The Death of an Irish Politician

by Bartholomew Gill

Book Overview

Chief Inspector of Detectives Peter McGarr is the hard-nosed policeman of Bartholomew Gill's widely acclaimed series of atmospheric Irish mysteries. Now, here is the novel that started it all--the Chief Inspector's very first appearance. It was twilight on Killiney Bay when they pulled the Yank out of the water, his head split open by a violent blow. For McGarr, the case was a welcome chance to escape the gloom of Dublin. But from his first moment...

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0380732734
• ISBN13: 9780380732739
• Release Date: February 2000
• Publisher: Avon Books
• Length: 240 Pages
• Weight: 0.28 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

An interesting look at an Irish Detective

This is the first in a long series of books with Chief Inspector McGarr, based in Dublin after a long career with Interpol. This book focuses on Ireland's relationship with the IRA, and is quite interesting. The capabilities of master cop McGarr are also impressive. The story was well crafted, although there isn't much of a mystery involved. I am looking forward to see if that improves in later books in the series.

Mystery Introduces History

Bartholomew Gill's The Death of an Irish Politician is the first of a series of mysteries featuring Peter McGarr. McGarr is a small man with a large reputation. He is known for his capacity for solving seemingly unsolvable crimes. It is important to note, however, that he rarely is called upon to work without the benefit of his eager partner, his tiny young wife who has a capacity for identifying smells that might be compared with that of a bloodhound. In this tale McGarr is enlisted to solve a mystery that is originally believed to be a tragic accident. It quickly becomes clear, however, that this case is much more than an unfortunate mistake at sea. Instead, he realizes that the very mystery he hopes will remove him, if only briefly, from all political pressure is going to do quite the opposite, immersing him in the one thing he hopes to avoid. It becomes clear that in order to close the case he must find connections between IRA schemes, gun running, and a soured love story. He must bring all this together before he is able to piece together the puzzle he desperately hopes to solve. This is a quick paced tale that appealed to me as lover of mystery and one who wishes to learn more about Irish culture and society. It offers a glimpse of Ireland not often afforded in literature of this period. It presents a somewhat modern view that allows one to contemplate where Irish culture and society have been and where they seem to headed.

"Death" as metaphor

Bartholomew Gill's Death of an Irish Politician follows Chief Inspector Peter McGarr as he tries to solve a seemingly simple assault case. Yet, in the developing complexity of the crime, a social commentary of the political instability of Ireland develops rather vividly. The novel infuses Ireland's political, social and religious issues prevalent in society into a seemingly everyday account of people's private lives, which in turn leads to an understanding for an American reader of how deeply ingrained in everyday life these problems are. McGarr himself tries to be a non-political figure who just wants to perform his duties as Chief Investigator fairly and professionally; yet, he finds himself unavoidably entwined with the IRA and the Minister for Justice, a prominent political official, who threatens his future. Instead of yielding to the power that threatens him, McGarr plays the "game" in return. Gill, through McGarr, is trying to illustrate a successful pattern of dealing with the potentially destructive power structures in the Irish society, especially considering that "The Death" in the novel is not a traditional reference to murder typical of a mystery plot, but rather a metaphor for man's destructive nature of holding on to high ideals, especially when flexibility is needed. While initially the plot development is a bit slow, once it gains momentum Gill does write an engaging, and in the end, dramatic mystery novel.

Irish Intrigue

Bartholomew Gill's first Peter McGarr mystery, The Death of An Irish Politician, stands as a groundbreaking work in the way that Irish culture and politics is incorporated into the framework of a first rate police procedural. Chief Inspector of Detectives McGarr has worked abroad as a detective before returning to his homeland to take the head job at Dublin Castle. In his first case, he is called to Killiney Bay to investigate the bludgeoning of an American boatman at an exclusive yacht club. What at first appears to be a straightforward case, quickly becomes an imbroglio involving slippery politics and questionable tactics which are played out by a cast of surprisingly diverse characters. McGarr is challenged throughout to maintain his pride as a model policeman in the face of the exasperating and volatile political climate of Northern Ireland. Enmeshed in the political confusion, McGarr must also maneuver within a world of established cultural conventions when he wants, above all, to experience the kind of freedom as an Irishman that sets aside the narrow-minded and stereotypical. With his spirited, sharp wife Noreen and his motley crew of policemen, McGarr struggles to get hold of a case that seems almost certain to blow up in his face. It is from a sense of duty that he does this, but there is also a component of his wanting to sculpt himself, through his work, as an Irishman free

Renamed, but still the same...

McGarr and the Politician's Wife, Gill's first Peter McGarr mystery, was originally published in 1977. It's now been re-named and re-released as The Death of an Irish Politician. I strongly suspect that it's not only been renamed, but "modernized" a little as well. No matter. It's still a wonderful Gill mystery, full of detailed characters, intense description of Irish locales, and a plot that keeps you turning pages until you and McGarr solve the mystery. This plot, though a little more entangled with Irish politics than some readers might find comfortable, is especially interesting when read with recent Irish history and daily changes in Irish politics in mind. Again, it's the mystery and the characters that keep Gill's writing fresh, even two decades after the writing was done. My one concern is that no Irish politician dies here; I know we want to maintain the "Death of an Irish..." series now that we've got it going, but... Never mind. Overlook it and read it anyway.