A New York Times Notable Book and Winner of The Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Neville’s debut remains “a flat-out terror trip” (James Ellroy) and “one of the best Irish novels, in any genre, of recent times” (John Connolly).Northern Ireland’s Troubles may be over, but peace has not erased the crimes of the past. Gerry Fegan, a former paramilitary contract killer, is haunted by the ghosts of the … is haunted by the ghosts of the twelve people he slaughtered. Every night, at the point of losing his mind, he drowns their screams in drink. But it’s not enough. In order to appease the ghosts, Fegan is going to have to kill the men who gave him orders.
From the greedy politicians to the corrupt security forces, the street thugs to the complacent bystanders who let it happen, all are called to account. But when Fegan’s vendetta threatens to derail a hard-won truce and destabilize the government, old comrades and enemies alike want him dead.
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What a great read another one I had somehow missed when it came out. It has languished on my, to-be-read pile for years. Halfway through reading this one I ordered all of them by this author. High praise.
This story is gritty and dark and with dense prose and plenty of details, all too real. The protagonist is an anti-hero, a killer for the Irish rebellion. Ghosts from his prior kills haunt him, following him around until he avenges their deaths. This is not a mystical kind of story the character is mentally ill which makes him an unreliable narrator. Loved this aspect. Each time he kills the person that had ordered the ghost’s death the ghost disappears, in his mind, anyway. The main character wants nothing more than to be able to sleep without nightmares.
One of the main jobs of an author is to endear the reader to the main character. This doesn’t happen until deep into the book when the main character aids a woman and her daughter in distress. Before this happens, the prose and action carry the story. Hence the four-star rating instead of five.
But I love the writing and the voice. I’m confident his other books will be fives.
David Putnam the author of the Bruno Johnson series
What a great read another one I had somehow missed when it came out. It has languished on my, to-be-read pile for years. Halfway through reading this one I ordered all of them by this author. High praise.
This story is gritty and dark and with dense prose and plenty of details, all too real. The protagonist is an anti-hero, a killer for the Irish rebellion. Ghosts from his prior kills haunt him, following him around until he avenges their deaths. This is not a mystical kind of story the character is mentally ill which makes him an unreliable narrator. Loved this aspect. Each time he kills the person that had ordered the ghost’s death the ghost disappears, in his mind, anyway. The main character wants nothing more than to be able to sleep without nightmares.
One of the main jobs of an author is to endear the reader to the main character. This doesn’t happen until deep into the book when the main character aids a woman and her daughter in distress. Before this happens, the prose and action carry the story. Hence the four-star rating instead of five.
But I love the writing and the voice. I’m confident his other books will be fives.
David Putnam the author of the Bruno Johnson series
Irish noir at its bleakest. Fegan, the protagonist, is well and deeply realized and thoroughly believable as a man literally driven by the ghosts of his past. We’ve seen hard men in fiction haunted by their past misdeeds, but rarely so concretely, and rarely outside horror fiction do these ghosts have such direct impact on the course of events.
Then again, this is something of a horror story — the horror of men scarred irreparably by the violence of the Troubles, the ravaged shells of neighborhoods in which they fought, the remains of the lives shattered in the process, the lingering hatreds, the transformation of “freedom fighters” into mafiosi. This, Fegan’s milieu, is rendered in sharp, contrasty shades of gray. There is no color in this world, little sunshine, no warmth. The perfect world for ghosts to linger.
Neville skillfully creates in Fegan a stone killer whom you come to see as an odd kind of hero, deserving of redemption and peace after a fraught and painful journey. If you like your stories dark, this is the place to be.
A grim reminder of the damage carried over from The Troubles.
I loved that this was set in Ireland and that there was a paranormal twist on the crime drama. Like most well written crime stories, you find your self rooting for the criminal. I did like that things were not wrapped in a pretty bow at the end and that there was more realism to what was going on than the ‘creative license’ that often permeates these stories. It had a slow start, but halfway through, I couldn’t put it down. Great story, great writing and the characters were alive and real.
One of my favorites by Stuart Neville. Could not put it down. The main character, Fegan, was so tragic. After going on the journey with him to make up for past sins, I wanted to see him come out the other end, happy. I want to read Collusion next to see what happens with him.
Very interesting way to tell the story of years of “trouble” in Northern Ireland.
Gripping, terrifying postscript to The Troubles in Northern Ireland (Ulster). Fegan, a killer for the provisional IRA, is the haunted anti-hero who needs to put his personal ghosts to rest.
It’s been years since I read this book. The story still haunts me.
One of the best books I’ve ever read. Unforgettable characters
Different view of “The Troubles” era
Awesome book, I’ve bought the rest of the series so I can follow those left alive from the first book!
Intense book with insight into the mind of one who has “live” in war torn Ireland.