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Stefan Gillespie #4
The City of Lies
Dublin 1940. An IRA attempt to capture the British diplomatic bag on its way from Ireland to England leaves two Guards dead on the streets of Dublin. Two days later a pitched battle between warring gangs erupts at one of Ireland's biggest race meetings. On Ireland's east coast the cremated bodies of a wealthy family of five are found in their shuttered, burned-out villa.
Connections between these events become clear to Detective Inspector Stefan Gillespie when he is despatched from Special Branch to investigate the seaside deaths, but he is soon treading on the toes of Ireland's burgeoning Intelligence industry - Irish, British and German, all playing against each other, all watching each other, and all plagued by rogue operators they can't quite control, as the certainty grows that Hitler is about to invade England. And then, because of his parentage, Stefan is asked to go to Berlin on a sensitive mission.
But the journey home will turn into a dangerous pursuit, where no one can be trusted and the information he carries puts his life at risk.
309 pages, Kindle Edition
Published May 4, 2017
About the author
Michael Russell
10 books49 followersMichael Russell was born in England. He grew up in one of those English-Irish families where the first stories he heard at his grandmother's knee were about murder, mayhem, Thompson Machine Guns and civil war in Ireland in the 1920s.
Determined to make himself unemployable, so that he could at least attempt to earn a living as writer, he studied Old English, Old Irish and Middle Welsh at Oxford before working for three years as a farm labourer in North Devon. His knowledge of farming (rather than writing) eventually got him a job as script editor on the English soap opera 'Emmerdale', in the days when it was still called 'Emmerdale Farm'. He went on to become a television writer and producer, writing for such programmes as 'All Creatures Great and Small', 'Eastenders', 'Between the Lines', 'The Bill', 'Midsomer Murders', 'A Touch of Frost'.
By the time he decided to write his first novel he was living in Ireland and it seemed inevitable that he would combine a passion for crime fiction with the stories about Ireland between the First and Second World Wars that he had once heard from his grandmother. The result was 'The City of Shadows'.
Source: Excerpt from Amazon author profile
Determined to make himself unemployable, so that he could at least attempt to earn a living as writer, he studied Old English, Old Irish and Middle Welsh at Oxford before working for three years as a farm labourer in North Devon. His knowledge of farming (rather than writing) eventually got him a job as script editor on the English soap opera 'Emmerdale', in the days when it was still called 'Emmerdale Farm'. He went on to become a television writer and producer, writing for such programmes as 'All Creatures Great and Small', 'Eastenders', 'Between the Lines', 'The Bill', 'Midsomer Murders', 'A Touch of Frost'.
By the time he decided to write his first novel he was living in Ireland and it seemed inevitable that he would combine a passion for crime fiction with the stories about Ireland between the First and Second World Wars that he had once heard from his grandmother. The result was 'The City of Shadows'.
Source: Excerpt from Amazon author profile
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 31 reviews
May 22, 2018
This is the 4th in the Protestant DI Stefan Gillespie historical series set in WW2 in 1940, but the first I have read. It worked perfectly fine as a standalone with a depressingly bleak picture of de Valera's Ireland. It is a multi-layered, intricately plotted story of the complexity of the war years, a mixture of fact and fiction, a world in which truth has little currency, putting flesh on that saying that the first casualty of war is truth. Gillespie works in Dublin's Special Branch tracking the German Press Attache, he is not the only one, Irish Intelligence, British and Military Intelligence are all showing their interest. Ireland is ostensibly neutral, but there are aspects, such as the IRA, that are willing to support German interests, willing to do anything that undermines the British war effort, this means many IRA members are in an internment camp. Politically, Germans see Ireland as part of a potential strategy to invade Britain or create difficulties for them, with German agents known to be in the country. This is a story of spies, double agents, political intrigue, betrayal, deception, rogue elements and a glimpse of the terror, havoc and horrors in Berlin and Europe.
An attempt to grab a British diplomatic bag by the IRA leaves a guard dead in Dublin. There is an all out orchestrated battle between gangs at Curragh, the most important horse racing fixture. The burnt bodies of a family of four, living in a remote and rural part of Ireland, are discovered, the house subject to an arson attack. As Gillespie slowly finds out, all these disparate events turn out to be closely connected. A Catholic German officer, Johannes Rilling, on the frontline in Poland becomes privy to German efforts to increase their capacity to kill en masse, disturbed and unsettled, he documents what he knows in his diary. Gillespie is dispatched as a diplomatic courier to Berlin, where he gets involved in trying to clear an innocent woman accused of the murder of a German hero, Johannes Rilling. Nazi infiltration and atrocities everywhere, with kangaroo courts, daily executions of innocents, fear and terror rampant, with gays, Poles, Jews, and the 'mentally unfit' targets for elimination. In London, he begins to understand more of what happened in Ireland. Gillespie is unable to save all those he knows that are not guilty, he simply does not have the power, and it is inevitable that what he sees and knows begins to break him.
Michael Russell captures the essential truths of war, that lies and propaganda are far more important that truth, it is patently clear that this is true in Dublin, Berlin and London. Characters talk about the real truth is that no-one needs the truth or that people do not want to know the truth. This is always going to claim the lives of the innocent, in Dublin and Berlin, a price that is accepted by those who hold power. However, as we can see, it creates emotional and mental stress in the lives of those such as Stefan Gillespie. A highly complex and insightful novel of Ireland's place and impact in WW2 which is bleak, compelling and gripping. Highly recommended! Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.
An attempt to grab a British diplomatic bag by the IRA leaves a guard dead in Dublin. There is an all out orchestrated battle between gangs at Curragh, the most important horse racing fixture. The burnt bodies of a family of four, living in a remote and rural part of Ireland, are discovered, the house subject to an arson attack. As Gillespie slowly finds out, all these disparate events turn out to be closely connected. A Catholic German officer, Johannes Rilling, on the frontline in Poland becomes privy to German efforts to increase their capacity to kill en masse, disturbed and unsettled, he documents what he knows in his diary. Gillespie is dispatched as a diplomatic courier to Berlin, where he gets involved in trying to clear an innocent woman accused of the murder of a German hero, Johannes Rilling. Nazi infiltration and atrocities everywhere, with kangaroo courts, daily executions of innocents, fear and terror rampant, with gays, Poles, Jews, and the 'mentally unfit' targets for elimination. In London, he begins to understand more of what happened in Ireland. Gillespie is unable to save all those he knows that are not guilty, he simply does not have the power, and it is inevitable that what he sees and knows begins to break him.
Michael Russell captures the essential truths of war, that lies and propaganda are far more important that truth, it is patently clear that this is true in Dublin, Berlin and London. Characters talk about the real truth is that no-one needs the truth or that people do not want to know the truth. This is always going to claim the lives of the innocent, in Dublin and Berlin, a price that is accepted by those who hold power. However, as we can see, it creates emotional and mental stress in the lives of those such as Stefan Gillespie. A highly complex and insightful novel of Ireland's place and impact in WW2 which is bleak, compelling and gripping. Highly recommended! Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.
June 12, 2022
Enjoyed the next in this series of books where stefan goes to Berlin the plot was depressing but enjoying the series so far
May 11, 2018
Irishmen Abroad
This is the fourth Stefan Gillespie novel and a strong if rather depressing addition to the series. Gillespie is a Protestant Guard (policeman) in De Valera’s Ireland during the Second World War, or as the Irish were encouraged to term it, the ‘Emergency’. Apart from his religious denomination, associated with the British former masters, he has a German mother and is an active member of Special Branch, tasked with anti-terrorist duties. Given that the IRA continue to be active against the Irish State, that Special branch is filled with former IRA men, that the IRA see Nazi Germany as a natural ally, that the British see Ireland as a potential back-door for a German invasion, Gillespie’s job is not an easy one.
Russell constructs a very complex plot here, linking a murdered family in rural Ireland, IRA acts of terror and Nazi atrocities against Jews, Poles and homosexuals. Gillespie moves from Dublin to Berlin and back by way of London. His position is uneasy and dangerous. While he has some minor success in each location, the reader is aware of the powerlessness of one man against evil tyranny, especially in Berlin. There are lies in all three cities mentioned: some of them may be white; most are very black indeed.
This is the fourth Stefan Gillespie novel and a strong if rather depressing addition to the series. Gillespie is a Protestant Guard (policeman) in De Valera’s Ireland during the Second World War, or as the Irish were encouraged to term it, the ‘Emergency’. Apart from his religious denomination, associated with the British former masters, he has a German mother and is an active member of Special Branch, tasked with anti-terrorist duties. Given that the IRA continue to be active against the Irish State, that Special branch is filled with former IRA men, that the IRA see Nazi Germany as a natural ally, that the British see Ireland as a potential back-door for a German invasion, Gillespie’s job is not an easy one.
Russell constructs a very complex plot here, linking a murdered family in rural Ireland, IRA acts of terror and Nazi atrocities against Jews, Poles and homosexuals. Gillespie moves from Dublin to Berlin and back by way of London. His position is uneasy and dangerous. While he has some minor success in each location, the reader is aware of the powerlessness of one man against evil tyranny, especially in Berlin. There are lies in all three cities mentioned: some of them may be white; most are very black indeed.
