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    Gallows Lane: An Inspector Devlin Mystery
    Unavailable
    Gallows Lane: An Inspector Devlin Mystery
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    Gallows Lane: An Inspector Devlin Mystery
    Ebook287 pages4 hours

    Gallows Lane: An Inspector Devlin Mystery

    By Brian McGilloway

    3.5/5

    ()

    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this ebook

    The heart-stopping follow-up to Brian McGilloway's thrilling debut, Gallows Lane continues the compelling series that captures modern Ireland and showcases a striking new voice in crime writing.

    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 superintendant 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. Enquiries 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.

    Taking its title from the name of the road down which condemned Donegal criminals were once led, Gallows Lane is a sharp, modern thriller; a stunning second installment in what John Connolly says is "set to become one of the great series in modern crime fiction."

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherMacmillan Publishers
    Release dateSep 29, 2009
    ISBN9781429931304
    Unavailable
    Gallows Lane: An Inspector Devlin Mystery
    Author

    Brian McGilloway

    Brian McGilloway is the New York Times bestselling author of the critically acclaimed Inspector Benedict Devlin and DS Lucy Black series. He lives near the Irish borderlands with his wife, daughter, and three sons.

    Read more from Brian Mc Gilloway

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    Reviews for Gallows Lane

    3.5/5

    65 ratings11 reviews

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    • 3/5
      'Gallows Lane' is Brian McGilloway's 2nd in his Inspector Devlin series and the last I'll read. It's a decent procedural (although with some glaring dumb spots) and not a bad book, but ultimately the writing is just too bland. It's the Irish equivalent of Sgt. Joe Friday narrating a Dragnet episode in book form. Borderlands, McGilloway's first, was marginally more interesting in that it was more 'Irish' and had a bit more rogue-ish behavior on Devlin's part. In Gallow's Lane, he has a few 'outside-the-lines' efforts that are mostly just dumb (ie. planting evidence at a rich guy's house which, almost anyone would guess, has video surveillance) and some chaste interaction with his female partner, but that's about the extent of it. The procedural aspects of the plot are fine, but the writing just doesn't cut it.
    • 3/5

      This has to be the only crime book I've read where "moobs" are a key plot point!
      This one felt cosier than the first Inspector Devlin, and the inspector a bit cosier and more goody two shoes; his idea of falsifying evidenceis to drop a religious pamphlet through an open car window. A little too much coincidence, but some nice descriptions.

    • 5/5
      It's summertime in the Irish borderlands, and the Donegal summer dawns surprisingly hot for Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin. Inspector Devlin returns to the border separating Donegal from the North of Ireland, waiting for a notorious ex-con named James Kerr to return home on early release. He claims to have found God while in prison, but Superintendent Costello - the superintendent of police, isn't taking any chances with the born-again Christian's fount of newfound grace. Inspector Devlin's orders are to escort him to the northern side of the border and make absolutely certain that he stays out of the superintendent's jurisdiction.When a young woman is found beaten to death at a building site in what appears to be a sexually-motivated killing, Benedict is distracted from his assignment of keeping tabs on James Kerr. Inspector Devlin's investigation into the murder soon leads him to a local bodybuilder and steroid addict. But as the body count increases, with each murder more gruesome than the last, the born-again ex-convict is found nailed to a tree - crucified.Increasingly torn between his young family and the rigors of his job, Benedict is determined to apprehend the killer - or killers - before they strike again, even as the carnage begins to jeopardize those he cares about most. Taking its title from the name of the road down which condemned Donegal criminals were once led, Gallows Lane is a virtuoso piece of writing from crime fiction's most exciting new talent. It is a sharp, modern thriller, a stunning second installment in Brian McGilloway's Inspector Benedict Devlin Series; and a heart-stopping follow-up to his acclaimed debut Borderlands.I really enjoyed reading this book; I immediately liked the character of Inspector Benedict Devlin, he seemed like such a nice person. I also enjoyed the various mentions of the towns in Ireland, it really brought back some wonderful memories for me. If I had one issue with Mr. McGilloway's story, it would be that there were so many characters involved, that I had just the slightest trouble keeping all their names straight in my mind. However, that might be because of my own personal reading concentration. Overall, I would give this book an A!
    • 3/5
      3.5 stars

