Collusion

By: Stuart Neville

Narrated by: Gerard Doyle

Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins

Publisher's summary

From the LA Times Book Award-winning author of The Ghosts of Belfast, Stuart Neville, comes the exciting sequel: Collusion

Collusion returns listeners to Belfast, where a new mystery haunts its underbelly. Jack Lennon is a Detective Inspector trying to track down his former lover, Marie McKenna, and their daughter, but his superiors tell him to back off. Bull O'Kane is a bitter old man who will stop at nothing for vengeance. The Traveller is an assassin without pity or remorse, who stalks Belfast, tying up loose ends. Forced into the center of it all is former IRA paramilitary Gerry Fegan, who must confront his past - and The Traveller - for the fight of his life.

The early reviews for Collusion are just as strong as those for The Ghosts of Belfast. And Gerard Doyle's narration complements Neville's taut, sinister, smart, and suspenseful story perfectly. Collusion is a feast for thriller fans.

©2010 Stuart Neville (P)2010 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Irish author Neville follows his stunning debut with an even more powerful tale of revenge, violence, and redemption. Neville rides the perfect Celtic storm in an action-packed, cerebral thriller." ( Publishers Weekly)
"James Ellroy and Val McDermid were among admirers of Stuart Neville's corpse-filled debut [ The Ghosts of Belfast], and his follow-up Collusion is another mesmerising Belfast blood bath. The Traveller and O'Kane are memorably grotesque creations, and Neville's violent showdowns rival those in Jacobean revenge plays." ( Sunday Times)
" Collusion is a gripping thriller that transcends its genre through an unflinching examination of how 40 years of internecine strife has left unhealed scars that resonate in all levels of life in the North today." ( Irish Independent)

"As it lurches toward its bloody conclusion, the chapters of Collusion shrink, the world contracts, and, ultimately, all that remains is survival. The question Mr. Neville raises with singularly artful drama is whether survival is enough to keep one going." ( Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

"Doyle’s performance of Lennon’s grit and vulnerabilities gives credibility to both, and his portrayals of the brutal villains are downright terrifying." ( AudioFile)

Relentless violence

A bleak story about post IRA violence in Belfast. Interesting beginning, with a promising theme: during the "troubles" ideological lines were blurred by collusion and corruption. But the characters live in, through and by violence and suffering. Onle Doyle's narration kept it going

A Must for fans of Irish thrillers

For all those who suffered withdrawal symptoms after reading Adrian McGinty's trilogy of violence and revenge, fear not, for here is Stuart Neville, promising to keep you on the edge of your seat or driving around the block. This is the sequel to Ghosts of Belfast, which should be read first. Gerard Doyle, as always, is terrific.

Good, but not as good as "Ghosts of Belfast".

Well written and descriptive, but the plot is much thinner than "Ghosts". This is more a revenge tale with a fairly predictable ending. I love Gerard Doyle's narration - I find myself using much of the slang from the book for days after finishing the listen (sometimes that's dangerous). As a sequel to "Ghosts", I felt it didn't add much to wrapping up the story. I'll miss Gerry Fagan since he was a much more interesting character than Jack Lennon. Buy Gerry's a stud - maybe he'll come back in book three since his "death" was somewhat ambiguous.....

Tough Conclusion to Ghosts of Belfast

Hard but not as brutal as the first part of this epic Irish crime adventure. Read Ghosts of Belfast first. Wait a bit, then finish the story with "Collusion". Again Gerard Doyle makes this experience greater than reading the novel. You will have flashbacks… They're worth it. This story is gripping.Enjoy…


Now… Spoiler Alert… Don't read any farther if you've not read this novel.


How the hell did the hero detective get outta that basement? Was their a chapter missing in my download? Somebody help!

Lennon certainly isn't Gerry... too bad too.

I read Ghosts of Belfast and enjoyed it so much that I immediately bought this book.

I have to start by admitting that I was slightly disappointed: the main reason I had liked Ghosts of Belfast so much was because of Gerry's character and the nature of his vigilantism. I had hoped this book would have the same tone, but it does not, quite... sure, it is still an action thriller, and the main characters act outside the rules, but Lennon certainly is not Gerry. And there isn't the twist/suspense as to whether or not the main character was sane.

The setting is the same as book one, and includes quite a bit of Irish politics. I think a lot of the tension in the novel is based on these "Troubles". Being North American, I am not familiar with the setting, and likely did not appreciate the situation as much as I would have if I were familiar with this background (i.e. Lennon being a Catholic cop seems to be a "bad" thing for his generation, but I am not sure why, exactly).

Anyway, there is just enough of Gerry in the story for the author to be able to add Gerry's name to the blurb. This story is really about Lennon, and Bull needing to get revenge for being injured in book one. There is a lot of violence, perhaps a bit more violence than in book one - believe it or not - but for the most part it is not gory, and it fits the story. The 'bad guy' here, though, is a bit too much... he is a step more powerful, stronger, faster, etc, than even Gerry was and, since this is not supposed to have a supernatural tone to it, it was perhaps just a bit too much... nobody is that perfect, especially when they are so badly injured that most people wouldn't be able to defeat their great grannies in a fight.

All in all though? It is a fast paced action thriller where the bad guys get their just desserts in the end - sorta. I will read the next in the series, but I really do miss Gerry as the star of these novels. Even though the accents can be a bit tough to follow, the narration is good. There are, however, a lot of 'mouth sounds' from the narrator... it wasn't annoying, but it was noticeable.

A different kind of book

I now have read both of the Gerry Fagan books and enjoyed them both. The main characters were not nice people but Mr. Neville found a way to make the sympathetic. Of course I'm not including the so called love interest. These were different kind of books for me and enjoyed them thoroughly. And the narrator was also good. My first narrator that did it with the Irish accent

A Truely Great Book and The Best Reader Ever!

My God, this book and terrific reader are a combination made in heaven. It's a terrible sad, violent but beautiful story. The sad case of Northern Ireland teamed with wonderful character development makes the book truely great. The performance is simply outstanding. I've never heard anything like it. Wonderful!

Great narrator. Good book.

Gerard Doyle is one of my favorite narrators. He never lets me down in the way he captures the characters. His voice is soothing and easy to listen to.

This is a captivating series. I finished book 1 and 2 within two days because I was so caught up in them.

Brilliantly written & narrated

I was thrilled to find a follow-up to The Ghosts Of Belfast. Tragic human nature.

Excellent conclusion to The Ghosts of Belfast

Great story that blends strong, determined characters and a real sense of menace and violence with a creepy, other-worldly element that might be supernatural or might be an artefact of the main characters' worn and broken psychologies. Gérard Doyle is as nuanced, moving and terrifying a narrator as ever. I don't know if he ever really was a paramilitary hard man, but I wouldn't want to meet him on a bad day.