March 7, 2021
No words can praise this series enough.Intricate, perfectly plotted, nuanced, thought provoking and with extraordinary characters. A window into a very dark period of history,with beautiful writing to boot. No need for me to recap or summarize, just go ahead and read these.It´s a pleasure.
January 23, 2018
The 4th in the series featuring DS Stefan Gillespie of the Garda & its a welcome return for a grand read.
War (WWII) has begun in earnest & Ireland as we know is neutral..... however the Germans were forever interested in Ireland, be it stirring up/arming the IRA to raise an insurrection, access for spies to ferment sabotage in the North, or even prepare for an invasion of Britain (Northern Ireland) using Ireland as a stepping stone..... my grandparents weren’t dismissive of the Germans, after all they said “they gave us electricity”..... tales from the parlour so not so sure to it’s authenticity.
The story starts in Ireland in September 1940 whilst a parallel story runs from September of the preceding year in Poland after the German invasion which centres on a German Wehrmacht officer. Whats involved, without tipping yer hat, well as always tbh........ the IRA, G2 men, a murder or five, the Abwehr, SS/SD, sexual deviants of the time, (as they are described – which is an ongoing theme in the series) German & Irish politics of the era as well as a smattering of British....... its all good & helps build a picture of Ireland in this period as she struggles to keep her neutrality with a nation divided..... be they fore Britain or Germany?
It did fall a little flat about midway where description/narrative jus seemed to carry for pages without really expanding the story much & I longed for the earlier books where Gillespie was continually on the move around various cities in Europe. But its perhaps only a small niggle as the action takes of when Gillespie ends up in Berlin after the (over long) introductions are out of the way. Along the way old foes are met & politics conferred about which, was interesting, not knowing this part of European politics all that well but I did feel we could have had more politics as we have had with other episodes in the series.
The further the book went the lower the score & i’m on the verge of giving it a three before rounding the 3.5 upto 4 stars. Definitely the weakest in the otherwise excellent series so far
War (WWII) has begun in earnest & Ireland as we know is neutral..... however the Germans were forever interested in Ireland, be it stirring up/arming the IRA to raise an insurrection, access for spies to ferment sabotage in the North, or even prepare for an invasion of Britain (Northern Ireland) using Ireland as a stepping stone..... my grandparents weren’t dismissive of the Germans, after all they said “they gave us electricity”..... tales from the parlour so not so sure to it’s authenticity.
The story starts in Ireland in September 1940 whilst a parallel story runs from September of the preceding year in Poland after the German invasion which centres on a German Wehrmacht officer. Whats involved, without tipping yer hat, well as always tbh........ the IRA, G2 men, a murder or five, the Abwehr, SS/SD, sexual deviants of the time, (as they are described – which is an ongoing theme in the series) German & Irish politics of the era as well as a smattering of British....... its all good & helps build a picture of Ireland in this period as she struggles to keep her neutrality with a nation divided..... be they fore Britain or Germany?
It did fall a little flat about midway where description/narrative jus seemed to carry for pages without really expanding the story much & I longed for the earlier books where Gillespie was continually on the move around various cities in Europe. But its perhaps only a small niggle as the action takes of when Gillespie ends up in Berlin after the (over long) introductions are out of the way. Along the way old foes are met & politics conferred about which, was interesting, not knowing this part of European politics all that well but I did feel we could have had more politics as we have had with other episodes in the series.
The further the book went the lower the score & i’m on the verge of giving it a three before rounding the 3.5 upto 4 stars. Definitely the weakest in the otherwise excellent series so far
July 30, 2017
City of Lies is the fourth book in the Inspector Stefan Gillespie series set in the late 1930s/early 1940s, with each book involving domestic and overseas adventure. As with previous outings, a lot of the story is based on real events and people, though recast fictionally. In this book, set in autumn 1940, Gillespie is tangling in Ireland with the IRA, who are dwindling in numbers as their brethren are interred for the War, and the Irish secret service. His overseas trip is to Berlin where he tangles with the German police and meets a handful of Irish citizens still living in the city and seeks to aid an Irish woman accused of killing a German soldier, and to London. At the heart of the book is Ireland’s internal politics and its relationship to Germany and Britain and two murders – one in Wicklow, one in Berlin – that are cases of rough justice, with two innocent people receiving the death penalty. In both cases, Gillespie seems the only person interested in the truth, but that’s often the victim in wars, especially where politics and intelligence services are involved. There’s an awful lot going on in the tale, with multiple strands unfolding, but Russell holds it altogether admirably. However, there probably is a little too much taking place, and the trip to London felt like a contrived plot device, and the ending seemed to tail-off into a fractured set of conclusions that felt like explanations rather than a denouements. As usual, Gillespie holds it altogether, along with Russell’s assured writing and the strong sense of time and place. Another good addition to a strong series.
