full of insight, empathy and wry laughter -- M. John Harrison * Guardian * On show throughout is Clarke's exuberant talent: he is a joy to read ... a powerful and tantalizing patchwork, comparable in style to Jon McGregor -- Catherine Taylor * TLS * There is an American influence on James Clarke's writing - Raymond Carver, Richard Ford, Denis Johnson - but the accent is English, matter-of-fact, which makes the vivid observations and moments of grace all the more vivid. Hollow in the Land is at its best when dealing with men struggling with their place in the world, how even to talk about it, in voices imbued with place and time and class. Their story is a story of England today. -- Anthony Cartwright, author of Iron Towns James Clarke's collection of loosely interlinked stories is set in an overlooked Lancashire valley that determinedly refuses to romanticise a landscape blasted by foot and mouth, lack of opportunity and widespread economic deprivation. Clarke's prose is appropriately unvarnished, able to get to the truth of things without fanfare but with plenty of compassion * Daily Mail * Like Benjamin Myers and Jon McGregor, James Clarke is bringing a new consciousness to Northern England, an awareness of its uniqueness, natural beauty and threat are the basis of his writing ... He brings something of the sensibility of James Kelman to his writing, but also (perhaps) some of the American tradition of short stories set in one place, whether William Faulkner's Yoknapatawpha County or Chris Offutt's Kentucky Straight collection. James Clarke also shares with them one of the great qualities of the short story writer, the ability to craft a final sentence that keeps the story running off the page in the reader's mind. * Bookmunch * James Clarke is such a generous writer - these linked stories cover just days or even hours in the lives of his shabby, scarred characters, but open long perspectives into whole complex histories of loss and ambition and desire, played out against a beautifully observed small-town landscape, where every second person is someone you know from school or work or tragic misadventures. Clarke's prose is rich in detail, with many moments of quiet wisdom, and his lovely, subtle endings glow long past the final phrases. * Jo Lloyd, author of The Earth, Thy Great Exchequer, Ready Lies * Set in Lancashire, Clarke's second novel is a series of linked stories that thrust the reader into a world where violence hovers on the edges and laughter hides a multitude of sins. * The i * A cracking, lively novel about the trials and tribulations of everyday existence in a run-down Lancashire valley town * Metro *