Cross

 I reread a book by Ken Bruen, one of the 20 that he wrote in the Jack Taylor series, previously reviewed by me in 2009. This is a very dark series about Jack who is driven by alcoholism, either when he’s deep into the drink, or when he is spending most of his waking hours fighting against taking a drink He is haunted by that. Atypical of most of the books in this series, Jack is actually sober throughout the book as he fights off his demons while trying to solve a crime that involved the seemingly random killing of dogs in Galway, Ireland. Bruen clearly understands the agony of alcoholism, and there is something unique about his writing style. Given that I’ve read and reviewed most of his books, it’s not a surprise that I highly recommend this series, if you can tolerate the darkness.

A Galway Epiphany

 Ken Bruen, an Irish novelist, has been one of my favorite authors, and it’s my assumption that his protagonist, Jack Taylor, is in large part the author himself. I read and reviewed the most recent novel, Galway Confidential, the 17^th in this series just last month (4/24), the first of his novels that I had read in 6 years, but there had also been a long gap between the dates that the 16^th and 17^th books were published. Although East Coast Don (ECD) reviewed the 16^th book, A Galway Epiphany in 2022, I felt a need to read it to find out why book 17 started out with Jack awakening from a two-year coma. But now I’m confused about all the major injuries Jack has suffered over the course of these novels. The 16^th book ends with him being stabbed many times by a father had mistaken Jack’s interest in his daughter and/or was trying to protect himself from charges of child abuse. But, upon awaken from his long coma at the beginning of the 17^th book, Jack had been run over by a Mac truck. Maybe it’s just me that has lost track of Jack’s horrific injuries.

 

Always an Irish noir writer, this may have been Bruen’s darkest novel, which is indeed saying something remarkable. There was a teenage girl who was a psychopath and murderer. There was a woman who was trying to pass herself off as a nun in order to get donations for a fake cause, a psychopathic man who loved to set people on fire, priests who thought of their own needs first, and the usual cast of substance abusers. But, despite the noir, I am drawn to Bruen’s erudite writing and the authenticity of his descriptions of Taylor’s substance abuse. Given the excellent review of the book by ECD, I need not write more. Please read his review.

Galway Confidential

 I ran across the most recent book by Ken Bruen in the Jack Taylor series, the 17^{th and it was just} published this year (2024). Bruen has been a prolific writer, producing nearly a book a year since the first, The Guards, in 2001. The last book of his that I read was six years ago, In The Galway Silence, published in 2018. I wrote a brief by positive review. He did write Galway Girl in 2019 which we did not review, and it was East Coast Don who did the beautiful review of A Galway Epiphany in 2020. Then, he did not publish again until this year with the current book, Galway Confidential.

 

Jack Taylor is a dark character indeed, and Bruen seems to have unusually intimate knowledge of what it’s like to be a polysubstance abuser, the disease with which Jack struggles. Could that problem be the reason for the 4 year hiatus in Bruen's publishing? I continue to love Bruen’s unique writing style and I need to learn why Jack has just recovered from being in a coma for two years. The reader knows that Jack was attacked, but this book never explained what happened. I’m going to have to go back and read the last couple of books so I can understand that. In this novel, nuns are being murdered and homeless people are being set on fire. Jack has a successful involvement in those cases while continuing to fight his own demons.

 

Once again, I must admit that I’m hooked on Ken Bruen.

A Galway Epiphany by Ken Bruen

Night watchman has his routine. Makes his checks. Logs them in. Sits down for a snack. Maybe a snooze. Until he feels a cool liquid being poured over him. Smells a lot like . . . Gasoline . . . and then a stranger strikes a match.

Father Malachy is in line to become the next Bishop in Galway. But he can’t be declared until the Vatican rules on a strange happening – a statue of Mary has been said to be crying – and the Vatican isn’t ready to use “m” word just yet.

Crowds gather around the statue day and night. But it’s not until a 2^nd ‘miracle’ happens. A man has been struck by a truck on the street in front of the statue. Three kids/teenagers amongst the crowd peel off and attend to the victim in the street. The crowd watches as the man, out cold, miraculously has not a scratch on him. Paramedics arrive. He’s still unconscious. In a coma actually. They take the man to the hospital where he lies in a coma for about 2-3 weeks. In the meantime, he’s been identified . . .

Jack Taylor

Former Guardia officer, sometime private investigator, lover of modern literature and music . . .  and nearly full-time drunk and drug abuser. A guy who seems to be a focal point for bad events occurring to his friends. A good beating and death are Jack’s roommates.

