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Detective John Lynch #1
Penance
Born and raised in Chicago, Detective John Lynch might just be about to die there too.
Because one dark secret might be about to tear a whole city apart.
A pious old woman steps out of the Sacred Heart confessional and is shot dead by a sniper with what at first appears to be a miraculous and impossible shot.
Colonel Tech Weaver dispatches a team from Langley to put the shooter and anyone else who gets in the way in a body bag before a half-century of national secrets are revealed.
Detective John Lynch, the son of a murdered Chicago cop, finds himself cast into an underworld of political corruption and guilty secrets, as he tries to uncover the truth about what s really going on before another innocent citizen gets killed."
Because one dark secret might be about to tear a whole city apart.
A pious old woman steps out of the Sacred Heart confessional and is shot dead by a sniper with what at first appears to be a miraculous and impossible shot.
Colonel Tech Weaver dispatches a team from Langley to put the shooter and anyone else who gets in the way in a body bag before a half-century of national secrets are revealed.
Detective John Lynch, the son of a murdered Chicago cop, finds himself cast into an underworld of political corruption and guilty secrets, as he tries to uncover the truth about what s really going on before another innocent citizen gets killed."
368 pages, Paperback
First published April 28, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
May 16, 2013
When an old woman is shot by a sniper just after leaving confession at Sacred Heart church, Chicago cop John Lynch is on the case. But what does the case have to do with one in 1971 that saw his father murdered? And what will the shadowy government organization that has also been tapped to bring in the sniper do if Lynch gets in the way?
First off, the official stuff: I got this ARC from Exhibit A in exchange for reviewing it. I'm a huge Angry Robot fan so when I heard they were launching a crime line, I sprung into action and nabbed print ARCs of their first two books.
Penance is a hard animal to classify, kind of like a dinosaur. In this case, it's not bird vs. reptile but hard-boiled detective vs. police procedural vs. espionage thriller. It's an exciting chimera to behold.
The protagonist, John Lynch, was the biggest selling point for me. A second generation cop, Lynch has been living in the shadow of his father, murdered when he was a kid, most of his life. He doggedly pursues the sniper despite being shot at, stonewalled, and eventually blackballed. He's no superhero, either, getting wounded over the course of the book and not being comfortable with taking a life. His relationship with Liz was a little abrupt but not outside the realm of believability once it got going.
When the book first jumped to Weaver and his black ops crew, I rolled my eyes a bit, military fiction not being one of my favorite genres. While Weaver's segments had a few too many tactics and weapons descriptions for my taste, it managed to steer clear from gun porn territory and actually meshed pretty well with the more detective-y sections featuring Lynch. It also didn't give me Brad Thor flashbacks, something else I am thankful for. Weaver, Ferguson, and the rest were believable antagonists, adhering to the rule that the best villains are the ones that think their actions are right and justified.
The sniper, while not getting a lot of solo time, was pretty believable and made a chilling threat. I found myself avoiding windows when walking to the bathroom to keep from getting shot by an unseen assailant a few times. I also really liked his reasoning behind shooting people just after they left confession.
The two plot threads, the one in the past with Lynch's father and Lynch's tale in the present day, intersected where I thought they would. There were some twists near the end that brought this above the level of most thrillers.
One thing that I thought was really odd was this bit from Lynch's point of view:
Colleen Lynch-Ketteridge stepped out of the car in a Hillary Clinton-type pant suit, except Hillary didn't have Collie's ass.
The phrasing is a little creepy to me but I don't have a sister. Maybe if they have nice asses you say things like this?
3.5 stars. I'll read another Dan O'Shea (or Exibit A) book after this.
First off, the official stuff: I got this ARC from Exhibit A in exchange for reviewing it. I'm a huge Angry Robot fan so when I heard they were launching a crime line, I sprung into action and nabbed print ARCs of their first two books.
Penance is a hard animal to classify, kind of like a dinosaur. In this case, it's not bird vs. reptile but hard-boiled detective vs. police procedural vs. espionage thriller. It's an exciting chimera to behold.
The protagonist, John Lynch, was the biggest selling point for me. A second generation cop, Lynch has been living in the shadow of his father, murdered when he was a kid, most of his life. He doggedly pursues the sniper despite being shot at, stonewalled, and eventually blackballed. He's no superhero, either, getting wounded over the course of the book and not being comfortable with taking a life. His relationship with Liz was a little abrupt but not outside the realm of believability once it got going.
When the book first jumped to Weaver and his black ops crew, I rolled my eyes a bit, military fiction not being one of my favorite genres. While Weaver's segments had a few too many tactics and weapons descriptions for my taste, it managed to steer clear from gun porn territory and actually meshed pretty well with the more detective-y sections featuring Lynch. It also didn't give me Brad Thor flashbacks, something else I am thankful for. Weaver, Ferguson, and the rest were believable antagonists, adhering to the rule that the best villains are the ones that think their actions are right and justified.
The sniper, while not getting a lot of solo time, was pretty believable and made a chilling threat. I found myself avoiding windows when walking to the bathroom to keep from getting shot by an unseen assailant a few times. I also really liked his reasoning behind shooting people just after they left confession.
The two plot threads, the one in the past with Lynch's father and Lynch's tale in the present day, intersected where I thought they would. There were some twists near the end that brought this above the level of most thrillers.
One thing that I thought was really odd was this bit from Lynch's point of view:
Colleen Lynch-Ketteridge stepped out of the car in a Hillary Clinton-type pant suit, except Hillary didn't have Collie's ass.
The phrasing is a little creepy to me but I don't have a sister. Maybe if they have nice asses you say things like this?
3.5 stars. I'll read another Dan O'Shea (or Exibit A) book after this.
January 27, 2014
Like Watergate, where the cover-up became worse than the crime, this book is about a multi-generational cover-up of a 1971 murder investigation and the subsequent corruption and revenge by powerful local and national groups with vested interest in keeping the past permanently buried "under the rug". Present day Chicago PD detective John Lynch becomes entangled in what appears to be a serial killer but has roots in the 1971 murder of his father, Chicago PD detective Declan Lynch, in a shoot-out with a group of black radicals while also investigating murder and a potential scandal in Chicago's first political family.
Like the city of Chicago itself, this is a big, sprawling mystery/thriller with "big shoulders" whose excellent characters interact with an originality I rarely read. The style of the author, Dan O'Shea, reminded me of the originality, wit and veracity of Dennis Lehane's Boston in "The Given Day". I highly recommend it to all my GR friends and many thanks to my GR friend Col, for his excellent review and recommendation of this outstanding book.
