Flynn BerryRecensioni
Autore di Under the Harrow
Recensioni
Northern Spy: Reese's Book Club (A Novel) di Flynn Berry
Für ihren Debütroman wurde die amerikanische Autorin Flynn Berry mit dem Edgar Award ausgezeichnet, dem bedeutendsten Preis für Kriminalromane. „Northern Spy“ ist ihr dritter Roman, der geschickt die politische Lage in Nordirland mit der persönlichen Geschichte der zwei Schwestern verbindet.
Niemand ist unpolitisch in Nordirland. Selbst wenn man sich nicht positionieren will, hat man doch gewisse Pubs, die man besucht, und ein Umfeld, dass klar der einen oder anderen Seite zuzuordnen ist. Neutralität gibt es nicht, auch wenn Tessa und ihre Familie das lange Zeit glauben. Mit dem Überfall und der zweifelsfreien Zuordnung von Marian zur IRA scheinen sowieso alle Fragen beantwortet. Auch die Folgen bekommen Tessa und ihre Mutter unmittelbar zu spüren, nicht nur die Befragung durch die Polizei, sondern auch die beruflichen Konsequenzen, die sie für das Handeln Marians tragen müssen, lassen sie für das Handeln Marians bezahlen.
Die Autorin bietet einige Überraschungen, die jedoch immer auch einen Funken Zweifel mit sich schwingen lassen. Sagen die Figuren die Wahrheit oder spielen sie doch nur eine Rolle? Zwischen Freund und Feind, Agent und Doppelagent scheint lange alles möglich.
Ein spannungsreicher Krimi, der mehr auf der persönlichen Ebene als auf der politischen spielt. Der Konflikt zwischen den katholischen Nordiren und den englischen Besatzern liefert nur die Kulisse und wird durch das persönliche Schicksal überlagert. Daher sicher kein politischer Roman, sondern eher einer, der psychologisch von den Figuren viel abverlangt.
The premise of the story is that the IRA has gone underground but is still active despite the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. It explores how far we will go to protect family and whom to protect when we cannot protect everyone. As a story of family, difficult decisions, and suspenseful situations, it is effective. However, I do not think the author sets up the historical context very well. She immensely oversimplifies the issues involved in The Troubles. It would have made more sense to set the story in the 1970s - 1990s. It reads like an alternate history, which is, perhaps, the author’s intent, but it should be made clear to the reader.
As a producer for the BBC, Tessa one day sees security footage of an IRA robbery. Her sister Marian is one of the robbers. Tessa goes from disbelief to anger to becoming involved herself, although reluctantly. She never approves of the IRA's tactics; they frighten her. But she does what she does for eventual peace.
NORTHERN SPY is my first Flynn Berry book. Now I'm eager to read her previous two books.
SWEDISH REVIEW
Jag kände mig väldigt kluven under tiden jag läste boken. En del av mig ville verkligen få reda på sanningen om Rachels död, men samtidigt så hade jag svårt för själva berättarstilen. Första persons perspektiv kan vara lurigt. Ibland funkar det, ibland funkar det inte lika bra. Med Sargad måste jag erkänna att jag kämpade med det.
Själva story funkar tack vare att man inte vet om det förflutna har något med Rachels död att göra samt att Nora faktiskt beter sig konstigt, som om hon har något att dölja. Men i och med att det är Nora som är berättaren, så känns det som om man sitter fast i hennes huvud, och hennes tankegångar är inte alltid så klara. Däremot så fann jag inte tillbakablickarna på det förflutna när Nora och rachel var unga så svåra att hänga med i.
Men vad jag verkligen saknade var beskrivningar. Språket kändes så torftigt och det var svårt att få grepp om de andra karaktärerna i boken eftersom Nora i stort sett bara nämnde dem vid namn med aldrig riktigt gav en målande bild av dem. Vilket gjorde att de var lätt att glömda. Detsamma kan sägas om omgivningar etc.
Det är själva fallet, mordet på Rachel som gav liv till denna bok. Jag ville verkligen får reda på vem som hade mördat henne och varför. Och jag är glad att jag fortsatte läsa boken för trots mina problem med berättarstilen så var boken helt OK med ett slut som inte var tillrättalagt.
Tack till Louise Bäckelin Förlag för recensionsexemplaret!
ENGLISH REVIEW
I felt that I was on the fence about this book during the time I read it. Part of me really wanted to find out the truth about Rachel's death, but at the same time, was I having trouble with the narrative. First person's perspective can be tricky. Sometimes it works, sometimes it does not work as well. In Under the Harrow, do I have to admit that I was struggling with it.
The story itself works because you do not know if the past has anything to do with Rachel's death and that Nora actually behaves strangely as if she has something to hide makes the story more thrilling. But, because Nora is the narrator, it feels like being stuck in her head, and her thoughts are not always so clear. On the other hand, I did not find the flashbacks to the past when Nora and Rachel were young that hard to keep up with.
What I really missed was descriptions. The language felt so meager and it was difficult to grasp the other characters in the book because Nora basically just mentioned them by name with never really giving a good description of them. Which made them easy to forget. The same goes for the landscape, etc.
