“Find her, please find her, before it’s too late.”
- Book: Her Child’s Cry (Boyle and Keneally #3)
- Location: Dublin
- Author: S A Dunphy
Each of the books in the Boyle and Keneally series, prominently feature elements of Irish myth, folk legend and supernatural horror, woven into the narrative alongside the more conventional elements of traditional crime fiction, so nothing is ever quite as it seems.
In this episode everything begins when…
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Young cancer patient, Arizona Rose (Rosie) Blake, is taken from her hospital bed and whilst the identity of the abductor is soon discovered, his motives take much longer to establish, by which time events have moved on apace and he has unwittingly placed Rosie in a life or death situation, from which he is no longer able to keep her safe. To criminal behaviourist, Jessie Boyle and her small team, Rosie’s wealthy parents seem surprisingly calm and detached from events. However, by the time the reason for their strange behaviour is established, one of them can be of no further assistance to police enquiries and the other will be facing the full force of Jessie’s wrath.
A straightforward kidnap and ransom demand this definitely isn’t, as Jessie, Seamus, Dawn and Terri soon discover. For Jessie, her nemesis from the very first occasion I met her and the reason she left the English mainland to return to her Irish homeland, is still taunting and teasing her, although on this occasion, he is surprisingly helpful in guiding her path through the maze of deception, but only because he isn’t done with her yet! As leader of this small unit, Dawn once enjoyed a surprisingly intimate relationship with the least likely of soul mates, a suspect in the case, who is still willing to offer her a few crumbs of information for old times sake. Workaholic, Seamus thinks he might have found his own slice of happiness, although when you are in his line of work, true love never seems to run smoothly. For behind the scenes researcher, Terri, being asked to leave the safety blanket of her office and desk, makes her feel valued, especially when not only is a child’s life at stake, but the team desperately needs another pair of boots on the ground – After this experience though, I think her computer skills might be all the comfort she craves.
The race to find Rosie is numbered in hours rather than days, so when the action moves to a remote Irish island location, the weather closes in and all the local residents seem to be conspiring against you, it pays to keep looking over your shoulder and have good friends to depend on, who will never knowingly let you down!
A rogue operator who is trying to make his name in local gangland activities, sets everything spiralling downwards, making this life or death investigation much more difficult to get a handle on. Myths and legends centuries old, rear their ugly heads once more and a violent sect, for whom suffering, death and sacrifice is second nature and all part of a pre-ordained plan, is resurrected by local aristocracy. An outside member of Dawn’s team is uncovered as someone not to be trusted – And when is a kidnap, not a kidnap?
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This fast-paced, multi-faceted, sinister and complex storyline, was thoughtfully broken down into several bite-sized chapters, some of which were narrated by specific characters. The many threads of the story wove themselves together beautifully into a final crescendo which I never saw coming, although as there were so many twists and turns along the way, that was hardly a surprise! Whilst the diverse elements and acts of pagan and occult savagery, which verge on terrorism rather than religious zealotry, take centre stage in the plot, they are carefully crafted to sit in harmony, work with, and never to overshadow, the crime solving outcomes of the case.
This book is an excellent choice, if you are a confirmed ‘armchair traveller’. So many of the locations mentioned in the storyline are real places, which author Shane Dunphy more than adequately catalogues his own ‘potted’ guide, in the “Acknowledgements and some comments from the author” section at the end of the book. The remote island where Terri finds herself captive, and the bothy hidden in the folds of the mountains where Jessie and her fellow officers believe they have made their final stand, are scenes all set with great attention to detail and descriptive qualities which paint a vivid picture, acting as a good foil for the city landscape and the mundane machinery of the authorities.
Shane has created and developed a strong, authentic and addictive core cast of characters, who each have their own strengths and weaknesses, whose individual skills complement one another, who work well as a team and have some excellent synergy and dynamics between them. As with all investigative teams, their personal lives seem to be a cause of constant stress and angst, so whilst Seamus is still trying to balance his professional and personal life and failing dismally with the latter, the three ladies, who are of slightly more mature years, have decided to concentrate on their careers first and foremost. Which camp is the happier with the current situation is yet to be established conclusively.
Rosie is actually a very astute child, although through the necessity to protect herself, when those around her can’t or won’t, has become quite withdrawn and uncommunicative. However, she finds her own way in which to express herself and release some of the pent up tension and emotion, which fills her young life, and it is this which in no small way, helps Jessie and the team to figure out what is going on in her head and indeed what fate might have befallen her.
This storyline was ably supported by a large touring support team of nefarious complex characters, who only added to the tension and upped the anti, throughout. Dour, disturbed, manipulative and dangerous, didn’t even begin to describe this duplicitous gathering of humanity. Their malevolence knew no bounds, making them totally untrustworthy, unlikeable and impossible to connect with – Just, I suspect, as the author had intended.
I can’t wait to see where this series heads next!
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