Jack’s been living, of you call it that, with his pet falcon on the farm of a friend (who came to his aid in Bruen’s previous book, Galway Girl). Keefer is a former roadie with the Rolling Stones who inherited the farm and managed to be an OK day trader. Jack’s reputation still gets him some PI-types of jobs . . . find those miracle kids, track down the arsonist, take out his own worthless life choices on an abusive husband, locate the killer of another wife, figure out who is slitting throats across Galway. On top of all that, a priest wants to end it all but can’t because suicide is a mortal sin and asks Jack to kill him. Guess God doesn't view murder’s quite as bad as suicide. God keeps track. All without getting in his own way with the Church, the Guardia, his favorite pubs, and what few friends he hasn’t managed to offend and kick him to the curb.

But what of his life after he wraps all that up all of that in a pretty bow? What’s it get him? I’ll not tell you other than I audibly gasped . . .

For reasons I can’t express, I’d kind of let Bruen slip off my radar. And that’s unfortunate. Extremely. Bruen is a writer of extreme talent but remains a bit of an acquired taste. His books are all dark. Make that exceedingly dark. Tales of the downtrodden, be it Taylor or other, being quashed by Galway or life or their own personal maladies. One of the first books of his, Once Were Cops, scared the ever loving crap out of me. His prose is sparse and presented in machine gun rapidity. Taylor is not your routine idealistic PI. Nor is he admirable. He’s pretty much a degenerate slug who still has some fleeting sense of justice. Holdover from his Guardia days I suspect.

You can find a short 3-season story arc for Jack Taylor on Prime Videos with Iain Glen taking on the difficult role and giving Taylor a look and voice to take with you every time you open A Jack Taylor book. And you know who Glen is if you can’t place his name and face. He played Jorah Mormontin Game of Thrones. He is a helluva a Jack Taylor. Sure wish that series would come back. I thought it was terrific. 

Can’t recall the last Bruen book I read, but having sort of rediscovered him, it won’t be long before I’m back.

 

East Coast Don

In the Galway Silence

In the Galway Silence is the 14^th novel in the Jack Taylor crime series by Ken Bruen, and I’ve read most of them. Taylor bounced in and out of sobriety over the course of these novels, but he certainly was deep into the drink and some uppers over the course of this book. This is a dark crime novel, so if you haven’t read Bruen, I’d start with his first book, The Guards. He is a unique crime writer – has a grasp of the English language that few authors ever find. No question that Bruen is one of my top 10 authors of all time, but I hope Taylor’s deep dive into unhealthy substances is not a clue that the author has also been on that same path. He writes like someone who knows that life course all too well.

The Emerald Lie by Ken Bruen

Picking up the Jack Taylor saga after Green Hell.

Galway is always a dark, gray place. Pubs filled with the downtrodden making love to a Jameson's with a pint chaser. The government is taxing water trying to make a dying economy thrive. Jack Taylor is the patron saint. The embodiment of all things Galway. Fired from The Guard, but won't give them back his Garda overcoat. A man trying to run from himself, from his past, from his sludge in the gutter future. Can't keep his mouth shut so he suffers a beating too frequently. But willing to make an attempt at helping someone in need, especially if not asked - see the previous sentence.

His schizo quasi-girlfriend, Em (GreenHell@gmail.com), thinks it's fun to jerk Jack's neighbor Doc around, just because she can, especially when Jack thinks there might be something deeper for them. Then there is The Grammarian. Someone with a hardon for folks who misuse the Queen's English. The first offender ends up being pushed into traffic . . . and a card with the letter 'a' on the deceased's chest. The next local to destroy the language has a card with the letter 'e' and the third has the letter 'i'. A serial killer. And Galway is waiting for to see who dies with the card containing the letter 'o'.

While the Garda is plugging around for the Grammarian, Jack continues to spiral down via a shot of Jameson's and a pint, step by step and in the meantime takes a periodic beating. He gets hired to investigate the death of a girl at the hands of a video producer. After accusing the producer in no uncertain terms, a couple thugs pay a visit to Jack's apartment to administer yet another beating and its accompanying hospital stay.  Em takes offense to Jack's treatment. No one can figure out why and how the video company offices burn and a single male dies in the fire. Don't mess with Em's close friends.