      This is book #2 in the DI Ben Devlin series & continues where the last one left off. Ben is stationed in Lifford, one of the towns that sit along the border between the south & British ruled north.There is a cast of returning characters & although it helps if you know the history behind their relationships, its
      not necessary to read the first book to enjoy this.
      As usual, there are several concurrent story lines. Ben's boss Superintendent "Olly" Costello is retiring & wants to go out with a clean desk. He laso wants Ben to apply for his job.
      First up, a convicted bank robber has returned to town after serving his time & Costello wants him politely escorted back across the border. But James Kerr convinces Ben he's found God & only wants a few days to meet with old friends. Bad decision. Kerr's past is about to catch up with him.
      Next, figure out who's responsible for the brutal murder of a young woman found on a building site. She was literally beaten to death & Ben and his partner Caroline have never seen anything like it.
      Meanwhile, colleagues Patterson & Colhoun have found another stash of illegal guns & drugs & are quickly becoming the media darlings of the department. Are they really that lucky/good at their jobs? Ben & Patterson can't stand each other & his suspicions about their "finds" isn't helping. Neither is the fact Patterson is also applying for Olly's job.
      But Ben sets that aside when, in quick succession, he has to deal with a hanging, a crucifixion & another serious assault. As icing on the cake, he learns one of the people interviewing him for the big job is an old flame & let's just say it didn't end well. And when he receives a bullet in the mail, what's a guy to do but begin having panic attacks?
      Ben has more than a full plate in this instalment. Before it's all over, the body count rises significantly & Ben and Caroline both face personal danger. Because of the location, the impact & fallout from The Troubles is never very far away & many of the characters have secrets they'd rather stay buried.
      One subplot provides us with a look inside Ben's home life. With 2 small children, his wife Debbie is getting tired of Ben constantly taking chances & being threatened. You can certainly understand her point but I found Debbie a hard person to like. She comes across as oddly detached & cool toward Ben, even as he begins to fall apart. We never get to hear her side of things as she has a minor role.
      Ben is an interesting character. He's a man who takes his job & faith seriously & his integrity is tested when he considers some questionable acts to ensure a suspect's arrest. He adores his family but has to rethink his career when events put his children at risk.
      I had a couple of issues with the plot. First, it's so jam packed with murders & assaults it makes you wonder why more residents aren'e packing up & leaving. In places, the cops are literally running from one crime scene to the next. The author does a good job of slowly revealing all the connections & motives but ye Gods, these are bloodthirsty people. Second, for someone who is a DI, Ben seems to take a lot of unnecessary risks & makes rookie mistakes that have fatal consequences for others. If I lived there, I'd avoid him like the plague.
      Still, because the story is told in his voice, we are privy to his thoughts & feelings and this makes him a sympathetic character. Others in the cast are well described & dialogue flows smoothly. There's a lot going on here so the author has his hands full bringing it all to a resolution.
      At the end, some members of the force face big changes on the job & no doubt this is something that will be explored in the next book. I'd like to see fewer major investigations so there is space for more character development. If you're a fan of Peter Robison, Graham Hurley or Peter James, you'll probably enjoy this.
    • 4/5
      Inspector Devlin gets strict instructions from his boss, DCI Costello, to send Jamie Kerr back across the border. He doesn't and what follows is one busted investigation after another. Devlin makes a lot of mistakes, chases rabbits down the wrong warren hole, and generally misses the boat (overdid the metaphors, I think, but you get the picture. Nevertheless, he's a very sympathetic character.

      The plot revolves around several seemingly unconnected events: the brutal unrequited rape of several girls, a bank robbery that happened years before, and an old IRA weapons cache that was discovered on some ground

      The answer to the puzzle lies in knowing what "moobs" are and what causes them. At least partly.
    • 2/5
      Set in the Irish borderlands this is a fairly standard police procedural, the second in a series featuring Inspector Ben Devlin. Devlin and his colleagues investigate several cases including the brutal bashing of two local women and the apparently unrelated death of a local man that turns out not to be the suicide it firt appears to be.

      Although I hadn't read the first in this series I did anticipate enjoying this one from the back jacket blurb. As is often the case these days though the PR people responsible for the blurbs are better writers than the authors.

      This book wasn't terrible, but it wasn't great either. It was...meh...nothing...dull. I'm engaged by interesting characters but Devlin was, for me, the opposite of that. He's indecisive, he thinks small, he makes lots of stupid mistakes that make it increasingly incredible he's reached a senior level of the police force. He's insipid. None of his Garda mates were any more fascinating and in fact the only character who was truly believable and engaing was the father of one of the bashed girls - and he only appears in two very short scenes.

