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Eoin Miller Mystery #2
Runaway Town
After narrowly surviving a vicious knife attack, gangland detective Eoin Miller thinks he’s earned a break from hunting down thieves, runaways, and stolen drug money. But when crime boss Veronica Gaines tips him off to a particularly sensitive new case, his Romani blood won’t let him say no. A rapist is targeting immigrant girls, and Eoin knows all too well just how little help an outsider can expect from the local police. Besides, his client isn’t looking for someone to arrest the bastard. He’s looking for someone to stop him—for good. But the deeper Eoin digs, the more tangled he becomes in a web of corruption, racism, and revenge…especially once his troubled past threatens to derail the investigation by raising questions about his own loyalty and family ties. With his life teetering on the brink of disaster, Eoin realizes there is a fine line between justice and punishment. Now it’s up to him to decide just which side he’s on.
240 pages, Kindle Edition
First published March 26, 2013
96 people are currently reading
107 people want to read
About the author
Jay Stringer
40 books118 followersJay Stringer was born in 1980, and he’s not dead yet.
He’s English by birth and Scottish by rumour; born in the Black Country, and claiming Glasgow as his hometown.
Jay is dyslexic, and came to the written word as a second language, via comic books, music, and comedy. He writes hard boiled crime stories, dark comedies, and social fiction.
His first three books, the Eoin Miller Trilogy explored the political and criminal landscape of the West Midlands.
He now writes books set in Glasgow and New York.
Jay won a gold medal in the Antwerp Olympics of 1920. He did not compete in the Helsinki Olympics of 1952, that was some other guy.
Jay is represented by Stacia Decker at Dunow, Carlson & Lerner.
He’s English by birth and Scottish by rumour; born in the Black Country, and claiming Glasgow as his hometown.
Jay is dyslexic, and came to the written word as a second language, via comic books, music, and comedy. He writes hard boiled crime stories, dark comedies, and social fiction.
His first three books, the Eoin Miller Trilogy explored the political and criminal landscape of the West Midlands.
He now writes books set in Glasgow and New York.
Jay won a gold medal in the Antwerp Olympics of 1920. He did not compete in the Helsinki Olympics of 1952, that was some other guy.
Jay is represented by Stacia Decker at Dunow, Carlson & Lerner.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
March 30, 2013
I really enjoyed Old Gold a lot - the previous story about Eoin Miller - part gypsy, ex cop, set in the mean streets of the Black Country. While I was pleased to get the opportunity to read it I was sort of dreading it as I thought it would be hard to maintain the same edgy drama of Old Gold. Fortunately I was wrong! Good dark read (with some violence) with Eoin trying to deal with some very current problems and avoid getting hurt too badly by folk who would prefer him not to know what is really going on. It would make a great TV series so long as no one tries to sanitise it!
April 23, 2017
The second Eoin Miller story, and although he still qualifies as a private eye by working on three unreported rapes on illegal immigrant girls, there are more significant plotlines involving his Romany family and his continued unresolved relationships with the two major crime families in Wolverhampton. So a very interesting read about a complex character, but so much easier if you have read Old Gold first.
February 4, 2016
The story begins with a nightmare--Eoin's memory of the first time his family was burned out of their home. He wakes and acknowledges that he's sold his soul to the devil--in the face of a drug family. Actually, two drug families. Between them, the cops, and his family, he's playing four sides against the middle--that would be himself. This one involves an impending drug war, undocumented immigrants (and the human trafficking involved), his not-exactly-ex-wife, and his family, whom the reader meets. While Eoin is still a moral mess--he does some very bad things, again, this time he also does some clearly good things. Caught in the untenable position between what's "right" and legal and what's possible, well, he does what he thinks he has to do. This book goes into the violent racism against the Romani people much more than did the first, while touching some on cultural values. This background leads Eoin to try to protect other immigrants, as best he can, with rather mixed results, all which are familiar to him. Ok, despite the violence--apparently Eoin is one of those detectives beaten to the verge of death in every story, and does a fair share himself--apparently I'm hooked on the series.
