About the Book
In 1984, a bomb was planted at the Grand Hotel in Brighton, England, set to explode when the British prime minister and her entire cabinet would be there. Weaving fact and fiction, High Dive takes us inside this audacious assassination attempt and a group of unforgettable characters.
About the Author :
JONATHAN LEEis a British writer whose recent fiction has appeared in "Tin House, Granta, " and "A Public Space, " among other magazines. "High Dive" is his first novel to be published in the United States. He lives in Brooklyn, where he is a contributing editor for "Guernica" and a regular contributor to "The Paris Review Daily."
"
Review :
"High Dive"is a novel so smart and compassionate and beautifully written that it asks for total immersion. A reader will hold her breath for long, perfectly-paced stretches, and she will surface, dizzied, at the end.
Lauren Groff, author of"Fates and Furies"
Brilliant, urgent, unstoppable . . . An incredible novel of rare insight, velocity, depth, and daring. "
Publishers Weekly"(starred, boxed)
In fluent, agile prose Jonathan Lee takes onone of the more famous assassination plots in recent history with striking evenhandedness and depth. His novel offers a funny, gripping, and ultimately tragic view into the life of a young IRA man and the dear price he, and his victims, pay during the dark years of the Troubles.
Ayana Mathis, author of"The Twelve Tribes of Hattie"
"High Dive"is afascinating look into a troubled past. Intaut scene after taut scene, with a finestyle andwit among the carnage, Jonathan Lee does service to history and the novel both.
Joshua Ferris, author of"Then We Came to the End"
Lee s writing has a marked freshness, his pacing and dialogue are exceptional, and every scene is deftly handled. This is a real craftsman at work.
"Kirkus Reviews "(starred)
With wry wit and profound tenderness, Jonathan Lee s"High Dive"highlights the tensions between hope and heartbreak, struggle and surrender at the intersection of the mundane and the momentous. A bold, thrilling triumph of a book.
Tea Obreht, author of"The Tiger s Wife"
Jonathan Lee is a writer of stylish concision, humour, wisdom, and danger.
Colin Barrett, author of "Young Skins
"
A completely absorbing novel about the lives of people who struggle in small and massive ways. Lee s writing is poignant, fluid, and very funny. Above all else it feels honest you can see yourself in all of his characters. I really did love this book, and I m still thinking and worrying about it.
Evie Wyld, author of "All the Birds, Singing"
"High Dive "is both wistful and very funny. It is also genuinely lyrical. But more than anything, what distinguishes it from so many other novels is its rare sincerity.
Alexander Maksik, author of "A Marker to Measure Drift"
Every assassination is a plot with personal history and national history intertwined, action and inaction offsetting each other, misstep transforming into opportunity, luck submitting to fate. Jonathan Lee is a virtuosostoryteller, combining the skills of a historian, a reporter, a criminal psychologist, and most importantly, a close observer of the complexity of everyday life. What a thrilling new novel.
YiyunLi, author of "Kinder Than Solitude "Praise from the UK:
Hauntingly atmospheric . . . Lee is quite brilliant at excavating the disappointments of characters constantly chasing lost opportunities . . . "High Dive "is, of course, a historical novel, detailing events that took place more than 30 years ago, yet there is always a sense of immediacy to the prose . . . In the mundane, Jonathan Lee finds the deep end, where all are diving for dear life.
Jake Arnott, "The Guardian"
""
Highly accomplished . . . Absorbing . . . Moving . . . The author powerfully uses a prismatic range of perspectives . . . The political is intricately interwoven with the personal . . . Lee dives deep into the minds and hearts of his characters, skillfully shoring up the private moments history so rarely records.
Anita Sethi, "The Observer"
""
Rich in the comedy of the mundane: the hopes and petty quarrels neatly contrasted with the approaching terror.
John Harding, "Daily Mail"
""
Riveting . . . Novels about terrorism aren t usually this tender. It s Lee s way of bringing home the cost of bloodshed . . . A tragic-comic tale full of warmth and muddled humanity.
Anthony Cummins, "Metro"
Utterly absorbing and beautifully wrought.
Mariella Frostrup, BBC Radio 4 Open Book
Lee s powerful novel is an extraordinary performance: vividly written, painfully human, and fully fleshing the inner lives of its characters.
Phil Baker, "Sunday Times"
What s clear straight away is how good Lee is on character . . . He can be very funny too . . . Moose is a terrific creation.
John Preston, "Spectator"
""
Lee masterfully ekes poetry out of everyday life . . . As a character study, "High Dive "is faultless. Freya, Moose, and Dan exist, you know them, they are gloriously and fully realized . . . For sheer beauty of description and engaging personal tone, my recommendation is "High Dive."
