“Crime fiction at its best.” Booklist (starred review)
Description
This propulsive thriller is a “gruesomely accurate portrayal of ’80s life in Ireland” (Kirkus Reviews) from the New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award–winning author Adrian McKinty.
“Adrian McKinty just leapt to the top of my list of must-read suspense novelists. He’s the real deal.” —Dennis Lehane
A torso in a suitcase looks like an impossible case, but Sean Duffy isn't easily deterred, especially when his floundering love life leaves him in need of a distraction. So with Detective Constables McCrabban and McBride, he goes to work identifying the victim. The torso turns out to be all that's left of an American tourist who once served in the US military. What was he doing in Northern Ireland in the midst of the 1982 Troubles? The trail leads to the doorstep of a beautiful, flame-haired, twentysomething widow, whose husband died at the hands of an IRA assassination team just a few months before.
Suddenly Duffy is caught between his romantic instincts, gross professional misconduct, and powerful men he should know better than to mess with. These include British intelligence, the FBI, and local paramilitary death squads—enough to keep even the savviest detective busy. Duffy's growing sense of self-doubt isn't helping. But as a legendarily stubborn man, he doesn't let that stop him from pursuing the case to its explosive conclusion.
Praise
“Crime fiction at its best.” Booklist (starred review)
“Gerard Doyle does a wonderful job with the ineffable accents of Northern Ireland and the rhythm of its dialogue…It perfectly matches the rising darkness that seems to surround Duffy as he searches for a killer.” AudioFile
“The rich Irish brogue of Gerard Doyle is magnificent but not overwhelming to American listeners. Verdict: Highly recommended.” Library Journal (starred audio review)
“An intricate plot line that keeps Duffy, and the reader, guessing throughout. There’s dark humor and violence and he evokes the time and place of the novel with unerring accuracy.” Bookbag
“Punchy, pop culture–tinged prose, and a charismatic hero.” Publishers Weekly
Details
| Language | English |
|---|---|
| Release Day | May 13, 2013 |
| Release Date | May 14, 2013 |
| Number in Series | 2 |
| Series Display String | The Sean Duffy Series |
| Release Date Machine | 1368489600 |
| Imprint | Blackstone Publishing |
| Provider | Blackstone Publishing |
| Categories | Black Friday Sale, Mystery, Thriller & Suspense, Mystery, Literature & Fiction, Police Procedurals, Thriller & Suspense, Suspense, Sean Duffy Series |
Author Bio
Adrian McKinty was born and grew up in Belfast, Northern Ireland, during the Troubles. His father was a welder in Harland and Wolff—the shipyard where they built the Titanic; his mother was a school lunch lady and secretary. Adrian went to Oxford University on a full scholarship where he studied philosophy.
Emigrating first to America and then Australia he found work as a door-to-door salesman, a driver, a bookstore clerk, a barman, a high school English teacher, and a semipro rugby player.
His debut crime novel, Dead I Well May Be, was shortlisted for the 2004 Dagger Award and was optioned by Universal Pictures. He is the author of more than a dozen crime novels that have been translated into over forty languages. He has won the Edgar Award, the Anthony Award, the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award, the Barry Award, the Macavity Award, the International Thriller Writers Award, and is a three-time winner of the Ned Kelly Award.
His 2020 novel The Chain was a New York Times bestseller and appeared on twenty-five best-of-the-year lists. His 2022 novel The Island was an instant New York Times bestseller and made five best-of-the-year lists including those of the London Times and the New York Times.
Adrian is a member of the Linnean Society and the National Audubon Society. He lives in New York City with his wife and two children.
Narrator Bio
Gerard Doyle, a seasoned audio narrator, he has been awarded dozens of AudioFile Earphones Awards, was named a Best Voice in Young Adult Fiction in 2008, and won the prestigious Audie Award for best narration. He was born of Irish parents and raised and educated in England. In Great Britain he has enjoyed an extensive career in both television and repertory theater and toured nationally and internationally with the English Shakespeare Company. He has appeared in London’s West End in the gritty musical The Hired Man. In America he has appeared on Broadway in The Weir and on television in New York Undercover and Law & Order. He has taught drama at Ross School for the several years.
Overview
This propulsive thriller is a “gruesomely accurate portrayal of ’80s life in Ireland” (Kirkus Reviews) from the New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award–winning author Adrian McKinty.
“Adrian McKinty just leapt to the top of my list of must-read suspense novelists. He’s the real deal.” —Dennis Lehane
A torso in a suitcase looks like an impossible case, but Sean Duffy isn't easily deterred, especially when his floundering love life leaves him in need of a distraction. So with Detective Constables McCrabban and McBride, he goes to work identifying the victim. The torso turns out to be all that's left of an American tourist who once served in the US military. What was he doing in Northern Ireland in the midst of the 1982 Troubles? The trail leads to the doorstep of a beautiful, flame-haired, twentysomething widow, whose husband died at the hands of an IRA assassination team just a few months before.
Suddenly Duffy is caught between his romantic instincts, gross professional misconduct, and powerful men he should know better than to mess with. These include British intelligence, the FBI, and local paramilitary death squads—enough to keep even the savviest detective busy. Duffy's growing sense of self-doubt isn't helping. But as a legendarily stubborn man, he doesn't let that stop him from pursuing the case to its explosive conclusion.