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A Strafford and Quirke Mystery 2 Books Collection Set by John Banville

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Please Note That The Following Individual Books As Per Original ISBN and Cover Image In this Listing shall be Dispatched

A Strafford and Quirke Mystery 2 Books Collection Set by John

April in
When Dublin pathologist Quirke glimpses a familiar face while on holiday with his wife, it's hard, at first, to tell whether his imagination is just running away with him. Could she really be who he thinks she is, and have a connection with a crime that nearly brought ruin to an Irish political dynasty? Unable to ignore his instincts, Quirke makes a call back home and Detective St John Strafford is soon dispatched to Spain. But he's not the only one on as a terrifying hitman hunts down his prey, they are all set for a brutal showdown.


Detective Inspector St John Strafford is called in from Dublin to investigate a murder at Ballyglass House - the Co. Wexford family seat of the aristocratic, secretive Osborne family. Facing obstruction from all angles, Strafford carries on determinedly in his pursuit of the murderer. However, as the snow continues to fall over this ever-expanding mystery, the people of Ballyglass are equally determined to keep their secrets.

736 pages, Paperback

Published May 20, 2023

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About the author

John Banville

140 books2,510 followers
William John Banville is an Irish novelist, short story writer, adapter of dramas and screenwriter. Though he has been described as "the heir to Proust, via Nabokov", Banville himself maintains that W.B. Yeats and Henry James are the two real influences on his work.
Banville has won the 1976 James Tait Black Memorial Prize, the 2003 International Nonino Prize, the 2005 Booker Prize, the 2011 Franz Kafka Prize, the 2013 Austrian State Prize for European Literature and the 2014 Prince of Asturias Award for Literature. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in 2007. Italy made him a Cavaliere of the Ordine della Stella d'Italia (essentially a knighthood) in 2017. He is a former member of Aosdána, having voluntarily relinquished the financial stipend in 2001 to another, more impoverished, writer.
Banville was born and grew up in Wexford town in south-east Ireland. He published his first novel, Nightspawn, in 1971. A second, Birchwood, followed two years later. "The Revolutions Trilogy", published between 1976 and 1982, comprises three works, each named in reference to a renowned scientist: Doctor Copernicus, Kepler and The Newton Letter. His next work, Mefisto, had a mathematical theme. His 1989 novel The Book of Evidence, shortlisted for the Booker Prize and winner of that year's Guinness Peat Aviation award, heralded a second trilogy, three works which deal in common with the work of art. "The Frames Trilogy" is completed by Ghosts and Athena, both published during the 1990s. Banville's thirteenth novel, The Sea, won the Booker Prize in 2005. In addition, he publishes crime novels as Benjamin Black — most of these feature the character of Quirke, an Irish pathologist based in Dublin.
Banville is considered a contender for the Nobel Prize in Literature. He lives in Dublin.

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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
150 reviews
May 9, 2025
Only read "Snow" - there wasn't a selection for just the single book.
409 reviews2 followers
January 4, 2025
3.5 the writing is good but I chose this book because I enjoyed Snow which featured set. Strafford and this was listed as book 2 in the Quirke and Strafford series. Strafford didn't appear until 2/3 through the book. because the writing is good, the characters well drawn I will give the next one a try.
Profile Image for Miriam.
689 reviews9 followers
September 23, 2024
I read Snow only. I don't know why are the three titles of the series. Anyway, it is very well written, though very dark and sad.
2 reviews1 follower
October 21, 2024
Only read Snow. There was no option for just this book.
38 reviews
January 17, 2026
Set in Ireland. The detective Strafford is thwarted by the people of Ballyglass. Atmospheric description. This book deals with priests and pederasty
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews