The Last Four Days of Paddy Buckley

April 27, 2015
Massey's intelligent and suspenseful debut novel finds Irish undertaker Paddy Buckley up to his silk-lined casket in trouble with his libido and conscience, while desperately dodging Dublin's most notorious crime boss, who wants to put Paddy in the ground with the rest of his customers. Paddy is a hapless undertaker at Gallagher's Funeral Directors whose life quickly becomes a series of messy disasters. As he carnally comforts an attractive widow, she suddenly drops dead, leaving Paddy scrambling to cover his tracks and save his career. Then while driving home late that night, preoccupied with the threat of professional scandal and disgrace, Paddy strikes and kills a pedestrian with his car. The dead man is Dublin gangster Donal Cullen, brother of Vincent Cullen, the most vicious criminal in Ireland. Paddy panics and flees the scene, fearing the vengeance of a sadistic thug. Now he has a dead widow and a dead gangster on his mind, and he is assigned to conduct the funeral arrangements for both without revealing his guilt. Paddy matches wits with the suspicious Vincent, who vows brutal revenge on his brother's killer. Scenes of dark comedy and ruthless brutality follow, as Paddy tries to keep both secrets and stay alive. A hilarious funeral home scam and a quirky dead body mix-up add to this exciting, morbid tale.

This dark comedy, with a bit of a morbid streak, tells the story of a Dublin undertaker named Buckley who accidentally kills the brother of a notorious Irish mobster. The mob then uses Buckley's funeral home for the service, which plunges everyone into a thriller/comedy with enough twists and turns to keep things very interesting. Narrator Tim Gerard Reynolds does a great job with this audiobook. His gently lilting Irish brogue brings atmosphere and authenticity, and he also employs his voice to create tension and subtle characters. He uses emotion to keep the story moving, at times showing righteous anger and at other times, sadness and sympathy. He's especially effective at nailing the funny parts. The result is an engaging, quirky experience. R.I.G. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine