First Novel (Jonathan Cape 2013)
‘Gloriously noir-ish, intricately plotted, proper wince-inducing stuff... A cutting-edge, vital new British novel for now’ Stuart Hammond, Dazed & Confused
‘This lithe, quirky and occasionally inspired novel maintains itself against a background of privilege and perversion. Like Malcolm Bradbury’s The History Man rewritten by Geoff Dyer and Howard Jacobson in an awkward collaboration, First Novel is strange, memorable and, arguably, way ahead of its time’ Paul Dale, The List
‘First Novel is metafiction – and it is an extremely good example of the form’ John Burnside, The Times
‘First Novel is compelling... for its suspense, for its surprises, for its gleeful use of the macabre... This book generates its magnetism from the narrative puzzles it poses and the ingenuity with which it answers them’ Claire Lowdon, New Statesman
‘Clever and thought-provoking... Everything here is under question, even metafiction, and so by implication First Novel's own metafictive status’ Elizabeth Baines, Fictionbitch
‘Royle hasn’t forgotten his readers and as his queasy and, yes, macabre story progresses, the desire to know how the dots join up becomes increasingly urgent’ Stephanie Cross, Daily Mail
‘I’ll be astonished if it doesn’t make the short list of many a prize at the end of the year’ Naomi Frisby, Bookmunch
‘Gloriously noir-ish, intricately plotted, proper wince-inducing stuff... A cutting-edge, vital new British novel for now’ Stuart Hammond, Dazed & Confused
‘This lithe, quirky and occasionally inspired novel maintains itself against a background of privilege and perversion. Like Malcolm Bradbury’s The History Man rewritten by Geoff Dyer and Howard Jacobson in an awkward collaboration, First Novel is strange, memorable and, arguably, way ahead of its time’ Paul Dale, The List
‘First Novel is metafiction – and it is an extremely good example of the form’ John Burnside, The Times
‘First Novel is compelling... for its suspense, for its surprises, for its gleeful use of the macabre... This book generates its magnetism from the narrative puzzles it poses and the ingenuity with which it answers them’ Claire Lowdon, New Statesman
‘Clever and thought-provoking... Everything here is under question, even metafiction, and so by implication First Novel's own metafictive status’ Elizabeth Baines, Fictionbitch
‘Royle hasn’t forgotten his readers and as his queasy and, yes, macabre story progresses, the desire to know how the dots join up becomes increasingly urgent’ Stephanie Cross, Daily Mail
‘I’ll be astonished if it doesn’t make the short list of many a prize at the end of the year’ Naomi Frisby, Bookmunch
Regicide (Solaris 2011)
‘Gripping… Considerable emotional range… Ability to write across and around genres’ Natalya Wells, Time Out
‘Royle’s deceptively informal prose draws you in… until you end up in a place that is decidedly strange and nightmarish – the kind of place that China Miéville or Jonathan Carroll might take you to. It’s written with the deft and economical touch of a skilled short story writer’ Keith Brooke, The Guardian
‘Engaging and cleverly constructed… His prose is as elegant as ever’ Peter Tennant, Black Static
‘It all comes together nicely in a spooky kinda way’ David Marshall, City Book Review
‘Gripping… Considerable emotional range… Ability to write across and around genres’ Natalya Wells, Time Out
‘Royle’s deceptively informal prose draws you in… until you end up in a place that is decidedly strange and nightmarish – the kind of place that China Miéville or Jonathan Carroll might take you to. It’s written with the deft and economical touch of a skilled short story writer’ Keith Brooke, The Guardian
‘Engaging and cleverly constructed… His prose is as elegant as ever’ Peter Tennant, Black Static
‘It all comes together nicely in a spooky kinda way’ David Marshall, City Book Review
Antwerp (Serpent's Tail 2004)
‘Beautifully written... I salute Royle for his sound effects and reportage, for his fine prose, and for his love of cinema’ Roger Clarke, Independent
‘Atmospheric tour through the streets, squares and creepy abandoned buildings of Antwerp... The novel has a pleasing texture and impressive depth of inquiry into the darkest nooks and crannies of human pathology... Pungent writing... Terrific thriller... The denouement is both frantic and chilling’ Matthew Lewin, Guardian
‘Antwerp, a gory but erotic thriller, uses the language of cinema to tell its complicated story, using rapid cutting between scenes and characters both to provide pace and keep the reader off-balance... A chilling and exhilarating read’ Peter Guttridge, Observer
‘Beautifully written... I salute Royle for his sound effects and reportage, for his fine prose, and for his love of cinema’ Roger Clarke, Independent
‘Atmospheric tour through the streets, squares and creepy abandoned buildings of Antwerp... The novel has a pleasing texture and impressive depth of inquiry into the darkest nooks and crannies of human pathology... Pungent writing... Terrific thriller... The denouement is both frantic and chilling’ Matthew Lewin, Guardian
‘Antwerp, a gory but erotic thriller, uses the language of cinema to tell its complicated story, using rapid cutting between scenes and characters both to provide pace and keep the reader off-balance... A chilling and exhilarating read’ Peter Guttridge, Observer
