or
Sign in to turn on 1-Click ordering.
 
 
More Buying Choices
9 used & new from £2.88

Have one to sell? Sell yours here
 
   
Memoirs of a Master Forger
 
 

Memoirs of a Master Forger (Hardcover)

by William Heaney (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
RRP: £9.99
Price: £7.99 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
You Save: £2.00 (20%)
o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o
Usually dispatched within 1 to 4 weeks.
Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk. Gift-wrap available.

6 new from £4.99 3 used from £2.88

Frequently Bought Together

Customers buy this book with Priest of Evil by Matti Joensuu

Memoirs of a Master Forger + Priest of Evil
Price For Both: £13.48

One of these items ships sooner than the other. Show details

  • This item: Memoirs of a Master Forger by William Heaney

    Usually dispatched within 1 to 4 weeks.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions

  • Priest of Evil by Matti Joensuu

    In stock.
    Dispatched from and sold by Amazon.co.uk.
    This item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions


Customers Who Bought This Item Also Bought

Priest of Evil

Priest of Evil

by Matti Joensuu
3.0 out of 5 stars (4)  £5.49
The Limits of Enchantment

The Limits of Enchantment

by Graham Joyce
5.0 out of 5 stars (1)  £5.48
The Naming of the Beasts: A Felix Castor Novel

The Naming of the Beasts: A Felix Castor Novel

by Mike Carey
4.8 out of 5 stars (6)  £5.57
Three Ways to Snog an Alien

Three Ways to Snog an Alien

by Graham Joyce
5.0 out of 5 stars (1)  £5.42
The Facts of Life

The Facts of Life

by Graham Joyce
4.6 out of 5 stars (5)  £4.99
Explore similar items

Product details

  • Hardcover: 308 pages
  • Publisher: Gollancz (16 Oct 2008)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0575082976
  • ISBN-13: 978-0575082977
  • Product Dimensions: 20 x 13.4 x 3 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 250,506 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Product Description

Review

"Moody, poetic, sometimes angry, this is a beautifully written portrait of guilt, forgiveness, and the people who fall between the cracks. Intelligent and well crafted." (Saxon Bullock SFX )

"This is an intriguing novel, and great fun." (THE TIMES )

"Memoirs of a Master Forger is a morality tale about the angels of redemption and demons of suffering that inhabit a London whose contours were mapped more than two centuries ago by William Blake. Like Blake Heaney's London is a phantasmagoria of feigning and reality located along the embankments of the Thames and in its historic pubs. The tone is world-weary, cynical, compassionate, wry, always superficial." (Kathryn Sutherland TLS )

"The novel is an ultimately unplifting feat of storytelling which grips the reader to the very last page. A sophisticated horror-fantasy." (Eric Brown THE GUARDIAN )

"Warm, exuberant and very funny, full of both justified anger and determined optimism." (Mat Coward MORNING STAR )

"He's engaging company is Heaney: amusing, urbane, perhaps verging on the pub bore. I had fun with Master forger." (Paul Marland DEATHRAY )


Product Description

William is a dissolute book-forger. A talented writer in his own right he would rather scribble poems anonymously for an asian friend (who is becoming increasingly successful as a result), and create forgeries of Jane Austen first editions to sell to gullible collectors. He's not all bad. The money from the forgeries goes straight to homeless hostel and William's crimes don't really hurt anyone. And there are reasons William hasn't amounted to more. He did something he was ashamed of when he was a student, he drinks far too much and he can't commit to any relationships. Oh and he sees demons. Shadowy figures at the shoulder of everyone around him (except the woman who runs the hostel, she remains untouched), waiting for a moment's weakness. Or is just that William can see the suffering of the world? And then an extraordinary woman, who may just be able to save him from the world's suffering, walks into his life. This is William's own story. But who can believe a master forger?

Inside This Book (Learn More)
Browse and search another edition of this book.
Browse Sample Pages
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Search inside this book:

Tags Customers Associate with This Product

 (What's this?)
Click on a tag to find related items, discussions, and people.
 

