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The Cold Cold Ground
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October 2021 Group Read Discussion: The Cold, Cold Ground by Adrian McKinty
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I’ve wanted to read for years, now it’s just a matter of hunting through my hundreds of boxes for my copy 😂
I've started it and it seems pretty bleak so far
CBRetriever wrote: "I've started it and it seems pretty bleak so far"Give it time. It is bleak, but McKinty has a wonderful black humour that shines through. ❤📚
I reread this whole series last year, so will kick in with my thoughts a little later in the month. Let's just say that this is one of my favourite series ever. ❤📚
Sandy *The world could end while I was reading and I would never notice* wrote: "I reread this whole series last year, so will kick in with my thoughts a little later in the month. Let's just say that this is one of my favourite series ever. ❤📚"I'm with you - I've already read the whole series, but am trying to post/think about the book as though I were reading it for the first time. I've also read the whole Stuart Neville series
Hi all! We're already off to a rip-roaring start, I see. :) I've been meaning to read this favorite series of so many friends, and I found this first entry really good. Kept me engaged and "turning pages" (I listened to it), and I think laid a solid foundation for further books in the series. Characters who seemed real, if some not fully fleshed out, and whom I'm interested in meeting again. Vivid descriptions of the scenes that I could easily picture. Helped us understand what The Troubles were all about without academic descriptions. Great storytelling, if occasionally melodramatic. And a good balance (mostly) of dark and humor. Loved the use of music - I feel like we need a mix-tape or in today's terms a Spotify playlist. I see that the titles of all entries into this series are lyrics from Tom Waits songs, which endears me to the author.
Just learned that Kenneth Branagh has made a film called Belfast about his childhood during the 60's (early Troubles). Coming out soon. Fabulous cast! https://www.imdb.com/title/tt12789558/
Just finished this. I'm a little more informed on some Irish history now. Definitely had to do some research to better understand the context of the book. I'm not sure if I just wasn't paying attention in school but the hunger strikes and the IRA and all the real world things that served as a backdrop to the book were completely new to me.I thought this was a good read. The murder investigation was interesting and whenever the focus was on that I was pretty invested. The stretches of the book where the focus wasn't the investigation were a bit rambling to me and didn't hold my attention as much. I did really like the bits of humor we got here and there throughout the book.
Overall I enjoyed reading this but I don't see myself reading the rest of the series.
the troubles are still not completely over in Northern Ireland. Prejudice still exists, There's still a huge mural on the side of a building with an image of Bobby Sands on it. Also the problems flared back up as a result of Brexit:https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/12/wo...
CBRetriever wrote: "the troubles are still not completely over in Northern Ireland. Prejudice still exists, There's still a huge mural on the side of a building with an image of Bobby Sands on it. Also the problems fl..."That article (from 2017) really gives us a clear picture of what this time was like. And why our protagonist needed to check under his car before starting out every day. It was really a horrific time.
Just this year more has been stirred up by a "truth commission" that is charging people from 40-50 years ago for crimes committed during The Troubles. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m3v6j...
Shanequa wrote: "Just finished this. I'm a little more informed on some Irish history now. Definitely had to do some research to better understand the context of the book. I'm not sure if I just wasn't paying atten..."I think this did get media attention, especially in the '70's and early '80's, but perhaps more in cities in the US heavily populated with Irish Americans.
I thought a testimony to that in the book were times when Boston was mentioned as sending reporters and funding the IRA. I lived in Chicago in the '70's and Boston in the '80's and had many friends with Irish (Catholic) roots who were very caught up in the struggle, taking sides with the IRA.
I think most Americans in the 60s and 70s thought Northern Ireland should have been part of Ireland. This was during the times when colonial powers were gradually letting go of their conquered territories (think France and Algeira/Vietnam and The UK and India). Ireland definitely fell into the conquered countries category.ETA: the other book for the monthly read is set well after this time period and you can see that the animosity between catholics and protestants still exists
I read it last year, thought it was okay. I did not mind reading it but was not tempted to read more from the author. I read a lot of stories about gritty cops, Sean Duffy did not stand out for me though I liked the Irish setting.My review https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
I'm from Northern Ireland (born and lived here all my life) so I always like to read books set here. Thankfully I didn't grow up during the worst of The Troubles but I have clear memories of them from my childhood. Although things are a lot better now, there are still issues. Read this book a couple of years ago and have also read the 2nd book in the series. I'm planning on reading more. I like reading about places I'm familiar with. The background of the Troubles is easy for me to understand as I'm familiar with the history of them.
If anyone wants any perspective on the troubles from a local, feel free to ask.