May 26, 2013
The second part of the Eoin Miller trilogy is great - really great. But I don't want to give it five stars, because then where do I go for Part 3..?
March 16, 2019
A JS. Mystery Thriller (EMMB. -2)/Gypsy Private Detective/Rape/Revenge/End the Problem
JS. has. penned the second novel in the Eoin Miller series, which contains a recommendation from the lady of crime, which is about one or more than one who is raping young women who are new to the country. The task is to locate and exterminate these people. As AN continues his investigation he is under pressure from his ex employers. EM is beside himself as he solve the assigned task the police come down harder. This is an excel!any read for the genre....DEHS
JS. has. penned the second novel in the Eoin Miller series, which contains a recommendation from the lady of crime, which is about one or more than one who is raping young women who are new to the country. The task is to locate and exterminate these people. As AN continues his investigation he is under pressure from his ex employers. EM is beside himself as he solve the assigned task the police come down harder. This is an excel!any read for the genre....DEHS
June 27, 2018
Another excellent read from Jay Stringer. Although I left the black country and the midlands when I was young the book is evocative as my extended family still live there. Eoin Millar is a damaged man and has his own devils to fight. But the dastardly deeds of the local crime gangs have him turning in circles as he tries to sort out the rapes of local immigrant girls and the stresses within his won family. It is a cracking read. Or as they may say in the Black Country Bostin'
August 21, 2018
Deep Character Development
Taut plot that has plenty of room for Eoin to reflect further about his identity. Topic certainly timely, touching on more than just two simple camps with opposite beliefs. Introducing Eoin's siblings pushes the reader deeper into his reality. No spoilers from me. Enjo.
Taut plot that has plenty of room for Eoin to reflect further about his identity. Topic certainly timely, touching on more than just two simple camps with opposite beliefs. Introducing Eoin's siblings pushes the reader deeper into his reality. No spoilers from me. Enjo.
January 22, 2019
Runaway Town (#2 Eoin Miller) is a rare crime fiction which is kept coherent with a credible back story. In this case a noir, with a touch of inner introspective ethnic issues, with a fairly fast pace, that is incorporating a political context. It made out equally good as #1 but in a different way.
The downside? I've only one book in the Eoin Miller serie left...
The downside? I've only one book in the Eoin Miller serie left...
April 6, 2018
Like a punch in the face
Excellent, well told modern noir. Some passages read like a litany of a life gone sideways. Others are like a left hook. Fucking excellent.
Excellent, well told modern noir. Some passages read like a litany of a life gone sideways. Others are like a left hook. Fucking excellent.
June 2, 2020
Great characters
Good to have a hero that has flaws and good guys that aren't that great. Fast read and fun read
Good to have a hero that has flaws and good guys that aren't that great. Fast read and fun read
September 12, 2020
Excellent
Mr Stringer reminds me of Johnny Shaw, just a bit more British. I'm going to get book 3 right now
Mr Stringer reminds me of Johnny Shaw, just a bit more British. I'm going to get book 3 right now
April 17, 2021
Eoin Miller is a very interesting character. Enjoyed the book.
October 26, 2019
The nice thing about this Eoin Miller series (so far) is that the installments read like good short stories: Tight, compact, fast and without any extraneous plot and character messings-about to bog things down. They are dark, to be sure, and take us into places with issues we'd maybe rather not meet - like racism, illegal immigration, the drug trade and friable family ties - but that is part of the fun of the stories; they dip into stormy waters and leave us breathless, but not yet drowning. It's one of few recent series I can get whole-heartedly behind, and I have read enough to find the rash of second and third acts a pretty consistent bore. Eoin Miller pleases and provokes equally, showing more and slightly different sides of himself and his West Midlands stomping ground each time.
January 30, 2014
I’ve been a reader of Do Some Damage since its inception; there’s no finer writers’ collaborative blog to be found. I came across Jay Stringer there, and was shocked—shocked!—when he announced the next book in the Eoin Miller series (Lost City) has been released, as I had yet to get around to reading its predecessor, Runaway Town. I immediately bought a copy and bumped it to the head of my ever-burgeoning queue.
