Love Michael's writing, talking about dark subjects, intergenerational trauma but with humour. I felt seen, the experience of class and being from the North of Ireland permeates into everything, whether you like it or not. Thanks to penguin for my advance copy

One of the best books I've read this year. A really insightful and arresting depiction of a young man's struggle. Every character is layered and complex. There's so much anxious tension at work in the pages that you find yourself gripped.

A fantastic novel. In Belfast, your man tries to break the classic poverty trap set for anyone from a working class background who studies English as a degree. Out you come with wistful ideas, yet no practical skills. What choice is there in the competitive jobs market but to move home, and work in bars/coffee/retail? And who is waiting for you? Your old life. Your old patterns. It'd make the main character wince to hear me writing the words "this is about intergenerational trauma," but it is and my, how well it is handled. Excellent writing - I was gripped all the way through.

I was blown away by this novel, a telling of a young man’s struggle to redirect the path his life has taken. Sean forged his way through school in Belfast, journeyed to Liverpool to get his degree in English Lit, and returned home only to find himself tangled up in a world without opportunity. Things get worse when he finds himself on trial for assaulting a guy at a party, his first brush with the law. The setting is Belfast after The Troubles, an era that was supposed to hold so much promise. What a beautiful world this will be What a glorious time to be free – Donald Fagen Sean is having difficulty keeping even the most menial job, faces eviction from his dilapidated flat, and is having a hard time imagining a future beyond the vodka-and-cocaine-filled nightly parties. His best friend Ryan is urging Sean to escape with him to Australia. His love interest, Mairéad, may be seeing someone else and is planning her own escape– to Berlin. Everyone’s option is escaping– traditionally the only alternative in Irish culture. Recently, in reviewing plotlines of Irish works such as this one, or Donal Ryan’s “Queen of Dirt Island,” or Colin Barrett’s “Homesickness,” I realize they may sound bleak and filled with desperation. Each of these books, however, are fueled with tremendous humor and hope. “Close to Home” presents us with a young man determined to take accountability for his actions and formulate his own future. Thank you to Michael Magee, in his first novel, for giving a portrayal of post-Troubles Belfast. #CloseToHome #NetGalley I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Close to Home is a beautifully written, honest, witty and moving debut novel with vivid characterisations, not least the loveable rogue of a protagonist. It’s also a brilliant snapshot of a post-conflict city undergoing massive changes. I’ve lived in Belfast for most of my life and it’s made me look at my home city afresh. It’s a novel that stays with you long after you’ve read it. My favourite novel of 2023 and this has been a cracking year for new Irish fiction!