Like the city of Chicago itself, this is a big, sprawling mystery/thriller with "big shoulders" whose excellent characters interact with an originality I rarely read. The style of the author, Dan O'Shea, reminded me of the originality, wit and veracity of Dennis Lehane's Boston in "The Given Day". I highly recommend it to all my GR friends and many thanks to my GR friend Col, for his excellent review and recommendation of this outstanding book.
May 9, 2013
The thriller sub-genre is a well-trod path which requires some real ingenuity and inventiveness in a novel to prevent it from falling into the worn rut of overused tropes and cookie cutter characterizations. In Dan O'Shea's debut novel, Penance, the author deftly manages to avoid most of the standard pitfalls, introduces an interesting protagonist, unravels a terrific thriller mystery, and best of all (in the eyes of this native Chicagoan) cuts right to the bone of Chicago's body politic! I don't give out spoilers so you will have to read this book for yourself, and I think you will find yourself in for a treat! I always approach debut novels (especially those with hype) with a jaundiced eye but I enjoyed the heck out of this novel and look forward with anticipation to the future writings of Dan O'Shea!
April 1, 2013
A work of tremendous scope and ambition. O'Shea writes with the same vision than James Ellroy and yet with a sensibility that is his own. PENANCE is the story of John Lynch, of second chances and opportunities, but it's also a novel about Chicago and the complexity of its urban sprawl.
Dan O'Shea kept me riveted throughout his novel with his intricate plotting, his willingness to address the reader's intelligence by building a difficult story and by the beautiful, unique detective he created in John Lynch. O'Shea writes intimacy like very few writers did: Fitzgerald, Carver, Murakami...and yet the novel is a full-fleged mystery. Really, admirable work. I raise my hat to the author.
Dan O'Shea kept me riveted throughout his novel with his intricate plotting, his willingness to address the reader's intelligence by building a difficult story and by the beautiful, unique detective he created in John Lynch. O'Shea writes intimacy like very few writers did: Fitzgerald, Carver, Murakami...and yet the novel is a full-fleged mystery. Really, admirable work. I raise my hat to the author.
June 25, 2013
I picked this book up (actually, had to order it from my local bookshop) because the author is a friend of a friend, who once said something nice about me (back in college, some of us started a "magazine," basically a mimeographed collection of some of our fiction, poetry, reviews, and essays, and O'Shea was a contributor). There's a murder on page one, but the killer is revealed (to the reader) on page two, and the reader is aware of who's doing what throughout, so it's not a typical "mystery." It's crime fiction, a thriller that left this reader thrilled, in several definitions of that word. The writing is hard-boiled noir with all the raw language, violence, and sex that that implies, but presented realistically.
The story is set mostly in present-day Chicago, with some flashbacks (especially early in the novel) to 1971 featuring protagonist detective John Lynch's cop father. Unlike many novels that contain two separate but connected storylines, I found both of these equally fascinating. I was really interested to see how everything would get tied together in the end, and O'Shea did a remarkable job of doing that. The story is complex without being convoluted or confusing. O'Shea wisely inserts a list of the major characters in the front of the book; I found myself frequently paging back to look at that, particularly early in my reading, to keep the characters straight.
The writing recalls the best of John Sandford (style) and Jame Ellroy (substance) -- although I'm not well-versed in the genre, so I hesitate to even make that comparison, but there it is. Despite the hard-boiled noir style I referenced earlier, there is one scene where a couple of characters experience the death of a family member (trying not to give too much away here) that I found both tender and heart-wrenching. That one scene really elevates this novel above its genre. O'Shea does a wonderful job of giving us scenes of Lynch's personal life interspersed with the thriller/mystery/crime drama. I look forward to O'Shea's next novel, whether it features John Lynch or not (the cover contains the phrase "introducing detective John Lynch" so I'm guessing someone -- either the author or the publisher -- is looking for a series).
The story is set mostly in present-day Chicago, with some flashbacks (especially early in the novel) to 1971 featuring protagonist detective John Lynch's cop father. Unlike many novels that contain two separate but connected storylines, I found both of these equally fascinating. I was really interested to see how everything would get tied together in the end, and O'Shea did a remarkable job of doing that. The story is complex without being convoluted or confusing. O'Shea wisely inserts a list of the major characters in the front of the book; I found myself frequently paging back to look at that, particularly early in my reading, to keep the characters straight.
The writing recalls the best of John Sandford (style) and Jame Ellroy (substance) -- although I'm not well-versed in the genre, so I hesitate to even make that comparison, but there it is. Despite the hard-boiled noir style I referenced earlier, there is one scene where a couple of characters experience the death of a family member (trying not to give too much away here) that I found both tender and heart-wrenching. That one scene really elevates this novel above its genre. O'Shea does a wonderful job of giving us scenes of Lynch's personal life interspersed with the thriller/mystery/crime drama. I look forward to O'Shea's next novel, whether it features John Lynch or not (the cover contains the phrase "introducing detective John Lynch" so I'm guessing someone -- either the author or the publisher -- is looking for a series).
March 31, 2013
When Helen Marslovak is shot through the heart when leaving Confession Detecetive John Lynch is sent to investigate. Turns out that Mrs Marslovak is the mother of high-powered businessman Eddie Marslovak, who happens to have friends in high places. Very high places.
From this point Dan O'Shea starts to weave his intricate plot. We are briefly introduced to the sniper, Fisher, himself and the shadowy Intergov agency that he has gone rogue from. Cue flashbacks to 1971 involving the death of the Mayors son in compromising circumstances and the whole thing starts to roll. O'Shea does a great job of balancing all these plotlines together as Lynch starts to build his case, Intergov set out to stop what could turn into an embarassing national incident and the links to the players in the '71 incident start to become clearer.
Lynch and his investigation serves as a solid base for the book but it is so much more than that. What I thought was going to be a very competent throwback to early Ellroy turns out to be a very competent hi-tech thriller as well with neither part losing out to the other. Lynch is the sounding board for the whole thing, though and O'Shea gives him enough space to develop - we get details of the part his late father played in the past events, his relationship with his terminally ill mother and budding romance with newspaper reporter Elizabeth Johnson. Enough to keep interest high until next in the series, Mammon, is released next year.
I thoroughly enjoyed Dan O'Shea's short story collection Old School last year and Penance cements my belief that he is one to watch. Head over to danielboshea.wordpress.com for links to stories involving characters in Penance to get a taste of this mans' talent. Recommended
From this point Dan O'Shea starts to weave his intricate plot. We are briefly introduced to the sniper, Fisher, himself and the shadowy Intergov agency that he has gone rogue from. Cue flashbacks to 1971 involving the death of the Mayors son in compromising circumstances and the whole thing starts to roll. O'Shea does a great job of balancing all these plotlines together as Lynch starts to build his case, Intergov set out to stop what could turn into an embarassing national incident and the links to the players in the '71 incident start to become clearer.