Good decision.
Runaway Town is a example of why, when done right, the PI story is the highest form of crime fiction. Miller isn’t a PI—It’s hard to say what he is exactly—but he fills that role in the story. He’s Roma—British gypsies—which makes him a bit of an outcast from the get-go. Used to be a cop, now is officially a “football coach” at a boys club run by the Gaines crime family as one of their many beards. He used to work for Channy Mann, the Gaines’s chief competition, until he killed Channy’s brother. (Which was when I realized Runaway Town was the second book in the series, so I’ll be looking for Old Gold, too.) Things are complicated.
They don’t get any better when Veronica Gaines, the head of the family, asks him to find a rapist who has been terrorizing immigrant girls who belong to a support group that is also a Gaines beard. The victimized girls are illegals, afraid to go to the police for fear of deportation. Meanwhile, Channy wants Miller to set up Veronica to be killed. Add some family issues and a political party with a virulent anti-immigrant position and Miller has his hands full.
So does Stringer, and he pulls it off marvelously. Runaway Town is that rare bit of fiction—any genre—that tries to be about more than one thing and succeeds. Miller deals with and examines issues of family, loyalty, and trying to do the right thing while struggling with what’s possible and practical. It’s a mess. Never so much the reader loses track, but plenty to keep one wondering how the hell Miller’s going to get out of this.
Miller is a fascinating protagonist. He’s flawed, fighting an addiction to painkillers he doesn’t want to acknowledge, and he’s in over his head. He had no desire to be a hero, and is as brave as he has to be, which turns out to be a considerably amount. The irony of his story is, once he has identified the rapist, he has to decide whether to call the police, turn him over to Gaines, or resolve the situation himself. His reflections are reminiscent of Dennis Lehane’s Gone Baby Gone: no matter what he does, he’s wrong on some level.
Runaway Town has a few endings. Not because Stringer plays tricks with the reader, trying to fool you into thinking, “ah, this is the one.” He’s wrapping up what are essentially three stories. Stay with him. He doesn’t cheat, but you also won’t see them ending quite as you expect. He creates satisfying resolutions and still leaves things open for the next book.
There are a lot of excellent writers and excellent books out there; readers should rejoice. Jay Stringer and Runaway Town are one of each, and the rejoicing can begin as soon as you start to read.
Good decision.
Runaway Town is a example of why, when done right, the PI story is the highest form of crime fiction. Miller isn’t a PI—It’s hard to say what he is exactly—but he fills that role in the story. He’s Roma—British gypsies—which makes him a bit of an outcast from the get-go. Used to be a cop, now is officially a “football coach” at a boys club run by the Gaines crime family as one of their many beards. He used to work for Channy Mann, the Gaines’s chief competition, until he killed Channy’s brother. (Which was when I realized Runaway Town was the second book in the series, so I’ll be looking for Old Gold, too.) Things are complicated.
They don’t get any better when Veronica Gaines, the head of the family, asks him to find a rapist who has been terrorizing immigrant girls who belong to a support group that is also a Gaines beard. The victimized girls are illegals, afraid to go to the police for fear of deportation. Meanwhile, Channy wants Miller to set up Veronica to be killed. Add some family issues and a political party with a virulent anti-immigrant position and Miller has his hands full.
So does Stringer, and he pulls it off marvelously. Runaway Town is that rare bit of fiction—any genre—that tries to be about more than one thing and succeeds. Miller deals with and examines issues of family, loyalty, and trying to do the right thing while struggling with what’s possible and practical. It’s a mess. Never so much the reader loses track, but plenty to keep one wondering how the hell Miller’s going to get out of this.
Miller is a fascinating protagonist. He’s flawed, fighting an addiction to painkillers he doesn’t want to acknowledge, and he’s in over his head. He had no desire to be a hero, and is as brave as he has to be, which turns out to be a considerably amount. The irony of his story is, once he has identified the rapist, he has to decide whether to call the police, turn him over to Gaines, or resolve the situation himself. His reflections are reminiscent of Dennis Lehane’s Gone Baby Gone: no matter what he does, he’s wrong on some level.
