The lyrical prose and the perfect Galway patter were seductive but in the end, I couldn't find it in me to like this drunk with a habit of violence and a passion for books.

I'd heard good things about the Jack Taylor series. They made a TV series about it so I thought, it can't be all bad if it's been on the tele now, can it?

"The Guards" starts well enough. The style is a kind of Nineties Philip Marlowe, if Marlowe had been an alcoholic from Galway who was well-read, didn't think much of himself or anyone else, constantly took the piss out of himself and was pretty hopeless at investigating things.

Jack Taylor's main achievements in life so far have been drinking and getting himself thrown out of the Garda (although not for drinking).

I listened to the audiobook, narrated by Gerry O'Brien, and found myself enjoying listening to Jack's self-mocking description of his first case as an unlicensed PI investigating the suicide of a teenage girl.

Let me share the close of chapter one with you. It'll give you the flavour of the thing. Jack is on his way home from too many glasses of Back Bush to recall and has stopped to pick up some chips, with a cod thrown in to make it seem more substantial.:

Is there anything more comforting than doused in vinegar chips? The smell is like the childhood you never had.

 

As I approached my flat, I was in artificial contentment. Turning to my door, the first blow caught me on the neck. Then a kick to the cobblers. For mad reasons, I hung on to the chips. Two men, two big men, they gave me a highly professional hiding. A mix of kicks and punches that came with the rhythm of precision.

 

Without malice but with absolute dedication. I felt my nose break. Would swear it made a crunch sound.

 

One of them said, "Get his hand. Spread the fingers." I fought that. Then my fingers were splayed on the road. It felt cold and wet. Twice the shoe came down. I roared for all I was worth. They were done. The other said, "Won't be playing with himself for a bit." A voice close to my ear, "Keep your nose out of other people's business."

 

I wanted to cry, "Call the Guards", as they headed off. I tried to say, "Buy your own chips!" but my mouth was full of blood.

I thought that was wonderful.

Sadly, Jack turned out to be the kind of man you sometimes meet, usually while consuming alcohol in a public place, who at first seems both charming and wise. His voice is soft, his bright verbal plumage is borrowed from the finest writers and he's happy to share the wisdom that his suffering has won him. By the fourth or fifth pint, the shine wears off, the borrowed feathers moult and you start to see that the charm is there to hide a man addicted to drink and prone to violence who knows in his heart that he's broken.

If your response to such a man is, "Well he is who is and he could be worse. Good luck to him." then I think you'll be reading the whole series. If, like me, you cannot find it in yourself to like this self-harming drunk with a habit for violence, then you'll be stopping after the first book.

The book itself is not so much about solving a crime as about seeing the kind of man Jack is, the kind of man he might be if he were able to stay sober and to understand the childhood that produced such flawed potential.

It's many decades since I last spent any time in Galway but Ken Bruen seems to me to present a credible version of the place and its people and that alone is reason enough to read the first book.

Decide for yourself. Click on the SoundCloud link below and let Gerry O'Brien cast Ken Bruen's spell over you.

https://soundcloud.com/ulverscroft/the-guards-by-ken-bruen

I decided to head to Ireland rather than Norway for my Modern Noir square.

I'd heard good things about the Jack Taylor series, the one they made"> the TV series about. It can't be all bad if it's been on the tele now, can it?

The style is a kind of Nineties Philip Marlowe, if Marlowe had been an alcoholic from Galway who was well-read, didn't think much of himself or anyone else and constantly took the piss out of himself. 

Jack Taylor's main achievements in life so far have been drinking and getting himself thrown out of the Garda (although not for drinking).

So far I'm enjoying listening to Jack's self-mocking description of his first case as an unlicensed PI investigating the suicide of a teenage girl.

Let me share the close of chapter one with you. It'll give you the flavour of the thing. Jack is on his way home from too many glasses of Back Bush to recall and has stopped to pick up some chips, with a cod thrown in to make it seem more substantial.:

Is there anything more comforting than doused in vinegar chips? The smell is like the childhood you never had.

 

As I approached my flat, I was in artificial contentment. Turning to my door, the first blow caught me on the neck. Then a kick to the cobblers. For mad reasons, I hung on to the chips. Two men, two big men, they gave me a highly professional hiding. A mix of kicks and punches that came with the rhythm of precision. Without malice but with absolute dedication. I felt my nose break. Would swear it made a crunch sound,

 

One of them said, "Get his hand. Spread the fingers." I fought that. Then my fingers were splayed on the road. It felt cold and wet. Twice the shoe came down. I roared for all I was worth. They were done. The other said, "Won't be playing with himself for a bit." A voice close to my ear, "Keep your nose out of other people's business."

 

I wanted to cry, "Call the Guards", as they headed off. I tried to say, "Buy your own chips!" but my mouth was full of blood.