April 25, 2018
I would like to thank Netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for a review copy of The City of Lies, the fourth novel to feature Inspector Stefan Gillespie of Dublin's Special Branch.
It's 1940 and the Irish Free State is having trouble maintaining its neutrality with the IRA teaming up with the Germans. Stefan spends much of his working life following the German press attaché until he is taken off that duty to investigate the security aspects of a quadruple murder in Kildare. This probably saved his life as it also meant abandoning his usual run with the British diplomatic bag, the run that was attacked by the IRA, killing one Garda and seriously injuring another. He finds more intrigue when he is sent to Berlin as a diplomatic courier.
I enjoyed The City of Lies which is quite a complex, dense read. Having read the first two novels in the series I had a good idea of the complexity I would be getting, although maybe not the politics because this is a novel of spies, double crosses and intrigue with very little straightforward police work.
I am familiar with most of the intrigue and politics in the novel so very little of it was new or surprised me. I am, however, very impressed with Mr Russell's delivery and attention to detail. The writing is sharp and the concise, unemotional descriptions of the violence, especially in Berlin, give it an impact and immediacy which is in stark contrast to the spies' convolutions. I found myself shocked and emotionally jerked. I found myself less interested in all the political jockeying for position. It's interesting to a point but there's only so much to be said in any novel about spy craft and secrecy for the sake of it.
The plot rattles along at a good rate but seems more like a series of set pieces for Stefan than a continuous narrative. I particularly liked the twist near the end but thought the final chapter superfluous as its contents had been hinted at throughout the novel and it spoiled the atmosphere of ambiguity that had built up throughout the novel.
I'll be interested to see where Mr Russell takes Stefan Gillespie next as he's not particularly happy in this novel and sometimes seems at breaking point. I didn't feel I connected with him in this novel as I did in previous novels.
The City of Lies is a bit of a mixed bag for me with some excellent descriptions and atmosphere, notably in Berlin, but too much emphasis on politics and spying to be a really absorbing read. 3.5*
It's 1940 and the Irish Free State is having trouble maintaining its neutrality with the IRA teaming up with the Germans. Stefan spends much of his working life following the German press attaché until he is taken off that duty to investigate the security aspects of a quadruple murder in Kildare. This probably saved his life as it also meant abandoning his usual run with the British diplomatic bag, the run that was attacked by the IRA, killing one Garda and seriously injuring another. He finds more intrigue when he is sent to Berlin as a diplomatic courier.
I enjoyed The City of Lies which is quite a complex, dense read. Having read the first two novels in the series I had a good idea of the complexity I would be getting, although maybe not the politics because this is a novel of spies, double crosses and intrigue with very little straightforward police work.
I am familiar with most of the intrigue and politics in the novel so very little of it was new or surprised me. I am, however, very impressed with Mr Russell's delivery and attention to detail. The writing is sharp and the concise, unemotional descriptions of the violence, especially in Berlin, give it an impact and immediacy which is in stark contrast to the spies' convolutions. I found myself shocked and emotionally jerked. I found myself less interested in all the political jockeying for position. It's interesting to a point but there's only so much to be said in any novel about spy craft and secrecy for the sake of it.
The plot rattles along at a good rate but seems more like a series of set pieces for Stefan than a continuous narrative. I particularly liked the twist near the end but thought the final chapter superfluous as its contents had been hinted at throughout the novel and it spoiled the atmosphere of ambiguity that had built up throughout the novel.
I'll be interested to see where Mr Russell takes Stefan Gillespie next as he's not particularly happy in this novel and sometimes seems at breaking point. I didn't feel I connected with him in this novel as I did in previous novels.
The City of Lies is a bit of a mixed bag for me with some excellent descriptions and atmosphere, notably in Berlin, but too much emphasis on politics and spying to be a really absorbing read. 3.5*
January 26, 2018
The story of Dublin Special Branch DI Stefan Gillespie continues in this 4th of the series, set in 1940 with several strands but primarily of a murder of a strange family soon connected to German spies in a precariously neutral Ireland. Gillespie travels to Berlin for another sub-plot connected to Nazi atrocities in Poland, before a finale in Dublin where diplomatic duplicity and necessity are crucial. Characters’ actions and motivations are realistic, and consequences are powerful but understated in a great read.
February 14, 2018
The latest of the author's "City" series. As in the first three books, Stefan Gillespie, our "hero" is the focal point to the storylines, although I felt, somewhat peripheral to the thrust if the book. All in all, another excellent story, and I hope it's not the last we see of Stefan, and hopefully, Kate.
February 9, 2019
An absorbing, multi-layered historical crime thriller, set primarily in 1940 Dublin and Berlin.