Runaway Town has a few endings. Not because Stringer plays tricks with the reader, trying to fool you into thinking, “ah, this is the one.” He’s wrapping up what are essentially three stories. Stay with him. He doesn’t cheat, but you also won’t see them ending quite as you expect. He creates satisfying resolutions and still leaves things open for the next book.
There are a lot of excellent writers and excellent books out there; readers should rejoice. Jay Stringer and Runaway Town are one of each, and the rejoicing can begin as soon as you start to read.
August 30, 2013
My family is my strength and my weakness. - Aishwarya Rai Bachchan
Eoin Miller is a study in contradictions. He loves/hates his family. He works for different crime heads around Wolverhampton, England but warns young recruits away. He coaches a youth football team and also hunts for a rapist that is targeting illegal immigrants.
I like this character and this series. It started out with "Faithless Street," a series of four short stories that are a prequel to the first book in the series - "Old Gold." I enjoyed both of these offerings but think "Runaway Town" is even better.
It is raw, hard-hitting, darkly humorous, rough, violent and a very satisfying read. The characters are getting fleshed out. The background story is being told. The area of and around Wolverhampton is perfect for this noirish series.
Do yourself a favor and find yourself a new anti-hero in Eoin Miller - read this series.
NOTE: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
Eoin Miller is a study in contradictions. He loves/hates his family. He works for different crime heads around Wolverhampton, England but warns young recruits away. He coaches a youth football team and also hunts for a rapist that is targeting illegal immigrants.
I like this character and this series. It started out with "Faithless Street," a series of four short stories that are a prequel to the first book in the series - "Old Gold." I enjoyed both of these offerings but think "Runaway Town" is even better.
It is raw, hard-hitting, darkly humorous, rough, violent and a very satisfying read. The characters are getting fleshed out. The background story is being told. The area of and around Wolverhampton is perfect for this noirish series.
Do yourself a favor and find yourself a new anti-hero in Eoin Miller - read this series.
NOTE: I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
November 19, 2016
In this dark sequel to OLD GOLD, Stringer's Eoin Miller, a gypsy and former cop now reluctantly working for the mob, sees what has become of his family, his self-esteem, and the illegal immigrants that are victims and pawns in the finances and politics of a decaying industrial Midlands town - and none of it is pretty. Looking for noir twists and turns? You, like Eoin, have come to the right wrong place.
January 7, 2016
This is a book you should read.
The writing in this novel is surprising. Not because of who the author is but in it's freshness and use of common words combined together to express thoughts and emotions some of us feel or have felt but have never articulated or truly thought through. Makes you have a surprising connection to the characters.
The writing in this novel is surprising. Not because of who the author is but in it's freshness and use of common words combined together to express thoughts and emotions some of us feel or have felt but have never articulated or truly thought through. Makes you have a surprising connection to the characters.
March 17, 2016
There's something about Scottish noir that warms the heart like a pauper's last chunk of coal, and Jay Stringer gets it just right in Runaway Town. Emotions run hot, blood runs cold, family skeletons dance and histories intertwine in this nonstop blast through the Scottish underworld. Highly recommend!
August 23, 2022
Another enjoyable read from Jay Stringer. It is at times quite dark and Eoin is at times difficult to like. It's well written though, with an excellent sense of Wolverhampton, with which I am familiar. Look forward to seeing how the relationship with the Gainer family develops in the next book. Overall though I prefer the San Millar series.
April 19, 2016
Not terrible, not great. I found it hard to care about the main character but the plot was interesting
June 7, 2015
Eoin is looking for a criminal whose victims can't go to the police. At the same time he has to deal with difficult family relationships. A great plot with some convincing characters.
March 6, 2016
Meh
The first book in this series was fantastic. This one, not so much. It was slow and plodding. I was disappointed.
The first book in this series was fantastic. This one, not so much. It was slow and plodding. I was disappointed.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews