Liz Loves Books.Com.

So one day not so long back I accidentally bought a book when doing some online shopping for , well not books (yes EVERY TIME I tell myself I’ll just have a QUICK look see whats about but I’m accident prone) – anyway that book just happened to be Alone with the Dead – the first Donal Lynch novel – and turns out I fell immediately in love with this character (you can see review for that on goodreads ) and all the rest. So when I spotted the sequel on Netgalley there was no stopping me.

Once again it was a banging read. Brilliant crime fiction with added “other” – possibly – or maybe Donal is just disturbed – he is certainly disturbingly hilarious at times- the dark often inappropriately laugh out loud moments James Nally brings to the table just makes the whole thing more addictive.

With “Dance with the Dead” we have a multi layered plot that speaks to Donal’s own background (and by the way his brother Fintan is a bloody marvel of a character seriously) and adds a possible serial killer into the mix all whilst the poor guy is trying to redeem himself within the police force. The crime elements of the plot are brilliantly imagined and ever so fascinating, there is huge depth to both character and setting that really rings true, even given the wilder elements. The fact that it is all set in the 90’s just makes it even better, James Nally builds his story around real life events going on in the background and it works extraordinarily well.

For me, this is classic crime fiction with a twist – I love the twist – and I love that Donal is so beautifully rubbish in his brilliance – his attempts at fanning the flames of a possible romance in this instalment made me smile such a lot. Also the relationships he builds with family and the people around him make a great backdrop to the individual crime stories told, you just want to keep reading for many different reasons.

Book one was great. Book two was better. I think I may have found my new favourite crime thing.

Highly Recommended