East of Innocence

Daniel Connell #1

by David Thorne (Pseudonym), David Cadji-Newby

One man. On the hunt for the truth. On the edge of London. And way outside the law.

Daniel Connell is a disgraced ex-City lawyer now scraping a living in Essex, a man trying to escape the long shadows of his past. When an old childhood friend visits him, asking for his help with a case of police brutality, Daniel wants nothing to do with it. But obligations are obligations, and he soon finds himself on the wrong end of police attention, and dragged into the shady business of a local gangster. But there is far more at stake than he could ever have anticipated - including the mystery of what happened to his mother, who disappeared months after he was born.

Daniel must keep ahead of his pursuers long enough to uncover the bloody mysteries of the past - and the fate of another young woman, too innocent to protect herself in the midst of a dangerous game.

Welcome to Essex.

Genres: Fiction, Crime, Audiobook, Suspense, Contemporary, Mystery

314 pages, Paperback

First published January 2, 2014

About the author

David Thorne has worked as a writer for the last 15 years, originally in advertising, then in television and radio comedy. He has written material for many comedians, including Jimmy Carr, Alan Carr, David Mitchell and Bob Mortimer. He was a major contributor to the BAFTA-winning Armstrong and Miller Show, and has worked on shows including Facejacker, Harry and Paul and Alan Carr: Chatty Man. Nothing Sacred is his second novel in the Daniel Connell series, after East of Innocence.

Reviews

[Hermien · Rating 2 out of 5]

After a promising start it went steadily downhill with some gruesome bits towards the end that I found hard to stomach.

[Mandy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hard hitting gangster thriller. Listened on audiobook, read by Rupert Degas - brilliant.

[Antonella Imperiali · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vicende famigliari, personali e professionali si intrecciano in un contesto malsano, corrotto e violento.
Non è un giallo classico, né un thriller, forse più un noir.
Ha delle situazioni avvincenti, a volte abbastanza tese, ma, nonostante vi sia molta carne al fuoco, i momenti di stanca sono frequenti e, anche se il tipo di scrittura non è tra i miei preferiti, riconosco che si fa leggere.
Insomma, ho variato il mio giudizio di capitolo in capitolo. Alla fine è venuto fuori un 2,5/5 arrotondato a 3/5.


🗣 Parola del mese (apr/22): innocenza
🌍 LdM - Sfida 2022: Gialli

[Sue Fry · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this novel! It was a real page-turner with some interesting characters. I can't wait to read the sequel!

[Erin L · Rating 1 out of 5]

Not a great selection for me. Now, I feel like I need to highlight that I'm reading this during self-isolation due to covid-19 and during a period where I was focussed a little too tightly on the negatives in the news and in my life so it probably wasn't a good time for this book (not marking it as read or giving it a starred review due to that).

While reading this, I realized I just didn't care. The main character is an idiot who doesn't like anyone, including his own "client." But who can blame him when the guy leaves town and leaves him holding the bag? And I dreaded picking it up every night which isn't what I need right now.

I read about halfway through and I don't see this as a series with a protagonist that I'm not going to really enjoy reading about. BUT, because of where we are int he world right now, I'm saving it, putting it back on the shelf and planning to pick it up again in the future.

[Wide Eyes, Big Ears! · Rating 5 out of 5]

Daniel Connell grew up in a tough neighbourhood with no mother and a hard-hitting petty gangster for a father. This is the province of hard men for whom pride is everything and the smallest slight must be responded to with violence. Despite his achievements as a lawyer, Daniel’s past and his anger never seem far away, he can never show weakness. Two clients cause him to tangle with psychopathic cops and a dangerous gangster. Daniel is a sympathetic figure, he feels like a less refined version of Dick Francis’ heroes, a man with a moral compass floating in a sea of corruption, trying to do the right thing. I suspect it had a lot to do with the incredibly excellent narrator, Rupert Degas, but this felt gritty, real, and utterly compelling. Despite the entirely avoidable final conflict, I couldn’t put it down.

[Roslyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved this book. Really complex and interesting characters. Daniel Connell is a fascinating lead character - flawed but brave, loyal and intelligent. Beautifully written and interesting storyline that fascinates as it is never predictable.

[Elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interessantissimo spaccato del sottobosco dell'Essex. Una storia personale, famigliare e di ambiente molto interessante, ricca di spunti senza che sembrino superficiali o buttati lì, anzi!
Un gran bel thriller (ma è molto di più!)

[Joseph Guiso · Rating 5 out of 5]

Gritty, violent page turner. Hard to put down. Great main character. Listened on audio book. Fantastic voice acting.

[Andrea · Rating 2 out of 5]

Can't really decide if this is a 2 star or 3 star book. While the storyline probably wasn't my thing I did really enjoy the authors style of writing. It was a refreshing change from reading a chronological story but the flashbacks were only minutes or hours ago to bring you up to speed. The flashbacks to longer time periods were easy to follow & relevant to the situation. I will definitely read another book by this author to see if I like his storylines.

[Megan Shiffler · Rating 2 out of 5]

I only bought this book because the author has the same name as author David Thorne of 27B/6 fame. This book isn't a comedy, it's a whodunnit. Pretty disappointed but that's my own fault for not doing my research. Fans of whodunnits might like it, I thought it was boring and stopped reading a few pages in.

[Jen]

A few things not working for me in this book- sometimes the writing goes over the same point again and again without adding anything of interest. Some of the character voices in the audiobook are not enjoyable to listen to - but narration overall is very good. Have been listening lightly to first half but decided to DNF now. Maybe to revisit another time.

[Frank · Rating 2 out of 5]

just iffy enough to keep you reading

[Eleni · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fast paced Crime Fiction. A joy to read a novel that flows seamlessly.

[Jarr · Rating 4 out of 5]

decent enough thriller

[Any Length · Rating 3 out of 5]

good book. I t kept me reading till the end.

[Ruth Bingham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Audiobook - Thriller with a fair amount of violence.

[Kin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un buon thriller.C'è forse troppa carne al fuoco ma avvince.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Overall fairly easy read. A little slow in places, but enough intrigue to finish it.

[The Villan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great read get more

[E · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5⭐️

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good read.

[Joanne · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not bad not bad! I’m not sure why he is not more well known and read!

[Lynette · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gangsters and very violent people. Well written. But maybe too dark to read book 2. I’ll think about it.

[Harold Walters · Rating 3 out of 5]

Crime. Down on his luck — kinda — lawyer. British.

[Amber · Rating 4 out of 5]

🎧 Really enjoyed this, great characters and story lines. Great narrator. Looking forward to reading the others in the series.

[Kate · Rating 4 out of 5]

"I received this book for free through Goodreads First Reads"

At last a crime novel which doesn't rely on it's central character (in this case Daniel Connell) having the crime land in his lap, he's not a policeman, not a forensic pathologist.... but a disgraced ex-City lawyer who is now scraping a living in Essex, basically a man trying to escape the long shadows of his past. I found the characters to all be very compelling especially Daniel Connell. The book is well-paced, and it kept me engaged at all times. I read this in just four days as i just couldn't put it down, as it was all there - murder, revenge, with drama unfolding on every page which made for in my opinion a real page turner. Truly enjoyable, a real pleasure to read, full of twists and surprises and well written which is always great. I would recommend to anyone who loves a good crime book, but to someone as well who is open to a new take on crime genre. Can't wait to read other books by Thorne.

[Julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was lucky enough to win a copy of this book in a goodreads competition, but this has in no way influenced my review

I have not read anything by the author in the past but after reading this I will look for more by books the author in future

There are a few different storylines running throughout the book which keeps it interesting, at no point does it get confusing. The many different storylines including different characters gives the book a fast pace

The whole book is written from the point of view/voice of one character, which is actually becoming more unusual to find at the moment.

I found this book to be an easy read because of the style it was written in, heavy subjects but delivered well making it an easy book to settle into.

[Sue · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good detective action thriller, very slightly reminiscent of Quintin Jardine's stories but more humble and with less sex - and set in Essex. Loner hero, Daniel Connell, faces a labarynthine set of circumstances as he is drawn into several different journeys on behalf of his legal clients and for himself. All roads lead to Essex, eventually.

[Gerda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is a bit blokey. It has lots of violence but also some very tender moments, especially in regard of Danny's mother. For all of him being such a clever boy and becoming a lawyer, he is a bit dim with the villains. Twice he gets caught while he should have known better. But, having said all this it was an enjoyable read nevertheless.