About to Fall Apart

'Poignant and tender.' FERDIA LENNON
'A dynamic voice.' IRENOSEN OKOJIE
'Lushly written and formally audacious.' NICOLAS PADAMSEE

This is the story of one man's weekend, a weekend in which everything could change

These lines could change everything /
He sips more of his tinny /
Imagines a new life

Aidy's just punched a co-worker, but he hasn't got time to deal with the fallout. With a deadline fast looming he must get home, knuckle down and finish the story he's been working on, a story he hasn't been able to stop thinking about. It's the story of a falling plane and of a grieving mother.

Set across one weekend, About to Fall Apart is the exhilarating story of a man of mixed heritage - living on the Irish border - as he tries to stay positive, reconnect with his children and maybe, even, find his own birth mother.

©2026 Ashley Hickson-Lovence (P)2026 Faber & Faber