The One You Least Suspect

by Brian McGilloway

Katie lives a quiet life. She likes her small Derry neighbourhood. She likes her job as a barmaid at O'Reillys. And she loves her daughter, Hope. But everything changes when she is approached by two detectives. They want Katie to tell them the things she hears at work. To become their informant. In this city, Katie knows the dangers of talking to the police. Yet with Hope's safety at risk should she refuse, she is trapped between two impossible choices. Crossing the O'Reilly brothers could cost her everything. Her only chance of survival is if she can remain the one that they least suspect . . . Agripping, heart-wrenching thriller that explores the fine line between right and wrong, justice and revenge, and how you choose your side when everyone is guilty . . .

Genres: Thriller, Irish Literature

345 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 12, 2024

About the author

Brian McGilloway is an author hailing from Derry, Northern Ireland. He studied English at Queens University Belfast, where he was very active in student theatre, winning a prestigious national Irish Student Drama Association award for theatrical lighting design in 1996. He is currently Head of English at St. Columb's College, Derry. McGilloway's debut novel was a crime thriller called Borderlands. Borderlands was shortlisted for a Crime Writers' Association Dagger award for a debut novel.

Reviews

[Bruce Hatton]

Katie Hamill is relatively content with the quiet life she leads in Derry, working at O'Reilly's bar and looking after her daughter Hope. She knows her employers, Terry and Mark O'Reilly are involved on organised crime, but they always have treated her fairly.
But then she is approached by two men claiming to be undercover police who coerce her into becoming and informant and give them inside information on the O'Reilly's activities. She is well aware of the dangers of being a tout, but, with Hope's safety at risk, she has little choice but to accept. She later discovers that, for one of the policemen, it's not so much a case of justice, but a personal vendetta.
This is an action packed and frequently harrowing tale of a normal woman attempting to stay one step ahead of both the O'Reillys and her persecutors to save herself and her family. Yet another masterclass in brilliant crime writing from Brian McGilloway.

[Kayla Hewett]

This was good, just not great. I liked it, but I am not a huge fan of organized crime, it loses me every time. So although I thought that the storyline was good, once it went the more organized crime route, I was not as interested in how it ended or the characters. I also didn't find anything completely shocking or unexpected. It was pretty straightforward the entire time.

[Karen Chong]

3.0 / 5.0

Slow burn of a book with a very slow gradual build up. Not something I would usually go for but the reviews sold me in on this. For my personally I found the book ok, it did what it said on the tin but I wasn’t wowed, I wasn’t hooked/ engaged as I would normally. It’s very much a standard written book, there isn’t any major twist that I found took me away it was very much predictable to some extent. I did find the ending abit too convenient and tidied up too nicely. It’s most likely a plot I will forget in two weeks time as there isn’t anything outstanding/ unique. That being said it’s an ok read, but I am on the fence on the added value of reading this book.

[Justin Berry]

So this was a 4.5 for me rounded down.

To start with I wasn't sure how I was going to get on with the story. This book felt a bit obvious and formulaic at the start and not really very original.

However I found the further I read the more drawn in I became, and as the story fleshed out and more characters appeared it came into its own.

I found I had to read the last quarter of this book all in one chunk due to the tension the author had created and the need to find out how it was going to all end.

You definitely won't get bored reading this one and I think I'll be seeing what else this author has written.

[Hanlie]

First of all, the synopsis of this book appears to be describing a different book.

I LOVED this book! I have now discovered a new author I will definitely continue reading!

This was a gripping read that held my attention from beginning to end. I found myself deeply invested in Katie's story; she's an ordinary woman striving to support her daughter, only to find herself caught between two manipulative groups.

There are two mysterious police detectives who are requesting her cooperation as an informant and the O'Riley brothers, notorious gangsters involved in drug trafficking and known for the disappearances of those who oppose them.  The brothers are gradually drawing her into their criminal activities, and the detectives are starting to play dirty.

Both groups are treating her as something disposable, and regardless of Katie's efforts, she continues to experience misfortune.

Could she escape their clutches before it's too late?

Highly recommend!

[Matthew McCann]

4.0

Another thriller by a local author and my first from this one on recommendation from the bookshop owner.

This story is set in Derry and follows Katie, a young single mother working as a barmaid in a bar owned by the O'Reilly's. The O'Reilly's front as community men but aren't what they seem, which is usually the case. Katie becomes an informer against her will and the story escalates from there.

What I found interesting was how it wasn't always clear who was more coercive with Katie, the O'Reilly's or the law. Another good read maybe time to switch up the genres.

[Linda Murray]

I am not really the audience for this book as I'm not a reader of crime fiction. However, I do watch a lot of TV crime and this felt very much like a screenplay for a drugs and gangster crime series.
It was fine .. a few pacey and nervy scenes, a wrapped up ending, a few twists. More interesting perhaps are the questions it raises about the morality of both police and gangsters ... 2 sides of a coin in that they both can be seen to use people, who become dispensable once they are no longer useful.
It was well enough written to flow and be a page-turning read.

[Mairead Hearne (swirlandthread.com)]

The One You Least Suspect by Brian McGilloway published May 8th with Constable and is described as ‘a gripping, heart-wrenching thriller that explores the fine line between right and wrong, justice and revenge, and how you choose your side when everyone is guilty . . .’