Alexandra Jones, "Stylist"
""
Lee writes well about the inner lives of his characters and his sensitivity to the complexity of human motivations shows evidence of an empathetic and forgiving emotional intelligence. The pictures he draws of the apparently unknowable nature of those to whom we are closest are poignant and memorable.
Matthew Adams, "Literary Review
""
A multivoiced epic that builds towards a stunning finale. I loved it. ""
Alex Preston, "The Guardian "(Best Books of 2015)
" In High Dive, Jonathan Lee a wordsmith of incomparable eloquence has forged a canny edifice, intricately constructed . . . Electrifying . . . A work of serious and thoughtful integrity. "
" Steve Davies, ""The Independent"""
""
" Refreshing . . . Warm and compassionate . . . High Dive is a moving and charismatic novel . . . It succeeds, through its multiple sympathies and scrupulous empathy, on its own terms. "
" Luke Brown, "Financial Times
" A courageous work of art that works its own kind of high dive trick a relentless momentum whose twists demand close attention. Jonathan Lee is a real talent. "
" James Kidd, "South China Morning Post""
"
Lee has crafted an absorbing character piece that feels startlingly real . . . Extremely relatable . . . "High Dive" is funny, troublesome, and poignant, and will cement Lee s reputation.
Graeme Smith, "The Herald" (Scotland)
"
In fluent, agile prose Jonathan Lee takes onone of the more famous assassination plots in recent history with striking evenhandedness and depth. His novel offers a funny, gripping, and ultimately tragic view into the life of a young IRA man and the dear price he, and his victims, pay during the dark years of the Troubles.
Ayana Mathis, author of" The Twelve Tribes of Hattie"
"High Dive"is a novel so smart and compassionate and beautifully written that it asks for total immersion. A reader will hold her breath for long, perfectly-paced stretches, and she will surface, dizzied, at the end.
Lauren Groff, author of "Fates and Furies"
"High Dive" is afascinating look into a troubled past. Intaut scene after taut scene, with a finestyle andwit among the carnage, Jonathan Lee does service to history and the novel both.
Joshua Ferris, author of "Then We Came to the End"
With wry wit and profound tenderness, Jonathan Lee s"High Dive"highlights the tensions between hope and heartbreak, struggle and surrender at the intersection of the mundane and the momentous. A bold, thrilling triumph of a book.
Tea Obreht, author of "The Tiger s Wife"
Jonathan Lee is a writer of stylish concision, humour, wisdom, and danger.
Colin Barrett, author of "Young Skins
"
A completely absorbing novel about the lives of people who struggle in small and massive ways. Lee s writing is poignant, fluid, and very funny. Above all else it feels honest you can see yourself in all of his characters. I really did love this book, and I m still thinking and worrying about it.
Evie Wyld, author of "All the Birds, Singing"
"High Dive "is both wistful and very funny. It is also genuinely lyrical. But more than anything, what distinguishes it from so many other novels is its rare sincerity.
Alexander Maksik, author of "A Marker to Measure Drift"
Every assassination is a plot with personal history and national history intertwined, action and inaction offsetting each other, misstep transforming into opportunity, luck submitting to fate. Jonathan Lee is a virtuosostoryteller, combining the skills of a historian, a reporter, a criminal psychologist, and most importantly, a close observer of the complexity of everyday life. What a thrilling new novel.
YiyunLi, author of "Kinder Than Solitude
" Brilliant, urgent, unstoppable . . . An incredible novel of rare insight, velocity, depth, and daring. "
"Publishers Weekly"(starred)
"Praise from the UK:
Hauntingly atmospheric . . . Lee is quite brilliant at excavating the disappointments of characters constantly chasing lost opportunities . . . "High Dive "is, of course, a historical novel, detailing events that took place more than 30 years ago, yet there is always a sense of immediacy to the prose . . . In the mundane, Jonathan Lee finds the deep end, where all are diving for dear life.
Jake Arnott, "The Guardian"
""
Highly accomplished . . . Absorbing . . . Moving . . . The author powerfully uses a prismatic range of perspectives . . . The political is intricately interwoven with the personal . . . Lee dives deep into the minds and hearts of his characters, skillfully shoring up the private moments history so rarely records.
Anita Sethi, "The Observer"
""
Rich in the comedy of the mundane: the hopes and petty quarrels neatly contrasted with the approaching terror.
John Harding, "Daily Mail"
""
Riveting . . . Novels about terrorism aren t usually this tender. It s Lee s way of bringing home the cost of bloodshed . . . A tragic-comic tale full of warmth and muddled humanity.
Anthony Cummins, "Metro"
Utterly absorbing and beautifully wrought.
Mariella Frostrup, BBC Radio 4 Open Book
Lee s powerful novel is an extraordinary performance: vividly written, painfully human, and fully fleshing the inner lives of its characters.
