The Ruin

By: Dervla McTiernan

Narrated by: Aoife McMahon

Length: 10 hrs and 38 mins

Publisher's summary

The International Best Seller.

Cormac Reilly is about to reopen a case it took him twenty years to forget.

On his first week on the job, Garda Cormac Reilly responds to a call at a decrepit country house to find two silent, neglected children waiting for him - 15-year-old Maude and five-year-old Jack. Their mother lies dead upstairs.

Twenty years later, Cormac has left his high-flying career as a detective in Dublin and returned to Galway. As he struggles to navigate the politics of a new police station, Maude and Jack return to haunt him.

What ties a recent suicide to the woman's death so long ago? And who among his new colleagues can Cormac really trust?

This unsettling crime debut draws us deep into the dark heart of Ireland and asks who will protect you when the authorities can't - or won't. Perfect for fans of Tana French, Jane Casey, Liz Nugent, Susie Steiner and Caz Frear.

2018, Irish Book Awards crime category, Short-listed

2019, Davitt Awards Best Novel, Winner

2019, Ned Kelly Award for Best First Fiction, Winner

2019, Kate O'Brien Award, Short-listed

©2018 Dervla McTiernan (P)2018 Hachette Audio UK

Critic reviews

A very fine novel . . . excellently written and, at times, heartcatchingly sad (Marian Keyes)

Corruption, clandestine cover-ups and criminal conspiracy ... as moving as it is fast-paced (Val McDermid)

Bravo! The Ruin is a terrific read! (Liz Nugent)

I tore through The Ruin, desperate to unravel the mystery that Dervla so cleverly lays out. Heartbreaking and heart-stopping in equal measure, it's an incredibly well-crafted, complex tale and yet remarkably easy to read, such is the subtle brilliance of the plotting . . . Dervla maintains the suspense all the way through, yet never at the expense of plausibility. She's sure to become one of my go-to authors! (Caz Frear)

Instantly hauling the reader into its permanently charged atmosphere, The Ruin is as convincing as it is multi-layered, as compelling as it is complex, and heralds the arrival of Dervla McTiernan as a future star of the genre (Chris Brookmyre)

There are not many books that will keep me reading from start to finish but Dervla McTiernan's The Ruin did just that . . . An excellent story, very well written . . . this one was a winner for me! (Alex Gray)

Fans of Tana French will love McTiernan's expertly plotted, complex web of secrets that refuse to stay hidden (Karen Dionne)

Loved every page. Cormac Reilly is a brilliant new character, so real you can hear his footsteps on the stairs. Utterly gripping, brilliantly executed story. Serious contender for Irish Crime Novel of the Year (Sam Blake)

Intelligent, compassionate and believable (Sinead Crowley)

Good police drama

Well developed characters. Great narration. The lilt of the narrator is a pleasant change from the ubiquitous American and British accents. Couldn't stop listening in the end. Not that it's the most compelling story I've ever listened to but it drew me in none the less.

Brilliant Novel

Vividly written with dramatic content, a plot that develops and deepens. The characters are all memorable, I regretted reaching the end. The narrator is perfect and I loved listening to her reading.

very good

liked it was intrigued all the way the way through, want to listen to the next ones now

Amazing Thriller

A page-turner. All the characters are full of life in the middle of a very interesting week, where old murders, office politics, life decisions and events that make or break carriers happen every second. And the reader is right in the middle of that with characters you would love to know everything about, but the writer keeps information from you in order to keep the suspense going. Do yourself a favour: turn whatever you’re doing into an exciting experience by listening to this during it. Worth every minute spent with it.

Started slow but absolutely worth every second

It starts quite slow, before Chapter 6 it's really unclear how anything could possibly be connected, but given how complex and detailed everything turns out to be in the end it was well worth it. I had already listed to a previous book by the same author, The Sisters, that I was impressed by, so knew there must be good reason and pheeeew. It's really great writing, that is very well performed, strongly recommended for crime readers!!

Other curse words please...

Perfect narrator. She made the story come alive. I enjoyed the book. Good mood settings and descriptions for us not from that country. But PLEASE do use other words than Jesus and God. It is really offensive to use the Lord's name in vain. A lot.

Great read

top scores for the narration, plot, and great pace. Loved this book. interesting subplots as well as tye main story. The narration was really good, with a great mixture of well defined characters, which brought the story to life. looking forward to the next book in the series. highly recommended.

An excellent read

Two timelines and two seemingly separate story lines converge seamlessly into a great read. Great writing, further enhanced by the superb narration. In fact, if I could give the performance more stars I would.

A new great series for me!

Fantastic books! I appreciate the intricacies in the characters and story line as well as the lack of graphic scenes. Great writing! A perfect follow up after reading the Robert Galbraith novels.

Missing the ending

I was hooked in the beginning but This was great until there was no real ending….