From the Bookshelf of Aussie Readers…

The Ruin (Cormac Reilly, #1)

Dervla McTiernan

Start date: May 1, 2018

Finish date: May 31, 2018

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Jun 10, 2018 Bree T rated it it was amazing

Shelves: crime, mystery, kindle-version, netgalley, arc, cultural

Okay so I don’t live under a rock. I have heard the buzz around this book for months now and I even requested it off NetGalley a little while ago. So I’m not sure how it is that I only just got around to reading it. I’ve been meaning to but you know how it is. Too many books, too little time! But finally it ended up top of the pile and the hype is real.

Cormac Reilly is a detective who applied for a position in Galway which is kind of a demotion from the specialist terrorist branch he was working Okay so I don’t live under a rock. I have heard the buzz around this book for months now and I even requested it off NetGalley a little while ago. So I’m not sure how it is that I only just got around to reading it. I’ve been meaning to but you know how it is. Too many books, too little time! But finally it ended up top of the pile and the hype is real.

Cormac Reilly is a detective who applied for a position in Galway which is kind of a demotion from the specialist terrorist branch he was working prior, but it’s something he chose for personal reasons. Since his arrival at the station he’s mostly been working cold cases and not getting anywhere. There’s a bit of an air from some of his colleagues although Cormac is happy to see a friendly face in Danny, someone he knows from very long ago.

Then Cormac finds one of his very first cases has come back – that of Hilaria Blake, which was Cormac’s first dead body as a young, green rookie. An overdose, Hilaria was ruled an accidental death and Cormac never quite forgot her two children – 15yo Maude, who kept everything together, and 5yo Jack, who had some horrific abuse and injuries. Now, some twenty years later, Jack is dead, an apparent suicide and Cormac’s superiors want him rechecking into the Hilaria Blake case.

This book had me hooked from the first page. It begins in the past, with a young Cormac being sent on what he believes is a call out for a domestic issue. It’s much more than that and his inexperience shows in several different ways during what follows. It seems a straightforward overdose but it’s not until years into the future that some doubts are cast on the events of that day. And the apparent suicide of Jack Blake, who despite a troubled first few years had been taken in by a loving family after the death of his mother, raised in a good home, had a degree and good job, a happy relationship, friends, hobbies….it just doesn’t seem right to those closest to him that he would do that and with no warning. It’s the return of Jack’s sister Maude to Ireland and her absolute conviction that Jack wouldn’t take his own life that pushes an investigation forward, despite the obvious reluctance of some of the officers. It was actually kind of disturbing to see how easy this was written off, despite several glaring inconsistencies – they didn’t even order a toxicology report.

I loved the way this book made me question things over and over again. Did Hilaria really just accidentally overdose or was something more sinister going on? What motive does Maude have for returning now, of all times? If she is involved, as some of the officers believe, then why is she pushing so hard for an investigation into his death? There are so many little things that all begin to pull together and when the full picture becomes clear it was a pleasant surprise how many things I didn’t predict or only just got there as the book was revealing it. The atmosphere is also really well done in this book – Cormac is new to Galway, isolated as well. His partner works long hours, his colleagues are mostly hostile or wary. There are rumours circulating about him and why he’s there, it seems that no one really trusts him. The only exception is an old friend named Danny but Cormac is quick to realise that Danny himself is the subject of a lot of wariness as well and he can’t help but wonder why that is and at some of Danny’s quite odd behaviour. There’s so much mystery and intrigue and the stories have so many layers going on.

This was really clever, an unputdownable read and I can’t wait for the next Cormac Reilly novel. It’s just a shame that the wait is so long before I’ll get to spend time with him again!

***A copy of this novel was provided by the publisher via NetGalley for the purpose of an honest review***
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