Your tags: Add your first tag
 

What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

Memoirs of a Master Forger
89% buy the item featured on this page:
Memoirs of a Master Forger 5.0 out of 5 stars (4)
£7.99
The Tooth Fairy
5% buy
The Tooth Fairy 4.9 out of 5 stars (12)
£5.99
The Limits of Enchantment
2% buy
The Limits of Enchantment 5.0 out of 5 stars (1)
£5.48
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
2% buy
The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo 4.1 out of 5 stars (267)
£3.96

 

Customer Reviews

4 Reviews
5 star:
 (4)
4 star:    (0)
3 star:    (0)
2 star:    (0)
1 star:    (0)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
Share your thoughts with other customers:
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars DIFFERENT, BUT VERY ENJOYABLE, 25 Oct 2008
By J. R. Daniell "Avid Reader" (London) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
I was curious when I first heard about this. And now I am glad I have read it.
Book description is above so won't go into too much detail. I think it is a very well written book that will appeal to alot of different people. There is a bit of the occult, a bit of romance, demons (interesting creatures!), family relationships, engaging and funny at times, the list goes on. It is very well put together and will not only get you thinking but will give you a great story as well.
It is definitely 'different' than the usual fiction I read, and a book I would recommend everyone should read.
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars An absolute joy, 14 Mar 2009
By GM Jones (Reading, UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
The first book from the autobiographical author William Heaney - or rather, the latest novel from much-respected genre author Graham Joyce - is first and foremost a character study of a flawed, likeable man, making amends for events in his past that has left him feeling as though he has been cursed (And left with the ability to see demons, natch).

The story moves through Heaney's life in the present - his unrewarding job on a young person's governmental forum, his masterminding of the forgery of rare books (Which he seems to do purely out of a sense of mischief, and to fund the local homeless shelter), his relationships with his friends, and a growing romance with the mysterious Yasmin - with episodes from the story of his past, the tragic events that led him to be the person he is today. As usual with Joyce, the novel is structurally flawless, the prose style simple yet poetic (and often powerfully moving).

The idea of the demons is a fascinating one. These are not the evil, fiery hellspawn of popular imagination (or Buffy) but something else entirely, called Demons by Heaney out of convenience. Creepy, 3-D shadows that cluster around a person, or climb up upon them, these demons are more like visible dooms or character flaws than anything else, something which makes them strangely believable, and endlessly fascinating. This supernatural element is handled carefully, never becoming too forward in the narrative and more-or-less staying within the protagonist's perspective - leading to that "is he imagining it all, or isn't he?" frisson that inhabits many of Joyce's novels. Could he even, in fact, be lying about it?

Because forgeries and falsehoods are the major theme of the book, and are threaded throughout the story. From the obvious porkie of the Author's real name, to the life his protagonist has built up, to more general ideas like the casual lies we tell ourselves in relationships, the impossibility of truly knowing the person in bed next to you and many others, including a much-deserved dig at the infelicities of the current poetry scene.

All these various threads - complete with the traditional reveal of secrets and sudden reversals - come together at the end into one of the most moving, unforgettable climaxes I can remember reading in a long time.

Memoirs of a Master Forger is a triumph, surpassing even this author's best in The Limits of Enchantment , The Facts of Life and The Tooth Fairy. (Please, please check them out!)

That I feel it's an injustice Joyce isn't famous is something of an understatement - it's an absolute tragedy. His novels are complex, warm-hearted and moving. They deserve to be better known - much, much better known.

And hey! That's no lie! (See what I did there?)
Comment Comment | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)



 
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb, 20 Nov 2008
By D. A. Harris "davidharris52" (Oxford, UK) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)      
This is an odd book, but very satisfying, page-turney and thought provoking.

William Heaney (the "author") runs a youth charity, props up a shelter for the homeless with the proceeds of his book forging racket and hobnobs with junior Ministers. And he drinks - quite a lot.

And he can see demons. How this came to be, and what it means, is gradually teased out as the narrative weaves between William now and student William, with a dash of the experiences of a Gulf War veteran. It's all blended very skilfully - whoever the "real" William is* they can tell a cracking story.

(Oh - and the book's probably worth the price just as a guide to historic London pubs.)

*Graham Joyce




Comment Comments (2) | Permalink | Was this review helpful to you? Yes No (Report this)


Share your thoughts with other customers: Create your own review
 
 
 
Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book
A literary novel with real humanity, this is a gem of a book. The demons don't feature as greatly as the blurb implies - this isn't a book just for genre fans at all, it's... Read more
Published 10 months ago by Tom

Only search this product's reviews



Customer Discussions

This product's forum
Discussion Replies Latest Post
No discussions yet

Ask questions, Share opinions, Gain insight
Start a new discussion
Topic:
First post:
Prompts for sign-in
 


Active discussions in related forums
   
Related forums


Listmania!


Look for similar items by category


Look for similar items by subject


Feedback

Ad

Your Recent History

 (What's this?)

After viewing product detail pages or search results, look here to find an easy way to navigate back to pages you are interested in.