Rain Dogs

Fifth book in the Sean Duffy series starts with our hero shacked up with a girlfriend, which would be a heartwarming development except that she is leaving him because he's too old for her. Oh, and he gets to work a security detail and meet Muhammed Ali, visiting Northern Ireland on a peace mission. Soon we are leaving those issues behind though, and he is investigating the apparent suicide of a young journalist who was covering a visit by Finnish executives who are considering building a factory in Belfast. The group did a tour of Carrickfergus Castle, and the journalist was found in the morning having leapt (or been thrown) off a roof. When the coroner insists this was a murder, that she was killed elsewhere and then thrown off the show more roof, Sean is confronted with a locked door mystery- an impossible crime in that it seemed impossible for anyone to have left the castle after the murder, so the caretaker must have done it; but he doesn't strike anyone as the likely killer. More strangely, Sean has already confronted a locked door mystery in a previous book, In the Morning I'll Be Gone. What are the odds of a detective having two such cases in one career?

We get investigative side trips to London and to Finland, and an epilogue trip to Liverpool related to his personal life.

All these books are really good, but this one just moved along better, and passes into Great territory for me- my favorite of the series so far. show less

Not the locked room mystery we are familiar with, but a locked castle mystery. Set in Carrickfergus, Northern Ireland this was a great novel with Sean Duffy investigating a suspected suicide at Carrickfergus Castle. I love the way the author blends the mystery with the sometimes grim current events, and brightened by typical Northern Ireland wit. McKinty's opening won me over immediately with Duffy on crowd control during Mohammed Ali’s arrival in Belfast and he held my interest through to the surprising conclusion.

Eine Journalistin wird in einer verschlossenen Burg tot aufgefunden - vor einem hohen Turm liegend, von dem sie offenbar heruntergesprungen ist. Oder vielleicht doch gestoßen? Sean Duffy, der zuständige Detective, hat es zum zweiten Mal in seiner Karriere mit einem Fall zu tun, in dem ein Mensch in einem abgeschlossenen Raum gestorben ist. Schon wieder ein Mord? Gibt es so einen Zufall?
Was dieses Buch von vielen Krimis unterscheidet, ist unter anderem die perfekte Verflechtung von Fiktion und realen Geschehnissen in Nordirland in der Zeit der Achtziger des letzten Jahrtausends. Nie wirkt es aufgesetzt oder konstruiert, sondern es ist ganz klar: So hätte es durchaus sein können. Der Besuch Muhammad Alis in Belfast und sein Zugehen show more auf die Skins; die Unruhen und Attentate auf die Polizei Nordirlands; die Pädophilenringe, über deren Existenz die Öffentlichkeit erst 2013 erfuhr. All dies und einiges mehr ist auf so natürliche Weise Bestandteil dieses Krimis, dass man sich voll und ganz in diese Zeit zurückversetzt fühlt.
Auch der Schreibstil ist teilweise eher ungewöhnlich: Insbesondere bei 'Momentaufnahmen' und alltäglichen Routineverrichtungen gibt es nur stakkatohafte Sätze. Beispielsweise 'Büro. Fenster. Lough. Kohlenschiffe. Regen.' oder 'Telefon. Früh.' Doch es passt zu Sean Duffy, der eher zu wenig als zu viel redet und seine Energien lieber für andere Dinge aufspart.
Es ist der fünfte Teil um diesen katholischen Bullen, der in Nordirland während der Unruhen in den Achtzigern seinen Dienst versieht. Keine Sorge, dieser Band lässt sich auch ohne Vorkenntnisse problemlos lesen, denn etwaige Anspielungen auf die Vergangenheit werden entweder kurz erklärt oder spielen schlicht keine Rolle. Mir gefiel dieser Krimi wirklich gut, auch wenn es deutlich weniger Überraschungsmomente gibt wie zum Beispiel in der Harry-Hole-Reihe von Jo Nesbø. Dennoch werde ich mir auch noch die anderen Bände dieser Reihe mit Sean Duffy mal näher anschauen.
Und was der Titel soll? Rain Dogs ist ein von Tom Waits 1985 veröffentlichtes, hoch gelobtes Album, das den Musikliebhaber Duffy sicherlich begeistert hat. Im Englischen steht diese Bezeichnung auch für "...die Betrogenen der Städte – die Verlierer des Lebens, die im Schatten des großen Mammons verkümmern..." (Zitat von Barney Hoskyn), die zudem das Thema der Platte von Tom Waits sind. Bei McKinty sind damit vermutlich nicht nur die Opfer im Buch gemeint, sondern wahrscheinlich auch die Polizisten selbst. show less

McKinty's Sean Duffy detective novels are a chance to time travel to Belfast during The Troubles.

Through Duffy's eyes, you can feel the rain of a cold Belfast night, and share the terror and irritation of having to check under your police car every morning, just in case someone's attached a bomb there during the night. You can hear the accents of the other characters in the series.

This fifth addition to the series is as great as the rest - this time, McKinty's added a "back-then" look at past events that are still coming to light today.