Lynch and his investigation serves as a solid base for the book but it is so much more than that. What I thought was going to be a very competent throwback to early Ellroy turns out to be a very competent hi-tech thriller as well with neither part losing out to the other. Lynch is the sounding board for the whole thing, though and O'Shea gives him enough space to develop - we get details of the part his late father played in the past events, his relationship with his terminally ill mother and budding romance with newspaper reporter Elizabeth Johnson. Enough to keep interest high until next in the series, Mammon, is released next year.
I thoroughly enjoyed Dan O'Shea's short story collection Old School last year and Penance cements my belief that he is one to watch. Head over to danielboshea.wordpress.com for links to stories involving characters in Penance to get a taste of this mans' talent. Recommended
June 13, 2013
Penance felt to me like a mash-up of Michael Connelly, Tom Clancy and Stuart Neville’s The Twelve -- a smart, well-written police procedural thriller, mixing cops with black ops spooks, political intrigue and a rogue operative seeking to avenge deaths through murder. The story is all tell and no show with engaging prose, and rattles along at a quick, page-turning pace. I was hooked from the get-go and zipped through in a couple of sittings. The characterisation is good across the cast and Lynch is especially likeable as the cop who’s determined to get his man regardless of the obstacles and odds. The plot builds in tension throughout, and does a good job at fleshing out some of Lynch’s back story and present life outside of work, such as a new romance with a journalist and his relationship to his mother and sister. It does, however, also use a couple too many plot devices to bind the whole story together, such as linking the present to Lynch’s father’s past, conveniently finding clues that he probably should have found year’s before, and having a member of his own team with black ops connections. Despite these niggles, Penance is an enjoyable and engaging read and I have a feeling that Detective John Lynch might do for Chicago what Harry Bosch has for Los Angeles. And that’s no bad thing. Here’s hoping the next book is the pipeline.
May 7, 2013
Born and raised in Chicago, Detective John Lynch might just be about to die there too. Because one dark secret might be about to tear a whole city apart. A pious old woman steps out of the Sacred Heart confessional and is shot dead by a sniper with what at first appears to be a miraculous and impossible shot. Colonel Tech Weaver dispatches a team from Langley to put the shooter and anyone else who gets in the way in a body bag before a half century of national secrets are revealed. Detective John Lynch, the son of a murdered Chicago cop, finds himself cast into an underworld of political corruption and guilty secrets, as he tries to uncover the truth about what s really going on before another innocent citizen gets killed.
In some weird cosmic synchronicity, I finish one book about a killer loose on the streets of Chicago only to pick up the next from my review pile and discover that it’s a book about a killer loose on the streets of Chicago. No need to panic though, the good news is that The Shining Girls and Penance could not be more different. Both are fun reads but, I’m glad to say, for entirely different reasons. (I’m not even going to mention the fact that the book I’m currently reading is also set in Chicago).
My favourite crime novels are ones that mange to take what appears to be a relatively simple scenario, then throw you the literary equivalent of a curve ball. Penance does just that. On the face of it, this is just a single maniac with a gun killing random targets, but when you delve deeper you’ll find so much more. This novel is chock full of conspiracies, political in-fighting, power plays and back room deals.
Detective Lynch is a solid lead character, but I have to admit that I was more interested in two shady government operatives who show up later on. Ferguson and Chen are part of Intergov, a blacker-than-black ops group who operate outside normal channels. Their partnership is one of the novels many highlights. Chen is described as a gun toting sociopath at one point, needless to say I warmed to her immediately.
Where Penance excels is the plot development. What starts as a traditional crime novel, morphs into a thriller with a much larger scope than I expected. From the reader’s perspective it’s great stuff, you’re essentially getting two books for the price of one. You don’t just get Lynch’s police investigation, there is also a razor sharp political thriller in there as well.
The other good thing is that all this clandestine cloak-and-dagger feels frighteningly believable. O’Shea’s writing never feels over the top or outlandish, he keeps things very grounded. There is a realistic approach to the action scenes that works well.
There are also a series of flashbacks that tie the new crimes with events that occurred in the nineteen seventies. John Lynch’s father, Declan, was on the force at that time, and these additional interludes help to further establish what drives Lynch now.
My only criticism, and it is a relatively minor one, I would have liked a bit more insight into the sniper. Perhaps a few more chapters from the killer’s perspective? It would have been nice to learn a bit more about what was going through their head, more detail about their frame of mind and what was motivating them. When I’m reading a story, especially one that I’m enjoying, I want to discover as much about events as I possibly can.
The novel ends with a satisfyingly action-packed climax, where all bets are off and it’s kill or be killed. There is a cinematic quality to O’Shea’s writing, Penance bears all the hallmarks of a well scripted Hollywood thriller or taut police procedural. I do hope that this is the beginning of a series? I’d certainly not be averse to visiting Detective John Lynch’s Chicago again. Dan O’Shea instinctively knows the crime genre, the evidence shows on every page.
Penance is published by Exhibit A and is available now. I reckon any crime/thriller fan will get a real kick out of it.
In some weird cosmic synchronicity, I finish one book about a killer loose on the streets of Chicago only to pick up the next from my review pile and discover that it’s a book about a killer loose on the streets of Chicago. No need to panic though, the good news is that The Shining Girls and Penance could not be more different. Both are fun reads but, I’m glad to say, for entirely different reasons. (I’m not even going to mention the fact that the book I’m currently reading is also set in Chicago).
My favourite crime novels are ones that mange to take what appears to be a relatively simple scenario, then throw you the literary equivalent of a curve ball. Penance does just that. On the face of it, this is just a single maniac with a gun killing random targets, but when you delve deeper you’ll find so much more. This novel is chock full of conspiracies, political in-fighting, power plays and back room deals.
Detective Lynch is a solid lead character, but I have to admit that I was more interested in two shady government operatives who show up later on. Ferguson and Chen are part of Intergov, a blacker-than-black ops group who operate outside normal channels. Their partnership is one of the novels many highlights. Chen is described as a gun toting sociopath at one point, needless to say I warmed to her immediately.
Where Penance excels is the plot development. What starts as a traditional crime novel, morphs into a thriller with a much larger scope than I expected. From the reader’s perspective it’s great stuff, you’re essentially getting two books for the price of one. You don’t just get Lynch’s police investigation, there is also a razor sharp political thriller in there as well.
The other good thing is that all this clandestine cloak-and-dagger feels frighteningly believable. O’Shea’s writing never feels over the top or outlandish, he keeps things very grounded. There is a realistic approach to the action scenes that works well.
There are also a series of flashbacks that tie the new crimes with events that occurred in the nineteen seventies. John Lynch’s father, Declan, was on the force at that time, and these additional interludes help to further establish what drives Lynch now.
