Book Review: The Devil by Ken Bruen
The Devil
Ken Bruen
Minotaur Books, 2010
ISBN: 978-0-312-64696-7
Hardcover
The Devil reads like a cocktail of Xanax and Jameson, with a side of Guiness. Maybe that’s because Jack Taylor absorbs that combination on practically every page of the novel.  Describing a book by Ken Bruen is no easy task, and the smart thing would be to not make any attempt to do that, but merely to write anything that comes to mind.  But that would just about describe the novel, wouldn’t it?
Taylor, at the outset, is denied entry into the United States because of his unsavory background.  So what does he do?  Naturally, head for the airport bar, where he meets what appears to be, throughout the rest of the book, the devil incarnate.  It appears that the devil has a grudge against Taylor, who has interfered in the past with some of His plans.  Along the way, various contacts of Taylor’s meet their deaths at the hands of the supposed devil.
There is no way to describe a Bruen novel, except to say “far out.” The writing is always interesting, albeit sometimes incomprehensible, the theme frequently unusual, as in this case.  “Noir” in every sense of the word.  But recommended.
Reviewed by Ted Feit, December 2010.
April 27, 2011
Tags: Ireland, Minotaur, mystery, noir, private investigator Posted in: Full Reviews
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