Christine Falls

Writing as Benjamin Black, John Banville made an impressive debut as a mystery writer in 2006 with “Christine Falls.” Dark, moody and muddled (in a good way), the story manages to rise above genre to become literature of the sort the author writes under his own name.

The title character, a young Irish woman named Christine Falls, is dead before the first page. Quirke, a pathologist in 1950s Dublin, notices nothing amiss until he catches Mal, his brother-in-law who is also a doctor, altering the death records late at night. Yet Quirke is drunk at the time, so later he isn't sure he remembers what he thinks he remembers.

The woman and her baby supposedly both died in childbirth. But what happened to the baby's body? And who is the show more father of the baby — Mal, who married the Crawford sister Quirke desired for himself. or someone else? And what really happened to Christine Falls? The more questions he asks, the more bad things happen, including the murder of a woman who knows too much and a crippling beating of Quirke himself.

More tragic consequences follow Quirke to Boston when he goes there on family business. It turns out that is where the answers to his questions lie.

This is a solid mystery debut, never losing its grip on the reader despite its deliberate pace. show less

When John Banville decided to write a straightforward mystery novel he adopted the pen name of Benjamin Black. This gave him permission to write faster, and be more interested in a plot driven story. "Christine Falls" is the first of these novels, and despite the different approach, the old Banville is, thankfully, still evident.

Banville's signature attention to the details of weather - passing clouds, changing light, the effect of mist, sleet, and cold weather - makes the book worth reading on its own. Set largely in 1950's Dublin, there is a conviviality in the indoor scenes which comes largely from the contrast to the weather outdoors. The main character, Quirke, is a pathologist who stumbles onto a plot involving the distribution of show more unwanted orphans to Boston. The scheme involves his close family, and he must decide whether or not to proceed, as he is warned off at all levels.

While the story is indeed plot driven, it it not at the expense of Banville's exquisite attention to descriptive detail, his evocation of place, his uncanny ability to conjure up a scene and a mood through description of smells. The ending of the story is frenetic, and somewhat improbable, but this is still a book to be savored and enjoyed. show less

Quirke, a Dublin pathologist who drinks more than he should after the death of his wife two decades earlier, finds his brother-in-law tampering with a file in the morgue. The file belongs to a young woman named Christine Falls who lies dead in the next room. Unable to shake the unsettling feeling that his brother-in-law and nemesis Mal is hiding something sinister, Quirke begins a search for the answer behind Christine’s death. What unfolds is a novel of dark secrets which is tautly written and full of suspense.

Christine Falls is set first in 1950s Ireland, but ends in Boston. Quirke is a compelling protagonist, although not one who is immediately likable. He drinks excessively, pursues his sister-in-law romantically, and seems to show more have made more than a few enemies over the years. Despite his faults, however, Quirke is a man who wants to right the wrongs and he continues to investigate the death of Christine even when it becomes apparent his own life may be in danger.

Benjamin Black is the pen name for John Banville whose literary novels have won numerous awards. In this noir thriller, Banville weaves a tight story of intrigue that had me turning the pages long after I should have been in bed asleep. Christine Falls is a mystery which could easily fit in the literary genre with its strong character development and haunting descriptions. This whodunit has another, deeper layer - that of family secrets which span decades and implicate the Catholic Church. As Banville weaves his story, the reader is steadily drawn into the characters’ relationships.

Readers who enjoy literary fiction as well as a gripping mystery, will be drawn to Christine Falls. I expected to like this novel, and I was not disappointed.

Highly Recommended. show less

Christing Falls by John Banville
This book started out well for me, but then it started to go downhill. I found it clichéd with some very stereotypical wooden characters. Its portrayal of 1950s Dublin was accurate, but the main character was flawed in ways that lacked verisimilitude. It was very depressing and did not have any glimpse of light relief. It left me feeling that I do not wish to read anything else by John Banville.

Many contemporary Irish writers seem to focus on depressing and well-trodden miseries of Irish history and societal failings. While it is important to record and examine these issues some recent book releases appear to exploit the human misery rather than providing a forum to examine and learn from them.

Another show more thing I felt Banville did was to pile too many issues into the one story. Banville has rolled in alcoholism, sectarian bigotry, illegal export by nuns of babies for adoption, the dreadful treatment by nuns of girls who have “gotten themselves into trouble”, hypocrisy of members of elite Catholic organisations, nepotism, marital strife, child killing, poor housing conditions, the power of the church both in Ireland and the US, etc… That should give you an idea of the misery piled high in this book. I haven’t even mentioned the unrequited love, the sibling rivalry, the parental domination, the secret societies, unsavoury characters, poverty, abuse of servants, and more.

There was a dreadful event that was signalled several times and in a very obvious fashion. When it happened I gave up reading the book. It was just too much cliché stacked on top of an already teetering pile of cliché. I stopped reading at 54% telling myself I could be spending my reading time more usefully by reading something else.

Would I read another book by this author?
No.

Would I recommend this book?
No.

Did this book inspire me to do anything?
Yes: avoid any other John Banville books.

Was the book engrossing?
I found myself reluctant to pick it up and read it. The fact I stopped reading at 54% indicates that I was not engrossed in the story. show less

The trouble all began with the body of Christine Falls. Although she had recently given birth, Quirke could not find out what had become of her child. Not that it was his job, as a pathologist, but having been an orphan himself, he's particularly tender in that regard. Could it really be that she's connected to the family that took him in as a child? Quirke suddenly finds himself besieged by hired thugs and buried in family secrets. Secrets that color how he thinks of himself and everyone around him.

There are so many reviews of this book, I'll keep it short: I loved this book. Dark and angst-ridden, it is right up my alley. For some reason I kept thinking of Kate Atkinson while reading it, all the way her characters are connected, but show more I like Black even better in that regard. I also kept thinking of Wuthering Heights, but I'm not going to explain why, no need to spoil the surprise. I'll be looking for the next in this series. show less

In the first novel featuring inquisitive pathologist Quirke, Benjamin Black (aka, John Banville) spins a dark and seedy tale of murder and mayhem, family secrets, cover up and deceit in 1950s Dublin and Boston. Late at night, after an office party, a booze-addled Quirke happens upon his step-brother Malachy Griffin (a physician) altering the file of a girl who recently had the misfortune to end up on the slab in his morgue. Not one to let odd events go unquestioned, Quirke starts digging into the death of the girl, Christine Falls, and uncovers a trail of corruption and treachery that stretches back decades and involves collusion among the Catholic Church, the elite of Dublin society, and members of his own family. The story is show more thoroughly engrossing, the characters indelibly drawn, and the writing fluent and atmospheric. Banville is one of the most accomplished literary artists working in English, but he is not slumming it in this mystery novel written under a pseudonym. His incredible talent is on stunning display on every page. Highly recommended for fans of detective fiction or anyone who likes an absorbing well-written mystery. show less

My first encounter with John Banville's writing under either name and I can safely say it won't be my last, at least under his Banjamin Black alias.

Christine Falls is faithful to many of the genre conventions: Quirke drinks too much, pines for his dead wife and has no respect for authority, not surprising given what he finds out as this masterful novel progresses. 1950s Dublin is atmospherically dark and gloomy and brilliantly evoked.

It's the latter that really separates this, and the best crime writing, out. One reads Chandler not for his watertight plotting but for his delicious prose and his fascinating investigator. Banville/Black, whilst stylistically hugely different from Chandler, understands this and achieves the same.

The novel show more is less surefooted once the action moves from Dublin to Boston but by then I, for one, was already hooked and being reeled in.

After Franzen's "Freedom", for me this was 2011's second 5 star read. show less