My only criticism, and it is a relatively minor one, I would have liked a bit more insight into the sniper. Perhaps a few more chapters from the killer’s perspective? It would have been nice to learn a bit more about what was going through their head, more detail about their frame of mind and what was motivating them. When I’m reading a story, especially one that I’m enjoying, I want to discover as much about events as I possibly can.
The novel ends with a satisfyingly action-packed climax, where all bets are off and it’s kill or be killed. There is a cinematic quality to O’Shea’s writing, Penance bears all the hallmarks of a well scripted Hollywood thriller or taut police procedural. I do hope that this is the beginning of a series? I’d certainly not be averse to visiting Detective John Lynch’s Chicago again. Dan O’Shea instinctively knows the crime genre, the evidence shows on every page.
Penance is published by Exhibit A and is available now. I reckon any crime/thriller fan will get a real kick out of it.
June 12, 2013
Setting: Chicago, the windy city.
Antagonist: Ismael Fisher, a sniper of unimaginable skill gone rogue.
Conflict: Some dirty political secrets that stem to the very tip of our government are on the brink of being exposed.
Hero: John Lynch, a detective way in over his head; let’s hope he can tread water fast enough.
Take out your blender, toss in a dash of perfect setting, a pinch of deadly antagonist, a smattering of conflict worth killing for, and top it all off with a smooth talking detective. I’ll take my Penance “…shaken, not stirred.”
The first thing to take note of in Penance is the character cast at the very beginning of the book. While it may seem a tad intimidating at the onset, by the end of the novel, I guarantee that you will appreciate the nifty bit of magic Dan O’Shea has crafted here. The lineage connections from one family generation to the next smacks you in the face with a shocking truth: Money, position, and power tend to stay within families and those families in Penance will do anything to remain in control of that power, much like those in real life.
I Love The Setting. My 83 year old insane grandfather has been living in the same house in Chicago all his life and my mother grew up there; this book reminds me of him so much. He would always talk about the mayors, segregation, different racial neighborhoods, and cheaper gas in Indiana. This book’s setting has it all and more, it’s spot on.
There are so many fantastic things about Penance: The ease of which O’Shea incorporates his expertise / knowledge of weaponry is flawless. I don’t know if it is all completely accurate or not, but for me it worked seamlessly. I can only imagine the amount of time any other author would have spent researching some of this stuff to even try and compete with O’Shea. Ishmael Fisher’s underlying motive for killing his seemingly innocent victims is so damn perfect… (Will not give out spoilers.)
With most novels you can get close to guessing the outcome. Penance had my head scheming up a whirlwind of different conclusions and even in the final few pages I felt the novel could turn down so many different alleyways with a single gunshot.
Pour out yourself a strong glass of Penance, add a couple more fingers worth, and shoot it straight. You might get a fierce burn in the back of your throat and by the time you’ve finally run out, you will be thanking O’Shea for crafting such a rare piece of fine art.
Antagonist: Ismael Fisher, a sniper of unimaginable skill gone rogue.
Conflict: Some dirty political secrets that stem to the very tip of our government are on the brink of being exposed.
Hero: John Lynch, a detective way in over his head; let’s hope he can tread water fast enough.
Take out your blender, toss in a dash of perfect setting, a pinch of deadly antagonist, a smattering of conflict worth killing for, and top it all off with a smooth talking detective. I’ll take my Penance “…shaken, not stirred.”
The first thing to take note of in Penance is the character cast at the very beginning of the book. While it may seem a tad intimidating at the onset, by the end of the novel, I guarantee that you will appreciate the nifty bit of magic Dan O’Shea has crafted here. The lineage connections from one family generation to the next smacks you in the face with a shocking truth: Money, position, and power tend to stay within families and those families in Penance will do anything to remain in control of that power, much like those in real life.
I Love The Setting. My 83 year old insane grandfather has been living in the same house in Chicago all his life and my mother grew up there; this book reminds me of him so much. He would always talk about the mayors, segregation, different racial neighborhoods, and cheaper gas in Indiana. This book’s setting has it all and more, it’s spot on.
There are so many fantastic things about Penance: The ease of which O’Shea incorporates his expertise / knowledge of weaponry is flawless. I don’t know if it is all completely accurate or not, but for me it worked seamlessly. I can only imagine the amount of time any other author would have spent researching some of this stuff to even try and compete with O’Shea. Ishmael Fisher’s underlying motive for killing his seemingly innocent victims is so damn perfect… (Will not give out spoilers.)
With most novels you can get close to guessing the outcome. Penance had my head scheming up a whirlwind of different conclusions and even in the final few pages I felt the novel could turn down so many different alleyways with a single gunshot.
Pour out yourself a strong glass of Penance, add a couple more fingers worth, and shoot it straight. You might get a fierce burn in the back of your throat and by the time you’ve finally run out, you will be thanking O’Shea for crafting such a rare piece of fine art.
May 24, 2013
Penance is one of the two inaugural titles for Angry Robot's new crime imprint Exhibit A. Launch titles always have a little extra pressure attached as they are the first time the new publisher or imprint gets to show their sensibilities and give the reader a taste of what they can expect when they see that particular publisher's logo on the spine of a book. As such I was looking forward to see what sort of impression Dan O'Shea's debut novel Penance would make.
On first glance, Penance hit all the right notes: a gripping opening scene, an interesting and sympathetic main character, and we're immediately off to the races. And while the book stays fascinating and the story becomes a gripping mixture of police procedural and conspiracy thriller, the book shows some use of language that made me rather uncomfortable. O'Shea's villains use racial epithets which were rather unsettling and even his main characters from the Seventies timeline use a derogatory term for a gay character. I know that in the case of the Seventies it was probably true to the times and it's probably sadly true to the current day too, but I'm not used to seeing this kind of language bandied about so freely. This isn't to say that the book is riddled with it, it certainly isn't, but it's there enough. While this language didn't take away from the plot or the character development, it did take away some of my enjoyment, because I kept getting snagged on it. I found it hard to parse the language, because I couldn't figure out whether it was a statement on racism and homophobia or a sloppy short hand to point out the villains, in which case, why the homophobia from the Seventies cops? Or perhaps it's neither and it is just a reflection of reality then and now. Whatever the reason, I found it disturbing.