The Director's Cut (Abacus 2000)
‘As a literary thriller, The Director’s Cut joins the pantheon of novels that explore the darker aspects of cinema’s fascination, dealing with memory and guilt, manipulation and death’ Chris Darke, Independent on Sunday
‘Interleaving a dense knowledge of film with a darkly atmospheric feel for London’s geography, Royle constructs a tense, intelligent thriller’ Matt Seaton, Esquire
‘There is a cunning, playful method at work behind the novel’s steady, riveting build. Each chapter, from the opener on beachcombing for amber, is a carefully cut gem... Best of all, it’s built on a raft of film references, captivating in its sure search for London’s lost cinemas... A success’ Omer Ali, Time Out
‘A moody, ingenious thriller, designed explicitly for film addicts, which explores sex, death, dreams and disenchantment – the stuff that movies are made of’ Philip Oakes, Literary Review
‘As a literary thriller, The Director’s Cut joins the pantheon of novels that explore the darker aspects of cinema’s fascination, dealing with memory and guilt, manipulation and death’ Chris Darke, Independent on Sunday
‘Interleaving a dense knowledge of film with a darkly atmospheric feel for London’s geography, Royle constructs a tense, intelligent thriller’ Matt Seaton, Esquire
‘There is a cunning, playful method at work behind the novel’s steady, riveting build. Each chapter, from the opener on beachcombing for amber, is a carefully cut gem... Best of all, it’s built on a raft of film references, captivating in its sure search for London’s lost cinemas... A success’ Omer Ali, Time Out
‘A moody, ingenious thriller, designed explicitly for film addicts, which explores sex, death, dreams and disenchantment – the stuff that movies are made of’ Philip Oakes, Literary Review
The Matter of the Heart (Abacus 1997)
‘A high-velocity read opening veins of radiant darkness. Royle’s dream-tracks honour territory previously mapped by such masters as JG Ballard and M John Harrison. He sustains his metaphor with heart-stopping guile’ Iain Sinclair
‘Nicholas Royle combines dreamtime with A-Z. Every back street, every corner in the rain, every corridor of an abandoned hospital has his sign on it, hacked into the tangled urban undergrowth with the machete of real talent’ M John Harrison
‘Dizzy, scary, crazily learned stuff’ Glasgow Herald
‘Just what the doctor of philosophy ordered... Royle uses [science’s] vernacular to counterbalance the endearing colloquial style of his narration, and sucks every last drop out of the streets-as-veins metaphor’ Ra Page, City Life
‘A high-velocity read opening veins of radiant darkness. Royle’s dream-tracks honour territory previously mapped by such masters as JG Ballard and M John Harrison. He sustains his metaphor with heart-stopping guile’ Iain Sinclair
‘Nicholas Royle combines dreamtime with A-Z. Every back street, every corner in the rain, every corridor of an abandoned hospital has his sign on it, hacked into the tangled urban undergrowth with the machete of real talent’ M John Harrison
‘Dizzy, scary, crazily learned stuff’ Glasgow Herald
‘Just what the doctor of philosophy ordered... Royle uses [science’s] vernacular to counterbalance the endearing colloquial style of his narration, and sucks every last drop out of the streets-as-veins metaphor’ Ra Page, City Life
Saxophone Dreams (Penguin 1996)
‘An extraordinary book, completely out of the shallows of the fashionable mainstream; a book, in fact, to dream to’ Brian Case, Time Out
‘The book is written with a compulsive energy that makes you want to run to keep up’ James Laurenson, Observer
‘An extraordinary book, completely out of the shallows of the fashionable mainstream; a book, in fact, to dream to’ Brian Case, Time Out
‘The book is written with a compulsive energy that makes you want to run to keep up’ James Laurenson, Observer
Counterparts (Barrington Books 1993)
‘Written with wiry control’ Nicholas Lezard, Guardian
‘[Royle’s] cool, steady prose sets a tone between Pinter and Derek Raymond’ Christopher Fowler, Time Out
‘Enormously accomplished and ambitious… marked by a high degree of formal sophistication, a strong and vividly conveyed sense of place… a virtuoso piece of experimental writing’ Jonathan Coe, Guardian
‘A nightmarish feeling that one might be still dreaming, or, worse, one might really be awake is crucial to the ambiguities of this excellent, odd first novel’ Roz Kaveney, Times Literary Supplement
‘A really disturbing piece of powerful fiction... Royle keeps the pages turning’ Lois Rathbone, Times
‘Written with wiry control’ Nicholas Lezard, Guardian
‘[Royle’s] cool, steady prose sets a tone between Pinter and Derek Raymond’ Christopher Fowler, Time Out
‘Enormously accomplished and ambitious… marked by a high degree of formal sophistication, a strong and vividly conveyed sense of place… a virtuoso piece of experimental writing’ Jonathan Coe, Guardian
‘A nightmarish feeling that one might be still dreaming, or, worse, one might really be awake is crucial to the ambiguities of this excellent, odd first novel’ Roz Kaveney, Times Literary Supplement
‘A really disturbing piece of powerful fiction... Royle keeps the pages turning’ Lois Rathbone, Times
