'A powerful, raw, and timely novel that exposes the devastating ripple effects of youth violence on London's streets.'
Tim Pritchard,
author of Street Boys
'A compelling and beautifully written novel, Ripples explores one of the most pressing issues facing young people today. Through an intimate and deeply moving narrative, C.J. Carroll examines the devastating impact of youth violence in Britain, eloquently portraying the trauma of knife crime and the profound, far-reaching consequences it has for victims, families, and communities.'
Richard Yeboah, author of From Hackney, With Love: An Intimate History of Gentrification
Gary Halliday
'A powerful and deeply moving novel that confronts the devastating impact of youth violence with honesty, compassion and hope. Ripples is a story that will stay with you long after you’ve turned the final page.'
Gary Halliday, director of Losing Our Children, a documentary about knife crime
Sara Cullen
'This book should be taught in every school in London. Ripples is a debut born of a fire and devotion to making the world a better place; grief permeates every page but at the same time, so does love. It turns anger into hope and loss into love through skillful storytelling.'
Sara Cullen, author of Blood Red Sky
RIPPLES
by C.J. Carroll
£12,99
Abeo is fifteen, still grieving the loss of his dad and now stuck in a Pupil Referral Unit. He’s funny, he’s smart, his teachers like him; he knows he shouldn’t be there. All he wants is a fresh start. A new school. A chance to make his family proud again. But in the weeks before his death, everything changes. The world seems to close in around him and Abeo clings desperately to everything that matters to him the most and the future he knows he deserves.
One year on from her brother’s murder, Tiha cannot come to terms with what happened at the gates of the school – the one place where he was meant to be safe. How does she begin to confront the pain that eats away at her every day? How does she use the same pain to rebuild everything that was destroyed and eventually do the unthinkable: forgive the boys who did it.
Inspired by a heartbreaking but incredible true story, Ripples is a powerful novel told from both sides of a tragedy about the impact of violence, the systems that fail us, the radical power of forgiveness and the courage it takes to break the cycle.
Meet the author
Cillian is an Irish teacher and writer based in Dublin.
He spent the first seven years of his teaching career in London, including time in Lambeth, South London, working closely with vulnerable young people and their families in a pastoral role.
While teaching in the UK, he was shocked and angered by the daily challenges his students faced and the trauma they experienced so regularly. Cillian returned to Dublin in 2021, the same year 30 teenagers were murdered on the streets of London, including several former pupils from his school. Spurred on by this, and inspired by the young people he worked with, he began writing what would become his debut novel.
Raised in a house of books, he has always believed in the power of words to inspire change and hopes his writing will open up dialogue with young people about serious youth violence and its impact on communities.
When he is not writing, he lives in North Dublin with his wife and son.
