In There’s Been a Little Incident, the debut novel by Irish writer Alice Ryan, the “incident” in question is the disappearance of Molly, a young woman with a history of going missing. As Molly is an only child whose parents had died by the time she was 18, it falls to an extended cast of friends and relatives to get on the case. It becomes clear from early on, however, that this is not going to be a grim missing-person novel, but rather an extended exploration of the binding force of shared grief and personal history. It is about those who are there for you, even when you are not there yourself. Each member of the clan has a different view of Molly, kind, attention seeking, off the wall, and so on. The family is divided between her running away or going on holiday. I was very interested in the book and was really looking forward to reading it. However once I started, I found it took me a while to get into the story. The writing felt clunky at times, particularly with the additional Sheena Griffith storyline. I felt this wasn't needed as the book was very character driven and would have liked to have seen more perspectives of other family members. I felt that the Sheena story would have been better as a separate spin-off novel involving the characters mentioned here. Ryan’s cast of characters is a crazy family, made up of “new-aged hippies, religious nuts, alcoholics, former shoe salesmen, delinquent youths and Sudoku enthusiasts” who manage to endear themselves to the reader. Are they “nosy, judgemental and eccentric but ultimately great”? or “suffocating, overbearing people who pigeon-holed you”? Either way, quite a few of them are dealing with grief. And doing it the best way they can. Now, however, Molly has found a way of living that helps her to stop running and to deal with her grief, but until the family find her they don’t know this.

Not a patch on the Walshes, but even so very enjoyable once I got into it. It’s amazing that this is a debut novel, so well written. I look forward to more from Alice Ryan. It’s written with some astute social observations and with humour that will tease a giggle from even the most miserable of souls. THE AUTHOR: Alice Ryan grew up in Dublin. After moving to London to study at the LSE, she spent ten years working in the creative industries, holding roles in publishing, film and TV. She was Head of Insight and Planning at BBC Studios before returning to Ireland. She now works at The Arts Council of Ireland and lives in Dublin with her husband Brian and their daughter Kate. A lot of characters. It took a while to get to know them all, with such a vast array of personalities. However, despite the large number of characters, Alice Ryan did a great job at making it clear whose POV you were reading and even included a (funny) family tree at the beginning.

Reviews

Exploring big issues like alcoholism, mental health and grief, Alice handles these superbly. Beautifully written, this debut will be a big hit with both Irish and international readers. Humorous and heart-warming, There’s Been A Little Incident is a compelling read. I can’t wait to see what Alice writes next!

Each chapter gives the reader an insight to the individual character, some more likeable than others as in all families. I hope the book allows people to understand that you can be in awful places and awful things are happening, but there’s enough incredible warmth there in the world to kind of keep us going I also enjoyed the mystery that is woven into this story. Because Molly was not the only person to disappear that night . . .

Alice Ryan Press Reviews

The family, because of their experiences in the search and when they eventually find Molly, share some of the changes that have been wrought in her life. Everything works out in the end, for everyone; and the mystery of Sheena’s disappearance is finally solved. What works so effectively is the way in which Molly’s absence enables each family member to reassess their own lives. Uncle John remains a fairly pivotal constant, but others like Danny and Lady V experience epiphanies that are moving, engaging and absolutely realistic. I’d go so far as to say that reading There’s Been A Little Incident is equally as important and profound for the reader as it is for the characters because there’s a moment, a character or a feeling that is relatable for every reader. As well as a riveting, entertaining and emotional story, this book is a subliminal self-help manual! Molly, approaching her thirties, lives in London. She has many acquaintances but only one close friend B with whom she flat shares. B is about to move in with his boyfriend, sending the fragile Molly into a tailspin. When she disappears, not for the first time, her extended family in Dublin mobilise to see what can be done to locate her. If you are a fan of Milly Johnson, Marian Keyes, Joanna Bolouri or Bella Osborne I think this gorgeous book will be right up your street.