Jo Spain has said that Brian McGilloway is a ‘master of his art’ and I would wholeheartedly agree. From the opening pages I knew I was in very safe hands with this standalone novel set in Derry. The stage is set from the get-go, and the intensity of what’s ahead is palpable.

When Katie attends the wedding of a work colleague she is approached by two detectives who want her help. Katie works in O’Reillys bar. She keeps her nose clean and gets on with the job at hand. The owners of the pub are known to the police but the local community keep quiet as to any untoward activity that takes place there as they look after their own. Katie is conscious of the consequences of any form of betrayal so her initial reaction is one of a dismissive nature. But these detectives are relentless in their pursuit, forcing her hand and pushing her into something that is very much against her principles.

Katie loves her mother and her daughter Hope. Without them life would have little meaning, so when a threat arrives on her doorstep, her hand is forced. Now Katie must ensure that no suspicions are raised and no fingers point in her direction. Her position within the bar puts her in some dodgy situations but Katie has managed to roll with things up to now. But as a shift occurs, Katie starts to witness some events that she would rather not be exposed to.

What follows is very much a tense game of cat-and-mouse as Katie does her best to distract any attention away from herself and her family until when asked to carry out certain actions, Katie starts to experience real fear. Why are these detectives picking on her? What is it they are looking to uncover? Can Katie survive this terrorising ordeal?

Brian McGilloway creates an authentic and scary environment that shines a spotlight on the nefarious activities of the criminal underworld. Northern Ireland has had its fair share of troubles and in The One You Least Suspect we witness lives being manipulated and destroyed on all sides as Brian McGilloway takes his readers on an intense journey. Katie’s loyalties are split as she tries to stand firm to her views and values but, with the pressure colliding from all sides, she needs to have all her wits about her. Her sheer determination and will to survive are depicted with great clarity as a sense of urgency grips the reader. Katie is an ordinary person placed in an extraordinary situation. Can she outwit and survive this chain of events?

A sense of urgency runs through this compelling read, with Katie’s high-stakes race against time pushing the narrative forward. A thrilling read with lots to keep the reader engaged, The One You Least Suspect is an exciting page-turner, one that I highly recommend.

[Kathy Piehl]

I've really enjoyed the Ben Devlin and Lucy Black series by McGilloway so I was looking forward to this book. However, the unrelenting tension and danger plus the savage violence and threats of death made it hard for me to finish. I should have just skipped to the end to see if Katie and her family survived the impossible situation in which she found herself. Maybe this was even harder to read because the recurrence of violence in Northern Ireland right now calls to mind the era when everyone was under suspicion and no one knew whom to trust.

[Steph]

Brilliant book, really suspenseful and dramatic, with no idea what will happen from one minute to the next.
Katie is such a likeable character that it was easy to become immersed in her wreck of a life. How she managed to get herself into such a mess is something I kept wondering at her misfortune!

A lot of unlikeable & not very nice people and some that in the end turned out to be better than we thought.

Really enjoyed it and didn’t put it down till finished.

[Johanna]

Rounded up from 4.5. Slow burn, but well developed. I started off with a very different impression of Katie than I had by the end of the story. The author allowed me to draw and form my own opinions and then adjust them over the course of the narrative. It was cleverly done and added to the build. Perhaps the overall is a bit too neat, but I still enjoyed the journey.

[Mary Crawford]

The role of the State in recruiting, using and abusing informers versus those involved in criminality means that the small people in communities get squeezed. Some parts were a bit of a stretch but Katie is a well developed character and it was easy to root for her.

[Candy]

Marvellous!
I read it in less than 24 hours, I couldn’t put it down.
5⭐️’s

[Judie]

This is an important book, an excellent thriller and interesting social commentary - I couldn't put it down. Bravo Brian McGilloway - you've become a master storyteller.

[Ann]

Absolutely brilliant book. I don’t often give something five stars but wow this book deserved every single one.

[Killian]

An excellent read, a gripping tale

[Leslie Wilson]

Great story, and he wrote this female main character so well. I love that.

[Emma]

The description for this book is incorrect on Good Reads.
I loved this story, it was a bit of a slow burn at first but then I flew through it!

[MK07]

I enjoyed this book and read it within a few days. It was a bit far fetched and unrealistic in places but overall a good fast paced read.

[Niall]

bit slow, probably 3.5

[Karen]

What a book!

Wow! From the very first page, I was hooked. I read it from start to finish in a few hours.
An amazing read.

[Ken Robinson]

brilliant suspense thriller. loved it

[Ian Eberlein]

Absolutely brilliant like all his books

[Sue Hayward]

a great fast paced Irish thriller

[Reader]

Predicable ending. A few plot holes. Forgettable.

[Kameill Healey]

Really enjoyed this book about how a young mum got caught up in organised crime and was a informant for the police. Both sides said she had a choice but was always threatening to take her daughter and mum

[Roisín O'Halloran]

Definitely a page turner, lots of twists and turns and a lot of nervy moments,

[Aisling]

A gripping page turner unlike anything I’ve read before.