Fire
'An exhilarating read' Spectator
‘Unsettling and utterly compelling’ Woman and Home
‘incredibly well-written’ Good Housekeeping
'Hypnotically clean, clear prose... powerful and memorable' Irish Times
'You will hurtle through the book, because it is such a compelling story' Irish Examiner
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From internationally bestselling author John Boyne, a challenging and visceral narrative that asks the question: can one cataclysmic moment turn someone into a monster?
On the face of it, Freya lives a gilded existence, dancing solely to her own tune. She has all the trappings of wealth and privilege, a responsible job as a surgeon specialising in skin grafts, a beautiful flat in a sought-after development, and a flash car. But it wasn’t always like this. Hers is a life founded on darkness.
Did what happened to Freya as a child one fateful summer influence the adult she would become – or was she always destined to be that person? Was she born with cruelty in her heart or did something force it into being?
In Fire, John Boyne takes the reader on a chilling, uncomfortable but utterly compelling psychological journey to the epicentre of the human condition, asking the age-old question: nurture – or nature?
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Praise for John Boyne
'One of the greatest craftsmen in contemporary literature' Colum McCann
'Among the world's greatest storytellers' Donal Ryan
'One of the most assured novelists of his generation' Observer
Irish Times bestseller, May 2024
John Boyne is the author of nineteen novels for adults, six for younger readers, a picture book and a collection of short stories. His 2006 novel The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas has sold more than 11 million copies worldwide and has been adapted for cinema, theatre, ballet, and opera. His many international bestsellers include The Heart's Invisible Furies and A Ladder to the Sky. He has won four Irish Book Awards, including Author of the Year in 2022, along with a host of other international literary prizes, including most recently the 2025 FNAC novel prize for The Elements. His novels are published in sixty languages.
Twitter: @JohnBoyneBooks
Instagram: @JohnBoyneAuthor