“Maybe if he had one more drink they’d leave him alone.” So says the man in the bar with his 12 ghostly companions. Well, you learn that on the first page and are immediately pulled into “The Ghosts of Belfast” by Stuart Neville.

Now that Northern Ireland is at peace, it would seem there is less material around for a thriller. And you’d think that an ex-hit man would not be a good main character. But this book proves those ideas wrong. Certainly the peace is there but there is a bit of tension still in the air, mostly behind the scenes. And then there is a certain aftermath. Gerry Fegan had gained a certain status in his Belfast as a killer for the IRA but is now hounded by his past. It is hard to imagine feeling sympathy for a professional killer but somehow Neville manages manages that neat trick.

The peace is fragile. I don’t want to say too much about it as the presentation here is both wonderful and depressing and I certainly don’t want to try to summarize or say so much than it ruins some of your pleasure in reading about it here. Both sides (the IRA and Unionists) have their politicians and violent sides and there is a tension within and between. The book is does have a good bit of violence so if that sort of thing bothers you, this may not be a good choice for you. But if you enjoy a good story, try it now. The link below is for the paperback but it is easy enough to move around and get the hardback or the Kindle edition if you’d rather have one of those.

The book is published by Soho Crime. If you like good books, especially with an international flavor, you might want to check out Soho Press.