 

Scarlett was sick of feeling like a victim. She had plenty of time to heal her mind and body. Nothing to be afraid of here- no knife wielding psycho was going to jump out of a doorway and drag her into a van like…. Scarlett walked into the tattoo shop- Amuse tattoos and talked to Casey the woman she had already talked to on the phone. Scarlett had to get rid of the evidence of that hellacious day and move on.  The psycho had carved his initials into her butt cheek. Bit when Casey went to start doing the tattoo Scarlett’s mind flashed back and she jumped off the table and pulled up her jeans and ran out of the shop. She went into an unlocked door with a closed sign on it. He wouldn’t find her there/ Than she heard a man’s voice behind her.and she said she was calling 911 and he said and tell them you broke into my bar? He said his name was ethan Calhoun and could he help her? Then she said but her a drink-Tequila.. Scarlett warned him she was a head case. He got her a glass and had a drink with her. Scarlett than said she had to go back next store -Ethan offered to hold her hand but Scarlett said it was something she had to do herself but asked if she could call him if she needed moral support. Than Ethan said yes and also  tapped his phone and said he wanted her number. Ethan’s mother -Missy- had tried to kill his half sister cassidy that Ethan hadn’t known about until after his death. Cassady hadn’t pressed charges. His older sister Shannon had married one of the sharpest lawyers in Houston - Billy Pagan. Billy was already working on a way to keep Missy out of prison since she left the court ordered time at Fair haven for her “ mental health issues.” It had taken some work for Billy to get a plea deal to get her there and now she was on the loose. He was already working on a way to keep her out of prison whens she was caught. With her on the loose the prosecutor could forget the old plea deal if Missy pulled one of her stunts and put her behind bars. Ethan looked Scarlett up on line the psycho had made Scarlett his victim during an attempt at Industrial espionage. Ethan wondered what Zenon Industries where Scarlett was an Office Manager- owned that could be so valuable. Scarlett’s brother rhett who was an author ended up at her door from Boston wanting to know why she had not told her family what happened to her.  He also said he knew enough about PTSD to know she was suffering from it. Rhett and Scarlett were both phobic about binding themselves to anyone for the .long haul. Scarlett got a call from Mike and Simms ahd escaped and left a cop in critical condition if he died Simms would be a cop killer. Mike thought he was far away by now but he was wrong. Scarlett called ethan and accepted the job to be hos bar manager after she told her biss ron she needed that leave of absence at Zenon Industries after all and why. After spending the morning going over plans with Ethan they went out to lunch nearby. Scarlett was attracted to ethan and she was pretty sure she was in trouble. The man was just about irresistible. Leroy Simms girlfriend was ramona and she had worked at Zenon Industries also. She was ron’s executive secretary and held it over people that worked there also. She actually had things criminally the way she wanted them until Scarlett came in and changed things and she hated her for it. She had also been in with Crane who had bought Leroy in to get the project from Anne. But crane was now dead. She helped leroy but she was the one who was computer savvy to get Crane’s millions of dollars hidden in a bank in Cayman. But leroy would kill her of he had to even though they had been together on and off since HS. She helped Leroy change his appearance so no one would easily recognize him.

I enjoyed this book. I enjoyed the suspense, danger, and intrigue in this read. I also really liked the new romances that sprang up in the book. I loved the pace and plot. I loved that Mike, Rhett and Ethan wanted to keep Scarlett save no matter what. I felt bad that Ethan was pulled into the  bs with Missy and Lisa. I loved Etham and Scarlett together and how they interacted. I loved how close rhett and Scarlett were. There were a lot of errors were words ran together that interrupted your reading some. I loved the characters and the ins and outs of this book and I recommend it.

She followed a job and a friend to Texas which cost Scarlett hall more than she bargained for but she’s determined to get past one of the worst days of her life. Covering the physical scars is easy, but the emotional scars are proving harder to handle…until she meets Ethan Calhoun who just might be what she needs to start a new chapter in her life. It soon becomes clear that danger will be in her life no matter how many changes Scarlett makes and as she comes face to face with her worst nightmare.

This ‘Lone Star’ romance is an emotionally gripping, sweet and passionate romance with strong, convincing characters that readers can easily connect to and they can really understand what motivates them. The romance is sweet and the chemistry sizzles between Scarlett and Ethan with exuberant abandon. Scarlett’s past is a real hindrance to moving forward with her life which causes lots of emotional turmoil to flow from the pages and Ethan’s care and determination in romancing Scarlett warms the heart.

The plot is steady to fast paced and keeps readers on the edge with thrilling suspense as Scarlett’s nightmare reappears in her life, but this story has double the suspense because Ethan has quite a bit of excitement and danger going on his life as well as family comes calling. Readers can’t help but get caught up in this thrilling, suspenseful and passionate read.