Phil Baker, "Sunday Times"
What s clear straight away is how good Lee is on character . . . He can be very funny too . . . Moose is a terrific creation.
John Preston, "Spectator"
""
Lee masterfully ekes poetry out of everyday life . . . As a character study, "High Dive "is faultless. Freya, Moose, and Dan exist, you know them, they are gloriously and fully realized . . . For sheer beauty of description and engaging personal tone, my recommendation is "High Dive."
Alexandra Jones, "Stylist"
""
Lee writes well about the inner lives of his characters and his sensitivity to the complexity of human motivations shows evidence of an empathetic and forgiving emotional intelligence. The pictures he draws of the apparently unknowable nature of those to whom we are closest are poignant and memorable.
Matthew Adams, "Literary Review
" In High Dive, Jonathan Lee a wordsmith of incomparable eloquence has forged a canny edifice, intricately constructed . . . Electrifying . . . A work of serious and thoughtful integrity. "
" Steve Davies, ""The Independent"""
""
" Refreshing . . . Warm and compassionate . . . High Dive is a moving and charismatic novel . . . It succeeds, through its multiple sympathies and scrupulous empathy, on its own terms. "
" Luke Brown, "Financial Times
" A courageous work of art that works its own kind of high dive trick a relentless momentum whose twists demand close attention. Jonathan Lee is a real talent. "
" James Kidd, "South China Morning Post""
"
Lee has crafted an absorbing character piece that feels startlingly real . . . Extremely relatable . . . "High Dive" is funny, troublesome, and poignant, and will cement Lee s reputation.
Graeme Smith, "The Herald" (Scotland)
"
Every assassination is a plot with personal history and national history intertwined, action and inaction offsetting each other, misstep transforming into opportunity, luck submitting to fate. Jonathan Lee is a virtuosostoryteller, combining the skills of a historian, a reporter, a criminal psychologist, and most importantly, a close observer of the complexity of everyday life. What a thrilling new novel. YiyunLi, author of "Kinder Than Solitude"
"High Dive" is afascinating look into a troubled past. Intaut scene after taut scene, with a finestyle andwit among the carnage, Jonathan Lee does service to history and the novel both.
Joshua Ferris, author of "Then We Came to the End"
With wry wit and profound tenderness, Jonathan Lee s"High Dive"highlights the tensions between hope and heartbreak, struggle and surrender at the intersection of the mundane and the momentous. A bold, thrilling triumph of a book.
Tea Obreht, author of "The Tiger s Wife"
A completely absorbing novel about the lives of people who struggle in small and massive ways. Lee s writing is poignant, fluid, and very funny. Above all else it feels honest you can see yourself in all of his characters. I really did love this book, and I m still thinking and worrying about it.
Evie Wyld, author of "All the Birds, Singing"
"High Dive "is both wistful and very funny. It is also genuinely lyrical. But more than anything, what distinguishes it from so many other novels is its rare sincerity.
Alexander Maksik, author of "A Marker to Measure Drift"
Jonathan Lee is a writer of stylish concision, humour, wisdom, and danger.
Colin Barrett, author of "Young Skins"
"
"High Dive" is afascinating look into a troubled past. Intaut scene after taut scene, with a finestyle andwit among the carnage, Jonathan Lee does service to history and the novel both.
Joshua Ferris, author of "Then We Came to the End"
With wry wit and profound tenderness, Jonathan Lee s"High Dive"highlights the tensions between hope and heartbreak, struggle and surrender at the intersection of the mundane and the momentous. A bold, thrilling triumph of a book.
Tea Obreht, author of "The Tiger s Wife"
A completely absorbing novel about the lives of people who struggle in small and massive ways. Lee s writing is poignant, fluid, and very funny. Above all else it feels honest you can see yourself in all of his characters. I really did love this book, and I m still thinking and worrying about it.
Evie Wyld, author of "All the Birds, Singing"
"High Dive "is both wistful and very funny. It is also genuinely lyrical. But more than anything, what distinguishes it from so many other novels is its rare sincerity.
Alexander Maksik, author of "A Marker to Measure Drift"
Jonathan Lee is a writer of stylish concision, humour, wisdom, and danger.
Colin Barrett, author of "Young Skins"
"
"" A completely absorbing novel about the lives of people who struggle in small and massive ways. Lee s writing is poignant, fluid, and very funny. Above all else it feels honest you can see yourself in all of his characters. I really did love this book, and I m still thinking and worrying about it.
Evie Wyld, author of "All the Birds, Singing"
"High Dive "is both wistful and very funny. It is also genuinely lyrical. But more than anything, what distinguishes it from so many other novels is its rare sincerity.
Alexander Maksik, author of "A Marker to Measure Drift"
Jonathan Lee is a writer of stylish concision, humour, wisdom, and danger.
Colin Barrett, author of "Young Skins"
"
