This is the new Quirke Dublin mystery from John Banville writing as Benjamin Black. When newspaper magnate Richard Jewell is found dead at his country estate, clutching a shotgun in his lifeless hands, few see his demise as cause for sorrow. But before long Doctor Quirke and Inspector Hackett realise that, rather than the suspected suicide, 'Diamond Dick' has in fact been murdered. Jewell had made many enemies over the years and suspicion soon falls on one of his biggest rivals. But as Quirke and his assistant Sinclair get ...
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This is the new Quirke Dublin mystery from John Banville writing as Benjamin Black. When newspaper magnate Richard Jewell is found dead at his country estate, clutching a shotgun in his lifeless hands, few see his demise as cause for sorrow. But before long Doctor Quirke and Inspector Hackett realise that, rather than the suspected suicide, 'Diamond Dick' has in fact been murdered. Jewell had made many enemies over the years and suspicion soon falls on one of his biggest rivals. But as Quirke and his assistant Sinclair get to know Jewell's beautiful, enigmatic wife Francoise d'Aubigny, and his fragile sister Dannie, as well as those who work for the family, it gradually becomes clear that all is not as it seems. As Quirke's investigations return him to the notorious orphanage of St Christopher's, where he once resided, events begin to take a much darker turn. Quirke finds himself reunited with an old enemy and Sinclair receives sinister threats. But what have the shadowy benefactors of St Christopher's to do with it all? Against the backdrop of 1950's Dublin, Benjamin Black conjures another atmospheric, beguiling mystery.
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Benjamin Black is the pen name of Irish novelist John Banville. This is the fourth installment in the Quirke series. Quirke is a deeply-flawed medical pathologist in 1950's Ireland.
Quirke has been called to examine the body of publisher Richard ?Diamond Dick? Jewell at his country estate, by DCI Hackett. There, Quirke meets the family of the deceased, especially Jewell's widow, Françoise d'Aubigny. She is insular and detached, although amazingly beautiful.
Quirke is in a relationship with Isobel Galloway but is immediately captivated by the young widow. This story feels like a noir film: a stylish crime drama with expressed cynical attitudes and sexual desires.
Actually, this seems to be more of a complex character study than a traditional mystery. I believe that I could pick out the characters from a group of strangers in a room, the characters are so well-written. Black has plumbed the psychological depths of the main characters in this drama; the reader understands the troubles of these characters.
Because I?d so enjoyed THE BLACK-EYED BLOND, Benjamin Black's clever rendition of a Raymond Chandler novel, I wasn't immediately put off by the cold, distant characters. By the book's half-way point, however, I was laboring to finish this story. The characters were generally unlikeable ? few had any redeeming features.
I really did not enjoy this book; it was stylishly written but had no heart. 2 stars
Quirke
1. Christine Falls (2006)
2. The Silver Swan (2007)
3. Elegy for April (2010)
4. A Death in Summer (2011)
5. Vengeance (2012)
6. Holy Orders (2013)