The accused Grammarian's aunt asks Jack to prove her nephew is innocent. Pays a goodly upfront sum. Not bright. Money burns a hole in Jack's pocket and the more he has the deeper the hole. Returning from England, he rides the ferry and spots the telltale signs of a pedophile headed for an island off Galway. He and Em work out a ruse to help the boy and put the guy out of business. Em likes to dress up.

For those new to Bruen, his writing is sparse, economical, and would probably be an affront to The Grammarian. More of a character study than it is a crime story. What Bruen expertly does is take us down to the depths experienced by Taylor and back again, only to head back down. Bruen's feel for addiction, self-destruction, and meager attempts at redemption is remarkable. His portrayal of a man destined for Taylor's special place in hell because Jack can bring a humble nun to tears is the result of a talent that is unique amongst crime writers.

To borrow an old line, 'Bruen may not be in a class by himself, but it sure doesn't take long to call the roll.' Not to mention, Bruen is a quote machine. Too bad I can't provide some examples from this preprint.

Available

East Coast Don

p.s. There are 6 Jack Taylor episodes on Netflix (each about 1.5hr long). According to IMBD.com, another 2 more are in post production. I've watched most. Iain Glen (plays Jorah Mormont on Game of Thrones) is perfect as Taylor.

Bust by Ken Bruen and Jason Starr

We at MRB have read most of Ken Bruen’s books, and we’ve raved about them. Bust, which is actually the first novel in a trilogy, is the first Bruen book I’ve read in which he used a co-author, Jason Starr. While Bruen’s other books, mostly about his protagonist Jack Taylor, were dark crime novels, they still had a positive human quality, good wining out over evil. Taylor is an erudite character whose struggles with life seemed to be something I could often identify with. Bruen’s character development has always been the best. However, I’m less than enamored with his effort in this book. I’m disappointed, and Bust does not get my recommendation and I have no interest in reading the rest of the trilogy. Unlike his other books, Bruen’s conclusion is that crime does pay. It’s a most unsatisfactory story with an unhappy conclusion.

This is a story of a sorry group of psychopaths/sociopaths. Max Fisher was a successful businessman who had fallen out of love with his wife, Deidre, and into hate for her. She never stopped complaining and finding fault in him. For Max, who didn’t even tip waiters, the idea of a divorce was far too expensive an option. He managed his feelings with booze and hookers until his new hot Irish 20-year-old secretary, Angela Petrakos, with whom he was also sleeping, suggested that he kill Deidre and marry her instead. Max thought that was a great idea. They hired her lover (something Max didn’t know about), the sickest guy in this lot, “Popeye,” to do the deed. But Popeye not only killed Deidre, but also Deidre’s niece, a college student who just happened to have been in the wrong place at the wrong time. While the cops were suspicious of Max, he could not tolerate being away from Angela, so he disguised himself and snuck into a hotel with her where they satisfied his lust. But, as luck would have it, Bobby Rosa caught a picture of the two of them together and used it to blackmail max. Bad idea. More deaths occur, and in the end, the cops can’t pin the murders on Max or Angela, and they are the only ones to survive this mess.

Green Hell

I’ve read at least 15 books by Ken Bruen, and his protagonist, Jack Taylor, may be my favorite character in all of the crime novel genre (i.e., better than Connelly’s Bosch, Burke’s Robicheaux, Box’s Pickett, Child’s Reacher, etc.) High praise, indeed. I thoroughly enjoyed this pre-publication read, Green Hell, and the book is due for release in July 2015. But, if you aren’t already familiar with Taylor, this is not the place to start.

Green Hell is in two parts. First, an author is trying to write a biography of Taylor, and in so doing, many of Jack’s earlier adventures are relived. But, the character who is writing the novel about Taylor, Boru Kennedy, is too fixated on the violence and drug/alcohol abuse which have plagued Taylor. I’ve always thought Taylor’s intermittent triumphs over his demons was one of the best parts of the stories. Bruen clearly writes with knowledge and compassion about the world of addictions, but his fictional biographer Kennedy does not capture that side of Jack.

The second part of the story is about Kennedy being accused of the murder of the man Jack is after, a college professor, Anthony De Burgo, who is not only bedding, but badly abusing his female college students. Of course, that idea is ridiculous, and before Kennedy can be cleared and released from jail, he commits suicide, thereby only adding fuel to the fire for Jack to deal with de Burgo. It’s Jack’s plan to “take him off the board.” This takes us to Emerald, the mysterious woman who is Jack’s female counterpart to violence. If I tell you more, I’d give away the plot, which is too good to reveal.

