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3.81 AVERAGE
3.81 AVERAGE
It was a well crafted and engrossing mystery with a great storyline about redemption, betrayal and the tarnishing of ideals.
Well done.
Well done.
I really liked this book quite a lot. I'm starting to think I'm going to have to start a new bookshelf called Belfast between Adrian McKinty and now, Stuart Neville.
The characters made sense to me. The personalities and their actions, all seemed to be right for the individuals. The writing sucked me in to the point that I was pushing aside things I needed to do in order to get just a little further into it. Very much impressed and looking forward to the next book in the series.
The characters made sense to me. The personalities and their actions, all seemed to be right for the individuals. The writing sucked me in to the point that I was pushing aside things I needed to do in order to get just a little further into it. Very much impressed and looking forward to the next book in the series.
Fast, paced, action filled revenge tale which made for a quick easy read except the ending was too clean considering the messiness of the main character throughout the rest of the novel.
THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST, by Stuart Neville, is about an ex-con named Gerry Fegan being harassed by the ghosts of those he has killed.
The book sets off at a good pace, introducing the other players in his world. It’s not really heavy into describing locations, but good enough to give you the basic feel of the place. The language is course, as would be expected amongst violent men.
The men of the underground army are brutal, unforgiving men. They are rough and believable. For some, this is the only thing they’ve ever known.
Fegan gripped Toner’s ring finger. “Who’s the cop?”
“Gerry, please, I can’t.”
Toner screamed again, drowning out the sound of cracking bone. Fegan sighed. He was surprised at Toner. He’d always taken him for weak; the solicitor was anything but. He ground the bones together.
My favorite character is the protagonist, Gerry Fegan. He sees and communicates with ‘shadows,’ ghosts of dead people; how splendid is that? Unfortunately, he’s also consuming way too much alcohol in an attempt to run away from them. When the twelve ghosts of those who he has murdered require him to avenge their deaths by killing someone else who was also involved in their murder, he has no qualms about getting the job done. One by one, his tormentor ghosts disappear as the other killers are taken out by Gerry. His acquaintances (there are no real friends exempt from being double-crossed when you’re part of this organization) think he’s gone mad, talking to people that they can’t see.
Fegan shook his head. “I’m sorry.”
“Thirty years, Gerry. We’ve known each other thirty-“
The Walther barked once, throwing red and grey against the windscreen. ***** slumped forward onto the steering wheel, and the Merc’s horn screamed at the night. Fegan reached forward, pulled him back against the seat, and silence swallowed them.
I’ve always been interested in the experiences of the everyman in Irish, Welsh, and Scottish life, so I found this book very appealing.
“You’re a respected man around here,” she said.
“They don’t respect me. They’re afraid of me.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
Fegan plucked at the beer can’s ring-pull. “You know what I did?” “I’ve heard things,” she said. Her shoulder brushed against his and he shivered. “Listen, I’ve known men like you all my life. My uncles, my father, my brothers. I know the other side, too, the cops and the Loyalists. I’ve talked to them all in my job. Everyone has their piece of guilt to carry. You’re not that special.”
I’m happy to say, the plot surprised me towards the end. It gave me chills! No spoilers here; you’ll have to read the book to find out what happens.
As with Adrian McKinty’s fabulous DEAD TRILOGY books, Stuart Neville knows his stuff when it comes to the Irish Troubles and how it affected people.
If you’re interested at all in the scratchy existence of the Irish activists, you must read THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST.
The book sets off at a good pace, introducing the other players in his world. It’s not really heavy into describing locations, but good enough to give you the basic feel of the place. The language is course, as would be expected amongst violent men.
The men of the underground army are brutal, unforgiving men. They are rough and believable. For some, this is the only thing they’ve ever known.
Fegan gripped Toner’s ring finger. “Who’s the cop?”
“Gerry, please, I can’t.”
Toner screamed again, drowning out the sound of cracking bone. Fegan sighed. He was surprised at Toner. He’d always taken him for weak; the solicitor was anything but. He ground the bones together.
My favorite character is the protagonist, Gerry Fegan. He sees and communicates with ‘shadows,’ ghosts of dead people; how splendid is that? Unfortunately, he’s also consuming way too much alcohol in an attempt to run away from them. When the twelve ghosts of those who he has murdered require him to avenge their deaths by killing someone else who was also involved in their murder, he has no qualms about getting the job done. One by one, his tormentor ghosts disappear as the other killers are taken out by Gerry. His acquaintances (there are no real friends exempt from being double-crossed when you’re part of this organization) think he’s gone mad, talking to people that they can’t see.
Fegan shook his head. “I’m sorry.”
“Thirty years, Gerry. We’ve known each other thirty-“
The Walther barked once, throwing red and grey against the windscreen. ***** slumped forward onto the steering wheel, and the Merc’s horn screamed at the night. Fegan reached forward, pulled him back against the seat, and silence swallowed them.
I’ve always been interested in the experiences of the everyman in Irish, Welsh, and Scottish life, so I found this book very appealing.
“You’re a respected man around here,” she said.
“They don’t respect me. They’re afraid of me.”
“I’m not afraid of you.”
Fegan plucked at the beer can’s ring-pull. “You know what I did?” “I’ve heard things,” she said. Her shoulder brushed against his and he shivered. “Listen, I’ve known men like you all my life. My uncles, my father, my brothers. I know the other side, too, the cops and the Loyalists. I’ve talked to them all in my job. Everyone has their piece of guilt to carry. You’re not that special.”
I’m happy to say, the plot surprised me towards the end. It gave me chills! No spoilers here; you’ll have to read the book to find out what happens.
As with Adrian McKinty’s fabulous DEAD TRILOGY books, Stuart Neville knows his stuff when it comes to the Irish Troubles and how it affected people.
If you’re interested at all in the scratchy existence of the Irish activists, you must read THE GHOSTS OF BELFAST.
This was an exciting page turner - I wouldn't call it a mystery since the reader knows very early on who did it, but more of a political thriller. The story centers around an off-balance ex-IRA solider in Belfast who is wrestling with his demons - the victims of a war in which innocents were killed. Though some characters were too stereotypical (e.g., the crooked politician, the obese gangster), there was a lot of interesting historical background about the "resolution" of the troubles in Northern Ireland.
DNF @ 34%
I was really enjoying this very much. It’s rich with dark intrigue and complex political suspense. But then I became sick with a couple things, back-to-back, and fell out of touch with what was going on. I want to return to this one day and try to binge read it in a couple days. It’s the sort of twisted treat that requires your full attention.
From what I had read of it, I would highly recommend this to people who enjoy crime thrillers, especially ones in Ireland!
I was really enjoying this very much. It’s rich with dark intrigue and complex political suspense. But then I became sick with a couple things, back-to-back, and fell out of touch with what was going on. I want to return to this one day and try to binge read it in a couple days. It’s the sort of twisted treat that requires your full attention.
From what I had read of it, I would highly recommend this to people who enjoy crime thrillers, especially ones in Ireland!