The latest titles reveiwed.
The Midnight Choir
Gene Kerrigan, Vintage, £7.99
Good crime novels work on a number of levels. They toss a couple of plot balls in the air and keep them there; they weave an intriguing cast of characters into an organic whole; and they establish a strong sense of place. The Midnight Choir, on this analysis, scores a hat-trick. Set in a grubby Celtic Tiger Dublin, it involves the good, the bad and the wisdom to know the difference. A young drug addict fights to get clean and get her son out of care; a controversial detective swims against a tide of armed robbers, serial rapists and institutional corruption. But who's on the side of the angels? Frankly, it would be hard to over-praise Kerrigan's second crime outing. It's stylish enough to merit comparison with Michael Connelly and Dennis Lehane, yet somehow recognisably us. If you're looking for a terrific holiday read, look no further. Arminta Wallace
Scourge and Fire: Savonarola and Renaissance Italy
Lauro Martines, Pimlico, £8.99
In this fascinating book, Martines recounts the rise and fall of Girolanno Savonarola, a Dominican friar who worked in Florence around the turn of the 16th century. He was a religious zealot who believed he was God's messenger on earth. This was in a period when the rule of the Medici was in a temporary slump and the Republic had come back to life. Enter Savonarola. He tapped into a well of patriotism and his impassioned sermons drew in the multitudes. The only way to eternal salvation was by the strict observance of the holy bible. In time his fearlessness, inevitably perhaps, saw him divert his attentions from religion to politics. A fatal mistake. The Pope and Mediceans conspired against him and sentenced him to be hanged, his body burnt and his ashes thrown into the River Arno. This is a superbly researched tale with impressive narrative power. Owen Dawson
An Bóthar go Santiago
Mícheál de Barra, Cois Life, €18
Mícheál de Barra's An Bóthar go Santiago is a beautifully written meditation on the pilgrimage on the Camino de Santiago de Compostela, Europe's most famous pilgrim walk. The camino or path begins in France, ends in Spain and covers 900 kilometres. It is a challenge for any walker - be they Christian or not - to complete it. De Barra, a former school teacher, shares his experiences along the way and is good company. He is by no means a "holy Joe"; his interest in religion and his surroundings is real and his writing honest. The book can be read as a simple travel guide but de Barra also offers a thoughtful and rich insight into what motivates himself and his fellow pilgrims to undertake such an arduous walk. There is a saying in Irish "Giorraíonn beirt bóthar" (Two people shorten a road). It is certainly true when de Barra is your companion. Pól Ó Muirí
North Face of Soho: More Unreliable Memoirs
Clive James, Picador, £7.99
This is James's fourth volume of memoirs and like the others it is a pleasure to read, not least because you can hear his warm Aussie baritone in your head as you follow the story of his early career "in Grub Street, Fleet Street and television". This was 1970s London and there was some drinking, a bit of dope smoking and many loud polyester shirts. He makes much of his hand-to-mouth existence in the freelance days but in fact it wasn't all that long before he landed a job as TV critic of the Observer, a post he held onto for 10 years. At the same time he was doing cinema-related interviews for ITV and his description of interviewing Burt Lancaster on the set of Michael Winner's film Scorpio alone is worth the price of the book. But it's all witty, wise and, as always, charmingly self-deprecating. Cathy Dillon
Wild Mary: A Life of Mary Wesley
Patrick Marnham, Vintage, £8.99
It was only when she was 70 that Mary Wesley started writing adult fiction - publishing 10 novels (including her best-known, The Camomile Lawn) between then and her death, aged 90. She seemed to apply the same vigour to writing that she had brought to her many lovers during the second World War, when, as a newly-wed, she slipped into bed as quickly as others took refuge in air-aid shelters. But the affairs may have been her refuge - from the insecurity and apparent lack of familial love that cast a dark shadow over her youth, and from the moral and economic contradictions facing aristocratic English families then and in the post-war years. Echoing the turmoil throughout Europe, Marnham captures her personal and public struggles during and after her two marriages, as well as the final triumph over her enemies that opened the way for her success as a novelist. Fionnuala Mulcahy
The Fall Girl
Denise Sewell, Penguin Ireland, €14.99
Life changes for lonely Frances Fall when she is befriended by Lesley, a beautiful and popular girl whose family is frowned upon by the upstanding members of the small Irish provincial town's population. Struggling under her mother's overbearing control and religious zeal, Frances grows in confidence, with Lesley's help, and kicks against convention. On the 18th anniversary of her own baby daughter's death, Frances steals a baby from outside a shop in Dublin. She is forced to look back over her life, reminding herself of the actions which brought her to this sad place, and the possibilities she let pass her by while under her best friend's influence all those years ago. In many ways, she finds out who she is too late for it to make a difference to her life. This is a touching novel of yearning and loss and the consequences of following the heart instead of the head. Claire Looby