Stefan Gillespie has been following a German doctor for weeks, monitoring his activities in Dublin, when he is summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs and told to prepare for a clandestine trip to Berlin in the coming weeks. An IRA attack leaves a friend and colleague injured, a race meeting erupts into violence, and Stefan is dispatched to the scene of the murders of an entire family to investigate the presence of a German radio.
Meanwhile, we follow the experience of Hauptmann Rilling, a German Army officer, commencing a year earlier with the invasion of Poland. He witnesses the burgeoning of the horrors the SS will come to inflict with a discomfort that will lead him back to Berlin a year later, shortly before Stefan Gillespie travels to the city on a mission to deliver a cipher to the Irish Ambassador. While in Germany, Stefan becomes embroiled in an investigation, determined to prove the miscarriage of justice that sees an Irishwoman behind bars for a murder she did not commit.
During his journey home, Stefan takes a detour via London to visit Kate, where he becomes suspected of being a German spy. Returning to Ireland, he unravels the mysteries surrounding the murders and unmasks the IRA soldier responsible for the attack on the guards.
Michael Russell's series goes from strength to strength, oozing with paranoia and atmosphere. The 1930's and 40's was a turbulent time for Europe and the wider world and the novels perfectly evoke the tension in the cities and wider communities. In this novel, the fourth in the series, we visit Berlin at the height of the Nazi's apparent omnipotence, Hitler's armies spreading across Europe like a plague, nations convinced the attacks on London can end with only one outcome.
At times chilling, 'The City of Lies' is an engrossing thriller that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or espionage thrillers. I am highly anticipating the next in the series, 'The City in Flames', which I recently discovered will be published later this year.
Stefan Gillespie has been following a German doctor for weeks, monitoring his activities in Dublin, when he is summoned to the Ministry of External Affairs and told to prepare for a clandestine trip to Berlin in the coming weeks. An IRA attack leaves a friend and colleague injured, a race meeting erupts into violence, and Stefan is dispatched to the scene of the murders of an entire family to investigate the presence of a German radio.
Meanwhile, we follow the experience of Hauptmann Rilling, a German Army officer, commencing a year earlier with the invasion of Poland. He witnesses the burgeoning of the horrors the SS will come to inflict with a discomfort that will lead him back to Berlin a year later, shortly before Stefan Gillespie travels to the city on a mission to deliver a cipher to the Irish Ambassador. While in Germany, Stefan becomes embroiled in an investigation, determined to prove the miscarriage of justice that sees an Irishwoman behind bars for a murder she did not commit.
During his journey home, Stefan takes a detour via London to visit Kate, where he becomes suspected of being a German spy. Returning to Ireland, he unravels the mysteries surrounding the murders and unmasks the IRA soldier responsible for the attack on the guards.
Michael Russell's series goes from strength to strength, oozing with paranoia and atmosphere. The 1930's and 40's was a turbulent time for Europe and the wider world and the novels perfectly evoke the tension in the cities and wider communities. In this novel, the fourth in the series, we visit Berlin at the height of the Nazi's apparent omnipotence, Hitler's armies spreading across Europe like a plague, nations convinced the attacks on London can end with only one outcome.
At times chilling, 'The City of Lies' is an engrossing thriller that I would recommend to anyone who enjoys historical fiction or espionage thrillers. I am highly anticipating the next in the series, 'The City in Flames', which I recently discovered will be published later this year.
March 28, 2026
The City of Lies by Michael Russell is number 4 in the Detective Stefan Gillespie series set in Dublin in the 1930’s / 1940’s and continues the high standard of first-rate, atmospheric historical crime thrillers experienced in the series thus far.
Ireland is maintaining its neutrality throughout World War Two, but tensions still persist between the Irish state and the British and German governments as the threat of a German invasion of England grows, endangering Irish impartiality. On top of this, the IRA are still active and the usual crime, both organised and opportunistic, is persistently common so the Irish Special Branch is at full capacity.
Four bodies are found in a country home set ablaze in a clumsy attempt to hide their murder. The IRA bungle an attempt to steal a British diplomatic bag, leaving one guard dead, one seriously injured, and two IRA members captured and facing death by hanging. At the world-renowned Curragh Racecourse rival gangs organise a full-scale fight for reasons which are yet to be uncovered. Might all these events be linked somehow?
As the investigation into each gathers pace German speaking Special Branch Detective Gillespie is sent to Berlin on a secret mission for the Irish government and despite his best efforts he is drawn into the high-profile investigation of the murder of a high-ranking German officer, whom the authorities are conveniently charging an Irish Woman for the crime. Gillespie is forced to tread a political tightrope to try and ensure that justice prevails and his own personal safety is not put at risk.