In summary, good stuff. Ken Bruen’s writing is unique and powerful. He remains one of my go-to guys, near the top of my power rotation of authors.

Purgatory by Ken Bruen

Purgatory is Ken Bruen’s 10^th Jack Taylor novel, and I am a great fan of his writing and this main character. I’ve read them all. As usual, Taylor operates out of Galway, Ireland, and it becomes his task to solve a serial murderer’s killing spree. However, as much as plot, Bruen's books are about life. Bruen’s descriptions of the town and culture are priceless. As well as any author that I’ve read, Bruen captures the struggle with addiction as Taylor wrestles with those demons. Bruen’s writing style is unique in terms of his sentence and paragraph structure, as well as where he locates words on the page for emphasis. Bruen provides an experience that engages the reader in ways that most authors cannot. This one gets my highest recommendation.

Click here to buy this book on Amazon

Ammunition by Ken Bruen

Bruen is not just Jack Taylor, he also has a series about London inspector Tom Brant. While Taylor has his own demons, Brant is just generally a dislikable character who is probably lucky someone, crook or cop, hasn’t shot him.

But someone does during what appears to be an attempted robbery in a bar, but the perp here is a hired gun, so it appears to be a hit.  Few people are feeling sorry for Brant. Meanwhile, newly promoted Sgt. Falls is being harassed by a recently released con she put away and staging a set up to help raise her standing with the suits upstairs. Things are worse than they seem as the con and Falls had a brief lesbian fling before a guilty verdict got in the way.  Constable McDonald is on a coke and alcohol fueled spiral who takes on the plight of a bunch of senior citizens who want to take back their street from druggies. But when one of the old guys dies in the midst of helping McDonald keep the peace, McDonald’s life falls ever faster.

Bruen is an MRB fav and his minimalist presentation can be a welcome relief to other authors who put forth 100 speaking parts in multilayers stories; straightforward and direct - perfect. When I’m in the need of a book to read while I wait for something to become available at the library, I know Bruen will deliver the goods. Not his best, but far from his worst.

Headstone

This is the 15th Ken Bruen book that has been reviewed in the blog, so you know we, especially me, like Bruen a lot. As usual, the protagonist is Jack Taylor, an alcoholic, former cop, now a private detective. In prior books, Taylor is either struggling to stay sober or agonizing in relapse as he fights to regain his sobriety. In this book, he starts off drunk, does not draw a truly sober breath throughout the book, and is still drunk as the book ends. But, he’s much worse for the effort having been mugged and permanently mutilated, while also inflicting death on the bad guys. Bruen’s book are about character development and are not just driven by unexpected plot shifts, and he frequently makes references to literature and music that his characters are involved with at the moment. Taylor has to be the most literate and cultured of the depraved people I’ve ever read about. This is a good story, but it is also very, very dark. If you are in the mood for an uplifting escape, this is not for you. On the other hand, if you’re in the mood for Irish angst and melancholy, this is your ticket.

Headstone by Ken Bruen

Rest easy, children. Jack Taylor is watching out for you.

Brine has threatened, intimidated, and manipulated some mates in boarding school to be his followers - members of Headstone. And he has a goth girl for a lover. On a mission. Make history. Have movie made about him. Get on Oprah. Never be forgotten. They start out with an assault on an old priest. Then they kill a Down's child. Other killings and maulings happen around Galway and The Guard thinks they are random. Jack, his sort of friend and ex-con Stewart and former Guard partner Ridge (the lesbian who married to a schmuck rich boy in need of arm candy) think otherwise because each have received a little gift in the mail. About the size of a deck of cards, they get their very own headstone.

Jack continues to fight his personal demons of his past as well as his inability at keeping any friendships ("We were never going to be friends, Jack, and you know I doubt we ever were."). His diet has the 4 major food groups (Jameson, cigarettes, black coffee, Xanax) to help with with 4-5 side stories. Like a creepy priest dressed in an Armani stole who represents a shadowy group inside the church trying to dress up the church's image with "smooth lies of an insincere priest." He hires Jack to find a renegade priest who supposedly ran off with The Brethren's money. Or Kosta, a crime boss who is indebted to Jack (from an earlier book) and will do anything for Jack, but expects the same in return.

