Returning from studying for a law degree in Dublin and investigative techniques from the Parisian police force, Justy Flanagan is a man with one goal; to find out who murdered his father and why. The author has done his research into New York in the late 1700s and interestingly the concept for the book was intended for a factual book about the Panic of 1792. In places the descriptions were a little prosaic and I felt there was some explanations that were clearly written for an American audience (the author lives in LA and the book was published in the US a month and a half before the UK) but overall the concept was a good one and the story well written. As the book goes on you can tell the author really go into the rhythm of writing and becomes more confident in his story telling. The use of Irish/American slang was a little hard to get to grips with to start with. There is a glossy at the back of the book but I tried not to use this. Most of the terminology was easy enough to work out and flipping back and forth every few pages would only have served to ruin the flow of the story. There was a little repetition of words or descriptions that irritated me and Justy seemed to spend a good proportion of the book either blushing or feeling shameful (but still carrying on with the deed that made him feel shame!). The plot has some good twists, but I felt that each chapter, at least for the first half of the book, ended too neatly. There was nothing in the way the chapter ended that made me want to continue reading right away to find out what happened. I felt that a number of the characters were a little two dimensional which lead to some of the things that happened in the book being a little predictable. On balance I think The Devil's Half Mile is very good debut novel and an interesting an enjoyable read for fans of historical fiction. A strong 3.5 stars.

'The devils half mile' was a good book, it was well wrote and immersive, I could picture New York in the 1790's and all the characters there, following 'Justy' as he first steps of the boat and back to his home. There was plenty happening in the book to keep me turning the pages and I could lose myself in the writing. Though once I put the book down I did not necessarily feel compelled to pick it back up again, because I felt you could open it at any point in the book and feel you hadn't missed much. It was a good book though with a good plot, that I would recommend it to a friend. The detail of the writing was what really made this book for me, from the description of the streets of New York to how the characters spoke to eachother, the writer really takes you to the place of the plot.

I was thrilled to win this book on readers first as I thought it was just up my street - combining historical fiction with crime. It was paced well and the characters were well developed, but I would have liked a little more historical insight into the time. The author himself acknowledges that the book started as an historical fiction novel, but as he researched and started to write the crime fiction took over. I read this book quickly and in the main it was enjoyable, Although at times the pace was slowed by the need to look up the Irish slang in the glossary at the back and the large sections which were written in speech. I prefer prose with the odd quotation rather than swathes of dialogue almost like a play. I’m aware i’m Sounding negative, which is unfair as overall this is a very well written book, fast paced with well-developed characters and worth a read!

As a fan of C J Sanson and historical fiction I was eager to read this book. Paddy Hersch does not have the same quality of writing that fully gave me pictures and smells off New York in 1770. The story starts slow but it does pick up good pace later on. Story line is good and give a good insight to the corrupt financial dealers of that time. Though I fully enjoyed the book I could not get pictures of some of the characters in my mind. Saying that it is a book I would recommend. I though the book cover was excellent and would have down my attention on any bookshelf. What it did inform me of was the amount of travel that could be taken during that period of time. Overall a satisfactory read.

This is one book I am really not sure about. Currently I am sitting on the fence, although if I was to persevere with with reading it I am sure it would certainly be a good story. Set in the very late eighteen hundreds, Justy is in search of the man who murdered his father. This book is very well written, in such a way that the reader is transported into the story, into a world of violence and corruption. The descriptive nature of this book can really engulf you. It is very easy to picture the settings and how New York is portrayed in the 18th century. There are a variety of characters to get to grips with, some of whom may not be to pleasant. I'm not sure that this book is for me, but I certainly wouldn't discourage others from enjoying it