Moving beyond the problematic language issue, Penance definitely has several things going for it. There is an interesting story structure with two separate timelines, one set in 1971 and one set in the present day. At the beginning of the book the reader is given a cast of characters, so it isn't much of a spoiler to say that there is a Detective Lynch in both timelines. I like how the story from the Seventies complemented the present day and was very much connected to it, but that none of it was told as exposition to the younger Lynch, instead he has to investigate and figure out the story himself the hard way. Within the present day, there are two story arcs; on the one hand we have Lynch's story and his investigation of the sniper murders, on the other there is the black ops agency, which works for the government on off-the-books assignments, that needs to contain one of their own gone rogue to protect some pretty big national security secrets. The interweaving of these three story arcs makes the narrative a curious mixture of police procedural and conspiracy/spy thriller; a blend that makes for quite an exciting read. While some of the elements of the plot are revealed early on – we know who the killer is far before we learn his motivations, for example – there remained plenty of surprises. There was a particularly big reveal at about the two-thirds point that made me go “WHAT!” out loud, which was really cool.
An interesting plot needs interesting characters and O'Shea has several in his debut. His main character John Lynch is quite cool and sympathetic. I loved his scenes with Liz Johnson, an up and coming news reporter new to Chicago, with whom he has an immediate and fierce chemistry. They do seem to be able to connect beyond just their physical attraction and they make an interesting and fun pair. Beyond that, O'Shea's villains are almost more memorable than his hero characters. The rogue sniper Fisher, Colonel Weaver, who's been in black ops for so long his lost touch with his conscience, Rusty Lynch, John's somewhat morally-ambiguous uncle, and Ferguson, the operative who does have a conscience. Especially Fisher and Weaver are deeply unpleasant and several of the Chicago politicians aren't much better. It fascinating to see the cat-and-mouse games the various factions play with each other and how O'Shea juggles all of them to land them all safely, if a bit jostled, in the end.
As noted I had a big problem with some of the language used in Penance, but the mystery was compelling and Lynch a main character I found myself rooting for along the way. If this edgy sort of crime story is what we can expect from Exhibit A in the future, we have a lot of exciting reads to look forward to. O'Shea's debut novel has some rough edges, but shows a lot of promise and I look forward to reading more of his work in the future.
This book was provided for review by the publisher.
On first glance, Penance hit all the right notes: a gripping opening scene, an interesting and sympathetic main character, and we're immediately off to the races. And while the book stays fascinating and the story becomes a gripping mixture of police procedural and conspiracy thriller, the book shows some use of language that made me rather uncomfortable. O'Shea's villains use racial epithets which were rather unsettling and even his main characters from the Seventies timeline use a derogatory term for a gay character. I know that in the case of the Seventies it was probably true to the times and it's probably sadly true to the current day too, but I'm not used to seeing this kind of language bandied about so freely. This isn't to say that the book is riddled with it, it certainly isn't, but it's there enough. While this language didn't take away from the plot or the character development, it did take away some of my enjoyment, because I kept getting snagged on it. I found it hard to parse the language, because I couldn't figure out whether it was a statement on racism and homophobia or a sloppy short hand to point out the villains, in which case, why the homophobia from the Seventies cops? Or perhaps it's neither and it is just a reflection of reality then and now. Whatever the reason, I found it disturbing.
Moving beyond the problematic language issue, Penance definitely has several things going for it. There is an interesting story structure with two separate timelines, one set in 1971 and one set in the present day. At the beginning of the book the reader is given a cast of characters, so it isn't much of a spoiler to say that there is a Detective Lynch in both timelines. I like how the story from the Seventies complemented the present day and was very much connected to it, but that none of it was told as exposition to the younger Lynch, instead he has to investigate and figure out the story himself the hard way. Within the present day, there are two story arcs; on the one hand we have Lynch's story and his investigation of the sniper murders, on the other there is the black ops agency, which works for the government on off-the-books assignments, that needs to contain one of their own gone rogue to protect some pretty big national security secrets. The interweaving of these three story arcs makes the narrative a curious mixture of police procedural and conspiracy/spy thriller; a blend that makes for quite an exciting read. While some of the elements of the plot are revealed early on – we know who the killer is far before we learn his motivations, for example – there remained plenty of surprises. There was a particularly big reveal at about the two-thirds point that made me go “WHAT!” out loud, which was really cool.
An interesting plot needs interesting characters and O'Shea has several in his debut. His main character John Lynch is quite cool and sympathetic. I loved his scenes with Liz Johnson, an up and coming news reporter new to Chicago, with whom he has an immediate and fierce chemistry. They do seem to be able to connect beyond just their physical attraction and they make an interesting and fun pair. Beyond that, O'Shea's villains are almost more memorable than his hero characters. The rogue sniper Fisher, Colonel Weaver, who's been in black ops for so long his lost touch with his conscience, Rusty Lynch, John's somewhat morally-ambiguous uncle, and Ferguson, the operative who does have a conscience. Especially Fisher and Weaver are deeply unpleasant and several of the Chicago politicians aren't much better. It fascinating to see the cat-and-mouse games the various factions play with each other and how O'Shea juggles all of them to land them all safely, if a bit jostled, in the end.
As noted I had a big problem with some of the language used in Penance, but the mystery was compelling and Lynch a main character I found myself rooting for along the way. If this edgy sort of crime story is what we can expect from Exhibit A in the future, we have a lot of exciting reads to look forward to. O'Shea's debut novel has some rough edges, but shows a lot of promise and I look forward to reading more of his work in the future.
This book was provided for review by the publisher.
August 8, 2014
Dan O'Shea must have been a crew chief in the 18th Ward at some time. Here is one reader that will peruse everything he writes.
It would have been a 5 star if the time jumps were less and the long term relationships were clearer. I understand them, but few outside of Chicagoland readers will be able to follow. This book needed both a familial and job tree chart. Not that they wouldn't have overlapped!
This was brutal, filled with gore and chewy murder. Also pretty accurate. And didn't even visit the worse side of town yet, as this one is mostly on the North side. Nothing in this book is exaggerated either. In fact, it understates the connective CLOUT network.
The entire page describing the Picasso as seen by Chicagoans' of the 1970's- that page was a 6 star. Chicagoans still feel that way in great numbers about intellectuals, artists, and the all the rest of the people who can't "do" anything physically. Fix, or change, or move or DO something.
The politico is actually worse now too, than it was in this book and during Penance's time frames. Madigan, Mel, Burke and the gangs reign on as pension funds have all been raided and are virtually vanished.
Can't wait for the next one, and I hope he goes to the majority city next time and visits some S. or SW. or Far SE side locations.
Lynch is believable. Very. But he would never have been that nice to his sister who barely shows up for the funeral. She would have had to pay far more PENANCE for that.
BTW, I knew immediately why the murders were occurring. Best case scenario as posited in 2nd grade was getting hit by a car right after leaving your first Confession.
It would have been a 5 star if the time jumps were less and the long term relationships were clearer. I understand them, but few outside of Chicagoland readers will be able to follow. This book needed both a familial and job tree chart. Not that they wouldn't have overlapped!
