Bring the House Down

A one night stand A one star review ''Compelling, comedic and seriously clever'' ALICE VINCENT ''Sharp-witted, wise, and authentic - what a fierce, fantastically funny read'' CLAIRE LOMBARDO ''Runcie''s characters feel so real I wouldn''t be surprised to overhear them on the streets of Edinburgh'' ROWAN HISAYO BUCHANAN At the Edinburgh Fringe, vicious theatre critic Alex Lyons is dashing off his latest hatchet job. When Alex meets the show''s performer, Hayley, in a bar afterwards, she has no idea who he is. It''s only after they''ve spent the night together that Alex''s well-meaning flatmate, Sophie, accidentally shows Hayley the one-star review. Humiliated and furious, Hayley revamps her show into a one-star review of Alex''s entire life. Starring every bad thing he''s ever done to anyone. Sparing absolutely no details. Hayley''s show is an instant hit, setting off a cultural earthquake. With Alex''s life in ruins, Sophie has a front-row seat to the carnage. Which is how she discovers that, sometimes, the audience is the most dangerous place to be. Funny and thrilling, for readers of Cleopatra and Frankenstein or Fleishman is in Trouble , this is an extraordinary debut novel about bad art and good art and who gets to say what. About the one-star reviews we wish we could give out, and the personal criticism we would rather not face.

Product details

• Authors: Charlotte Runcie
• Publisher: The Borough Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 05.06.2025
• EAN: 9780008688028
• ISBN: 978-0-00-868802-8
• Dimensions: 153 mm x 234 mm x 20 mm
• Subjects: Fiction > Narrative literature > Contemporary literature (from 1945); FICTION / Women, Modern & contemporary fiction (post c 1945), Fiction: special features, FICTION / Humorous / General, FICTION / Literary, Edinburgh, Narrative theme: Social issues, Humorous fiction, Narrative theme: Love and relationships, FICTION / Feminist, FICTION / Urban & Street Lit, Modern and contemporary fiction: general and literary, Fringe;festival;me too;cancelled;cancellation;review;