This is a super series and quite different from some historical novels as you receive a true feeling of the tensions of the time through the writing. The stories are taut, and the precariousness of the characters' situations is interwoven between fiction and the facts of the time in an elegant and engaging manner. A fourth ⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating for this series and number five has been added to the Wish List already.
Ireland is maintaining its neutrality throughout World War Two, but tensions still persist between the Irish state and the British and German governments as the threat of a German invasion of England grows, endangering Irish impartiality. On top of this, the IRA are still active and the usual crime, both organised and opportunistic, is persistently common so the Irish Special Branch is at full capacity.
Four bodies are found in a country home set ablaze in a clumsy attempt to hide their murder. The IRA bungle an attempt to steal a British diplomatic bag, leaving one guard dead, one seriously injured, and two IRA members captured and facing death by hanging. At the world-renowned Curragh Racecourse rival gangs organise a full-scale fight for reasons which are yet to be uncovered. Might all these events be linked somehow?
As the investigation into each gathers pace German speaking Special Branch Detective Gillespie is sent to Berlin on a secret mission for the Irish government and despite his best efforts he is drawn into the high-profile investigation of the murder of a high-ranking German officer, whom the authorities are conveniently charging an Irish Woman for the crime. Gillespie is forced to tread a political tightrope to try and ensure that justice prevails and his own personal safety is not put at risk.
This is a super series and quite different from some historical novels as you receive a true feeling of the tensions of the time through the writing. The stories are taut, and the precariousness of the characters' situations is interwoven between fiction and the facts of the time in an elegant and engaging manner. A fourth ⭐⭐⭐⭐ rating for this series and number five has been added to the Wish List already.
August 14, 2018
Stefan Gillespie works in law enforcement in Dublin. Ireland is a neutral country but both the British and the Germans circle round each other and Gillespie is charged with watching both sides. In a remote house a family group of four is found dead and Gillespie is asked to look into the murders. He finds a German radio and is concerned that there may be a link to a Nazi spy ring involving the IRA. Before he can investigate further Gillespie is given a mission to act as a diplomatic courier to Berlin where he finds that neutrality is no protection for Irish citizens as the German atrocities are beginning.
This is the fourth book in a series about Stefan Gillespie and the first that I have read. This made for some difficulties as there is a lot of backstory from previous outings that is not fully explained, eg. Gillespie is a fluent German speaker and has some German connections. The plot itself is rather disjointed. One part concerns the Nazi/IRA actions in Dublin and the multiple murders (apparently a true story), the other the link to the Nazi treatment of homosexuals and the disabled in Berlin. Despite all of this I found myself really enjoying the book as Russell is a convincing writer.
This is the fourth book in a series about Stefan Gillespie and the first that I have read. This made for some difficulties as there is a lot of backstory from previous outings that is not fully explained, eg. Gillespie is a fluent German speaker and has some German connections. The plot itself is rather disjointed. One part concerns the Nazi/IRA actions in Dublin and the multiple murders (apparently a true story), the other the link to the Nazi treatment of homosexuals and the disabled in Berlin. Despite all of this I found myself really enjoying the book as Russell is a convincing writer.
October 16, 2018
The fourth Stefan Gillespie thriller generally keeps up the high standard although I did find the plotting a bit less watertight than usual.
The formula remains the same as before: a murder mystery in Ireland vaguely linked to overseas intrigue in war-torn Europe. These are historical novels in every sense of the word and the strongest thing about Russell’s writing has always been the evocative sense of time and place, alongside excellent social and political contexts and their influence on the fledgling Irish Free State.
For once however Russell’s plotting slightly let’s him down. Jumps in chronology are a little confusing and there are just a few too many coincidences and chance encounters in Stefan Gillespie’s path to the truth. The Berlin section should be the highlight of the novel but isn’t quite as compelling as it maybe should have been.
On the plus side the characterisation and dialogue are as sharp as ever and Stefan’s private life gets a rocky patch that helps deepen his character nicely. He’s never been a cipher, but his emotional armour has seldom been pierced before. Events in this book leave him a little more vulnerable.
Still going strong then and room for plenty more. Whatever it’s flaws, the quality of the writing pulls it through.
The formula remains the same as before: a murder mystery in Ireland vaguely linked to overseas intrigue in war-torn Europe. These are historical novels in every sense of the word and the strongest thing about Russell’s writing has always been the evocative sense of time and place, alongside excellent social and political contexts and their influence on the fledgling Irish Free State.
For once however Russell’s plotting slightly let’s him down. Jumps in chronology are a little confusing and there are just a few too many coincidences and chance encounters in Stefan Gillespie’s path to the truth. The Berlin section should be the highlight of the novel but isn’t quite as compelling as it maybe should have been.
