Fire Rush

Remarkable… In terms of sheer lyrical force it stands head and shoulders above most debuts * Daily Telegraph *
I was blown away by Fire Rush - an exceptional and stunningly original novel by a major new writer… Her mesmerising, imaginative and incantatory writing leaves us swaying to the bass of the visceral rhythms she so powerfully describes. By the end of the novel, I felt charged and changed and already longed to reread it – Bernardine Evaristo, Booker Prize-winning author of GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER
Few have channelled so well the skittering beats and transcendent air of dub music as Crooks does in her semi-autobiographical debut… Startlingly vivid reading * Daily Telegraph, Summer Reads of 2023 *
A heady swirl of a novel that pulls the reader in from the first page… A fabulous, absorbing read – Maggie O’Farrell, author of THE MARRIAGE PORTRAIT
A window into the dub scene at the time, with rhythmic, lyrical writing and a story about raving, love and the impact of police violence… Both a page turner and a literary novel… Truly remarkable * Vogue *
A hypnotic journey into the dub reggae scene * Guardian, Books of the Year *
This beautiful, sprawling narrative is wrought with an incredible precision and a musicality which carries every sentence. Crooks’ novel haunts but make space for hope as well – Caleb Azumah Nelson, author of OPEN WATER
A colourful, immersive debut… Throughout, a passion and anger resound as we gain a glimpse into a rarely observed British subculture * Sunday Times, Summer Reads of 2023 *
A brilliant, exuberant novel. Full of beauty, musicality and feminist power – Irenosen Okojie, author of NUDIBRANCH
A scorching, lyrical debut, soaked in dub reggae * Guardian, Summer Reads of 2023 *

Jacqueline Crooks grew up in 70s and 80s Southall, part of London’s migrant community carving out a space through music, culture and politics.

Fire Rush, her first novel, was shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, Waterstones Debut Fiction Prize, Jhalak Prize, Paul Torday Memorial Prize and Author’s Club Best First Novel Award. It was also chosen as an Observer Best Debut Novel of the Year.

For her short stories, a selection of which was published in the collection The Ice Migration, she has been nominated for the Orwell Prize for Political Fiction, Queen Mary Wasafiri New Writing Prize and BBC National Short Story Award.

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