This was brutal, filled with gore and chewy murder. Also pretty accurate. And didn't even visit the worse side of town yet, as this one is mostly on the North side. Nothing in this book is exaggerated either. In fact, it understates the connective CLOUT network.
The entire page describing the Picasso as seen by Chicagoans' of the 1970's- that page was a 6 star. Chicagoans still feel that way in great numbers about intellectuals, artists, and the all the rest of the people who can't "do" anything physically. Fix, or change, or move or DO something.
The politico is actually worse now too, than it was in this book and during Penance's time frames. Madigan, Mel, Burke and the gangs reign on as pension funds have all been raided and are virtually vanished.
Can't wait for the next one, and I hope he goes to the majority city next time and visits some S. or SW. or Far SE side locations.
Lynch is believable. Very. But he would never have been that nice to his sister who barely shows up for the funeral. She would have had to pay far more PENANCE for that.
BTW, I knew immediately why the murders were occurring. Best case scenario as posited in 2nd grade was getting hit by a car right after leaving your first Confession.
April 24, 2013
Brought to you by OBS reviewer Verushka
*Beware of possible Spoilers*
To say that Penance by Dan O’Shea is a complicated, sprawling read is an understatement.
Detective John Lynch is a Chicago detective that gets pulled into a sniper case. It’s a hardy run-of-the-mill case, but what you won’t expect, and neither does John, is for the case to take him back decades and reveal the identity of his father’s murderer.
This is where the book lost me.
On the one hand, this complicated case, the inter-personal relationships are a strength. O’Shea weaves a wonderful story between John’s case in the present and his father’s in the past. The writing will demand your absolute attention, but after a time, the constant back and forth, and the ever expanding cast of characters were tiresome.
Most of all because John Lynch, on his own, was so intriguing. This was a character I wanted more of, wanted to see more of his life and his relationships, especially his with his mother. Considering the case, the involvement of his father, I would have thought his mother would be a natural character to be part of this book, but she wasn’t. The book, and John in particular, I found lacking because of it.
Don’t get me wrong, O’Shea is an atmospheric writer, who brings past and present Chicago to life for his readers. I just wanted more about John Lynch, the lynchpin of the book for me.
http://openbooksociety.com/article/pe...
*Beware of possible Spoilers*
To say that Penance by Dan O’Shea is a complicated, sprawling read is an understatement.
Detective John Lynch is a Chicago detective that gets pulled into a sniper case. It’s a hardy run-of-the-mill case, but what you won’t expect, and neither does John, is for the case to take him back decades and reveal the identity of his father’s murderer.
This is where the book lost me.
On the one hand, this complicated case, the inter-personal relationships are a strength. O’Shea weaves a wonderful story between John’s case in the present and his father’s in the past. The writing will demand your absolute attention, but after a time, the constant back and forth, and the ever expanding cast of characters were tiresome.
Most of all because John Lynch, on his own, was so intriguing. This was a character I wanted more of, wanted to see more of his life and his relationships, especially his with his mother. Considering the case, the involvement of his father, I would have thought his mother would be a natural character to be part of this book, but she wasn’t. The book, and John in particular, I found lacking because of it.
Don’t get me wrong, O’Shea is an atmospheric writer, who brings past and present Chicago to life for his readers. I just wanted more about John Lynch, the lynchpin of the book for me.
http://openbooksociety.com/article/pe...
June 12, 2013
I really enjoyed this fast-paced thriller. The narration of this novel is very clipped and bare-bones and I found that this fit well with the personality of the main character as well as the fast pace of the story. There are plenty of twists and turns along the way and I never knew exactly how it would all turn out at the end, which is a big bonus point for me.
There are a lot of characters to keep track of in this book, namely because it is split between two time periods. Adding to the confusion is the fact that a lot of those in the past are relatives of those in the present, and being a crime novel most of them are referred to by their surnames. Thankfully the author included a list of characters for each time period, and their relation to each other, at the start of the book (if you read this novel in e-book format, bookmark the character list, you'll need it!).
There were a few sections that confused me, especially when referencing black ops events that had taken place in the past, and I had to re-read them. In these instances the clipped style frustrated me a little and I would have liked clearer explanations. This may just be a personal thing, but it was enough to pull me out of the story several times and for that reason I have had to knock one star off.
That said, I do highly recommend this book and I can see myself referring back to it for tips when I need to increase the pace in my own fiction.
I give Penance 4 out of 5.
There are a lot of characters to keep track of in this book, namely because it is split between two time periods. Adding to the confusion is the fact that a lot of those in the past are relatives of those in the present, and being a crime novel most of them are referred to by their surnames. Thankfully the author included a list of characters for each time period, and their relation to each other, at the start of the book (if you read this novel in e-book format, bookmark the character list, you'll need it!).
There were a few sections that confused me, especially when referencing black ops events that had taken place in the past, and I had to re-read them. In these instances the clipped style frustrated me a little and I would have liked clearer explanations. This may just be a personal thing, but it was enough to pull me out of the story several times and for that reason I have had to knock one star off.
That said, I do highly recommend this book and I can see myself referring back to it for tips when I need to increase the pace in my own fiction.
I give Penance 4 out of 5.
May 29, 2013
Hear the full review over at the Booked. website: http://www.bookedpodcast.com/2013/05/...
January 1, 2017
Wicked smart, extremely well crafted detective model. Highly recommend.
January 4, 2026
Good mystery novel with set in Chicago. Would have been 5 stars but the size of the cast of the characters was a little overwhelming. The author included a list of characters which helped. I will read more by this author.
July 4, 2013
You can find the full review over at The Founding Fields:
http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/07/...
Shadowhawk reviews one of the first launch titles for Angry Robot’s new crime imprint Exhibit A.
“A flawed but fast-paced and nuanced thriller that is guaranteed to have you on the edge of your seat.” ~Shadowhawk
Thrillers are a weird genre for me. I don’t really read that many thrillers, although I kind of enjoy one on occasion. Clive Cussler, Jeffrey Archer, Lee Child, Dan Brown, John Grisham, I’ve read a fair few. I just prefer something more… fantastic. A novel that is rooted in the contemporary, that is very “real-world” just doesn’t interest me all that much, on a general basis. At the same time though, I wouldn’t turn from a chance to read one, especially if it is an imprint of Angry Robot and is newly launched, as Exhibit A is. My love for Angry Robot books, minus a few I didn’t like, isn’t all that a secret, and them doing a crime imprint, especially when their Young Adult SFF imprint Strange Chemistry has been so successful, was an exciting opportunity I couldn’t pass up on.
