April in Spain: Banville discards his pseudonym with plenty of panache

The veteran writer’s latest effort is initially confusing – a Benjamin Black crime novel under his own name – but ultimately rewarding

John Banville: the prose in his latest novel, April in Spain, is enrapturing and poetic, but with a lighter touch. Picture: Bryan Meade

FICTION

April in Spain

By John Banville

Faber & Faber, €12.99

John Banville’s latest release could prove confusing. A Quirke novel written under his own name? What of the Benjamin Black pseudonym that the Irish author ordinarily employs for his crime outings? Banville has ditched the pen name he used for his previous seven Quirke books, happy now to stand behind all his work. After all, a mask is used to help us unlock dormant ...