An Inspector Devlin Mystery
by Brian McGilloway
Critics' Opinion:
Readers' rating:
Published Sep 2009
336 pages
Genre: Mysteries
Publication Information
In his critically acclaimed debut, Borderlands, Brian McGilloway opened a window onto modern Ireland through the eyes of Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin, drawing comparisons to John Connolly and Ian Rankin for his tight, fast-paced plotting.
In Gallows Lane, the Donegal summer dawns unusually hot, and Inspector Devlin returns to the borderlands separating the North and South of Ireland, waiting for a notorious ex-con, James Kerr, to return home on early release. Kerr claims to have found God while in prison, but the superintendent of police wants him to stay on the other side of the border.
When a young woman is found beaten to death on a building site in what appears to be a sexually-motivated killing, Devlin is distracted from his assignment of keeping tabs on Kerr. Inquiries into the murder soon point to a local bodybuilder and steroid addict. But days later, the born-again ex-con Kerr is found nailed to a tree—crucified.
Increasingly torn between his young family and his job, Devlin is determined to apprehend those responsible for the murders before they strike again, even as the carnage begins to jeopardize those he cares about most.
"Starred Review. Readers will be gripped as they watch this driven Irish detective seek his place in the moral landscape. " - Publishers Weekly
"Refreshing in its outlook, this procedural showcases a rising star in full command of his craft. Strongly recommended." - Library Journal
"Devlin...best of fathers and least politic of coppers, is a helluva hero elbowing his way through a gritty plot." - Kirkus Reviews
This information about Gallows Lane was first featured
in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.
Any "Author Information" displayed below reflects the author's biography at the time this particular book was published.
Brian McGalloway teaches at St. Columb's College, County Derry, Ireland. This is his second novel in the Inspector Devlin series following Borderlands.
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