Dan O’Shea’s debut novel is deeply rooted in Chicago politics and is a fairly well-written story about controversies, espionage, murders and secret government agencies. In the first few pages, it was a bit confusing since I didn’t immediately pick up on the separate timelines that were being presented, but the book quickly gets the reader beyond that point and into the nitty-gritty of it all.
One thing I never quite worked out was what kind of a novel it was. Being a reviewer has made me more aware of certain things and sometimes the analytical mind kicks into overdrive. I kept wondering if as a police procedural the novel was an indictment of the homophobia and racism that was rampant in the 70s, or whether it was just propping up its characters with somewhat cliched portrayals so that the “good guys” and the “villains” were easily recognisable. I kept wondering if this was a novel like Curtis Hanson’s L.A. Confidential movie, which is set in the ’50s and is a similar kind of police procedural/corruption/scandal exploratory narrative, and is itself based on a James Ellroy novel. Penance definitely gives off a mixed vibe in that regard. It didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the novel by any means, but the thoughts were always there. Weird how that turns out.
Police procedurals/crime mysteries can be a lot of fun at times and Dan O’Shea has certainly written the novel in a style reminiscent of any number of television shows in the same genre. The mystery is involved and engaging, the characters are interesting in and of themselves, and the climax is an adrenaline rush.
Detective Lynch, who is the main protagonist of the novel, was certainly one of the most interesting characters in the novel. He starts off as a typical police officer who is committed to finding his quarry, but he grows into much more than that. He becomes someone willing to challenge the highest level of authority to make sure that those who deserve to have the heavy hand of justice served to them get it. This change also comes at the cost of him admitting to his mistakes and his flaws, and growing out of them into a character who learns as he goes along, rather than staying one-note and one-dimensional throughout.
http://thefoundingfields.com/2013/07/...
Shadowhawk reviews one of the first launch titles for Angry Robot’s new crime imprint Exhibit A.
“A flawed but fast-paced and nuanced thriller that is guaranteed to have you on the edge of your seat.” ~Shadowhawk
Thrillers are a weird genre for me. I don’t really read that many thrillers, although I kind of enjoy one on occasion. Clive Cussler, Jeffrey Archer, Lee Child, Dan Brown, John Grisham, I’ve read a fair few. I just prefer something more… fantastic. A novel that is rooted in the contemporary, that is very “real-world” just doesn’t interest me all that much, on a general basis. At the same time though, I wouldn’t turn from a chance to read one, especially if it is an imprint of Angry Robot and is newly launched, as Exhibit A is. My love for Angry Robot books, minus a few I didn’t like, isn’t all that a secret, and them doing a crime imprint, especially when their Young Adult SFF imprint Strange Chemistry has been so successful, was an exciting opportunity I couldn’t pass up on.
Dan O’Shea’s debut novel is deeply rooted in Chicago politics and is a fairly well-written story about controversies, espionage, murders and secret government agencies. In the first few pages, it was a bit confusing since I didn’t immediately pick up on the separate timelines that were being presented, but the book quickly gets the reader beyond that point and into the nitty-gritty of it all.
One thing I never quite worked out was what kind of a novel it was. Being a reviewer has made me more aware of certain things and sometimes the analytical mind kicks into overdrive. I kept wondering if as a police procedural the novel was an indictment of the homophobia and racism that was rampant in the 70s, or whether it was just propping up its characters with somewhat cliched portrayals so that the “good guys” and the “villains” were easily recognisable. I kept wondering if this was a novel like Curtis Hanson’s L.A. Confidential movie, which is set in the ’50s and is a similar kind of police procedural/corruption/scandal exploratory narrative, and is itself based on a James Ellroy novel. Penance definitely gives off a mixed vibe in that regard. It didn’t hinder my enjoyment of the novel by any means, but the thoughts were always there. Weird how that turns out.
Police procedurals/crime mysteries can be a lot of fun at times and Dan O’Shea has certainly written the novel in a style reminiscent of any number of television shows in the same genre. The mystery is involved and engaging, the characters are interesting in and of themselves, and the climax is an adrenaline rush.
Detective Lynch, who is the main protagonist of the novel, was certainly one of the most interesting characters in the novel. He starts off as a typical police officer who is committed to finding his quarry, but he grows into much more than that. He becomes someone willing to challenge the highest level of authority to make sure that those who deserve to have the heavy hand of justice served to them get it. This change also comes at the cost of him admitting to his mistakes and his flaws, and growing out of them into a character who learns as he goes along, rather than staying one-note and one-dimensional throughout.
August 12, 2013
Caveat: the author is a friend. Also, mild to moderate spoilers ahead.
Penance has been touted as an "adrenaline-rush" and "one foot in Bourne" and "as serious as a .45 in full battery", and all of that is true. But the moments I found Dan O'Shea really shone were the quiet ones: Lynch and his sister at the hospital, notably.
They tell you in English class that theme is important and is decided ahead of time, but I've always found that theme grows organically from the narrative, and one reader's interpretation of theme might not be the same as another's. What I interpreted the book as, beyond the obvious of a crime thriller set in Chicago, is how people deal with the death of their parents. Ishmael Fisher and John Lynch have very similar methodologies to deal with their pain, but execute those methodologies in spectacularly different ways. Both followed in their father's footsteps, both have a central set of tenets that guide their life, and both buckle down and do what they feel is necessary to clean up their parents' messes. But sometimes you kick up the shit-pile of decades-old conspiracy, and sometimes you snipe people as they exit confession.
The bad: Sometimes the characters blend together. Whenever Ferguson and Lynch are talking, it's hard to differentiate their respective lines because the two characters are so similar in nature and demeanour. There were a couple spots where I felt the narrative was bogged down by mini-info dumps, and occasionally, it's assumed that the reader knows enough about the topic being discussed -- the city of Chicago, weapons, football, et al -- that more explanation isn't necessary, which was a little frustrating.
The good: Even the throwaway, single-use characters had nuance, and you cared about them. (Hell, I felt pity and outrage when a bike messenger, there for a single purpose, was murdered on the street.) The pacing was, overall, very smooth and the bare-bones writing style worked well. Lynch, unlike many detectives in crime novels, is a well-rounded, down-to-earth functional human being, and it was refreshing to watch him develop a relationship with Liz that didn't add the stereotypical drama.
I am definitely looking forward to seeing more of John Lynch and his Chicago. The novel works as both stand-alone -- Penance as it stands is a complete, self-contained story -- but enough plot and character threads were left dangling that could easily be hitched to future tales.
Buy the book. You're not likely to regret it.
Penance has been touted as an "adrenaline-rush" and "one foot in Bourne" and "as serious as a .45 in full battery", and all of that is true. But the moments I found Dan O'Shea really shone were the quiet ones: Lynch and his sister at the hospital, notably.
