Darling Jim: A Novel [Hardcover]

Christian Moerk (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 31, 2009

A modern gothic novel of suspense that reveals, through their diaries, the story of sisters who fall in love with a beguiling stranger, and of the town that turns a blind eye to his murderous ways

When two sisters and their aunt are found dead in their suburban Dublin home, it seems that the secret behind their untimely demise will never be known. But then Niall, a young mailman, finds a mysterious diary in the post office’s dead-letter bin. From beyond the grave, Fiona Walsh shares the most tragic love story he’s ever heard—and her tale has only just begun.

Niall soon becomes enveloped by the mystery surrounding itinerant storyteller Jim, who traveled through Ireland enrapturing audiences and wooing women with his macabre mythic narratives. Captivated by Jim, townspeople across Ireland thought it must be a sad coincidence that horrific murders trailed him wherever he went—and they failed to connect that the young female victims, who were smitten by the newest bad boy in town, bore an all too frightening similarity to the victims in Jim’s own fictional plots.

The Walsh sisters, fiercely loyal to one another, were not immune to “darling” Jim’s powers of seduction, but found themselves in harm’s way when they began to uncover his treacherous past. Niall must now continue his dangerous hunt for the truth—and for the vanished third sister—while there’s still time. And in the woods, the wolves from Jim’s stories begin to gather.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. Like the itinerant Irish storyteller at the crux of this riveting novel, Danish-born author Moerk mixes mythology, Arthurian legend, fairy tales, noir and horror in his American debut. When reclusive Moira Hegarty and her two nieces, Fiona and Róisín Walsh, are found dead in Moira's secluded home in a Dublin suburb, evidence suggests the sisters were imprisoned for months by their aunt, along with a third person, perhaps Róisín's twin sister. The young women left behind two diaries, one of which a postal clerk finds. Three years before, they fell under the spell of Jim Quick, a séanachai (or bard), whose tales of wolves and kings gave him rock star status in the sleepy town of Castletownbere. Only the Walsh sisters appear to have seen beyond the charm of darling Jim, whose presence coincides with several women's murders. Moerk tightly meshes each separate plot strand—the murders, the diaries and Quick's tales—into an enthralling story that never falters. Author tour. (Apr.)
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From Booklist

It’s tough enough to make a story within a story work, let alone a story within a story within a story. But Moerk manages nicely in his first novel, which opens with gruesome death. An affable mail carrier in a small Irish village grows uneasy enough about the occupant of one of the houses on his route to venture inside. His discovery of the dead home owner is only the beginning; when garda officers arrive, they find the corpses of two emaciated young women, obviously held captive in the home. The circumstances surrounding the tragedy remain a mystery—until another postman, a particularly curious one, discovers a diary written by one of the young women. The horrifying tale that unfolds as he reads introduces him to three (yes, three) very different sisters, their vulnerable aunt, and a charismatic, itinerate seanchaí, Darling Jim, whose darkly compelling stories of  brothers, wolves, a princess, and a transformation turn out to be less fantastical than they appear. Bringing together elements of love, lust, murder, betrayal, madness, and secrets, Moerk does some irresistible storytelling of his own. --Stephanie Zvirin

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (March 31, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805089470
• ISBN-13: 978-0805089479
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (94 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #874,817 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Five stars are not enough, December 27, 2008

By 

Cathe Fein Olson "Avid reader and writer" (curled up with a book) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Darling Jim: A Novel (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

A handsome stranger on a red motorcycle comes to a small Irish town. As he travels from pub to pub telling tales of wolves and betrayal, the townspeople become enraptured with him and women are vying to become the one with whom he chooses to spend the night. One family in particular, three sisters and their aunt, are torn apart as "Darling Jim" tries to wheedle his way into the family. We learn the whole story as a postman reads the sisters' diaries and goes on a mission to discover what really happened.

This is the best book I've read in ages. Deliciously creepy without going over the top, lots of mystery, a bit of fairy tale, passion, great writing, surprising and perfect ending--absolutely everything you'd want in a book. If I could have, I would have given this 10 stars!

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A stormy night read, October 10, 2009

By 

Charlie Courtland "Bitsy Bling Books" (Seattle, WA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Darling Jim: A Novel (Hardcover)

Gems:
An irresistible dark tale of murder and revenge successfully told from the primarily feminine point of view by a male author. Darling Jim is a story within a story within a story. The perspective does change, but the author makes transitions easy to follow and does it seamlessly without creating any disjointed jolt in time. It held my interest all the way through and I thought all the characters were fully developed and engaging. The book contained the interesting use of several themes including old fork lore, superstitions and cultural details, all of which are incorporated in modern scenery and time and expose social issues and flaws in the system. The language was neatly designed with believable dialogue and fairly tolerable imagery.

FLAWS:
Although this was a story within a story within a story, I would have liked the main tale to remain the forward focus. It needed to carry the weight and continue to capture the audience. The supporting stories provide details, but at times became a bit too lengthy. Towards the end, the story wobbles taking a turn towards the fantastical. A map, a castle gate and descriptions of wizards and princes are intended to aid to the fairy tale sub theme and could have worked if the author remained more concrete with his details. I think this approach was done to create a mysterious atmosphere but because it does not remain grounded it takes away from the actual horror of the story by making it too unbelievable and I began to lose some of the sympathy I originally felt for the sister characters. Although the author made a valiant attempt, the language did not evoke or appeal to all senses and therefore did not carrying the spine shivering effect he was most likely hoping for.

All in all, it was an entertaining read that I think is great for a stormy day or to cuddle up with on a chilly October night.

25 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Great beginning, but slides quickly downwards, January 23, 2009

By 

Tigger "kkegley" (Little Elm, TX United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Darling Jim: A Novel (Hardcover)

(What's this?)

I'm going to have to part company with the rest of the reviewers on this one. While the author has an interesting voice alternating between the richly dark and the cleverly sardonic and the story concept is interesting, the execution was ultimately unsatisfying.

The beginning was compelling and remains the best part of the book. The emaciated and devastated bodies of two young women and their aunt are found in an unassuming Dublin home, under circumstances so shocking it makes the reader cringe but at the same time overwhelmed by curiosity. It's a near-flawless bit of foreshadowing that definitely set the mood - or would have.

The story then unfolds mostly via a journal written by one of the dead girls, and that's where it began to lose me. It never did recapture the feel of the well-done beginning, for me. I didn't care for the tone of the narrator Fiona, for one. It felt much too contrived. I didn't like any of the sisters, who all seemed rather directionless and dull. Most of all I thought the title character, the unbelievably (literally) handsome hottie around whom this story revolves, utterly banal. I couldn't help but think that the author (a man) had made the common mistake of many authors and decided to insert a secret fantasy version of himself into his writing. Maybe that's unfair, but that's just how it struck me. I couldn't relate to the way Fiona, Rosie, the aunt and every other female kept swooning over this rather irritating character who tells horrific fairy tale-type stories of torture and revenge. I found him a complete turn-off. I tried to just put that aside and accept the passion Fiona and the other women felt regardless of my own opinion, but I couldn't. I just couldn't relate, I suppose. I'm a woman, but I don't react that way to a man I've never met and I can't imagine doing so. Seduction on that level is cerebral, and it takes a little time - at least for most women. Or maybe that's just me! At any rate I think it was important that Jim be a well-fleshed character, and that was not accomplished by a long shot. He wasn't appealing, sexy, scary, or even interesting, and I found myself constantly wondering why this whole story centered around someone so dull.

I'd give it only one star except that it's obvious the author has talent. I'd like to see him use it a bit more creatively.