Customer Reviews

Inheritance

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Jack McCallam finds himself at loose ends after a career in the British Army is cut short by a bullet to his head. On a routine visit to his dad's in Northern Ireland, his life is turned upside down when he finds his father has died in an acccident and his girlfriend has left a message on his home answering machine saying she is going back to her husband.
A well-written book though I had trouble with the timeframe being so far in the future, yet nothing was the least bit futuristic. Cars, airplanes, and phones all operated just as they do today. While having been in Northern Ireland and finding it a bit backward by our standards, this is stretching the reader's imagination a wee bit thinking that nothing would have changed. I understand why he had it take place in the future, as it was essential to the plot, but it didn't work well for me. Baker's knowledge of the Northern Ireland political parties was very accurate and the plot was believable on most points. I would recommend this book for readers of espionage, suspense, or police novels.

The plot was definitely suspenseful and kept the pages turning, though in the end there weren't a lot of surprises -- but the snapshot of a possible post-Troubles future was deftly written. Even someone with little or no understanding of the Troubles or Northern Ireland should easily follow the politics and subsequently the setting Baker creates.

I wasn't surprised by the turns the storyline took, though I certainly enjoyed Baker's writing ability and will look for other books by him. All in all, a worthy debut.

I am an avid reader, and am, in general, open to most styles and opinions. This book was suposed to be a book about Irish suspense; it should really come with a warning "read only if you are of the Unionist/Loyalist mindset." If you are of this mindset, then you will enjoy it. I could not finish it due to the Unionist mindset that infers that everything Irish is inferior; and, of course, everything English is superior.

A fascinating book from beginning to end. Explores both The Troubles and issues that come up when you lose a parent as an adult. Suspenseful and surprising--it will keep you guessing until the end.