What do you think?
Rate this book
Pursuit:
It’s a dog’s life for professional hit-man Doc Terence in this fast-paced, tongue-in-cheek game of cat and mouse.
If there is such a thing as a paramilitary romp, then McAllister –author of two previous books featuring Station Sergeant Barlow – has nailed it.
The dialogue is as sharp as a Stanley knife, the action is as packed as a punch, the plot twists like a potholed country road and the body count is rising.
Doc doesn’t mind killing people. In fact Doc gets twitchy when he hasn’t a target in mind. He has been ordered by one faction of ‘the Organisation’ to track down a disgraced politician and kill him. However he faces a conflict of loyalty as a rival faction, led by Doc’s brother Jimmy, wants to interrogate the elusive politician.
Then there are the women who Doc thinks he should kill to maintain his ‘integrity’ – his runaway wife, and Connie, who withholds information about the politician’s whereabouts.
Set in a slightly alternative Northern Ireland, where history seems to have split off at a tangent. Pursuit raises faster than a greyhound around the dog track for a big race and the inevitable showdown. (Tony Bailie, Irish News)
McAllister’s laconic narrative… carries a strong charge of authenticity- The Guardian
McAllister’s command of plot and breakneck pacing is impressive - Black Mountain Review
McAllister’s stripped down, straightforward prose exquisitely captures the feel of a bygone era and the down-to-earth people who inhabited it - Elizabeth A White Syndication
A naturally gifted storyteller - Hot Press
Instinct for writing... that can’t be taught - UKA Press
McAllister knows his characters and his landscape like a master storyteller - Glenn Meade, novelist
A fresh outlook from an Irish author we are sure to hear more about - Kevin A Hart
I particularly appreciated the occasional barb of typical Northern Ireland acerbic wit and sarcasm among the dialogue - Kilmakeeon
If there is such a thing as a paramilitary romp, then McAllister –author of two previous books featuring Station Sergeant Barlow – has nailed it.
The dialogue is as sharp as a Stanley knife, the action is as packed as a punch, the plot twists like a potholed country road and the body count is rising.
Doc doesn’t mind killing people. In fact Doc gets twitchy when he hasn’t a target in mind. He has been ordered by one faction of ‘the Organisation’ to track down a disgraced politician and kill him. However he faces a conflict of loyalty as a rival faction, led by Doc’s brother Jimmy, wants to interrogate the elusive politician.
Then there are the women who Doc thinks he should kill to maintain his ‘integrity’ – his runaway wife, and Connie, who withholds information about the politician’s whereabouts.
Set in a slightly alternative Northern Ireland, where history seems to have split off at a tangent. Pursuit raises faster than a greyhound around the dog track for a big race and the inevitable showdown. (Tony Bailie, Irish News)
McAllister’s laconic narrative… carries a strong charge of authenticity- The Guardian
McAllister’s command of plot and breakneck pacing is impressive - Black Mountain Review
McAllister’s stripped down, straightforward prose exquisitely captures the feel of a bygone era and the down-to-earth people who inhabited it - Elizabeth A White Syndication
A naturally gifted storyteller - Hot Press
Instinct for writing... that can’t be taught - UKA Press
McAllister knows his characters and his landscape like a master storyteller - Glenn Meade, novelist
A fresh outlook from an Irish author we are sure to hear more about - Kevin A Hart
I particularly appreciated the occasional barb of typical Northern Ireland acerbic wit and sarcasm among the dialogue - Kilmakeeon
525 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 8, 2018
6 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 7, 2017
Doc is a professional hit man for the Organization. He has a contract to find and kill renegade politician Paul Bradley, but he has a problem; half the Organization wants Bradley dead, but half, led by his brother Jimmy want him interrogated. As Doc struggles with his confusing mission, the bodies start piling up. As if he doesn’t have enough problems, Doc has to deal with the women in his life. One is his ex-wife, and the other is Connie, a tough gal who is withholding information about Bradley from him. His solution would be to kill them, but Doc has never even hit a woman, much less killed one. In the meantime, Bradley has taken up dog racing and he leads everyone on a merry chase until the big race of the season when everyone comes together in an explosive and bloody encounter.
Pursuit by John McAllister is a complex novel. It gives us a look at events as they unfold through the eyes of a number of characters. The main two characters, though, are Doc and Jimmy who struggle with their positions within the Organization and issues of mutual trust. Seldom have I liked a story where the principal characters are bad guys, but these two are a notable exception. They demonstrate that even the bad guys can sometimes have redeeming character traits.
If you like British mystery, even though this story is set in Ireland, you’ll like Pursuit.
Pursuit by John McAllister is a complex novel. It gives us a look at events as they unfold through the eyes of a number of characters. The main two characters, though, are Doc and Jimmy who struggle with their positions within the Organization and issues of mutual trust. Seldom have I liked a story where the principal characters are bad guys, but these two are a notable exception. They demonstrate that even the bad guys can sometimes have redeeming character traits.
If you like British mystery, even though this story is set in Ireland, you’ll like Pursuit.
Displaying 1 of 1 review