Today it's my turn on the BlogTour Blackwatertown by Paul Waters.
Paul Waters is an award-winning BBC producer and co-presenter of the We’d Like A Word books and authors podcast, shortlisted for 2020 Books Podcast of the Year. Paul grew up in Belfast during ‘the Troubles’ and went on to report and produce for BBC TV and radio.
His claim to fame is making Pelé his dinner. Paul has covered US politics, created a G8 Summit in a South African township, gone undercover in Zimbabwe, conducted football crowds, reported from Swiss drug shooting-up rooms, smuggled a satellite dish into Cuba and produced the World Service’s
first live coverage of the 9/11 attacks on America.
He also taught in Poland, drove a cab in England, busked in Wales, was a night club cook in New York, designed computer systems in Dublin, presented podcasts for Germans and organised music festivals for beer drinkers. He lives in Buckinghamshire and has two children.
Follow @PaulWaters99 on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Visit paulwatersauthor.com, Buy Blackwatertown
His claim to fame is making Pelé his dinner. Paul has covered US politics, created a G8 Summit in a South African township, gone undercover in Zimbabwe, conducted football crowds, reported from Swiss drug shooting-up rooms, smuggled a satellite dish into Cuba and produced the World Service’s
first live coverage of the 9/11 attacks on America.
He also taught in Poland, drove a cab in England, busked in Wales, was a night club cook in New York, designed computer systems in Dublin, presented podcasts for Germans and organised music festivals for beer drinkers. He lives in Buckinghamshire and has two children.
Follow @PaulWaters99 on Twitter, on Goodreads, on Amazon, Visit paulwatersauthor.com, Buy Blackwatertown
About the book
When maverick police sergeant Jolly Macken is banished to a sleepy 1950s Irish border village, he vows to find the killer of his brother – even if the murderer is in the police. But a lot can happen in a week. Over seven days Macken falls in love, uncovers dark family secrets, accidentally starts a war, and is hailed a hero and branded a traitor. When Blackwatertown explodes into violence, who can he trust? And is betrayal the only way to survive?
When maverick police sergeant Jolly Macken is banished to a sleepy 1950s Irish border village, he vows to find the killer of his brother – even if the murderer is in the police. But a lot can happen in a week. Over seven days Macken falls in love, uncovers dark family secrets, accidentally starts a war, and is hailed a hero and branded a traitor. When Blackwatertown explodes into violence, who can he trust? And is betrayal the only way to survive?
The story begins with the way life is in general for Macken. Never quite on the right side of any situation and always just slightly short of a complete disaster. Banished to a backwater town he struggles to set a single foot right.
Macken tries to overcome the attitude of the majority, the mob-like nature of a code of silence. Familiarity breeds contempt, especially when everyone thinks you're the enemy. Not exactly an easy place to be in when you are trying to solve a case, and even more so when everyone thinks you're a traitor. Poor Macken just can't seem to catch a break.
What is Blackwatertown - a scathing commentary, a comedy of circumstance, a mystery or political minefield in the midst of a rural quagmire of religious undertones. As a reader it was sometimes a toss-up between smirking, feeling sorry for the character or anger at the entire situation.
I think prior knowledge, political and historical context are absolutely everything when it comes to this read. Without that the story can be perceived as a satirical commentary with plenty of comedic moments. It's easy to overlook the more serious undertone that flows throughout the piece, but to be honest it's what the world tends to do when it comes to Northern Ireland and the volatile, and divisive, history that comes with it.
Waters plays upon the above a wee bit, so depending on where you stand and interpret the story this will be a different reading experience. Blissfully unaware or acutely aware. Aware of the toxicity and hatred that flows like a mighty river underneath the people. Either way it's a good yarn.
Macken tries to overcome the attitude of the majority, the mob-like nature of a code of silence. Familiarity breeds contempt, especially when everyone thinks you're the enemy. Not exactly an easy place to be in when you are trying to solve a case, and even more so when everyone thinks you're a traitor. Poor Macken just can't seem to catch a break.
What is Blackwatertown - a scathing commentary, a comedy of circumstance, a mystery or political minefield in the midst of a rural quagmire of religious undertones. As a reader it was sometimes a toss-up between smirking, feeling sorry for the character or anger at the entire situation.
I think prior knowledge, political and historical context are absolutely everything when it comes to this read. Without that the story can be perceived as a satirical commentary with plenty of comedic moments. It's easy to overlook the more serious undertone that flows throughout the piece, but to be honest it's what the world tends to do when it comes to Northern Ireland and the volatile, and divisive, history that comes with it.
Waters plays upon the above a wee bit, so depending on where you stand and interpret the story this will be a different reading experience. Blissfully unaware or acutely aware. Aware of the toxicity and hatred that flows like a mighty river underneath the people. Either way it's a good yarn.
Buy Blackwatertown at Amazon Uk or go to Goodreads for any other retailer. Publisher: Unbound Digital; pub date 23 July 2020. Buy at Amazon com.
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