Novelist and playwright, Sebastian Barry calls Donal Ryan “the king of the new wave of Irish writers” — and here Ryan pulls another rabbit from his glittering hat. Bleak, dark, deceptive, and beguiling, Where Are the Kings delivers a sledgehammer blow to its unsuspecting reader. As the covers close, it is time to draw a deep breath and contemplate, in silence, a plot that is not merely ingenious but deeply penetrating.
A bildungsroman, the book follows the tumultuous journey of young Jack in three arresting acts: tempus edax (“time the devourer of things”), tempus fugit (“the flight of time”), and tempus imperator (“time the ruler”). On the cusp of adolescence, Jack is dealt a devastating blow when his mother, Grace, drowns herself. Unable to bear the consequences of his wife’s death, Jack’s father descends into mental chaos before being dispatched to an asylum in Limerick.
The welfare of Jack is entrusted to the extended family helmed by his grandfather — a benevolent quintet comprising his grandmother, uncles Theo, Haulie, and JJ, and his aunt Rose. The affectionate, loud, and enterprising duo of Theo and Haulie take the twelve-year-old under their stewardship, teaching him the intricacies of automobiles and their repair. JJ, only a few years older, initially resents the intrusion of Jack into both his world and his room, before taking to him in a refreshingly loving manner.
Despite a benevolent household, and a benign environment, the death of his mother gnaws at Jack’s insides. The tragic spectacle of a young boy pedaling furiously to keep pace with his mother’s car as it approaches the dreaded bank of water haunts him without respite. Resolute in his determination to uncover what drove Grace to her fatal decision, Jack courts the danger of losing his mind — and inadvertently following in his father’s footsteps.
Cathartic bouts rack Jack as he is buffeted by a gale storm of swirling emotions. While remaining eternally grateful to Rose for adopting him like a son, he is also pestered by carnal urges directed at his aunt. Every misdirected urge is swiftly followed by a stronger and chastising silent atonement. Visits to the asylum at Limerick and meandering directionless conversations with his father exacerbate Jack’s mounting state of confusion, threatening to snowball into jousts of existential crises.
Convulsive bouts rack Jack as he is buffeted by a gale of conflicting emotion. Even as he remains eternally grateful to Rose for adopting him like a son, he is tormented by carnal urges directed at his aunt. Every misdirected impulse is swiftly followed by a stronger, chastising, silent atonement. Visits to the asylum at Limerick, and meandering, directionless conversations with his father, only deepen Jack’s confusion — threatening to snowball into a full existential crisis.
Time is running out for Jack, for an internal exploration without a destination cannot end well. Whether or not Jack arrives will not merely decide the trajectory of his life — it will suffuse his existence with meaning or strip it of all relevance. Will he chart his own inimitable path to liberation? Or will time and fate, in the end, put paid to his hopes?
Where are the Kings – a meditation on the meaning and metaphor of life.
This review is a part of the Random Things Virtual Book Tours. A review copy of the book was made available in electronic mode. No other emoluments, whether monetary or otherwise were part of the review process.
