The third book in the Cormac Reilly series, The Good Turn, is an absolute cracker of a read that will hold you in thrall from beginning to end.
In this instalment, the Cormac Reilly readers are coming to know and love shares centre stage with another character, junior Garda Peter Fisher. An admirer of Cormac (who is still at terrible odds with their boss), Peter is determined to not only do the right thing, but impress. When a young girl is abducted and the boss is more focused on a drug bust that his policeman son is involved in and which will elevate them both in the force, and Cormac is tied up interviewing the parents of the abducted girl, Peter takes matters into his own hands with devastating consequences.
What follows is a career-make or break for both Peter and Cormac – the latter being unreasonably held to account for actions beyond his control. But no matter what Cormac tries to do to save both his and Peter’s professional reputations, someone is one step ahead, determined to tear him down…
Atmospheric, brilliantly plotted and with characters whose lives and hopes and dreams unfold, The Good Turn is a gripping read. The locales are also marvellously drawn, whether it’s a small town in Ireland or individual rooms in houses. You breath the air, feel the chill of snow and the fall of night as it encompasses the landscape, the crackle of a fire in a cosy room or the bitter bite of a house with no heating. The additional characters are rich and real and as their stories are revealed, they add depth to an already enthralling tale.
I couldn’t put this book down and am so disappointed I not only finished it, but now have to wait for Dervla’s next one. If you’re looking for a great crime fiction read that will transport you, the entire series and certainly this book, are for you.
What a magnificent novel this is – the fact it’s a debut work makes it even more astonishing. It is at once, accomplished, tightly plotted, with beautifully crafted characters and a terrific setting – Galway, Ireland.
