ability to enter other people’s memory’s and provide the reader with more context to these characters, and there are many. This perspective ceases for a few chapters, as we start to read from Jimmy’s diary. My version of the book did this with a hand written font that made me stumble over a few words more than once. Nicole and jimmy’s love story annoyed me slightly but I understand it kind of. I’ve never wanted a character to die more, as well as some kind of normality to give me some peace for even just a few pages. The ending left me confused, with me wishing for jimmy rather than the other but I suspect my wish isn’t true. For a debut novel Ronan Ryan did an exceptional job.

[Mandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Initially I was quite taken with the central conceit of this novel. The eponymous Jimmy Dice has a twin who dies at birth but somehow stays conscious to narrate some of the story about the Diaz family - who certainly suffer more than their fair share of disaster and tragedy. The dead twin comments and explains at intervals throughout the novel and I found this quite an effective way of progressing the storyline. However, I also found that there were far too many shifting perspectives and timelines, which made for some frustrating reading at times. The story roams far and wide, with a multitude of characters, some of whom seem superfluous to the plot and all the many elements make for a very fractured narrative. Jimmy Dice is at the centre of the story but the never-ending trials and tribulations of his life felt overdone and unconvincing. There is some good characterisation, especially of the minor characters, but the dialogue is occasionally wooden, and there’s far too much of it. Overall the novel could have done with a tighter focus and perhaps fewer disasters.

[Joshua · Rating 4 out of 5]

I still cannot put into words how I feel about this book. Though interesting, I found it at times difficult to push through. All in all, there were more positive than negative and I truly enjoyed the depth each character had. A good author is able to create characters that are relatable but unique in their own right. Each character presented is quite simple to understand, yet each character's thought, personality and behavior is distinct. That is probably my favorite thing about this book and from the start the way the author introduced and described each character by their mindset (Elizabeth's playfulness or Tighe's sternness). There isn't any major criticism. A story that reminds us to appreciate life, and remember that what may seem ordinary in your life, can often be extraordinary.


As a Nigerian/Irish who grew up in the country side, I enjoyed this story a lot.

[Fadz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good entertaining read with well developed characters. Interesting premise right from the beginning having the "dead" twin as narrator providing some insight into situations. Yet there are 3 narrative voices which seems excessive. Is the author trying to be too clever? And the timeline gets confusing when within the progression from the past to the now there are a few detours from different perspectives going back again to the past. Otherwise this is a really enjoyable book - a story of a family, of love in its many fractured forms, of friendships, of a life - tragic but real.

[Kai Moore-Austen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book in the end. It was not easy to read, or a happy story, however it was really well done and I applaud ghetto author for tackling such difficult topics.

cn for anyone who does pick this up, multiple discussions of death (adult and child), sexual assault and rape, and suicide. As I said, not always an easy read.