Shukman emerges from the shadows of swaying palm trees and his literary forebears, and produces something both authentic and exhilaratingly his own

He's superb, like Conrad on speed

Sharp and scrupulous-[Shukman] maintains a masterly tension and control

Shukman's prose is utterly seductive

Pacy, pithy and full of wonderful, (often humorous) moments

Spine-chilling twists and turns - Graham Greene eat your heart out

Darien Dogs is a bullishly confident and vivacious collection

Beautifully paced and pitched

These stories are shored up with sentences and paragraphs that demand immediate re-reading for their cleverness and warmth…This party is well worth attending

This collection shows a writer quietly growing in style, perception and grace. She conveys to the reader that rare ability to see completely into someone else’s head

Accomplished ... confident

The ghost of Katherine Mansfield hovers lightly over these deceptively delicate snapshots which zero in on the much maligned territory of the domestic and make it new and vital again