Critical praise for Liam Lynch: To Declare A Republic

Created: August 27, 2023

I am so delighted with the reviews for the book, and the wide range of opinion and thought on aspects of the life of General Liam Lynch I explore. Here’s a range of quotes from a selection of reviews, with a link to each:

‘This excellent biography will hopefully bring his story to a new generation, and is well worth reading for everyone interested in Irish history.’

– David McCullagh, RTÉ

‘Gerard Shannon delivers a nuanced portrait of Lynch’

– John Walshe, The Irish Times

‘This is a superb biography, so deeply researched and fluently written that it could also serve as a general history of Ireland’s revolutionary period.’

–  Andrew Lynch, Sunday Business Post  

‘… a satisfyingly human portrayal of a man normally either demonised or mythologised in Irish history.’

– John Dorney, The Irish Story 

‘The nuanced portrait of Lynch that emerges from the author’s meticulous research is of a man struggling to resolve conflict with his former comrades rather than exacerbate it.’

—Roy Greenslade, Belfast Media

‘Gerard Shannon … has revealed the complexity of Lynch … in this new book Lynch’s heroism and commitment are not under question.’

—Conor Lenihan, Village Magazine

‘The book … documents well Lynch’s organisational abilities and tireless efforts to transform the IRA under his control into an effective military outfit.’

—’The Fenian Way’, The Pensive Quill