Other reviewers have outlined the plot. I'll just tell you that if you're interested in recent Irish history, or if you get a kick out of a well-paced mystery, or if you like reading about well-written show more characters, buy this book today. show less

Sean Duffy is the lead investigator in the death of a journalist, The unusual circumstances make it seem as if suicide is the only possible cause, but something doesn’t seem right. The journalist was reporting on a Finnish delegation exploring a business opportunity in Belfast, and following a tip which, if true, the Finns would want to suppress. Duffy and his team doggedly follow every trail, even in the face of opposition from higher-ups, to get to the bottom of the case.

While the bones of this plot have undoubtedly been used in other crime novels, the characters and setting are what elevate these mysteries to a higher plane. Set in Belfast during the Troubles, the Royal Ulster Constabulary has their hands full. Each book in the show more series incorporates some significant historic events of the period. The police force are an interesting bunch, and in this novel young Lawson is fully elevated to the “sidekick” role. Duffy is a typically flawed detective with a messy personal life, which advances somewhat in each novel despite never really taking center stage. Rain Dogs ends with a very significant life experience, and it will be interesting to see how that plays out in subsequent books. show less

Readers of Adrian McKinty's Sean Duffy series (of which this is book 5), might be excused for wondering if he's more than a little fascinated by locked room scenarios. The use of that scenario in 2014's IN THE MORNING I'LL BE GONE is referred back to directly in RAIN DOGS. There's a larger scale setting here with an entire castle, but the mystery relies heavily again on the concept of a victim and no way for a murderer to have gotten in or out of the scene of the crime. The coincidence of two locked room cases in one investigative career is almost more than Duffy can swallow, and initially, it seems unbelievable that Lily Bigelow's death could be anything other than suicide. Everyone, including Duffy, is almost ready to accept that show more solution, until something feels off and copper instincts cut in.

Set in Belfast in the 1980's, as is always the way with the Duffy books McKinty starts out with an absolute belter of an opening. Granted Muhammad Ali's visit in the form of a "peace tour" might be fictional, but everything about the visit and the character of Ali - right down to his face to face with a bunch of skinheads opposed to him on the grounds of the colour of his skin - works incredibly well. As does the idea that hardened, cynical, vaguely depressed Duffy might be just a little star struck. Which probably turns out to be one of the only personal highlights for him early in this book as his romantic life takes a downturn and his life of work, listening to records, illicit cannabis smoking and constant checking for car bombs seems to grind on with a hefty sense of pointlessness.

The strength of this series has always been the character of Duffy and the way that he lives his life and investigates his cases. As we know he's a Catholic cop in a Protestant dominated force, living in a Protestant dominated area, and his life can seem like a mild case of ongoing train just clinging to the rails. These novels always incorporate real-life events within the fiction, and as these aspects start to be revealed in RAIN DOGS it quickly becomes apparent that the "why" of Bigelow's death is considerably more important than the who or the how. Given that the series is set in the 1980's, and allowing for what world-wide is now known about organised paedophile rings, and high-profile offenders, some of the revelations in RAIN DOGS still have the capacity to surprise and horrify.

RAIN DOGS is another strong entrant in a series that hasn't hit a bung note. The reality of life in Belfast in that time is illustrated in the most sobering of manners yet again. The mystery elements are strongest when motivation is being sought, the gallows humour at it's finest when Duffy and his colleagues are under the most pressure. At the end of it all Duffy's solved the case, dealt with a most unexpected personal outcome, and lives to take up the struggle another day.

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/review-rain-dogs-adrian-mckinty-0 show less

What are the odds that one detective would deal with two locked-room mysteries in his career? DI Sean Duffy discovers it's not as impossible as one would think. This time it's a locked castle after hours: Carrickfergus Castle and a suicide jumper from the top of the keep. Things don't add up for Duffy, however, and if you've met him in previous books, you know he won't be letting those things go. But if she didn't jump, who would kill English journalist Lily Bigelow, and why? The answers are more devastating than Duffy expects.

To repeat the praises from my reviews of previous books: McKinty is a genius in creating the mood and details of his time and place, namely 1980s Northern Ireland--its dreary climate and even more dreary outlook show more on the future. He's also a genius at creating secondary characters (how I love Crabbie and Lawson and the Coronation Road neighborhood folks).

The dialogue is snappy and real, witty without crossing that abhorrent line into quipping. I don't laugh often while reading, but my sense of humor must line up with McKinty's pretty flawlessly, because I often find myself laughing aloud at Sean's sarcasm, and this book was no exception.

The plot of this one was deep and dark as ever but never difficult to follow. The author never hesitates to punch his protagonist in the face, but there's more hope for the future in the conclusion of this one than there has been in prior books. This is a great relief, but it's also bittersweet, because it might well be the conclusion of this series. I don't want to say goodbye to this smart, sympathetic, nuanced character who is trying to kick a few addictions (finally! I'm so glad), plays classical piano (who knew? I love him more for it), underestimates himself at every turn but simply will not give up on justice and truth.

There could be plenty of story left for Sean. If a sixth book is published, I will cheer (as I did when I found out about this one ... and the fourth one ...). If, however, McKinty moves on from here, if I never see Sean Duffy again, I can accept this ending and smile.

I guess.

Oh, who am I kidding? Please, Mr. McKinty, give me one more Sean Duffy book. show less