Disclosure / Disclaimer: I received this ebook, free of charge ,from Sapere Books ,via #Netgalley for review purposes on this blog. No other compensation, monetary or in kind, has been received or implied for this post. Nor was I told how to post about it. All opinions are my own.
Well it IS St Brigid's Day, so only fitting our first book today is a Irish noir!
Miller discovers that family secrets can kill…
Galway, Ireland, 2010
When somebody takes a shot at Superintendent Folan, killing his driver instead, the amoral cop reveals to his reluctant lackey Ben Miller that the shooter is his illegitimate son, Ritchie Moran, the result of a youthful liaison with the wife of Mossy Moran, Galway’s most notorious gangster.
Folan tasks Miller with tracking Ritchie down and getting him out of the way before he, or anyone else, gets hurt.
But Miller soon finds out that a young woman connected to Ritchie has already been killed.
Things are complicated further when Miller and his friend, Gárda Aaron Dempsey, find themselves in the middle of a deadly feud between two rival Traveller clans.
Can Miller and Dempsey catch the killer? Is Ritchie’s disappearance connected to the Traveller feud?
And who will come out on top as the face-off between Miller and Folan escalates?
About the Series:
There are three books so far in the ‘Ben Miller’ series, each dealing with gritty contemporary issues yet written with a darkly humorous touch. Each book sees taxi-driver Ben Miller become unwillingly involved in situations, including murder, people-trafficking, prostitution and the illegal drugs trade that blur the distinctions between good and evil, as well as dealing with his own issues, including possible autism.
The character of corrupt Gárda Superintendent Martin Folan features prominently in the Galway-set stories, each one of which is based on experiences the author had whilst working as a taxi-driver in the city.
Review:
This is the 3rd book in the series, but the first I have read. It's very much an Irish-noir, with Miller a taxi driver and not a detective, but everything else is similar. There's the push of good vs evil, modern vs past, a hard boiled guy with a mushy center (that would be Miller). Jumping into the 3rd book in the series, you obviously miss a lot of history, but Sean gives you enough to keep up, yet make you want to go back and get the full story of what made Miller like he is. there is a LOT of imagery in the book- some of which is VERY graphic, so if you don't like those type of books, this may not be for you. There are lots of references to the Ireland of old (ie you can hear a collective held breath when the term 'irregular' is used), and they help to instill the noir feeling of miller being a man out of place and time. It's an interesting book, with subtle twists that change the story and keep the reader guessing!
About the Author:
Seán, the father of three adult children, originally from Galway City, now lives with his partner in Wexford in the sunny South East of Ireland. He is a graduate of the National University of Ireland, Galway and Brunel University, London.
After a career spent mostly in youth work and social care, Seán is at last able to indulge his lifelong passion for writing. In the early 2000’s he spent four years driving a taxi in Galway and it was from this experience that his unconventional, taxi-driving crime-solver, Ben Miller, gained life.
Along with writing crime fiction and historical thrillers, Seán is also an award-winning playwright and filmmaker.
When not writing, Seán is a patient, often frustrated, and always passionate supporter of Galway United FC, his hometown League of Ireland club. As his London-born mother lived on Britannia Road, SW London, there are no prizes for guessing the identity of his other team! Follow Seán on Twitter.
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