The Drowned

By John Banville

Book Overview

From the renowned Booker Prize winner and nationally bestselling author of Snow comes a richly atmospheric new mystery about a woman's sudden disappearance in a small coastal town in Ireland, where nothing is as it seems.

"John Banville is one of my favorite writers alive, and I pick up his books whenever I need a reminder how to write a good sentence."--R.F. Kuang

Amazon Editors' Pick: Best Literature and Fiction books of October

"He had seen drowned people. A sight not to be forgotten."

1950s, rural Ireland. A loner comes across a mysteriously empty car in a field. Knowing he shouldn't approach but unable to hold back, he soon finds himself embroiled in a troubling missing person case, as a husband claims his wife may have thrown herself into the sea.

Called in from Dublin to investigate is Detective Inspector Strafford, who soon turns to his old ally--the flawed but brilliant pathologist Quirke--a man he is linked to in increasingly complicated ways. But as the case unfolds, events from the past resurface that may have life-altering ramifications for all involved.

At once a searing mystery and a profound meditation on the hidden worlds we all inhabit, The Drowned is the next great Strafford and Quirke novel from a beloved writer at the top of his game.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1335000593
• ISBN13: 9781335000590
• Release Date: October 2024
• Publisher: Hanover Square Press
• Length: 336 Pages
• Weight: 1.00 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Not one likable character.

I struggled through about half of this book, filled with unpleasant characters. I simply could not care about any of them. I was hoping I had found another series of mysteries, but this will be the first and last.