Wednesday 31 August 2011

A Wee Review - Bloodland by Alan Glynn


Alan Glynn’s Bloodland begins with the mental breakdown of a private security operative in the Congo and then follows the shockwaves that it creates in Ireland and the US. An out-of-work journalist is warned off writing a book about Irish TV star, Susie Monaghan. An ex-Taoiseach gets knocked off the AA wagon. A once-successful property developer skates along the brink of bankruptcy. A US senator with presidential aspirations needs all the spin his people can provide to explain a broken hand. The senator’s brother wants the respect of his octogenarian corporate mentor. And they’re all linked by a helicopter crash that claimed Susie Monaghan’s life.

Bloodland follows the trend set by Glynn’s previous novel, Winterland. It explores the far-reaching ramifications of corruption in politics and global business right down to the frontline casualties. Shit runs downhill. Glynn’s writing is engaging and urgent. Each line counts as he expertly develops his characters and plot without sacrificing his wonderful skill for evocative prose.

Bloodland will enrage that sleeping anarchist within. More of the same, please, Mister Glynn.

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