The Crossed Keys

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The Crossed Keys by Phillip Jordan- Crime

When disturbed men want revenge for what happened to them as children back in the days of a more than volatile Northern Ireland, the police have more than just one trail to follow.  Companies used as fronts for illegal operations are nothing new,  but when this could affect an ongoing court case things have to be sorted out justly and pronto. Detective Inspector Veronica Taylor and team are dealing with more than their fair share of trouble, starting with vandalism against a developer and leading into so much more.  This is one of a series but happily stands alone.

A book of brilliant descriptions putting the reader at the heart of the action,  and at times reflecting on young lives that really didn't stand a chance even if they survived.  Although this is fiction we now know some of the depraved conditions in real life and the abuse that some suffered without modern day regulations in the homes for "troubled boys' ' and the historic institutional abuse scandals that opened the public's eyes which Phillip refers to in the afterward. There are wonderful, apt, flashes of humour interspersed with the crime to lighten the load . (I especially liked Gordon Beattie Holdings- if you know, you know!) 

A well researched gritty novel perhaps not for the faint hearted. Although nothing too graphic, there are brief descriptions of what may have happened in the past, leaving the imagination to fill in the gaps.  A police procedural of raw crime, retribution and malfeasance and those picking up the pieces that remain. 

For more reviews please follow me on Twitter@nickisbookblog

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