On the plus side the characterisation and dialogue are as sharp as ever and Stefan’s private life gets a rocky patch that helps deepen his character nicely. He’s never been a cipher, but his emotional armour has seldom been pierced before. Events in this book leave him a little more vulnerable.
Still going strong then and room for plenty more. Whatever it’s flaws, the quality of the writing pulls it through.
March 4, 2019
The City of Lies is the fourth book in the Stefan Gillespie series written by Michael Russell and centered on Stefan Gillespie, a Detective Inspector in the Garda Síochána – the Irish Police.
Stefan Gillespie is investigating a suspected murder-arson in West Wicklow, Gillespie stumbles across what appears to be a German radio. Soon he is on his way to Berlin as courier carrying crucial information to the Irish ambassador, there to encounter Francis Stuart and Frank Ryan, among others.
Meanwhile, Hauptmann Johannes Rilling records the atrocities being committed by German troops as they blitzkrieg through Poland, a series of mass murders of civilians on a scale previously unimaginable to a Wehrmacht officer.
The City of Lies is written rather well. Russell blends historical events and personages into his fiction, he creates a vividly detailed tale which investigates the coming horrors of the Holocaust and explores a Berlin drunk on power and triumph, but already experiencing the increasingly bizarre collective psychosis of a city built on lies.
All in all, The City of Lies is written rather well and is a strong continuation to what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to read in the very near future.
Stefan Gillespie is investigating a suspected murder-arson in West Wicklow, Gillespie stumbles across what appears to be a German radio. Soon he is on his way to Berlin as courier carrying crucial information to the Irish ambassador, there to encounter Francis Stuart and Frank Ryan, among others.
Meanwhile, Hauptmann Johannes Rilling records the atrocities being committed by German troops as they blitzkrieg through Poland, a series of mass murders of civilians on a scale previously unimaginable to a Wehrmacht officer.
The City of Lies is written rather well. Russell blends historical events and personages into his fiction, he creates a vividly detailed tale which investigates the coming horrors of the Holocaust and explores a Berlin drunk on power and triumph, but already experiencing the increasingly bizarre collective psychosis of a city built on lies.
All in all, The City of Lies is written rather well and is a strong continuation to what would hopefully be a wonderful series, which I plan to read in the very near future.
June 2, 2021
This was my first exposure to the Stefan Gillespie series and I was impressed. A very different view point, that from Irish eyes, looking at the early days of Nazi supremacy and the conquering of Europe. Ireland was an independent, neutral country just a short distance from the UK, who was in the gun sites of the 3rd Reich. Gillespie is a special branch agent, working for and against the British, for and gets the IRA and the Republicans, and spy in the guise of a diplomat. A quadrupile murder and the death of the race horse La Mancha-- yet it was a horrific crime the Garda wanted to sweep under the rug-- the intrigue centered around a botched attempt to hide the murders by burning the house-- yet the discovery a German radio suggested there was more to this than domestic violence. The world of Irish horse racing and a rich portrayal of the life in Dublin, the Irish countryside, and Berlin in 1940. Some unanswered questions and loose threads remain as I finish this page turner. Highly recommended and it prompted me to start reading the other books in the Stefan Gillespie series.
February 27, 2019
Dark, excellent read.
Having read all 3 previous Stefan Gillespie books, I am firmly part of the fan club and this is the best so far.
It"s far from being an easy read; none of the series have been. It's a detective story with complex political themes running through it and has moments of harrowing content.
Set in the early years of de Valera's Ireland and the Berlin of 1940, we are witness to the growing oppressivness of Irish conservative policy and the "banality of evil" that was Nazi Germany.
The storyline takes Gillespie from a multiple murder in rural Ireland, through the quagmire of Republican politics to the horrors of Nazi Germany. It's a complex journey.
I think Michael Russell's ability to make us care, not only about Gillespie but also the peripheral characters, is what makes this series standout. Even down to the family sheepdog, something that took me back to my school days reading and Old Yeller.
Outstanding achievement Mr Russell.
Having read all 3 previous Stefan Gillespie books, I am firmly part of the fan club and this is the best so far.
It"s far from being an easy read; none of the series have been. It's a detective story with complex political themes running through it and has moments of harrowing content.
Set in the early years of de Valera's Ireland and the Berlin of 1940, we are witness to the growing oppressivness of Irish conservative policy and the "banality of evil" that was Nazi Germany.
The storyline takes Gillespie from a multiple murder in rural Ireland, through the quagmire of Republican politics to the horrors of Nazi Germany. It's a complex journey.
I think Michael Russell's ability to make us care, not only about Gillespie but also the peripheral characters, is what makes this series standout. Even down to the family sheepdog, something that took me back to my school days reading and Old Yeller.
Outstanding achievement Mr Russell.