It's the case, the murder of Rachel who gave life to this book. I really wanted to find out who had murdered her and why. And I'm glad I continued reading the book, despite the narrative problems, as the book was okay with an ending that I felt worked well thanks to not being too obvious.
Thanks to Louise Bäckelin Förlag for the review copy!
Twenty plus years ago upper crust English gentleman Colin meets working class woman Faye whilst on dates with other people. They leave the restaurant together and seem to hit it off. Faye finds Colin is just a regular fellow and has no idea of his wealth or upbringing.
One evening Colin takes Faye to a friend's house for a dinner party. This is the first time she meets James and Rose. From her description it’s like arriving on a masterpiece theater or national trust property. In spite of the fact his friends are from a different social and class level than she has ever been involved in, they seem to except her and she has a good time.
Eventually Colin grows tired of Faye and leaves their home and their two children. One night, allegedly, he returns to their home armed with a pipe and beats the nanny to death then tries to murder Faye. Colin flat out disappears afterwards. His car with blood covered searts is found abandoned near a cliff but no one can find him.
Afterwards Faye takes Claire and her infant son Robbie to Scotland to start a new life. There are hundreds of domestic violence cases and murders reported annually in the U.K. but as Colin was a Lord and policically connected, this particular murder and assault case stays in the news. People blog about the details and wonder where Faye and her children went. Did he do it or was it a burglar? Naturally the family needed to disappear and start over.
So that was the backstory woven in but the focus is on how Claire and her brother Robbie handle their lives with so much tragedy in their backgrounds. It seems to obsess Claire especially as she is contacted by police every few years with a "sighting of her father" and it dredges everything up again. The settings are London, Scotland and Coatia.
I loved Flynn Berry's novel Northern Spy so I thought I'd try another of her books. I liked it better but I am now going to read her first novel Under the Harrow next.
Tessa Daly, a young divorcee and mother of a young son, works as a news producer for BBC News Belfast. She discovers that her sister Marian is a member of the IRA after her involvement in an armed robbery. Wanting her son to grow up in a safe Ireland, Tessa agrees to help her sister who convinces her that she is in fact working to achieve peace. Tessa’s involvement brings her into contact with dangerous militants and into taking part in actions that are morally compromising.
Much of the focus is on Tessa’s internal conflict: what should she do? Since her priority is the welfare of her son Finn, she asks herself, “would a good mother take Finn away from this place, or keep him close to his father? Would a good mother work for peace, or stay away from the conflict? Would a good mother be preoccupied with terrorism during every minute she has spent with her son this week?” Her notions of right and wrong, her bond with her sister, and her loyalty are tested. She becomes more and more disoriented as she struggles with what to do to protect her sister and her son and to help create a peaceful Ireland.
I had several issues with this book. One is the setting. Tessa, the narrator, begins by stating, “My sister and I were born near the end of the Troubles. We were children in 1998, when the Good Friday Agreement was signed” yet the Ireland she describes is very much pre-GFA. Not all issues in Northern Ireland have been solved, but the novel exaggerates the state of violence; the political climate and extensive sectarian violence the author describes are more appropriate to pre-1998.
Another problem is that the conflict is over-simplified. In the opening pages, Tessa says, “The basic argument of the Troubles hadn’t been resolved: most Catholics still wanted a united Ireland, most Protestants wanted to remain part of the UK.” There is no real effort to capture the complexities of the conflict. It didn’t surprise me to learn that the author is not Irish but an American whose understanding of the situation is superficial.
There are many improbable events. Cameras capture Marian’s face before she puts on her mask prior to a robbery. This is the behaviour of an experienced IRA member? Once Marian is identified as an IRA member, her family would be under police surveillance, so having the IRA try to recruit Tessa makes no sense whatsoever. Marian is known to police but she still manages to keep meeting her sister in public locations? And don’t get me started on the novel’s conclusion: there are just so many holes in the resolution. The IRA wouldn’t know the identity of Tessa’s ex-husband who shares custody of Finn? The author certainly has little understanding of how police and intelligence operate certain programs.
It seems that Flynn Berry wants to portray the realities of life in Northern Ireland and the difficult choices faced by those living there, but she is disrespectful and does a disservice by both simplifying the conflict and exaggerating the violence. I should not be surprised that the novel was chosen by the Reese Witherspoon book club; like many of the book selections, there is a lot of hype and much less substance.
Note: Please check out my reader's blog (https://schatjesshelves.blogspot.com/) and follow me on Twitter (@DCYakabuski).
Tessa works as a producer for the BBC in Belfast. She is only recently back at work after taking maternity leave to have her son. She looks up during the segment she produces to see a news clip about a robbery at a gas station and is gobsmacked to recognize her own sister, Marian, as one of the people pulling a balaclava on before the robbery. The police say the robbery was done by the IRA. Tessa is sure Marian was forced into taking part so she cooperates with the police hoping they will find Marian. However, the police know that Marian has been working with the IRA for some time and reluctantly Tessa admits that Marian has hid things from her. When Marian finally seeks her out in a secluded spot she confirms that she has been an IRA supporter for a number of years. She also tells Tessa that recently she became a double agent, passing information on to her handler in MI5 in the hopes that there will be a peaceful end to the Irish/English turmoil. She asks Tessa to funnel information to her handler because she is in hiding and can't meet anyone outside of Tessa and her mother. Tessa thus has to pretend to support the IRA as well and soon she is taking part in IRA operations. The tension builds and builds.
