If you like Irish angst, this is an author for you. Bruen's main character, Jack Taylor, is a private detective, a former cop (in Ireland, the Guards), an alcoholic, who is now a PI. He starts out this book sober, and unlike "The Devil" when he starts drinking on the first page, it takes him half the book before he picks up his first drink in Sanctuary. Bruen gives away the plot on the first page: "Two guards, one nun, one judge, and alas, one child." The murders begin, and it's Taylor's job is to stop them. As Bruen takes Taylor through the process, he continues to make wonderful literary references while extending the stories of various characters we've met before. He drops a bombshell about the earlier death of Serena May, the 4-year-old Downs kid that died when Taylor was babysitting, and drunk. This was a very fast read, all in a morning, and captivating from the outset. East Coast Don and I have reviewed more of Bruen's books than any other author, which is surely a favorable measure of the quality of his work.
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