Quite a gritty story of death and deception and the lives of several people. When Ed Loy returns to Dublin to attend his mother's funeral he doesn't expect to be asked to find Linda Dawson's husband. This is work he does in the US, not in Ireland and he's tried to sever as many of his ties to Ireland as possible. He gets sucked into the mystery and the involved politics of people.

While I've seen reviews that have suggested that people don't talk like that, I've heard people who do on the streets of Dublin. This story captures some of the flavour of Dublin's underbelly and it's not a pleasant sight. I was recommended this by a borrower in the Library and I'm glad I tried it. ( )

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/node/... ( )

I'm not sure what it says about me that I find DH's Ed Loy irresistible. Probably something warped, since he's generally beaten to within an inch of his life, drunk, and screwing his clients.

God, he's hot. :)

That, I think, is a strong example of DH's pervasive skill. This book isn't the raw thrill-ride of the subsequent novel (The Color of Blood), I'm afraid; I missed the bare-bones brutality and more-florid phrasing. Wearing down of rough edges doesn't suit DH one bit and I hope this is a show of discretion that has been put to rest for good. (my fault, of course, for reading out of order. mea culpa.)

The plot, which has a bit too much dry city-hall zoning-squabble for my taste, doesn't blossom into a full-throttle family/blood/empire/feud until too far into the book - perhaps 2/3 way, in fact. *Not* a conscionable delay: that's what rewrites are for.

But when it does get off the blocks it does so in the style that I love DH for: unapologetically violent, passionate and shockingly sweet at times - like a pause for a kiss in a gun battle...wait, what am I saying, it is *precisely* that....

oh, and may I say this, fellow library-thingers: explain yourselves! Reviews don't have to be polished, but I'd sure like to know how a person could judge this book a 1. Uh, not that you're not entitled, just - share your thoughts, please.