The Lock-Up

A Novel

By: John Banville

Narrated by: John Lee

Length: 8 hrs and 29 mins

Publisher's summary

*NATIONAL BESTSELLER*
A New York Times Editors' Choice

Booker Prize winner and “Irish master” (The New Yorker) John Banville’s most ambitious crime novel yet brings two detectives together to solve a globe-spanning mystery

In 1950s Dublin, Rosa Jacobs, a young history scholar, is found dead in her car. Renowned pathologist Dr. Quirke and DI St. John Strafford begin to investigate the death as a murder, but it’s the victim’s older sister Molly, an established journalist, who discovers a lead that could crack open the case.

One of Rosa’s friends, it turns out, is from a powerful German family that arrived in Ireland under mysterious circumstances shortly after World War II. But as Quirke and Strafford close in, their personal lives may put the case—and everyone involved—in peril, including Quirke’s own daughter.

Spanning the mountaintops of Italy, the front lines of World War II Bavaria, the gritty streets of Dublin and other unexpected locales, The Lock-Up is an ambitious and arresting mystery by one of the world’s most celebrated authors.

©2023 John Banville (P)2023 Harlequin Enterprises, Limited

Disappointed

Not a likable protagonist. Predictable story, I will not listen to another book by this author.

Worth a listen....

But I found the story repetitive of Banville's earlier books: Corruption in the Church and in government. Outcome is bad in some parts and not so bad. The corruption is made known. But, of course, stamping out corruption continues to be a centuries ongoing effort.

Banville is an excellent writer. Great details and metaphor. Perhaps I should wait a bit between books. I just finished April in Spain and went immediately to The Lock-Up. .Also excellent writing. Excellent description of setting and characters.

John Lee is absolutely a fabulous narrator!! He does the Irish accent to perfection as well as differentiating between characters.

Disappointing

Banville writes beautifully but on this one I think Banville wrote himself into a corner that would have made the conclusion far too predictable. Instead of saving the story with a much needed surprise twist, he contrived a disappointing denouement. It felt as though he had just gotten tired of trying to write a story that he'd never really gotten a good handle on.

No mystery here

There are so many tired old tropes in this story. John Lee narration is excellent and only reason I finished this book.

Disappointing

Certainly not up to the standards of the other books in the Doctor Quirk series by Benjamin Black/John Banville. John Lee’s performances are almost identical in all his other readings and have “grown old”.

Twist in the Epilogue

Another eloquent Banville read to add to a long list of award winning , beautifully written books.

Another brilliant banville mystery

Intricate & complex plot, compelling characters, engaging mystery—Banville never disappoints! I like the way pieces of the story are situated historically at the end of WWII & in the following decades, the way religion & politics in Ireland & Israel are woven into the plot, and the way that as readers we often need to rethink what we thought we knew!

Sexual Prowess

Banville is an excellent writer and storyteller but I thought he was a bit heavy handed in writing about the sex with Jewesses. Almost like Rebecca in Ivanhoe. As a Jewish woman, I can tell you we’re like all other women. Appetites differ🤔

Sadly Deadly Dull

I could listen to John Lee read the phone book
Love his narration but this story was very uninteresting

I returned the book

The narrators accent was hard to understand and made it difficult to concentrate on the story