Page Updated: 08/10/98
Jim Lusby
kneelingat.jpg
About the Author
Bibliography
Kneeling at the AltarKneeling at the Altar Newpbk 16 Jul 98
FlashbackFlashback
Making the CutMaking the Cut



New British Pbk Original - Gollancz (1998)

Kneeling at the Altar
See Review by Val McDermid
A new McCadden mystery from the author of Making the Cut, now a major RTE TV series
A Thursday night in October: D.I. McCadden is hanging around in casualty, waiting for his partner. Detective Garda Rose Donnelly, to be fixed up after she drove them into a lamppost to avoid a child. His attention is caught by the little man with the fruit and the roses, who doesn't seem to be visiting or- waiting for- treatment. and is more interested in who comes in than who leaves. What's he up to?
Whatever it is. it's enough to get him beaten up in the hospital car park by a bunch of amateur vigilantes. And enough to involve McCadden in a labyrinthine case of deceit, persecution and abuse, which leads ultimately to the Christian Brothers and the discovery that the term 'kneeling at the altar' has more than one meaning. But is to believe the worst of a bunch of desiccated old pedagogues mere prejudice, or is there more to the business than that?

'Inspector Carl McCadden has just the right degree of laid-back charm' Guardian
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First British Edition - Gollancz (1996)

Flashback
The Belview Guesthouse overlooks the City of Waterford, Ireland. Popular in theatrical circles, it takes the discovery of a woman's naked body, bludgeoned and flayed and tangled in blood-soaked sheets in one of the bedrooms, to bring Inspector Carl McCadden to the residence. But before he's had time to dig out his copy of Hamlet another body is found in similar circumstances across town in Gracedieu, and McCadden finds himself plunged into the murky world of amateur Players, 'home-movie' makers and the local alternative comedy circuit …
'The Irish setting makes for a pleasant change and Inspector Carl McCadden has just the right degree of laid-back charm' Guardian


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Paperback - Vista

Making the Cut
See Review by Phyllis Davis
Exactly what was Billy Power - machinist at the plastics factory, keeper of greyhounds, and Jack the-lad about Waterford - involved in?
Unshaven, unorthodox and unpopular with his superiors, DI Carl McCadden finds straight answers about Power, or anything else, hard to come by. And as McCadden searches for the truth through the bleak and dilapidated housing estates, the bars and the dog tracks of Waterford, byzantine business machinations and self-righteous politicking serve only to muddy the waters …

'A distinctive and original debut, with more feeling for atmosphere and more sense of character than most crime stories' Evening Standard
'An exciting read, a fine first effort from a welcome newcomer' Irish Times
"...a welcome arrival on the scene... an entertaining range of strong and credible characters, neatly plotted, it shows an Ireland that tourists never see" Manchester Evening News
'McCadden's a lively old type, full of maverick offbeatery ... Lusby's prose is similarly lively' Oxford Times 'A finely written police procedureal… an impressive debut' Morning Star

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About The Author
Jim Lusby is Waterford-born, and now lives in Dublin. A former Hennessy award-winner for his short stories, he has also written for the stage and radio.
Jim Lusby also writes as James Kennedy

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Bibliography
N.B. dates and publishers in dark red indicate British First Editions. Dates and publishers in black indicate recent reprints.

  • Kneeling at the Altar (Gollancz Pbk, 1998) New Pbk Jul 98 (Carl McCadden)
  • Silent City (Heinemann, 1998) Writing as James Kennedy
  • Flashback (Gollancz, 1996) (Carl McCadden)
  • Making the Cut (Gollancz, 1995) (Carl McCadden)

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