Saints Rest

by Luke Francis Beirne

Malory Fleet’s son was killed by bikers and now she’s worried about his missing girlfriend, Amanda. But that case was closed shut by the police a year ago and Frank Cain, the private investigator she’s hired, is reluctant to take it on. On the sometimes seedy streets of uptown Saint John, no one wants to talk, even fewer have anything to say, and the police have cast a blanket of fog over everything. As Frank searches fruitlessly for clues, he learns more about Malory than about Amanda, and begins to grow wary. Throughout, Detective Stuart Boucher is following Frank and making little effort to hide it, leading Cain to conclude that the officer may have more to do with the case than he’s letting on. For Frank Cain, as unmoored as a lost ship in the harbour, in unravelling this case he risks unravelling himself.

Saints Rest is a neo-noir novel set in a gritty and unforgiving Saint John, a town where few people are prepared for its secrets, least of all Frank Cain.

158 pages, Paperback

Published March 1, 2025

About the author

Luke Francis Beirne was born in Ireland in 1995. He lives in Saint John, New Brunswick. His first novel, Foxhunt, was published by Baraka Books in 2022. His second novel, Blacklion, released in 2023. His third book, Saints Rest, is a gritty neo-noir novella which released in 2025.

Reviews

[Kyle Bolt · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fast-paced but decent story. It was neat to read a fiction novel set in the city I live in!

[Spencer Gorham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bring a jacket! Ice and fog creep off the pages in this haunting panic attack of a crime drama.

[Jay Wright · Rating 4 out of 5]

the descriptions of Saint John, my hometown, were spot on and I love it just for that

[Jacques Poitras · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic novel in the hard-boiled style of Raymond Chandler, with a gloomy and evocative portrait of Saint John, New Brunswick as the backdrop.

[Sandra Bunting · Rating 3 out of 5]

The third book from this Canadian-Irish author. The other two were set in London (my favourite) and Ireland.
Saint's Rest is a noir set in the underbelly of Saint John, New Brunswick. it is a homage to that city, which, of course, features fog, water, and a few hills.

[Brenda · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you enjoy gritty detective stories you will enjoy this short read. Highly recommend

[Ian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Saints Rest by Luke Francis Beirne is a highly atmospheric hard-boiled detective novel that explores the seedier precincts of Saint John, New Brunswick while the city is in the grip of cold, dreary winter weather. Frank Cain is a private investigator employed by the Cormier Agency (the only other employee is his boss, Randy Cormier). When Malory Fleet appears in their office, asking them to find her daughter-in-law, Amanda Foster, Frank is intrigued and sees the case as a welcome change from the boring surveillance and insurance fraud cases he’s normally tasked with. But the Fleet case comes with a widely publicized and sordid history. Malory Fleet’s son Jason, a drug dealer, was shot to death. No charges were ever laid. A year later, Amanda vanished, and Malory claims that the “crooked” police can’t be bothered looking for her. Randy’s not keen about taking on a missing-person investigation, but Frank convinces him the case has merit and sets out on his own to look for Amanda. Frank has a world-weary vibe and serious baggage of his own. A transplant to Saint John, he stayed in the city after his girlfriend, Madison, left him. But he’s not been able to get over the breakup and sometimes finds himself sitting in his car outside her house watching to see who comes and goes. Part of Frank’s investigative process involves consulting the detective originally assigned to the case, Stuart Boucher. But Boucher’s behaviour sets off alarm bells, especially when Frank notices the detective tailing him, and Frank starts wondering what Boucher’s angle really is. After only a few days of making inquiries and following leads, Frank has determined Amanda’s whereabouts, but that’s when events take a catastrophic turn. Beirne’s tersely written narrative holds the reader’s attention from the first page. The dialogue is crisp and to the point, the prose dotted with memorable nuggets that stay with the reader. Beirne’s characters are uniformly interesting, if not entirely likable. Most have hidden depths they’re struggling to keep hidden and no one here is particularly wedded to the truth. But the real star of the show is the city of Saint John, in Beirne’s rendition a shadowy, miserable, soggy place of shattered dreams and wasted potential just looking for a chance to take down the unwary. Saints Rest is a mystery novel that works on all levels and can be easily read in a single sitting. And though its brevity (140 pages) doesn’t quite allow for full immersion in the story, there’s still no question that for a couple of hours the novel provides a solid diversion.

[James Fisher · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent neo-noir novella by a writer I have come to respect. A bare bones story that speaks louder than its 140 pages. Set in an all-too-real Saint John.

[Francis-Adrien Morneault · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's a very good addition to the crime fiction genre! The prose is beautiful, the pace is quick—typical of the genre—and the characters feel real. It makes me think of Nesbo at his best!

[Enid Wray]

Leave it at "I'm not the reader for this book"

[Stephanie H · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the idea of this book, but I just didn’t really understand what was happening. It felt more like a skeleton of a story missing all the interesting context.