In this almost-all-girl reprise of the collaborative fiction Finbar's Hotel, Dermot Bolger skillfully weaves together eight chapters, each contributed by a different Irish writer, into a light, coherent, and highly readable novel about a culture in flux. The old Finbar's had been a dark, unchanging place, a "grade two" businessman's hotel in Dublin smelling of gravy and overcooked meat. The impressive new establishment, owned and renovated by the not-quite-respectable Dutch wife of a rock star, is a symbol of 21st-century Ireland--unquaint and anonymous, its chilly white surfaces are indistinguishable from those of a Hilton or a Marriott, despite the "Irish Bar" tucked into one corner of the lobby as a sop to tourists. Bolger is the only man among the writers included, and it is to his credit (or a handsome rebuttal to the old argument about "men's" and "women's" voices in fiction) that we can't tell his contribution from the others. None of the chapters lists its author--a brilliant if unsettling device--so that readers are left wondering whether the bestselling Maeve Binchy, for example, can be distinguished from Anne Haverty and Éilis Ní Dhuibhne, both of whom write poetry as well as prose. Other contributors are Kate O'Riordan, Deirdre Purcell, and Dublin natives Clare Boylan and Emma Donoghue.

Most of the female protagonists are returning to the Dublin of their youth after finding success elsewhere: a former maid comes back to meet the son she gave up for adoption; a faded movie starlet's luck takes a strangely positive turn; a nun looks for a man to sleep with. In "Da Da Da--Daa," an up-and-coming designer tries to corner the Dublin market for her soft, Celtic-inspired fashion line, and instead must endure a long encounter with her mentally ill father. Looking anxiously around the lobby as her room is being readied, Poppy realizes the risks she is taking just by showing up again in the city of her troubled childhood. And if she cannot make her mark as a designer in Dublin, what will success anywhere else mean? But at least for a moment, her assistant takes her mind off her own problems: He returned her smile confidently, but he was mincing like a camp poodle, so she knew he was nervous. First time to Ireland for this second-generation Bronxer. Secretly, he'd expected to be lynched. So he swaggered, flaunting the homosexuality that had so repelled his Roscommon father. So nervous, he couldn't yet see that the fabled Ireland of his youth, the endless, monotonous, force-fed sentimentality of his parents, had no bearing on this new country. For all the world as though he couldn't see the blatant y.e.s. tattooed on the buttocks of the porter's young assistant. Although the early chapters of Ladies' Night read more like short stories than the opening of a conventional novel, Bolger teases the reader with recurrent scenes and characters, so that the final stories bring satisfying conclusions to several mysteries--and not a few surprises. --Regina Marler


From Publishers Weekly
Fans of the original shabby landmark Dublin hotel memorialized in Bolger's serial short story collection Finbar's Hotel may be disconcerted at the new, hip management, but just as in the previous book, the ingenious formula brings together a host of Ireland's notable writers in an impressive collaboration. Seven authors, including Maeve Binchy, Clare Boylan, Anne Haverty and Deirdre Purcell, each contribute a chapter describing the adventures of different guests in the hotel, but none is attributed, so it's up to the reader to guess who wrote what. The volume opens with the news story that the once-famously seedy Finbar has been renovated by a rock-'n'-roll couple and has become Dublin's premier hot spot for celebrities and other glamorous folks. But not all the guests fit in so well in this posh milieu, making for unexpected encounters both dramatic and humorous. In Room 101, a plainspoken, humble Dublin man has offered to "help out" his beloved wife's high-powered best friend--by providing the sperm she needs to get pregnant. In Room 102, a clothing designer's first Dublin fashion show is disrupted by her overbearing, manic, ultimately tragic father, while another woman attempts to catch her husband in flagrante delicto in 106. Finbar's cosmopolitan refurbishment reflects the new Ireland's Celtic Tiger boosterism, but the chic atmosphere doesn't lend itself to the cohesion of a novel as well as did the nostalgic air of the old hotel. Only Detta Hamena in 105, a chambermaid from the old days, bridges the hostelry's history. However, the amusing crossovers of recurrent characters, such as the unnamed musical celebrity who appears in the charming nun-on-the-run tale and who throws a fit in another story, capture some of the hotel's charm and add wit and style to Bolger's creative concept. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Developed and edited by Dermot Bolger, this sequel to the well-received Finbar's Hotel crosses two genres: the short story and the novel. Each chapter, written by a different Irish author, ranging from the well-known Maeve Binchy and Deirdre Purcell to the lesser-known Eilis Ni Dhuibhne, depicts a pivotal moment in the life of a woman staying in one of the rooms of the lavishly restored and renovated Finbar's Hotel. While one woman attempts artificial insemination with sperm from her best friend's husband, another loses an important client while dealing with her intractable father, and yet another waits to meet the son she gave up for adoption in another lifetime. What makes this collective novel so remarkable is the care that has gone into capturing the physical details of the hotel. All the women are memorable, as are the two female hotel staff who reappear from chapter to chapter. While styles vary, each story is polished and sparkles with life. This highly recommended work will be of particular interest to fiction readers who would like to venture into short story collections.-Caroline M. Hallsworth, Sudbury P.L., Ont. Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.