Vikki wrote: "I'm from Northern Ireland (born and lived here all my life) so I always like to read books set here. Thankfully I didn't grow up during the worst of The Troubles but I have clear memories of them f..."I had always thought that the Troubles was a religious conflict, but after reading the Wikipedia account, it's a little clearer that the Catholic vs. Protestant was really more a political division, and the religious reference had more to do with the fact that each political side tended to be made up of a majority of one religion or another. Then throw in the British army, and things really get messy.
I like the way Duffy is portrayed, the author puts us inside of the mind of an Irish Catholic cop (peeler - why peeler?), so it's possible to see part of the struggle from at least one of the "sides"... in the sense that while it's political, it has also become a religious war too.
Anyway, my question is, are the walls dividing neighborhoods still standing?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Tro...
Janice (JG) wrote: "Vikki wrote: "I'm from Northern Ireland (born and lived here all my life) so I always like to read books set here. Thankfully I didn't grow up during the worst of The Troubles but I have clear memo..."Hi Janine - yes, the walls do still exist. They're not in every town and city - there are none in my hometown, but there are peace walls in Belfast.
Vikki wrote: "Janice (JG) wrote: "Vikki wrote: "I'm from Northern Ireland (born and lived here all my life) so I always like to read books set here. Thankfully I didn't grow up during the worst of The Troubles b..."Thanks for sharing your experience and perspective, Vikki! It's helpful to understand more about the situation in Northern Ireland from the point of view of someone who lives there. I've always only known from news reports and from the views of my Irish Catholic friends in Chicago and Boston, which has always been biased, It was interesting to me that people here in the US got caught up taking sides in what was going on in the "old country".
(Like you, I always like reading books set where I live or have lived!)
Suzy wrote: "It was interesting to me that people here in the US got caught up taking sides in what was going on in the "old country". ."Lots of us in the US have Irish roots, especially in Boston, New York and other large Eastern US cities. There were huge waves of Irish coming over after the potato famine and the Titanic even had a lot of them in steerage when it went down.
Also, add that there was also prejudice against the Irish in US history (signs reading No Irish Need Apply) and you have the reasons for that.
I read this book 6 years ago and enjoyed it It was strongly recommended by GR Ireland friends.. My spoiler free review for anyone who is interested: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...I have read book 2 and plan to continue reading the series.
I have read the entire series twice, and love it. My spoiler free review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...
Sandy *The world could end while I was reading and I would never notice* wrote: "I have read the entire series twice, and love it. My spoiler free review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show..."Thanks for the encouragement! I'm reading books 1 & 2 with an IRL reading buddy, so the chances we will do the whole series are high.
Suzy wrote: "Sandy *The world could end while I was reading and I would never notice* wrote: "I have read the entire series twice, and love it. My spoiler free review: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show......"I hope you love this series as much as I do Suzy. I have even made a Sean Duffy playlist of the songs that McKinty references throughout the series. It's the music I grew up with. ❤📚
Sandy *The world could end while I was reading and I would never notice* wrote: "I hope you love this series as much as I do Suzy. I have even made a Sean Duffy playlist of the songs that McKinty references throughout the series. It's the music I grew up with. ..."I've only read the first of the series, but I loved the mentions of Duffy's music choices... would you share your playlist? I don't do Spotify, but just a list of titles would be fun, if you're willing. : )
CBRetriever wrote: "according to this 2020 article, the walls still existhttps://www.pri.org/stories/2020-01-1..."
Very helpful article, thank you. I was surprised to learn that most of the walls went up after the Good Friday Agreement, which doesn't bode well for any collaboration between the two parties because of the distrust that continued to exist up to the time of the writing (January 2020).
I wonder how much, or if, the pandemic has influenced these political/religious enmities and separations in the last almost two years now. A lot of us have had to let go of stubborn beliefs and opinions on a lot of things in the face of the restrictive consequences of Covid19, political or otherwise.
Historically, this whole thing started because of British colonialism, so no wonder it's all in such a mess.
I've been meaning to ask if anyone has read any other of McKinty's series?
I've read almost all his other books and they're all pretty good reads
CBRetriever wrote: "I've read almost all his other books and they're all pretty good reads"Good to know! I'm moving on in this series to the next book.
Late to the read, but I got my library book finally.
aPriL does feral sometimes wrote: "Late to the read, but I got my library book finally."Loop back and let us know what you think, April!
Suzy wrote: "aPriL does feral sometimes wrote: "Late to the read, but I got my library book finally."Loop back and let us know what you think, April!"
Will do!
I finished and I'm planning on reading the series.
I think you'll like the rest of the books in the series - I did
Enjoy the book and discussions.