Jonathan Arnold reviewed The Bloomsday dead by Adrian McKinty
Review of 'The Bloomsday dead' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
The final book in McKinty's "Dead" trilogy ([b:Dead I May Well Be|21282|Dead I Well May Be A Novel|Adrian McKinty|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167321280s/21282.jpg|22463] and [b:The Dead Yard|21283|The Dead Yard A Novel|Adrian McKinty|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167321286s/21283.jpg|22464] are the first two) is yet another rollicking action packed book. Michael Forsythe, the trilogy's protagonist, is a fast talking, literary quoting, violent man, prone to shooting first and asking questions later and in this book he heads back home to Belfast, Ireland to confront his main antagonist.
The book starts with Forsythe finally finding a comfortable hiding place in Peru, but of course this comes crashing down in a violent episode, which leads him running straight to danger as his old flame and now mortal enemy Bridget calls to him to help her out as her last hope. It seems far-fetched, but he has nothing better to do and hopes the resolution, however it should happen, might finally get her to …
The final book in McKinty's "Dead" trilogy ([b:Dead I May Well Be|21282|Dead I Well May Be A Novel|Adrian McKinty|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167321280s/21282.jpg|22463] and [b:The Dead Yard|21283|The Dead Yard A Novel|Adrian McKinty|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167321286s/21283.jpg|22464] are the first two) is yet another rollicking action packed book. Michael Forsythe, the trilogy's protagonist, is a fast talking, literary quoting, violent man, prone to shooting first and asking questions later and in this book he heads back home to Belfast, Ireland to confront his main antagonist.
The book starts with Forsythe finally finding a comfortable hiding place in Peru, but of course this comes crashing down in a violent episode, which leads him running straight to danger as his old flame and now mortal enemy Bridget calls to him to help her out as her last hope. It seems far-fetched, but he has nothing better to do and hopes the resolution, however it should happen, might finally get her to stop chasing him.
So he flies into Ireland on Bloomsday, the celebration of James Joyce's [b:Ulysses|338798|Ulysses|James Joyce|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1173877044s/338798.jpg|2368224], on June 16, where all the "action" takes place. Like "Ulysses", "Bloomsday Dead" mostly takes place in a fast, crazy, violent 48 hours, where Forsyth kills and maims more "bad" guys, while reminiscing about his violent Northern Ireland past.
It's a really excellent action book, with a deeper darker edge than most mass market books of its ilk. The 3 "Dead" books are pretty interconnected, so you're best off starting with the first [b:Dead I May Well Be|21282|Dead I Well May Be A Novel|Adrian McKinty|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167321280s/21282.jpg|22463] (what a great title). But you won't regret it!