Broken Dreams is the first urban thriller from Hull based writer ,Nick Quantrill, featuring private detective Joe Geraghty. Northern gritty realism. A cracking authentic crime thriller Joe Geraghty, Private Investigator, is used to struggling from one case to the next, barely making the rent on his small office in the Old Town of Hull. Invited by a local businessman to investigate a member of his staff's absenteeism, it's the kind of surveillance work that Geraghty and his small team have performed countless times. When Jennifer Murdoch is found bleeding to death in her bed, Geraghty quickly finds himself trapped in the middle of a police investigation which stretches back to the days when the city had a thriving fishing industry. As the woman's tangled private life begins to unravel, the trail leads Geraghty to local gangster-turned-respectable businessman, Frank Salford, a man with a significant stake in the city's regeneration plans. Still haunted by the death of his wife in a house fire, it seems the people with the answers Geraghty wants are the police and Salford, both of whom want his co-operation for their own ends. With everything at stake, some would go to any length to get what they want, Geraghty included.
Broken Dreams: Joe Geraghty Series, Book 1
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Luca Veste
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Joe Geraghty is a private investigator. Asked to investigate a member of staff's absenteeism by a local businessman, he soon becomes embroiled in a murder investigation. With links to a feared gangland boss, Geraghty finds himself treading on very dangerous ground.
Broken Dreams is the debut feature length novel from Nick Quantrill. Set against the backdrop of the historic city of Hull, this book is extremely well crafted. With a believable lead character, who proves time and time again during the course of the story that he is just a normal guy, this novel is an example of the best type of realism in British crime fiction.
Whilst the character of Geraghty is well rounded and an excellently written, it is the urban landscape of Hull which really takes this book to the next level. Quantrill manages to bring the city to life, skilfully weaving the heart of this city and its former times into a modern tale.
The pace never drops, with continual action and plot strands effortlessly revealed as the story unfolds. This is a very cleverly created novel.
Gritty, realistic and excellently written, this is surely the first in what promises to be an exciting new series.
Broken Dreams is the debut feature length novel from Nick Quantrill. Set against the backdrop of the historic city of Hull, this book is extremely well crafted. With a believable lead character, who proves time and time again during the course of the story that he is just a normal guy, this novel is an example of the best type of realism in British crime fiction.
Whilst the character of Geraghty is well rounded and an excellently written, it is the urban landscape of Hull which really takes this book to the next level. Quantrill manages to bring the city to life, skilfully weaving the heart of this city and its former times into a modern tale.
The pace never drops, with continual action and plot strands effortlessly revealed as the story unfolds. This is a very cleverly created novel.
Gritty, realistic and excellently written, this is surely the first in what promises to be an exciting new series.
11 of 13 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Over the last couple of years, Nick Quantrill has made an enviable reputation for himself as a highly accomplished true-to-the-gospels (of St. Elmore Leonard and St. Raymond Chandler) crime fiction writer who reliably delivers precisely crafted plots, authentic hardboiled dialogue and classic PI fisticuffs action in tales suffused with an atmosphere of compounding tension which slices through the shifting dynamics and corkscrew effects of the narrative and where the characters will inevitably find themselves hanging upside down in their own story.
After many successful and celebrated shorter tales, Nick wrote the full-length e-book `Black & White' which started out in leisurely fashion but soon got into its stride as a police procedural investigation of the dark fate of a body found in a dockside container. I particularly enjoyed the accompanying side-story of the relentless stress of the anti-heroic DS Coleman's working life being exacerbated considerably by his wife's undermining resentment of her husband's all-hours, underpaid job (not a new theme, but tenderly done).
In his first paperback novel, published by the recently-established Caffeine Nights imprint, we get to catch DS Coleman from another angle, as an incidental character, while two new characters step to the fore - the private detective Joe Geraghty whose wife died during an arson attack two years previously, and the City of Hull itself.... Read more ›
After many successful and celebrated shorter tales, Nick wrote the full-length e-book `Black & White' which started out in leisurely fashion but soon got into its stride as a police procedural investigation of the dark fate of a body found in a dockside container. I particularly enjoyed the accompanying side-story of the relentless stress of the anti-heroic DS Coleman's working life being exacerbated considerably by his wife's undermining resentment of her husband's all-hours, underpaid job (not a new theme, but tenderly done).
In his first paperback novel, published by the recently-established Caffeine Nights imprint, we get to catch DS Coleman from another angle, as an incidental character, while two new characters step to the fore - the private detective Joe Geraghty whose wife died during an arson attack two years previously, and the City of Hull itself.... Read more ›
4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
By SNJC
Format:Paperback
Having read numerous short stories by this author, i'm looking forward to this first full length book. The short stories capture the essence and reality of life in a northern city to a tee - reminiscent of John Godber's works for the stage - with descriptions of local landmarks that make them easily recognisable, even to anyone unfamiliar with the area. The 'whodunnit' twists are always the surprise you're not expecting, in true crime fiction style. Always an enjoyable read.
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
Living on the outskirts of Hull it was enjoyable to be able to recognise the places mentioned in the book as well as enjoy the storyline.
