Genre: Literary Fiction, Thriller
Pub Date: 6 July 2023
Publisher: Atlantic Books
Length: 432 pages (HB edition)
Hardback Edition: £14.39

This event took place in July – I am waaaay behind with this post.

The West Kirby Bookshop is a new(ish), independent bookshop in the heart of West Kirby on the Wirral. Indi bookshops need the same love and attention as indie authors, and with that in mind, I made my first visit in July this year. The staff are very friendly, and knowledgeable about books. I bought two and was convinced to buy a ticket – which included the book, for a reading by Colin Walsh, who I had not heard of before.

Kala is a debut novel described as ‘A gritty heartbreaker of a thriller… Part heartfelt coming-of-age tale, part brutal Irish noir, this is a spectacular read for Donna Tartt and Tana French fans’ – Kirkus

Synopsis:

Three old friends are thrown together in the seaside town of Kinlough, on Ireland’s west coast for the first time in years. They – Helen, Joe and Mush – were part of an original group of six inseparable teenagers in the summer of 2003, with motherless, reckless Kala Lanann as their group’s centre. Soon after that summer’s peak, Kala disappeared without a trace.

Now – fifteen years later: Helen has reluctantly returned to Ireland for her father’s wedding; Joe is a world-famous musician, newly back in town; and Mush has never left, too scared to venture beyond the counter of his mother’s café. But human remains have been discovered in the woods. Two more girls have gone missing. And as past and present begin to collide, the estranged friends are forced to confront their own complicity in the events that led to Kala’s disappearance, and to try to stop Kinlough’s violent patterns repeating themselves once again…

At this moment of writing (far from the actual event! Apologies) I cannot recall the name of the woman who ran the question-and-answer session. Walsh came across as a lovely, one might say shy, individual. He had an air of quiet self-assuredness, which I found pleasantly startling and refreshing in a man who I thought quite young. (I have no idea how old Walsh is, but to my ageing eyes he looked like a very young chap). He read extracts, answered questions about the process and then questions from the floor. I asked if he thought the Ireland he portrayed might offend some, as emigrants often view the old country with green-tinted spectacles, a romantic Ireland of days gone by. Walsh agreed that this was a view many held about Ireland and that he was unperturbed by potential nay-sayers. He came across as thoughtful, his answers considered, respectful and frighteningly mature. He spoke of the psychology of the Irish and young people and those who have been damaged by an experience (as Mush is, both psychologically and physically).

For a debut novel, this is excellent writing. Walsh honed his skills through short story writing, for which he has won awards.

The book – It is set against the backdrop of a town suffocating on its own secrets. Kinlough is one of those places where visitors come for the view, for the craic, for a scent of typical Irishness; a festival, put on by Joe; the returning musician, draws the locals and visitors alike. We get a wonderful portrait of each of the prime actors in the tale, not just physically, but their ongoing mental states; the disappearance of their childhood friend has left deep scars. There isn’t any out-and-out action, there aren’t any scare jumps or sudden astonishing reveals, but it is written so well, that one is pulled along and into this world of damaged young adults that you are there with them when they succeed and fail.  The story builds slowly, begins to simmer and boils to a climax.

I think Kala examines the cost of belonging, to a country, a town, a clique. Some people move on regardless of what occurred in their past, but most of us carry that baggage in some form or other, and we might feel betrayed, hurt or vindicated through our own response.

I really enjoyed this novel. I like Walsh’s style of writing. I enjoyed the suggestion of danger, the way people disguise themselves as something else, the smattering of humour.

I’m giving Kala 5 stars