A Second Life by Dermot Bolger

In his prologue to the book, Dermot Bolger explains that his original version of the tale, written in the early 90s when his children were small, was one that never fully satisfied him and he always felt it could have been done better. A brave thing for an author to admit, and this reviewer didn’t go the whole hog of reading both versions for a compare and contrast exercise. He also notes, poignantly, that the mother of young children in the book is largely modelled on his own wife Bernie, who died suddenly shortly after he had finished work on the revised novel. Sean Blake has never been easy with the fact that he was adopted as a baby; he has never even told his wife about this basic fact of his existence. When he has vivid images of unknown people after a near-fatal car accident, he decides it is time to face up to his past and embarks on a search for his birth mother. Coincidentally, she is having disturbing dreams of shattering car crashes, and she has never given up hope of being reunited with her much-missed baby boy. As we now know, of course, these tales of enforced bereavement were commonplace in 1940s, ‘50s and ‘60s Ireland. An emotional read.

The Family by Martina Cole

If she were based in the U.S. Martina Cole would doubtless be writing about New Joisey-based Tony Soprano types, but as it is she is the queen of the British gangster class, the loud-mouthed, rough-hewn, diamond geezers who look after their own but wouldn’t hesitate to stick the knife in when they feel they have been crossed. Philip Murphy is a case in point. He loves his mum, adores his glamorous wife Christine and grooms his two young sons to take over the family business. Christine’s family, well-to-do business people with no interest in the crime business, are horrified at her involvement with the rougher Murphys but there isn’t a lot they can say to persuade her of her folly. When something goes wrong for Philip, he’s quick to get revenge, even if the person at the other end of his fists is a sibling or a son. Eventually, the strain of living in such a violent family takes its toll on the delicate Christine, who relies on a combination of booze and pills to keep her going. A messy end is on the cards, but can she head trouble off at the pass?