Inspector Devlin Mysteries

3 primary works

Borderlands

by Brian McGilloway

Published 6 April 2007

'Brian McGilloway's command of plot and assurance of language make it difficult to believe that Borderlands is his debut.' - The Times

'A mystery of labyrinthine complexity' - Sunday Telegraph

The corpse of local teenager Angela Cashell is found on the Tyrone- Donegal border, between the North and South of Ireland, in an area known as the borderlands. Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin heads the investigation: the only clues are a gold ring placed on the girl's finger and an old photograph, left where she died.

Then another teenager is murdered, and things become further complicated when Devlin unearths a link between the recent killings and the disappearance of a prostitute twenty-five years earlier - a case in which he believes one of his own colleagues is implicated.

As a thickening snow storm blurs the border between North and South, Devlin finds the distinction between right and wrong, vengeance and justice, and even police-officer and criminal becoming equally unclear.

A dazzling and lyrical debut crime novel, Borderlands marks the beginning of a compelling new series featuring Inspector Benedict Devlin.

Gallows Lane

by Brian McGilloway

Published 4 April 2008

Taking its title from the name of the road down which condemned Donegal criminals were once led, "Gallows Lane" follows Inspector Benedict Devlin as he investigates a series of gruesome murders in and around the Irish borderlands. When a young woman is found beaten to death on a building site, in what appears to be a sexually-motivated killing, Devlin's enquiries soon point to a local body-builder and steroid addict. But days later, born-again ex-con James Kerr is found nailed to a tree - crucified - having been released from prison and returned to his hometown to spread the word of God. Increasingly torn between his young family and his job, Devlin is determined to apprehend those responsible for the murders before they strike again, even as the carnage begins to jeopardise those he cares about most."Gallows Lane" is the heart-stopping follow-up to Brian McGilloway's acclaimed debut "Borderlands". 'Brian McGilloway joins the roll-call of excellence in Irish crime fiction' - Marcel Berlins, "The Times". 'A satisfying mystery with an attractive central character' - "Sunday Telegraph". 'Another masterly thriller' - "Irish News".

Bleed a River Deep

by Brian McGilloway

Published 3 April 2009

When a controversial US diplomat is attacked during the opening of a Donegal gold mine, Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin is disciplined for the lapse in security. The gunman turns out to be a young environmentalist – related to an old friend of Devlin’s. Within days, the killing of an illegal immigrant near the Irish border leads Devlin to a vicious people-smuggling ring. Then Bradley himself is found dead near the mine and Devlin begins to suspect that the business is a front for something far more sinister than mere mining.

Bleed a River Deep is the new novel from one of the most acclaimed young crime-writers around, a labyrinthine tale of big business, the new Europe, and the dispossessed. World politics, industry and organised crime collide in McGilloway’s most accomplished, most gripping, and most powerful novel yet.