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TL;DR
Troubles by J.G. Farrell is a hauntingly comic, richly observed novel set in a decaying Irish hotel in the aftermath of the First World War. Winner of the “Lost Booker” Prize in 1970 (awarded retroactively in 2010), the novel explores the slow collapse of the British Empire through the lens of a shell-shocked English major who drifts passively through both personal and imperial decline. Farrell’s prose is lyrical and satirical, capturing the absurdities of colonial arrogance with poignancy and wit. Anchored by vivid atmosphere and wry detachment, Troubles is a masterful exploration of history, denial and decay. It will appeal to fans of historical fiction, post-colonial literature, and Booker Prize completists alike.
First Thoughts
I came to Troubles already familiar with the backdrop—the lead-up to Irish independence formed part of my Politics and Development Studies degree. So I was primed for the historical references and political tensions that simmer in the margins. Yet nothing prepared me for the sheer crumbling oddity of the Majestic hotel, or the strange inertia of Major Brendan Archer.
Having kissed his fiancée once during the war, Archer arrives to honour a vague engagement and finds himself caught in a building, family, and system all in slow-motion collapse. The Anglo-Irish cling to faded grandeur while sneering at the locals they depend on. Meanwhile, the Irish silently watch as the guests dwindle, the cats multiply, and pigs are kept in the squash courts.
Though bleak on paper, Farrell imbues the story with surreal comedy and lyrical clarity. The Major, numbed by trauma, cannot rouse himself—even in the face of escalating violence. It’s all so subtly constructed that even the novel’s most brutal scenes feel muffled by the fog of imperial delusion. The result is a funny, sad, satirical yarn that lingers.
About the Book
Troubles is the first in J.G. Farrell’s Empire Trilogy (or “Triptych”), which also includes The Siege of Krishnapur and The Singapore Grip. Each novel explores the crumbling edifice of British imperialism from a different angle. In Troubles, that angle is a decrepit seaside hotel in post-WWI Ireland.
Originally published in 1970, the novel was overlooked for that year’s Booker Prize due to a change in eligibility rules. In 2010, it was retrospectively awarded the “Lost Booker,” giving Farrell a second Booker win (he had won in 1973 for The Siege of Krishnapur). Sadly, Farrell died in a drowning accident in 1979, aged just 44, before his legacy was fully cemented.
Set in 1919–21, Troubles follows Major Brendan Archer, who visits his fiancée at the Majestic hotel and finds himself drawn into the inertia of a once-proud institution on the brink of irrelevance. The novel blends comedy, tragedy, and biting commentary on class and colonialism. Though the Irish War of Independence hums beneath the narrative, the book remains focused on atmosphere, symbolism, and psychological drift rather than overt historical drama.
Though it covers both a different period and a different geographical sphere, there are many parallel with In a Free State in terms of its colonial critique.
What Others Think
Reese Warner describes Troubles as “beautifully written and very funny,” noting its “wonderfully droll tone” and the way Farrell captures the “incompetent, lazy, arrogant” colonials watching their world decay.
Hopewell’s Library of Life praises the novel’s odd pacing and mix of absurdity with political commentary, observing that “the hotel, cats, pigs and crumbling empire are all metaphors for the ridiculousness of the English in Ireland.” Despite finding some characters frustratingly passive, the reviewer ultimately calls the book “worth the effort.”
A Hot Cup of Pleasure highlights the novel’s unusual structure and its capacity to evoke dread while remaining slyly humorous. The reviewer notes how Farrell uses understatement and absurdity to underline the rot beneath the surface of empire: “The reader is constantly laughing, but the laugh catches in your throat.”
Together, these perspectives affirm Troubles as a singular novel—slow, surreal, and unsettling, but ultimately rewarding.
Themes, Style & Impact
Farrell’s use of absurdism and satire draws clear parallels with writers like Evelyn Waugh and even Kafka, but with a political lens rooted in imperial decline. Troubles is less concerned with the mechanics of the Irish War of Independence than with the psychology of a class and system in denial. The Majestic hotel becomes a physical metaphor for empire: outwardly grand but internally rotten, overrun with cats, and populated by characters who believe their world still holds sway.
Major Archer’s passive voice—he rarely takes action or makes decisions—reflects the trauma of war and the paralysis of imperial conscience. His disconnection from events around him mirrors the English failure to understand, or even acknowledge, the inevitable end of their dominance.
Stylistically, Farrell’s prose is deceptively elegant: droll, lyrical and frequently hilarious, even in grim moments. He invites readers to share in the farce while quietly pointing out the human cost behind the comedy.
This tonal blend of wit and weariness creates a powerful cumulative effect. The novel doesn’t lurch towards climax or resolution—it decays. And in that decay lies its brilliance.
Final Thoughts
Troubles is not a fast read, nor one that delivers catharsis in conventional terms. But its cumulative weight—of mood, meaning, and metaphor—is considerable. Farrell’s depiction of the Majestic, and of the passive Major Archer, builds a quiet devastation: things fall apart not with a bang, but with a faintly comic shrug.
There’s a strange comfort in reading a novel that so expertly evokes entropy. The English colonials are laughable but unselfaware; the Irish are backgrounded but not forgotten. Everyone is trapped in a dying order, and Farrell captures this with brilliance.
For those interested in Irish history, imperial satire, or Booker Prize winners with a twist, Troubles is essential reading. It may be the best Booker winner you’ve never heard of—and certainly one of the most quietly unforgettable.
Further Reading
- The Siege of Krishnapur by J.G. Farrell – Another Booker-winning entry in the Empire Trilogy, set during the Indian Rebellion of 1857
- The Singapore Grip by J.G. Farrell – The third in the Triptych, satirising British interests in Southeast Asia
- The Outsider by Albert Camus – Referenced for its passive protagonist and existential tone
- Troubles on Goodreads – Community reviews and ratings