The New York Times Book Review, Peter Bricklebank
...comic adventure abounds.


The Times of London
This is almost as entertaining to read as it must have been to write.


From Booklist
For last year's well-reviewed collaborative novel Finbar's Hotel , editor Bolger asked seven well-known Irish writers to contribute an unsigned chapter apiece about the guests who stayed at the hotel just before it closed. Now, since its purchase by a rock star and his Irish wife, Finbar's, redecorated and reborn, is the in place for the literati and glitterati to stay when they're in Dublin. This time around, Bolger invited seven Irish women writers (Maeve Binchy, Clare Boylan, Emma Donoghue, Anne Haverty, Eilis Ni Dhubhne, Kate O'Riordan, and Deirdre Purcell) to contribute a (again, unsigned) chapter apiece about the women currently staying for a night at the hotel. In Room 101, a man is engaged in providing sperm to impregnate his wife's best friend, with unexpected consequences. Next door in 102, a successful clothing designer tries to cope with an unexpected visit from her mentally ill father. Less consistently excellent than the first volume, the stories range from the humorously poignant to the ridiculous. Nancy Pearl


The Times Literary Supplement - London
Ladies' Night is witty, if less raucously funny than the earlier volume, less stereotyped and more personally felt...Beneath the humor, whimsy and outright craziness, Ladies' Night hits at the shallowness of current social pretensions and offers a cautious optimism about women's lives today.


Book Description
A year has passed since the closing of Finbar's Hotel, a down-on-its-heels hotel on the Dublin quays. Now, with a rock star as its new owner, it has once more opened its doors-and Finbar's has become an ultra-chic gathering spot. Ladies' Night at Finbar's Hotel describes one night in its newly illustrious surroundings-a night filled with adventure and comic romp. In one room a man surreptitiously helps his wife's friend get pregnant, while next door a businesswoman battles her father. And down the hall, a nun struggles with the most important mission of her life. A fabulous mix of pathos and high humor, this is a sardonic tour of the gamut of human experience told by Ireland's finest modern storytellers. Maeve Binchy has written numerous bestsellers, most recently Tara Road. Dermot Bolger is the author of six novels and edited The Vintage Book of Contemporary Irish Fiction. Clare Boylan has written six novels and several nonfiction works, including The Literary Companion to Cats. Emma Donoghue is the author of Stirfry and Kissing the Witch, among other works. Anne Haverty's writing has been short-listed for the Whitbread Award. ƒilis N' Dhuibhne has published poetry, short fiction, children's books, and two novels. Kate O'Riordan writes for stage and screen, and has written two novels including The Bray House. Deirdre Purcell recently adapted her novel Falling for a Dancer as a four-part serial for BBC television.



About the Author
Maeve Binchy has written numerous bestsellers, most recently Tara Road. Dermot Bolger is the author of six novels and edited The Vintage Book of Contemporary Irish Fiction. Clare Boylan has written six novels and several nonfiction works, including The Literary Companion to Cats. Emma Donoghue is the author of Stirfry and Kissing the Witch, among other works. Anne Haverty's writing has been short-listed for the Whitbread Award. Eilis Ni Dhuibhne has published poetry, short fiction, children's books, and two novels. Kate O'Riordan writes for stage and screen, and has written two novels including The Bray House. Deirdre Purcell recently adapted her novel Falling for a Dancer as a four-part serial for BBC television.

