The Guards (Audible Audio Edition) Ken Bruen Gerry O'Brien ISIS Audio Books Books
Download As PDF : The Guards (Audible Audio Edition) Ken Bruen Gerry O'Brien ISIS Audio Books Books
Still stinging from his unceremonious ouster from the Garda Siochana, and staring at the world through the smoky bottom of his beer mug, Jack Taylor is stuck in Galway with nothing to look forward to. He is teetering on the brink of his life's sharpest edges, his memories of the past cutting deep into his soul and his prospects for the future non-existent.
Until a dazzling woman walks into the bar with a strange request and a rumour about Jack's talent for finding things. Odds are he won't be able to climb off his barstool long enough to get involved, but when he surprises himself by getting hired, Jack has little idea of what he's getting into.
The Guards (Audible Audio Edition) Ken Bruen Gerry O'Brien ISIS Audio Books Books
I have watched a few episodes of the television series so expected this to be very dark, and I was certainly not disappointed in that regard. I was a little disappointed in the lack of a coherent mystery. Between bouts of drinking followed by violence, blackouts and remorse, the main character ricochets around the story in an almost aimless fashion,but somehow still manages to solve the crime.with the help of a psychopath/painte/ialcoholic who is a little thin in character development. The setting, or rather the way it was painted, also lacked flavor. You might wonder why I gave this book four stars, but the main character is extremely engaging and the writing is well done. The plot may plod, but this was still a page turner for me, I cared about the character and was investefd in his story and in the resolution of the crime. Aside from the psychopath there were many interesting well-drawn characters from corrupt Garda officers, dope addicts, drunkards, criminals, and street-people were nteresting for a cop-shop mystery addict like myself.Product details
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The Guards (Audible Audio Edition) Ken Bruen Gerry O'Brien ISIS Audio Books Books Reviews
Another mystery writer recommended Ken Bruen to me, and he was right. Mr. Bruen is really quite fantastic at what he does. His protagonist in THE GUARDS is Jack Taylor, who is by anyone's standards, is quite a character. He has been thrown out of The Guards, Ireland's police force, for hitting the bottle. He now spends a great deal of his free time, which he has a lot of, either getting drunk, sobering up and/or drying out in rehab-- and of course, drinking again. In his off-time from drinking he is trying to help one Ann Henderson to prove that her young daughter did not commit suicide as reported but was murdered. Unlike many novels of this type, there aren't a lot of complicated puzzles to solve before our man gets the job done-- in ways that not all protagonists do. Although Mr. Jackson easily gets good information, he hardly needs it as the mystery pretty much unravels on its own. That is not to say there are no surprises along the way, and the ending may drive you to drink.
Mr. Bruen's prose is spare and effective. He apparently has read practically every crime and mystery writer of any importance-- I know I like a writer who quotes Walter Mosley-- and in addition to writing a page-turner, he either through his character Jack-- or somes other writer-- often says things worth remembering. On drinking you have to get up earlier and earlier to drink yourself sober enough for opening time. On hangovers you cannot stand enthusiasm, only surliness. On reading from Jack's father who read Zane Grey (as did my own father) he learned the joy of reading and that it would give him freedom. My favorite lines, however, which I have already quoted to two different friends, are the following "How come, no matter how long since I've seen the family or how much distance I put between us, they can always push my buttons? Because they installed them." That gem alone is worth the price of this book.
Simple sentences. Short & declarative. Anyone can read this book, & most will enjoy it. Ken Bruen has his own language in which to describe the hard life of his main character. Jack Taylor is an Irish working class man with the soul of a poet. He is ravaged by alcoholism & religion. Still, he is an honest, kindly character with low tolerance for pretentiousness or hippocracy. He stumbles through life, by no means the all-knowing sleuth. Often beaten or broken, he nevertheless rises again, tries to remember through the alcoholic blackout of yesterday what was important, & somehow solves the crime. This seems to be hit & miss rather than methodical, but owes much to his street smarts. Often, terrible discoveries are made on the way to solution. These brutal societal norms of the past seemingly have no remedy, but only continuing consequences. Something of a tragic figure & something of a rogue, Jack defiantly rises above it all.
First I was intrigued.Then I was put off. Then I was frustrated. Then I was fascinated. Then I was really annoyed and then I was finished with the book!! How did that happen? This is a different type of crime novel. It meanders & staggers around like the many drunks within its pages & then it almost "solves" the "crime". It's more about character than content. And boy do those characters come to life here. I sure wouldn't volunteer to be Jack's friend though........they are droppin like flies. The alcoholic binges are so much a part of this book & I guess so much a part of Irish life that they feel very real & they certainly frustrate you in a real way. You want to reach in & slap the BeJaysus outta Jack!! If you have any issues with booze I'd stay away from this book 'cause it makes you want to drink. The writing is evocative, lyrical & intense. The story is sad, believable & rugged. There is a fine sense of revenge here as well as a gritty level of betrayal. It does teeter on the edge of noir. It is spare but never so spare that you can't tell what is going on. The book rubbed me the wrong way but I couldn;t put it down once I was past the half-way mark. Go figure. I will read the next book in the Jack Taylor series before I make a more final decision about this author.He has earned that much.
Bruen is an interesting voice; Jack Taylor is a novel character. Taylor's travails are of more interest than the crime at hand, which seems to get resolved despite Taylor; however, if I presume that this "first in the series" is the author's attempt to introduce us to the character, then it works quite well. I will certainly read the follow-on book in the series and see where the character development goes. Bruen does a nice job of capturing the Irish setting, his writing is at times lyrical, at times maudlin, at times harsh; reflecting the complexities of the characters and the place. Taylor is a somewhat sympathetic individual, albeit prone to self-destruction, whose musings are interesting if not entertaining. A good read, but not one in the "couldn't put it down" category. Still, I have enough interest to at least pursue through the second in the series.
I have watched a few episodes of the television series so expected this to be very dark, and I was certainly not disappointed in that regard. I was a little disappointed in the lack of a coherent mystery. Between bouts of drinking followed by violence, blackouts and remorse, the main character ricochets around the story in an almost aimless fashion,but somehow still manages to solve the crime.with the help of a psychopath/painte/ialcoholic who is a little thin in character development. The setting, or rather the way it was painted, also lacked flavor. You might wonder why I gave this book four stars, but the main character is extremely engaging and the writing is well done. The plot may plod, but this was still a page turner for me, I cared about the character and was investefd in his story and in the resolution of the crime. Aside from the psychopath there were many interesting well-drawn characters from corrupt Garda officers, dope addicts, drunkards, criminals, and street-people were nteresting for a cop-shop mystery addict like myself.
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