April 20, 2021
Michael Russell's The City of Lies is a grim but exciting read. I'm not sure whether the city in question is Dublin or Berlin, both are presented unattractively to the reader.
The main character of this and other books in this series is Stefan Gillespie, a decent yet vulnerable man who makes professional errors yet leads an impeccable home life where his parents bring up his infant son Tom while Stefan struggles through the mire of Irish politics in Dublin. Stefan's wife had died some years before.
The plot is interesting, confused at times but that's hardly surprising given the catastrophic state of Irish politics in 1940 and the almost impossible task of remaining neutral while the war rages in Europe. What I most like is the creation, by the author, of Berlin as it must have been; gloomy, depressing and threatening.
David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.
The main character of this and other books in this series is Stefan Gillespie, a decent yet vulnerable man who makes professional errors yet leads an impeccable home life where his parents bring up his infant son Tom while Stefan struggles through the mire of Irish politics in Dublin. Stefan's wife had died some years before.
The plot is interesting, confused at times but that's hardly surprising given the catastrophic state of Irish politics in 1940 and the almost impossible task of remaining neutral while the war rages in Europe. What I most like is the creation, by the author, of Berlin as it must have been; gloomy, depressing and threatening.
David Lowther. Author of The Blue Pencil, Liberating Belsen, Two Families at War and The Summer of '39, all published by Sacristy Press.
March 5, 2019
I hadn't realised until I finished this book that it was the fourth in a series, but it worked as a standalone for me. Not my usual genre and I did find it a little confusing at first because it is a multi-layered complicated tale but it was a very well written and compulsive read. Some of the events were taken from real-life events apparently and fitted in well and brought reality to the story. There were scenes in the book that were quite dark and hard to read but again brought a sense of reality to the story. I will definitely be reading the earlier books in the series.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Michael Russell/Little Brown Book Group UK for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.
Many thanks to Netgalley/Michael Russell/Little Brown Book Group UK for a digital copy of this title. All opinions expressed are my own.
September 17, 2018
How does a murder in rural County Wicklow and events in Berlin during WWII tie into each other?
This is what Special Branch Det. Stefan Gillespie is tasked with. Set during a tense period of time in Ireland's history, the detective must navigate Irish, British and German intelligence operatives in order to uncover the truth.
Very good novel with a tight and intricate plot that weaves fact and fiction about Ireland's role during WWII. Would recommend.
This is what Special Branch Det. Stefan Gillespie is tasked with. Set during a tense period of time in Ireland's history, the detective must navigate Irish, British and German intelligence operatives in order to uncover the truth.
Very good novel with a tight and intricate plot that weaves fact and fiction about Ireland's role during WWII. Would recommend.
May 13, 2024
First published in 2017, 'City of Lies' is the fourth novel in a series of crime novels featuring Stefan Gillespie of the Dublin Special Branch in 1940. In this tale, the disparate threads of the brutal murder of a family at a farmhouse in the Irish Republic, German espionage and a diplomatic trip to Berlin are all combined as usual into a tangled tale with little let-up in pace or atmosphere. Rather good, though often unsubtle.
May 6, 2026
I enjoyed this fourth instalment in the series. It gives a different view on the IRA and how "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" can be taken a level too far and how the Irish republicans were sometimes very naive in that sense. Wartime Britain, Dublin and Berlin are skilfully brought to life by Russell and the characters are believable. Stefan Gillespie is starting to annoy me a bit at times but I'm still enjoying the series.
June 11, 2024
Not for me.
I have an aversion to reading about Nazis. Probably my age.
This is well written as a thriller but I abandoned it after reading about a third of the book. I just was not engaged and the German part seemed to be heading down a familiar route. I will never know now! The Irish part is better.
I have an aversion to reading about Nazis. Probably my age.
This is well written as a thriller but I abandoned it after reading about a third of the book. I just was not engaged and the German part seemed to be heading down a familiar route. I will never know now! The Irish part is better.
June 22, 2019
I didn't enjoy this as much as the others in the series. While the murder, intrigue, and travel components were all there, the plot felt perfunctory and a bit lackluster. The brief nod to his long distance romance felt forced and didn't really mesh with the plot. Also very little justice served.
September 3, 2017
Another Stevan Gillespie triumph. Good story, well plotted, Irish/Berlin wartime thriller. Loved it.
January 9, 2018
Loved it.
September 13, 2018
Another excellent blend of fact and fiction
Highly recommended. Book four maintains the high standard of the series. I am hoping there will be more to follow.
Highly recommended. Book four maintains the high standard of the series. I am hoping there will be more to follow.
May 20, 2019
Another great read from Michael Russell.
August 19, 2019
Excellent read!
February 7, 2021
Perhaps getting a bit formulaic after the first three...
May 27, 2025
Another great tale in this series
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