FROM THE PUBLISHER

Seven of Ireland's best-loved writers unite to weave the spirited tale of the revival of a legendary Dublin hotel.

A year has passed since the closing of Finbar's Hotel, a down-on-its-heels hotel on the Dublin quays. Now, with a rock star as its new owner, it has once more opened its doors-and Finbar's has become an ultra-chic gathering spot. Ladies' Night at Finbar's Hotel describes one night in its newly illustrious surroundings-a night filled with adventure and comic romp. In one room a man surreptitiously helps his wife's friend get pregnant, while next door a businesswoman battles her father. And down the hall, a nun struggles with the most important mission of her life. A fabulous mix of pathos and high humor, this is a sardonic tour of the gamut of human experience told by Ireland's finest modern storytellers.

About the Authors:

Maeve Binchy has written numerous bestsellers, most recently Tara Road. Dermot Bolger is the author of six novels and edited The Vintage Book of Contemporary Irish Fiction. Clare Boylan has written six novels and several nonfiction works, including The Literary Companion to Cats. Emma Donoghue is the author of Stirfry and Kissing the Witch, among other works. Anne Haverty's writing has been short-listed for the Whitbread Award. Eilis Ni Dhuibhne has published poetry, short fiction, children's books, and two novels. Kate O'Riordan writes for stage and screen, and has written two novels including The Bray House. Deirdre Purcell recently adapted her novel Falling for a Dancer as a four-part serial for BBC television.

FROM THE CRITICS

Times (London)

This is almost as entertaining to read as it must have been to write.

Daily Telegraph

Although art is usually more about megalomania than democracy, the talents on display here make a case for the collective. The seven women writers make excellent use of the hotel setting. Sex is the common thread which connects each room, but it is handled imaginatively...There is enough emotional tension and raw hope under the roof of Finbar's Hotel to last the night.

Times Literary Supplement

Ladies' Night is witty, if less raucously funny than the earlier volume, less stereotyped and more personally felt...Beneath the humor, whimsy and outright craziness, Ladies' Night hits at the shallowness of current social pretensions and offers a cautious optimism about women's lives today.

Publishers Weekly

Fans of the original shabby landmark Dublin hotel memorialized in Bolger's serial short story collection Finbar's Hotel may be disconcerted at the new, hip management, but just as in the previous book, the ingenious formula brings together a host of Ireland's notable writers in an impressive collaboration. Seven authors, including Maeve Binchy, Clare Boylan, Anne Haverty and Deirdre Purcell, each contribute a chapter describing the adventures of different guests in the hotel, but none is attributed, so it's up to the reader to guess who wrote what. The volume opens with the news story that the once-famously seedy Finbar has been renovated by a rock-'n'-roll couple and has become Dublin's premier hot spot for celebrities and other glamorous folks. But not all the guests fit in so well in this posh milieu, making for unexpected encounters both dramatic and humorous. In Room 101, a plainspoken, humble Dublin man has offered to "help out" his beloved wife's high-powered best friend--by providing the sperm she needs to get pregnant. In Room 102, a clothing designer's first Dublin fashion show is disrupted by her overbearing, manic, ultimately tragic father, while another woman attempts to catch her husband in flagrante delicto in 106. Finbar's cosmopolitan refurbishment reflects the new Ireland's Celtic Tiger boosterism, but the chic atmosphere doesn't lend itself to the cohesion of a novel as well as did the nostalgic air of the old hotel. Only Detta Hamena in 105, a chambermaid from the old days, bridges the hostelry's history. However, the amusing crossovers of recurrent characters, such as the unnamed musical celebrity who appears in the charming nun-on-the-run tale and who throws a fit in another story, capture some of the hotel's charm and add wit and style to Bolger's creative concept. (Mar.) Copyright 2000 Cahners Business Information.|

Library Journal