Having visited Northern Ireland in 2019 I could quite easily visualize the country side Berry described. I am happy to say that we didn't notice any signs of IRA violence although we did get stopped one day driving back to our cottage because the Orangemen were parading. So there is still religious tension there and probably always will be.
Bodies can still be found in bogs, searches are conducted to find informers the IRA had disappeared, at certain funerals, men in ski masks would suddenly appear in the cortage, chamber their handguns and fire shots over the coffin. This is how many people lived in the Belfast area, wondering daily if there was a credible threat.
The story focuses on two sisters. Marian and Tessa. Marian is not married and has been a paramedic for over six years. Her face is always so open and bemused while her sister Tessa's expression tends to be more grave, her having to reassure people she's not worried about anything.
Tessa is divorced and mother of a 6 month old boy named Finn. She works at the BBC in Belfast and is asked by some friends how she can work for the English. She went to university at Trinity College is a program reporter, working with political guests.
We start with Tessa narrating and learn Marian is on a vacation to swim and explore caves in the north. Neither Tessa or her mother can get ahold of Marian but they assume she's in cellular dead zone or simply having fun exploring.
Then a robbery and raid happen at a local gas station the news anchor asks for help identifying those responsible. Tessa stares at the images of the terrorists and suddenly sees her sister's face on screen, Marian pulling a black ski mask over her face. Tessa's world dissolves.
The only negative in this narrative is the description of The Troubles as if it's a current situation. Perhaps I missed the time frame in this book but it had the feel of being set in present time or a few years earlier. The plot appears to be during the height of the violence and near the peace agreement which would put it around 1994, right? That being said, I loved the book and couldn't put it down.
I see why this is a best seller with over 3,400 four star ratings. I plan to read all of Flynn Berry's novels in the near future.
The novel is about two sisters. One, Marian, becomes a terrorist, unbeknownst to her family. For years she has led a double life. She is a terrorist with the Irish Republican Army, (the IRA). The Irish rebels
do not want to be a colony of Great Britain, but rather they want freedom to become a socialist republic. Marian is not only a terrorist with the IRA, but secretly, she is also an informer for the British. She is hoping to help bring about a cease fire and an end to the years of constant fear and violence. Her sister, Tessa, has recently been divorced. Her husband was disloyal and had an affair with another woman. She has an infant, Finn, 3 months old to whom she is totally devoted. The family is Catholic. They were caught completely unawares when Marian was identified as a terrorist.
Tessa works for the British Broadcasting Company, (the BBC). Marion is a paramedic. Their mom does domestic work. When Marion’s secret life becomes public, Tessa and her mom’s life is thrown into upheaval. Marian begs Tessa to help her inform since Marian is no longer able to safely contact her handler. No one will suspect Tessa if Marian gives her messages to take to him. The British have promised to extract her sister if there is the slightest danger. Supposedly, she has a tracking device in a filling in her tooth which she can use to signal them if she is in danger. To save/help Marian, Tessa begins informing the British. It isn’t as simple as it seems, though. Soon, the IRA also solicits her help, help she cannot refuse to give without putting Marian in danger, once again. Because the sisters are so close, suspicions will rise if she hesitates. She is expected to support Marian and the IRA. Now she is also a terrorist.
Their lives are getting more and more compromised and complicated. What will happen if neither side continues to trust them or if law enforcement begins to suspect their secret double lives? Tessa’s position is untenable. She cannot back out of either situation without arousing suspicion. She fears for her son, as well. Tessa is now also hoping that a cease fire happens quickly so that she can be free of the secretive and dangerous life she is now leading.
The IRA is very powerful and everyone is afraid of them. You cannot cross them without being severely punished, beaten or murdered. They seem to have spies everywhere. The novel is about the desire for freedom and independence, about secrets and deception, about betrayal, but also loyalty. However, to whom does one owe loyalty, family, the terrorists, the British, or simply oneself? Do any means justify the ends? Innocents are often caught up in the morass.
Although there are moments when credibility is doubtful regarding the outcome of certain events, the novel is mostly well written and seemed historically accurate regarding the Irish fight for independence, the formidable power of the IRA, the Catholic/Protestant conflict, and the desire for independence and religious freedom regardless of the brutal consequences. Both the Irish and the British used coercion, betrayal and reprisals to maintain their influence and power during the conflict.
I found it difficult to determine the exact timeline since the only measure was the progression of Tessa’s child, Finn, as he grew older and more independent, but the terrorism described actually did take took place and there was an eventual cease fire. The religious struggle and the struggle against colonialism coupled with the portrayal of the Northern Ireland Catholics vs. Ireland’s Protestant population feels authentic. The narrator does an admirable job reading the novel with the right amount of emotion and accent depending on the situation. The narrator creates an atmosphere of the times with all the stress and unrest that is palpable.
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