I really wanted to love this book as it had so many great reviews, but I just couldn't get in to it it just bot for me but itwwll written and in the end didn't quite finish it I just could be hooked it just did do it for me I hate to say but it a well written book

I had to give up on this one, sadly a lot of fat and beauty shaming, not sure how it got through editing

This book has been sat on my NetGalley TBR pile for ages. I am so guilty of requesting books and then not getting round to reading them. When I saw that this had been made into a TV drama series based on the book by Graham Norton, I checked and found that I had a copy. The time was now to read it and I am glad that I read it in full before the series finished.

I quite enjoyed this debut novel set in a remote Irish village with a cast of quirky characters, many of them with secrets and connections to one another that perhaps they would have liked to have been kept secret. However, this was not to be when human remains are found on an old farm. The remains are thought to belong to someone who had disappeared some time ago, but are they belonging to that person or not? As P.J. Collins a local policeman is tasked with trying to solve this mystery, as he bumbles along in his own inimitable way he begins to uncover issues within the community that had remained hidden until the investigation began. Can he solve the mystery or will it be beyond his reach?

Graham Norton has written well and kept my interest throughout. This book has comedy among the action and at times it had me smiling to myself as I imagined the characters saying and acting in the way he portrayed them. I will be looking to see what else he has written and if they're any bit as good as this one was then us readers are in for a treat.

Thank you Netgalley for my review copy of this book.
I wasn't sure what to expect from this book. As it was Graham Norton I expected some humour but the empathy, pathos and deep characterisation that you got with it was delightful. I recommend it. Perfect book for an afternoon reading.

This is Graham Norton’s first book but for me it’s the third one of his I’ve read. I had previously read and loved Home Stretch and A keeper. I listened to Holding on audible and the narration by Graham Norton was excellent. However I struggled at times with the actual story and just found it a tad boring at times. Things did however liven up for the final few chapters. 3.5⭐️

I really wanted to love this book as it had so many great reviews, but I just couldn't get in to it and in the end didn't quite finish it

Absolute perfection! A read you will enjoy and want to tell your friends to read. I couldn’t put it down.

I never have high hopes for a celebrity author, but Graham Norton really is an astonishing writer. Thoroughly enjoyed the world and characters he created

(Sorry for the late review - a long hiatus from blogging due to personal reasons)

Thoroughly enjoyed this book. great descriptions and enjoyable plot and characters! I've not read this author before but will do so again in the future!

A cosy, satisfying little mystery set in the quiet little Irish village of Duneen populated with an assortment of somewhat life weary characters going about their everyday lives.

PJ Collins is the village bobby, overweight and under-confident. He lives a solitary life except for the presence of his house-keeper Mrs. Meany, who ensures his bulk and girth are maintained with fried breakfasts and generous meals.

When human remains are found on a building site at a local farm, PJ begins the investigation, with assistance from superiors from Cork, to unravel the reason for the suspected crime.

There were a couple of twists, the story moved on at a good pace and the characters were flawed enough to be human and likeable. A bit of humour, a bit of pathos, a nice bit of fighting back against life’s inequalities, and a hopeful ending. What’s not to like?

This first novel shows what a perceptive judge of character this new author is - which is probably not a surprise to most of us. It wasn't the novel I expected him to write, and I was pleasantly surprised to find out his subject matter. I did wonder how many people from his childhood, or places that he knows are in here!
This seems like a fairly gentle story at first, set in a quiet village where everyone knows each other's business. But the questions do add up, and there was one fairly gripping scene, where I was glued to my kindle. My conclusion? Not what I expected - happily so, and an interesting mystery, although the denouement was signposted part of the way through the book, as was the culprit.

Surprisingly enjoyable and well written. Great insights into a small community and with flair and persistence, Norton takes us into the heart of the community and allows us to explore the characters at length. Not the flamboyant debut I expected, which was actually a relief. I enjoyed this and would read more from this author.

Why have I only just got around to reading this book ??!! I was pleasantly surprised how good an author Graham Norton is.
I love books set in Ireland with twisty plots and this did not disappoint.... when bones are dug up on a building project questions begin to be asked in the village bringing up long buried secrets and lies .
I loved this book and have since bought Keeper his latest novel which was equally as good

When human remains are discovered on an old farm, suspected to be that of Tommy Burke – the village’s dark past begins to unravel.

As you would expect this book is funny. And an excellent murder mystery story to boot.

Thoroughly enjoyable read.

I wasn't sure what to expect from this book, but it was really well written and was a page turner. I was impressed and enjoyed the characters!

I’ve had Holding sitting on my Kindle for a while now. If I am honest with myself, I wanted to read it out of curiosity for what Graham Norton could produce rather than the story given on the blurb. There have been times when I have bought a book because of who the writer is and have been completely disappointed in the outcome. I wanted to read Holding but I didn’t want to lose my love for Graham Norton.

In this case, I really shouldn’t have worried. Holding is really funny.

It is set in a small podunk village in Ireland where nothing ever happens but when the remains of a body are found the whole town flails with uproar. While the whole town try to figure out ‘whodunnit’ more and more drama and mystery unravel among the residents.

Essentially, Holding is a murder mystery comedy. Norton perfectly encapsulates a gossipy town where everyone lives in the pockets of everyone else. It is a town in which no one can have any secrets. Indeed, Duneen becomes a character in its own right and even though it was the setting for a murder I found myself kind of wanting to go and visit.

Holding by Graham Norton is a very witty novel and I for one should have given him more credit for his writing ability.

Holding by Graham Norton is available now.

For more information regarding Graham Norton (@grahnort) please visit his Twitter page.

For more information regarding Hodder & Stoughton (@HodderBooks) please visit their Twitter page.

This is a thoroughly enjoyable mystery set in the Irish village of Duneen. Lots of secrets await discovery in the unassuming quiet village.

It's a really well written mystery and not entirely what I was expecting from Graham Norton - I was very pleasantly surprised. The characterisation in this story is what sets it apart from other crime/mystery fiction. I found myself very quickly rooting for Sgt PJ Collins. You can always tell when you've read a good book when after reading months later you still have fond memories of the book. This is one of those for me.

An emotive, powerful and well written debut novel. I hope there's a sequel in the pipeline!

A charming, page-turning, funny yet poignant read. The characters are vivid, and the plot is meticulously plotted. Exceeded expectations.

I enjoyed this small town Irish mystery. I did expect it to be a bit funnier from this author since he is a comedian.

Ooo this is a SLOW burn. I trudged through the first half of the book before I started to enjoy it.

"Holding" is a classic 'who dun it?' tale set in Duneen, Ireland. The characters are ok, and the plot eventually thickens at the climax, but I found what followed to be quite disappointing and predictable. Also, the excessive use of profane language was a bit of a let-down for a first-time writer, in my view.

All in all, its a miss from me.