Author of His Own Misfortune

by John Conlon

Frank Kelly has lost everything - the result of committing what he believed to be the perfect crime - and for years now, he has been living in the shadows of decent society, hiding from his past.But Frank's past is about to catch up with him.

And when it does, so begins his chronicle.As Frank recounts the twists and turns in his life since the fateful day in 2013 when he concocted a plan to steal a rare and valuable Charles Dickens' publication from the British Library, he takes us with him on a gripping journey from London to Ireland and back again, and reveals why he is the undoubted Author of His Own Misfortune.

269 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 2, 2021

Reviews

[karla_bookishlife · Rating 4 out of 5]

I absolutely love to read books set locally and was delighted to come across this book at my local LibrariesNi book group, and even more delighted to discover that the author worked for a local library and could come and speak to our group about this debut novel. The novel is written in first person narration and begins at its ending and a hand landing on the protagonist's shoulder in a manner of uncovering his identity. The narrator then conversationally takes us back in time to the events and decisions that led his life to spiral in an enexpected way. It is clear from the title that the misfortunes experienced are self inflicted. The initial twist that took him down a criminal route was a complete surprise and as his personality is revealed, I found it so intriguing. Whilst the protagonist has a darker side, I often found him humorous. A superb read and I am thrilled to hear there are two more books being penned, the third one touching back on characters from this story, so I cannot wait to read more from Conlon in the near future.