      The writing was pretty ordinary too. The complex plot wasn't well explained or resolved and there were several awkward plot devices. Apart from a few deliberate references to crossing the border for various scenes the book could have been set anywhere: there was no real sense of the borderlands environment. I recently read Asa Larsson's Savage Altar which is set in Sweden and I really felt I got a sense of the place when reading that book and would have enjoyed something similar here.

      I won't be looking for any more of these.
    • 4/5
      A very well written and tightly plotted novel set in the borderland area between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, with investigations led by Garda officer Benedict Devlin.Devlin is an unusual protagonist for a series of police procedurals - he is simply too normal! No quirky tastes for Wagner or fine claret, no drink problem, no broken family! Eyt he is immensely plausible despite all that!As with the first novel in this series, the murders come fairly fast and furiously, each with its own particular grimness, though the violence does not seem gratuitous, and Devlin's normality permits him to be as appalled as the relatives of the victims. Similarly, Devlin is not above personal fear, and succumbs to debilitating panic attacks when his own family is threatened.All in all a marvellous successor to "Borderlands" and I look forward to reading the next instalment in this admirable series.
    • 4/5
      second book in series by Brian McGilloway featuring Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin stationed on the border of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. you might expect given the location that paramilitaries may feature and they do but mainly in the past tense as they have now become respectable (?) businessmen. Devlin is different to most crime fiction detectives as he's happily married with children but as what appears to be relatively straight forward case degenerates quickly to cover assault, murder and crucifixion which does not nothing to help his promotion chances or to alleviate the panic attacks he's been suffering following threats to his family. A decent character in a difficult situation and certainly enough to maintain interest in the next instalment.
    • 4/5
      This is the second book in a new police procedural series by Irish crime writer Brian McGilloway. The series features An Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin - a policeman in the borderlands between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. The first book in the series was Borderlands and it was a decent first outing. Sometimes the second book lags behind the first, but that is not the case with this one. If anything, Gallows Lane is a better book.This books contains hidden evidence, death threats, and an unexpected rivalry as Devlin works to solve some intertwined murders and to work out for himself whether he wants a promotion to Superintendent. The crime writing is smart and effective and the characterizations deepen (as does the sense of place). This is a book about struggle of all kinds and about the sometimes sad consequences of struggle. Ben Devlin's an interesting character and I look forward to getting to know him better as the series progresses.My one criticism of these books is that while it's refreshing to see a cop who is a happily married father, Devlin's wife and kids get sort of short shrift as characters. I'd like to see them developed more and made an actual part of his life rather than incidental moments.All told this was a great whodunit. Can't wait for the next one!
    • 5/5
      An excellent crime novel set In Ireland
    • 4/5
      Jamie Kerr returns to Lifford in the Irish Borderlands on a blustery Sunday morning in May, recently released from prison where he has served a sentence for armed robbery. He was the patsy for the robbery, the driver of the car, shot and abandoned by the other three members of the gang, who were never identified. Jamie was never sure himself who the others were - they all wore balaclavas - but he does know who asked him to be the driver. So Jamie has unfinished business. While in prison he was "born-again" and he tells Inspector Benedict Devlin that he means no-one any harm.Two local policemen have recently found an old cache of IRA weapons together with some drugs. It's the second such find in as many weeks and it will do their chances of promotion no harm at all, until a local identity suggests that all is not what it seems.Things are busy this summer too. A young woman is found murdered, bashed to death in what looks like a fit of rage; and second young woman is found alive, narrowly escaping death by the same attacker. And as if Ben Devlin's plate is not already full to overflowing, his boss has announced his imminent retirement, and interviews are being held for promotion. Ben Devlin is committed to his job, but he is worried about the toll it is taking on his family.Sixty pages into GALLOWS LANE I found that I wasn't taking the story in very well, and I started again. Things made a lot more sense the second time through and I'm not sure why I had to do that, but I'm glad I did. I haven't read much crime fiction set in Ireland, and perhaps it was a combination of a new-to-me setting with a fairly pared back writing style that affected my initial comprehension.So I guess I'm saying, if it happens to you, don't give up. This is a very well plotted book,with lots of human interest, and a couple of twists that will surprise. The blurb on the back of the book alerts me to an earlier novel called BORDERLANDS which I will certainly look out for.