The City of Shadows Book Reviews

The City of Shadows by Michael Russell Book Summary

Longlisted for the CWA John Creasy New Blood Dagger Award 2013 and shortlisted for CWA Endeavour Historical Dagger Award 2014

‘She looked up at the terraced house, with the closed shutters and the big room at the end of the long unlit corridor where the man who smiled too much did his work. She climbed the steps and knocked on the door…’

Dublin 1934: Detective Stefan Gillespie arrests a German doctor and encounters Hannah Rosen desperate to find her friend Susan, a Jewish woman who had become involved with a priest, and has now disappeared.

When the bodies of a man and woman are found buried in the Dublin mountains, it becomes clear that this case is about more than a missing person. Stefan and Hannah trace the evidence all the way across Europe to Danzig.

In a strange city where the Nazi Party are gaining power, Stefan and Hannah are inching closer to the truth and soon find themselves in grave danger…

Reviews

‘This debut novel is a superb, atmospheric thriller. The author, a TV scriptwriter, has brought his skills to produce a page turner of high quality, populated by a marvellous set of fictional characters, interwoven cleverly with real characters of the era. Highly recommended’ (Irish Independent)

‘This is a great insight into a turbulent time in Dublin and Ireland, in a challenging-to-your-heartbeat kind of way’ (Evening Herald)

‘In action ranging from Dublin to Danzig Russell has drawn on real-life Irish characters whose decent behaviour in the face of the impending Holocaust has been sadly lost over the years. This book has triumphantly revived their reputation’ (Jewish Chronicle)

‘Russell weaves a beautifully rich tapestry that shows through the taste and texture of his words the rich lusciousness of the Emerald Isle alongside the grimy streets of Dublin and the infected avenues of Danzig as Nazism rears its ugly head. This is a sterling debut not to be rushed, but to be savoured’ (www.crimesquad.com)

About the author

Michael Russell read English at Oxford before spending three years working in farming in North Devon, trying to get someone to pay him to write. He worked for Yorkshire Television as a script editor, on Emmerdale Farm, working his way up to Series Producer. He also spent several years in the Drama Department, first as Script Consultant then Producer, before leaving ITV to write full-time. He was a regular contributor to Midsommer Murders and scripted the last ever Touch of Frost which topped the ratings. He lives in Ireland with his family, where he is doing what he always wanted to do, writing novels.

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