It’s 1634 and Samuel Pipps, the world’s greatest detective, is being transported from the Dutch East Indies to Amsterdam, where he is facing trial and execution for a crime he may, or may not, have committed. Travelling with him is his loyal bodyguard, Arent Hayes, who is determined to prove his friend innocent, while also
I have to say that I’m not a huge crime fan, I’ve read my fare share of books in this field but it’s a genre that doesn’t really excite me, that was until I discovered John Bowie’s first book Untethered (review can be read at the bottom of this post) part one of the Black
Detective Sergeant Frankie Sheehan is back, and investigating the disappearance of a Woman in a quiet village outside Dublin. Surrounded by her strong and trustworthy team including Baz and a few, not so familiar local constabulary. A great start to this thriller; you are immersed immediately into the life of Frankie, getting on with life
I’ve not read Alicia Hilton’s work before but after this short outing in Demain Publishing’s ‘Short Sharp Shocks!’ series this is something I am going to have to remedy – and double time. Hilton delivers two stunning short stories that are each beautifully woven together, the first, and the title story has us at the
‘All stories are ghost stories, about things lost, people, memories, home, passion, youth, about things struggling to be seen, to be accepted by the living.’ I’m not going to apologise for being a little quote heavy in this review of Sarah Jane by James Sallis, such is the beauty of the prose on every page.
Though I do love crime and have read a fair bit of it, I had to confess that I had never read P. D. James until I was sent the exquisitely tight and suspenseful “The Victim”. Some can pack quite a bit in, in just a few pages it would seem. What great talent P.D.
There is one thing that’s unshakeable about Irish culture and that’s our desire to tell stories. It’s not too much to say that in Ireland, writer or no, the ability to spin a good yarn is seen as a very favourable quality. And I grew up around some great storytellers. Some of my earliest childhood
You only need to look at the cover of this book to know it’s going to be a dark, gritty thriller. Set in Ireland, it has two stories running simultaneously. We start with a 17 year old crime. Sean Hennessey has just been released from prison after serving time for murdering his parents and attempting
There are few better ways for the crime writer to investigate the complexities of character than through a spy: a spy creates their character much like an author does, trying to inhabit their character whilst maintaining their authenticity. A spy has to create a persona that is believable and consistent to the point that they
Old friends, isolated locations and secrets abound in this atmospheric and gripping murder mystery reminiscent of many an Agatha Christie. They go away every year together to celebrate the New Year. Seven old friends off to explore the wilds of the Scottish Highlands. This year only six will come back. I haven’t read a thriller
