Acts of the Assassins is out in paperback in the UK from early March, and the cover is … exactly the same. And why not? If it ain’t broke don’t fix it. I love everything about this cover, from the red and black to the hint of icon, not to mention the funny. Don’t think I ever had a cover before that made me laugh.
The folk at Vintage have added on some quotes from the reviews and a reminder that the novel was shortlisted for the Goldsmiths Prize. I was incredibly happy to be involved with the most interesting novel prize this country has. I know I would say that, but try Kevin Barry’s Beatlebone or Max Porter’s Grief is the Thing With Feathers. These are books that aren’t scared to say boo to the goose.
In the official wording the prize is for fiction that ‘opens up new possibilities for the novel form’. No-one dares use the word ‘experimental’ because some words in literature are damned by a deterrent hint of French. More importantly, the prize is there to reward experiments that have been successful – as B.S.Johnson once said, if it works it’s a novel; the experiments go in the bin.