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The Price of Blood
by Declan Hughes
Brilliant Irish suspense: a priest's
request, horse racing and dark,
multi-layered secrets.
Irish playwright Declan
Hughes's third private detective Ed Loy novel, The Price of Blood
peers into the gritty sides of Dublin and
families as Loy investigates the case of a missing jockey and a case of
vandalism. In a suspense thriller with echoes of Greek tragedy set in
modern life, Declan Hughes creates an innovative look into the darker
sides of his characters and the underside of Irish horse racing. The
Price of Blood is a suspense read full of local color from
an Irish author who looks beyond the surface into societal changes and
customs as well as into the shocking secrets hidden from plain view,
secrets that when spoken can often lead to tragic consequences.
Father Vincent Tyrrell asks PI Ed Loy to look into a name,
Patrick Hutton. The Catholic priest and horse racing devotee gives Ed
Loy just the name without any other details, refusing to break the seal
of confession. Now dying of cancer, the priest's conscience troubles
him. Meanwhile, Ed Loy takes on a case, assisting Joe Leonard in
catching vandals. As Ed Loy pursues the Leonard case, he discovers a
body dumped, a body with some shocking details and a piece of paper
that might just relate to his jockey case. When Ed looks closer into
the history of Patrick Hutton, the body count increases. Each victim
has 2 cryptic tattoos roughly engraved into their skin and certain
other details in common which Ed discovers when he comes across a
dumped body. While the papers claim the murders are the work of a
serial killer, The Omega Man, Ed Loy knows that the clues and
relationships just do not fit the serial killer scenario. His
investigation of jockey Patrick Hutton takes him into the tumultuous
world of Irish horse racing and the Tyrell family where passions run
deep and secrets are hidden even deeper.
From the very beginning of The Price of Blood, Declan Hughes
takes the reader into an
intimate vision of Ireland. Declan Hughes sections the book by date
into Advent, Christmas, and St. Stephen's Day, thereby creating a
temporal structure that relies on the Catholic calendar and focuses on
Father Vincent Tyrell's world. His moral dilemma introduces this work
of suspense, allowing the reader to catch both a glimpse at the depth
of this character, as a man tortured by a secret he must keep and also
as a compassionate man willing to stand out as he brings Tommy Owens
into the fold of his church and protection despite the congregation's
displeasure. From the very beginning, the reader feels Ed Loy's ties to
his youth and his independence from the Dublin of his past through the
interchanges with Father Tyrell.
Through the descriptions of the Joe Leonard case, Declan
Hughes, takes the reader into Ireland's past and present as characters
once isolated from one another by economics, now live in close
proximity. Those who once thought of semi-detached housing as low class
now are limited to council housing. Now, downcast, Joe Leonard is
determined to protect his corner. To Joe Leonard, Declan Hughes
juxtaposes F.X. Tyrell, a man for whom horse racing has improved his
status and station in life.
As suspense, The Price of Blood delves into the dark side of
horse racing,
purebreds, and relationships as passions and past histories collide.
The closer Ed Loy gets to answering the puzzles, the more surprising
twists he uncovers. As St. Stephen's Day approaches with the exciting
climactic horse race, even the best laid plans cannot prepare the
characters for the shocking conclusions still to come. As with a
previous past case, when the culprit is finally revealed, the
revelations elicit unexpected actions. Secrets haunt but brought to
light, do they bring comfort? Declan Hughes' suspense stands out
precisely because answers are not easy or simplistic. Through the depth
of the character of Father Vincent Tyrell, Declan Hughes creates a
magnificent sense of pathos in his suspense that makes The Price of
Blood a unique suspense read.
Declan Hughes is a must read for drama enthusiasts
(particularly tragedy lovers) and literature enthusiasts. Father
Vincent Tyrell recalls to mind Graham Green's memorable characters
while simultaneously upping the ante several notches. While reading The
Price of Blood, literature lovers might call to mind Oedipus Rex
and Arthur Miller's Death of a Salesman,not so much in terms of
plot or
characterization where there are both some similarities and
differences, but more so for the brilliant way Declan Hughes deviates
from these classics. Declan Hughes creates an innovative work of
fiction that pays tribute to previous literary classics while
transforming them, adding new twists as he places his tale in the
suspense genre. The author invigorates the suspense genre with a new
vision that will delight, indeed haunt lovers of both suspense and
drama.
In summary, if you are looking for a light happy suspense
read or a quick serial killer whodunit that you can easily put aside
with disinterest shortly after finishing it, this book may not be the
best choice. If you want a suspense read that glosses over the
ramifications of actions or the pain endured by characters, search
elsewhere. If you are looking for a unique read and one that stands out
from all the books out there, in either suspense or literature, The
Price of Blood is brilliant! Although tragic, The Price of Blood
is hauntingly innovative --- the kind of book one remembers for its
uniqueness.
Personal details
I chose this book to read because
suspense is one of my favorite genres for pleasure reads. As suspense,
I loved this book but Declan Hughes' The Price of Blood was
also much more than that for me. I am
no longer in the academic world and only have time to write reviews not
papers. When I read this book, however, part of me thought to myself
that this book would be an awesome book to explore in a more scholarly
way as well just because it is a great read AND the vision of drama
permeating a different genre is so exciting. Some comparative
literature scholar who reads suspense for fun really needs to take a
serious look at Declan Hughes and run with him. The Price of Blood
was a thrilling read for me on multiple levels!
Additional Notes:
Crime and sexual details make this book inappropriate for sensitive or
young readers although neither are gratuitous.
The Price of Blood does
not paint a pristine squeaky clean picture of religion. I feel that
Declan Hughes does a good job at balancing the horrific things that
happen in this suspense novel with his characterization of a
multi-dimensional priest. Father Vincent Tyrell is a flawed but
wonderful character, a real man of conscience, faith and human love
despite the horrific consequences. In the midst of the horrific, the
priest's courage and faith is all the more powerful.
Previous Irish Suspense by
Declan Hughes
The Wrong Kind of Blood (March 2006)
The Color of Blood (April 2007)
Buy The Price of Blood Here
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From the
book jacket:
What's
in a name? Apparently everything for
Ed Loy, because that's the
only information Father Vincent Tyrrell, brother of prominent racehorse
trainer F. X. Tyrrell, offers when he asks for Ed's help in finding a
missing person. Even the best private eye needs more than just a name,
but hard times and a dwindling bank account make it difficult for Loy
to say no.
He is not without luck, however.
While working another
case, Loy discovers a phone number that seems linked to F.X. found on
an unidentified body. Thinking it more than a coincidence, he begins
digging into the history of the Tyrrells—a history consumed with
trading and dealing, gambling and horse breeding—and soon realizes
there is more to the family than meets the eye, a suspicion confirmed
when two more people with connections to the Tyrrells are killed.
On the eve of one of Ireland's most
anticipated sporting events, the
four-day Leopardstown Race-course Christmas Festival, all bets are off
as Loy pursues a twisted killer on the final leg of a reckless master
plan.
In The Price of Blood, Declan Hughes once again
paints an arresting portrait of an Ireland not found in any guidebooks.
Deadly passions beget dark secrets in a chilling story that will have
readers on edge right up to its shocking conclusion. |
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