Borderlands

June 30, 2008
When the body of 15-year-old Angela Cashell is found straddling the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland in McGilloway's assured debut, Garda inspector Benedict Devlin takes charge of the case because he recognizes the victim as a resident of his part of Ireland. The only clues are a gold ring Angela was wearing but no one in her family can identify and an old photograph Devlin discovers amid the flowers left by mourners. Though Devlin and his team first suspect teenage Whitey McKelvey, a member of an itinerant group known as “travellers,” another body soon turns up along with the same photograph, and Devlin realizes that the case runs much deeper. McGilloway skillfully weaves Irish politics—from the shadow of the IRA in the North to the tensions between the travellers and locals in the South—into his multilayered story. A keen observer, Devlin has just enough flaws to make him an empathetic hero.

August 15, 2008
The corpse of a teenaged girl is found in the borderlands between Ireland and Northern Ireland. When it is determined that she resided in County Donegal, Inspector Benedict Devlin of the An Garda Siochana (the Irish Republic's police service) becomes lead investigator. Since the Garda and the Police Service of Northern Ireland are cooperating on this case, the investigation involves people on both sides of the border and offers a glimpse of life in the two Irelands. This debut novel, which was shortlisted for the 2007 New Blood Dagger, will appeal to readers who like clean plotting and characters facing the complexities of modern life while still living the old ways. The works of Charles Paul come to mind as readalikes. Public libraries should welcome this worthy addition to the growing body of police procedurals set in Ireland.

Copyright 2008 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from July 1, 2008
The week before Christmas, a teenage girl is found dead, nearly naked and sprawled half across the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Irelandtechnically an international boundary. Tensions between North and South have cooled considerably since the days of the Troubles, however, and both police forces work together when crimes cross the seemingly arbitrary boundary. Small-town inspector Ben Devlin has never investigated a murder before, and his progress is hampered by the trust he wants to place in his colleagues and neighbors, even as these same acquaintances seem increasingly likely candidates for murderer. But Devlin perseveres, and with the help of the police in the north, he gradually focuses in on the murderer, even as the winter weather bears down and his family is threatened. Devlin may work slowly, but the pacing of the book never falters, and McGilloway builds suspense gradually but inexorably, as the reader and Devlin race to uncover the murderers true identity before more people are killed. With a mood and investigative style reminiscent of Hakan Nessers Inspector Van Veeteren series, and a backstoryparalleling the mostly happy home life of Helene Turstens Detective Inspector Huss, this is an excellent new procedural series, especially notable for its realistic and sensitive portrayal of life in modern Ireland. Essential for mystery collections.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2008, American Library Association.)