By Liz Wilkins
Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase
I wasnt aware of this author until I was pointed in his direction and I am very glad that I was. I am a big fan of the crime/mystery genre, and I'm quite fond of those novels featuring Private Investigators as opposed to Detectives - quite often these stories are more well rounded (see the Elvis Cole series!) and that is certainly the case here. Joe Geraghty is a great creation - a sympathetic character with his own personal demons, who is struggling along making a living as a Private Investigator. Investigating a staff absenteeism, the lady under investigation turns up dead. Not a good start for Joe, who feels that he may become a suspect. Intertwined with this case, he is also looking into the disappearance of a singer several years earlier. You will also get for your money a couple of great sidekicks and a terrific villain. A whole lot of fun, great pacing and characterisation and a pretty darn good story to boot, you won't be disappointed. Looking forward to reading book 2.
By Best Books To Read
TOP 100 REVIEWER
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
So this was my first book by Nick Quantrill and also the first featuring Joe Geraghty. Some of you that follow my reviews know I'm a sucker for a series however having finished this book I have to be honest and say it was a pretty refreshing male lead character! Joe Geraghty is a Private Investigator who works with his friend Don and her daughter Sarah. His case starts off as being a straightforward find my daughter scenario. However, from quite early on we see that Joe is tangled up in the case that involves Jennifer Murdoch who was found dead.
In the early part of the book I found myself wondering if I had missed a bit as the whole Jennifer Murdoch case and how Joe is in the centre of it left me feeling a bit bewildered. Pretty soon there are many threads to the plot involving many people and it certainly made for interesting reading. I was trying desperately to work out who it was, and found myself surprised as it's been a while since I read a real "whodunit"!
The characters are surprisingly ordinary and to be honest when you read the amount of crime books that I do, it makes a refreshing change. I kind of found myself gaining another favourite male lead character but only because Joe was so normal. He likes a beer, has trouble with his past, and the most surprisingly does not posses any martial arts or firearms training (hurrah, at last a male lead that isn't an expert!). The actual story like I said before was a real mystery and although I felt was a little slow at the beginning it picked up pace and towards the end was brilliant.
As usual with any series I read and enjoy I have already brought book 2.... Read more ›
In the early part of the book I found myself wondering if I had missed a bit as the whole Jennifer Murdoch case and how Joe is in the centre of it left me feeling a bit bewildered. Pretty soon there are many threads to the plot involving many people and it certainly made for interesting reading. I was trying desperately to work out who it was, and found myself surprised as it's been a while since I read a real "whodunit"!
The characters are surprisingly ordinary and to be honest when you read the amount of crime books that I do, it makes a refreshing change. I kind of found myself gaining another favourite male lead character but only because Joe was so normal. He likes a beer, has trouble with his past, and the most surprisingly does not posses any martial arts or firearms training (hurrah, at last a male lead that isn't an expert!). The actual story like I said before was a real mystery and although I felt was a little slow at the beginning it picked up pace and towards the end was brilliant.
As usual with any series I read and enjoy I have already brought book 2.... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
Definitely worth a read
A good fast paced read with a believable centre character. Looking forward to reading the next one in this crime series.
Published 9 months ago by suzypanda
5.0 out of 5 stars
After reading Book One, in this series, I want to read Book Two
I enjoyed this book for a few reasons. It was based in Hull - a city I am partly familiar with. The characters were normal - not in your face or over-blown, which gave it a... Read more
Published 13 months ago by T Edges
1.0 out of 5 stars
Tarnished afraid and dull
I was looking forward to reading this book having read the glowing reviews on Amazon. Disappointingly, the reviews are better written than the book, certainly they are more... Read more
Published 15 months ago by EPDowd
4.0 out of 5 stars
A slow burner - well worth a look
I really enjoyed this, the first in a proposed series of Joe Geraghty books. Nick's prose is well put together, and atmospheric enough to give a real feel for life in modern day... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Bishbashboogie
5.0 out of 5 stars
Skilful plotting and subtle characterisation
For Joe Geraghty, former rugby league professional and now private investigator based in Hull's Old Town, a routine job looking into a local woman's absenteeism from work takes a... Read more
Published 21 months ago by Country Publications
5.0 out of 5 stars
Broken Dreams - a fine debut novel
BROKEN DREAMS is Nick Quantrill's debut novel, and it's a cracker.
It can't be easy being a PI in northern England - Hull, to be precise - and in Joe Geraghty, we have a... Read more
It can't be easy being a PI in northern England - Hull, to be precise - and in Joe Geraghty, we have a... Read more
Published on 19 Jun 2011 by Julie Lewthwaite
5.0 out of 5 stars
It's a Hull of a novel!
Hull is a much maligned place, usually by people that have never visited. What Nick manages to do in this excellent debut novel is bring Hull's rich history to life whilst at the... Read more
Published on 29 Mar 2011 by Grooydaz39
5.0 out of 5 stars
BRIT GRIT KING!
This is a cracking book. It's the story of a man- Joe Geraghty- and a city - Hull- that have taken many a good kicking and are trying to get back on their feet. Read more
Published on 19 Nov 2010 by Paul D Brazill
4.0 out of 5 stars
Definitely a Series Debut
Joe Geraghty might not own shares in "Queen's" but sups enough within its walls to be a virtual alckie by the time the novel reaches its denouement, leaving the reader with the... Read more
Published on 19 Oct 2010 by Linda Acaster
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