A debut novel from an established British TV comedy director, spawned from his own front-line experience as a father grappling with the highs and lows of family life, during the unrelenting blitzkrieg of adolescence.
Alex Feinstein’s life is in free-fall. His career has tanked. His wife has left him. He’s at war with his 15 year old son, Fred. And he’s just had a scary diagnosis.
At the end of his tether - literally - he's about to end it all when his distraught ex calls to say their son’s been kidnapped at Glastonbury. The gang is demanding a hefty ransom and if the cops get involved, Fred’s toast.
But who are these people - and why have they targeted Fred?
With renewed sense of purpose and nothing to lose, Alex wriggles out of his makeshift noose and embarks on a frantic mission to rescue the boy - and who knows? - perhaps even himself.
The House of the Rising Son is a dark comic odyssey through the converging traumas of mid-life and adolescence, with a fresh look at family dynamics through the post#MeToo male prism.
Not one dull moment from beginning to end
Deliciously written with enormous heart
A comic tour-de-force
A wry, funny and unexpectedly touching tale with a nail-biting finale
A captivating debut
A funny, touching book that rings horribly true for anyone who has ever felt the impossibility of getting parenting/marriage/career/health/ even death - right
A delightful blend of dark comedy and pathos
