Not perfect, Pheobe acts without clear reasons and in parts I was finding her unlikable. But she turns it around and the writing remains so perfectly atmospheric and lyrical. The ending was a little rushed but thankfully involved Quirke and his out of character car.

Not Banville at his finest, which still means very good. Remains the most literary in the crime fiction genre. Excited to see what melancholy situation Quirke plods through next.

Elegy for April, published a decade ago, is actually a precursor to John Banville's latest novel April in Spain. (Benjamin Black is the pseudonym Banville once used for his crime novels.)

It's a brilliantly evocative novel set in 1950s Dublin that explores what might have happened to a junior doctor who goes missing — even though there is no body to be found and her family don't seem remotely interested that she's vanished.

The star protagonist is the pathologist Quirke — who was first introduced to readers in Banville's 2006 novel Christine Falls — and together with his adult daughter Phoebe and a local police detective, a loose and unofficial "investigation" gets underway to figure out whether April Latimer has disappeared of her own accord or met with foul play.

It's a brilliant story, written in Banville's typical lush prose with big dollops of humour and much social commentary throughout. I loved it.

To read a more detailed review, please visit my blog.

Disclaimer - I did not read the first two books in the series, so I feel like I was missing something during the entire book. It seemed like the author was giving a go at some character development, but I couldn't quite grab on since I missed all the drama that had happened in the first two books.
I hesitate to give it any stars at all because perhaps I would have liked it more if I knew what had been going on behind the scenes.
As far as mystery novels go though, this was disappointing. It dragged on and on (probably because the author was trying to build characters) and I had a really hard time getting through the book. I had to pause and go read another book, and then come back to it in order to finish it.

prose and atmosphere were amazing, especially the descriptions of sometimes foggy, sometimes Ice-bound Dublin in February. Characters and plot both felt thin though, so mixed feelings about the book as a whole. Would like to read more by this author, so opting for 3 stars.

Looking for an engrossing mystery? Skip this. Enjoy lively characters and action? This is not for you. On the other hand, if you favor Irish angst, drunken maundering, men and women having casual sex and then regretting it, and pages and pages of characters dwelling on their interior failings rather than getting on with anything that advances the plot, dig right in.
This is my first--and last--Quirke novel. I had another one on my to-read pile, but it is going to the used bookstore unread. You could really read the first two chapters and the last two and skip the entire middle of this book if all you want is the "mystery" that is the thin excuse for this story.
Benjamin Black (John Banville) writes beautifully, but I didn't enjoy spending time with these sad, depressing characters, and even the mystery itself wasn't much of one. As for Quirke, I can't imagine why people keep returning to read more of his story. I found him lacking in charm and devoid of any redeeming personality traits that might tempt me to enjoy spending time with him. Only Inspector Hackett seemed appealing, and we see too little of him in this outing. Not recommended, unless you like a good wallow in other people's troubles.

I put this onto my to-read list in 2015 - I was looking for a title to fill a challenge of "a book with a character named April" - and have just now read it (6 years behind on challenges is pretty much normal for me). I think I must have been having problems finding a book to fit - no doubt there are other books with characters named April, but clearly none of them appealed - as it's rare that I'll read a series without starting at the beginning. However, on the occasions where I have done that, it hasn't mattered - I'm keen to read #1 and #2, but I wasn't annoyed that I didn't know what was in them. The things alluded to (which I presume happened in one or other or those books) are simply a mystery for me to uncover.

So, we're in the 1950s in Ireland. Quirke, a pathologist and a heavy drinker (the latter of which holds more importance in this novel), is contacted by his daughter (interesting backstory there) when one of her close friends (April) hasn't been in touch for a couple of weeks. This is most unusual - they ordinarily chat in person or by phone every day. Phoebe convinces Quirke to do a little investigating and he enlists his detective friend. Then April's estranged family start making noises of discontent.

I really enjoyed the setting and all the side-stories within this book, and there are lots of characters that I was involved in. I also like that the ending leaves a number of things unanswered.