Ridge is the victim of a anti-lesbian attack. Jack is assaulted, beaten, and tortured ending up in the hospital . . . minus two fingers. He asks Kosta for weapons. Sets up Stewart as bait. Then kidnaps the goth, applies his own torture to find out what Bine's plan is. So he and Stewart head out, armed to the teeth and scared shitless ("I'm bad tempered naturally. Fear makes me dangerous"). But afterward, Jack is wracked with some measure of guilt and heads for the bottles (Jameson and Xanax) looking for some solace because "they haven't invented the drink that wipes the slate clean of utter treachery."

Bruen liberally spices his books with current book, music, and movie references and this one Taylor suggests that Ridge take up some fiction and suggests a MRB fav - James Lee Burke. Smart guy. I've read a bunch of Bruen. Right now, I'd say this is my #2 favorite of his books.

Jack may limp and have to wear a hearing aid. But be glad he's on the case. When he's done, you are clean and Jack carries away your guilt and pain, when he does, "Elvis hadn't so much as left they building as stormed out with murder aforethought."

East Coast Don

The Guards by Ken Bruen

I finally read a real book, first time in two years – not that I’ve not been reading. It’s just that the Kindle went on the blitz, so I had to go old school. It was the last book I bought pre-Kindle (pk?), and it was waiting for just such an occasion. East Coast Don reported on this book a couple years ago. I think this is the first of the Jack Taylor series, from 2001. Not uncommon for Bruen, the plot is a mere sideshow to the Irish cultural action, the agony of the on-and-off alcohol abuse by a struggling but not hopeless alcoholic. I won’t say more since ECD already did, except to leave you with one quote from Bruen: “Question: 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? Answer: Because they installed them. Classic. I recommend this book.

Calibre by Ken Bruen

Setting: Mild mannered accountant reads crime novels like crazy. One story in particular hits home (Jim Thompson’s The Killer Inside Me) sending our boy out to kill Londoners with bad manners. Strike your child, be rude to bartenders and an ‘accident’ is coming your way.

The local cops, one Neanderthal in particular named Brandt, are working the case. They investigate 6 ways from Sunday and it’s a hooker who glanced at the diary of her longtime john who alerts the cops. Brandt squeezes the bum, but when Brand goes to arrest him, we all learn the guy has gone for greener pastures in Montana.

This was vintage Bruen. Sparse, harsh, Irish noir. Simple dialogue, direct assaults on the conscious. Looking for a short book to tide you over for a couple days? Bruen has been, and continues to be, the right choice.

East Coast Don

Sanctuary by Ken Bruen

If you like Irish angst, this is an author for you. Bruen's main character, Jack Taylor, is a private detective, a former cop (in Ireland, the Guards), an alcoholic, who is now a PI. He starts out this book sober, and unlike "The Devil" when he starts drinking on the first page, it takes him half the book before he picks up his first drink in Sanctuary. Bruen gives away the plot on the first page: "Two guards, one nun, one judge, and alas, one child." The murders begin, and it's Taylor's job is to stop them. As Bruen takes Taylor through the process, he continues to make wonderful literary references while extending the stories of various characters we've met before. He drops a bombshell about the earlier death of Serena May, the 4-year-old Downs kid that died when Taylor was babysitting, and drunk. This was a very fast read, all in a morning, and captivating from the outset. East Coast Don and I have reviewed more of Bruen's books than any other author, which is surely a favorable measure of the quality of his work.

Priest by Ken Bruen

This was another Bruen story about the private investigator, Jack Taylor, and even though I’ve been a declared fan of his writing, maybe I liked this one better than all of the others. While it is a crime novel, as is typical of this author, it is more the characters than the plot that moves the story. Taylor, a bad alcoholic (some are worse than others), is actually sober throughout this book, although it is a great struggle to remain so. Bruen uses Taylor to capture the dark alcoholic side of Irish life, and he does it convincingly. Taylor’s just been released from the mad house (Bruen’s phase) where he had a very psychotic experience. He is attempting to adjust to life outside of the hospital when he is given a couple cases to solve, including finding the couple whose baby died a few years earlier while under Taylor’s care. As suggested by the title, a priest is the primary case that has gotten Taylor’s attention, and Bruen has taken on the church’s scandal over pedophilia. The priest in question has been beheaded, a crime that needs to be solved. Also drawn into the drama is the nun who knew what the priest was doing, but said nothing, choosing loyalty to the church rather than loyalty to her flock. In taking on an enormously important subject, the author captures the horror of this scandal from several perspectives. The mystery itself is solved rather quickly, and the rest of the book has to do with the interactions of the personalities involved in this multifaceted tragedy. There was much more to this book than a typical crime novel – a very good read.