Criminals
Reviewed By Janet Mawdesley July 16, 2022
Author James O'Loghlin
Distributor: Allen & Unwin
ISBN: 9781760687465
Publisher: Bonnier Echo. Imprint Bonnier.
Release Date: July 2022
Website: https://www.allenandunwin.com
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The cover of Criminals from James O’Loghlin says one robbery, three people, no heroes which more than catches the eye, it intrigues right from the first glimpse. How, say you, can there be no hero’s in crime fiction?
That is until you meet Dean. Down on his luck, supporting a drug habit and facing the Magistrate once again, his Legal Aid lawyer is working hard to keep him out of gaol. He had planned the robbery well but as luck would have it, on leaving the suburban home, he walked into the Police, who for one moment did not believe his story.
Then there is Mary, lost and adrift, waking up in a room somewhere with a man she had no idea about, sneaking out before he woke up, desperate to return to her own home once again. She enjoys the thrill of shoplifting, spending time working out how and what, but never understanding or accepting why.
Sarah works as a bar attendant at the Blacktown Leagues Club where Mary is a regular. She is a Cop on indefinite leave from the Police Force, after a decision she made went terribly wrong. Mary has OCD and although she is getting better she still struggles to make any decisions in her life. The life of bar attendant suites her as whatever happens gets passed to the Manager. Nice and tidy as far as she is concerned.
A series of co-incidences see these three people in the one place at completely the wrong time, which sets off a train of events which will eventually make all three face up to who they are and what they really want to do with their lives.
Dean and Mary are both forced to face the reality that is the criminal pathway they are travelling; Sarah needs to finally close a chapter in her life to be able to move on. None of the choices to be made will be easy.
James O’Loghlin spent many years as a Court appointed lawyer meeting many Deans, some Marys and the occasional Sarah along the way. Each of these people has contributed a little to this fascinating fiction which looks below the hyper, into the reality that is crime and the people who somehow, through a range of circumstances, find themselves facing the Courts.
Criminals is a fascinating read which is underpinned by a real understanding of what makes people take to a life of crime. One robbery, three people, no heroes! Excellent.