They tell you in English class that theme is important and is decided ahead of time, but I've always found that theme grows organically from the narrative, and one reader's interpretation of theme might not be the same as another's. What I interpreted the book as, beyond the obvious of a crime thriller set in Chicago, is how people deal with the death of their parents. Ishmael Fisher and John Lynch have very similar methodologies to deal with their pain, but execute those methodologies in spectacularly different ways. Both followed in their father's footsteps, both have a central set of tenets that guide their life, and both buckle down and do what they feel is necessary to clean up their parents' messes. But sometimes you kick up the shit-pile of decades-old conspiracy, and sometimes you snipe people as they exit confession.
The bad: Sometimes the characters blend together. Whenever Ferguson and Lynch are talking, it's hard to differentiate their respective lines because the two characters are so similar in nature and demeanour. There were a couple spots where I felt the narrative was bogged down by mini-info dumps, and occasionally, it's assumed that the reader knows enough about the topic being discussed -- the city of Chicago, weapons, football, et al -- that more explanation isn't necessary, which was a little frustrating.
The good: Even the throwaway, single-use characters had nuance, and you cared about them. (Hell, I felt pity and outrage when a bike messenger, there for a single purpose, was murdered on the street.) The pacing was, overall, very smooth and the bare-bones writing style worked well. Lynch, unlike many detectives in crime novels, is a well-rounded, down-to-earth functional human being, and it was refreshing to watch him develop a relationship with Liz that didn't add the stereotypical drama.
I am definitely looking forward to seeing more of John Lynch and his Chicago. The novel works as both stand-alone -- Penance as it stands is a complete, self-contained story -- but enough plot and character threads were left dangling that could easily be hitched to future tales.
Buy the book. You're not likely to regret it.
May 10, 2014
*originally posted here: http://cmnovas.tumblr.com/post/852922...*
Penance follows Detective John Lynch through the seedy underworld of Chicago’s corrupt political landscape, which has ties to international power and shadow government agencies. We are given brief glimpses into the world of Chicago in the 1970s, where the sins of the father are laid bare which continue to haunt Det. Lynch and in the present, the discovery of these sins threaten to collapse the house of cards that the politically powerful have so carefully constructed.
Dan O’Shea is an incredible writer, weaving together an interesting and varied cast of characters, tying all of their motives and plot-threads together flawlessly. All of his characters have weight within the narrative unlike most thrillers where some characters are created to be filler fodder for the larger story. I deeply cared for each character (even those I came to hate), and couldn’t wait to read what happened next.
This is a crime story that has mainstream appeal, and I can easily see this novel on network TV or as an exciting summer thriller release for theaters. Great job on Exhibit A for publishing such a fantastic crime novel.
Penance follows Detective John Lynch through the seedy underworld of Chicago’s corrupt political landscape, which has ties to international power and shadow government agencies. We are given brief glimpses into the world of Chicago in the 1970s, where the sins of the father are laid bare which continue to haunt Det. Lynch and in the present, the discovery of these sins threaten to collapse the house of cards that the politically powerful have so carefully constructed.
Dan O’Shea is an incredible writer, weaving together an interesting and varied cast of characters, tying all of their motives and plot-threads together flawlessly. All of his characters have weight within the narrative unlike most thrillers where some characters are created to be filler fodder for the larger story. I deeply cared for each character (even those I came to hate), and couldn’t wait to read what happened next.
This is a crime story that has mainstream appeal, and I can easily see this novel on network TV or as an exciting summer thriller release for theaters. Great job on Exhibit A for publishing such a fantastic crime novel.
July 15, 2013
Although realistically presented, this crime thriller uses a technique I rarely like – the flipping back & forth between time periods in separate chapters. Flashbacks can be helpful to fill in details, but the method used here made it difficult & sometimes confusing to follow the current day story. I found myself frequently paging back to keep the characters straight. There are many mystery/crime thriller authors who do this better including Michael Connelly, Harlen Coben, Tom Clancy & John Sandford to name a few.
The main character, John Lynch, is an especially likeable cop who is determined to get his man regardless of the obstacles and odds. The plot builds in tension throughout, and does a good job with his back story, as well as his present life outside of work, such as a new romance with a journalist and his relationship to his mother and sister. This author has potential so I might read his next book when it’s published in 2014.
The main character, John Lynch, is an especially likeable cop who is determined to get his man regardless of the obstacles and odds. The plot builds in tension throughout, and does a good job with his back story, as well as his present life outside of work, such as a new romance with a journalist and his relationship to his mother and sister. This author has potential so I might read his next book when it’s published in 2014.
May 21, 2013
Actually, 3 1/2. The problem was, the author did not seem to know whether he wanted to merely tell the story, or write like Mickey Spillane, with "booze/broads/battles/bad language." He kept switching back and forth, which was disconcerting. Other than in passing, he only had two female characters - one in a "male" job (assassin), and the other who (with one exception toward the end) existed merely so the hero could "get his ticket punched." I wish he'd made up his mind, as it was a good story, and certainly a roman a clef on Chicago politics.
October 1, 2013
Dan O'Shea's not fuckin' around. He's written a fantastic crime thriller. Fast paced and woven around a series of murders, subplots and modern day reckoning, Penance should be optioned for film.
Wordsmiths and theologians take note...O'Shea is a smart dude that doesn't swing his shit around ruthlessly. He just does a bell check from time to time. They're definitely a ringin'.
Wordsmiths and theologians take note...O'Shea is a smart dude that doesn't swing his shit around ruthlessly. He just does a bell check from time to time. They're definitely a ringin'.
September 9, 2016
Overall, a good story. I had a difficult time getting into the story at the beginning with the interspersing timelines over the chapters. The second half of the book got better when it dealt with just the current timeline. You could feel the drama of time running out and wondering which team was going to come out ahead.
July 12, 2013
At times, I found this almost unreadable with a plot that wholly lacks credibility. But if all you want are sociopaths killing innocent people and each other, this is the book for you.
http://opionator.wordpress.com/2013/0...
http://opionator.wordpress.com/2013/0...
June 14, 2013
Perfect. Check our Benoit Lelievre's review to get the scoop. I'm a reader not a writer. I do not think O'Shea could have written a better book. I cannot wait to see what's next!
January 5, 2014
Sorry Penance, I tried to like you, but just couldn't get into you. Too gritty for my taste and the pace was not to my liking.
July 23, 2016
The first half was really good. The second half was better.
This is the February book for Madison Murder Ink bookclub.
This is the February book for Madison Murder Ink bookclub.
March 2, 2014
A fast-paced crime thriller that shows a lot of Chicago love. The tight writing is a beautiful thing to behold.
April 13, 2015
More like 2.5 stars. Not bad but little impobable at times.
Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews