This is a review I wrote while I was still moving in to my new address. After I moved in the furniture, I had to deal with boxes of clothing. I hung the immediately wearable clothing in the closet. Then I had to separate those items that were no longer suitable for wearing from those that needed to be washed or mended. I still have many boxes of books to sort through.
These are the circumstances in which I was reading Evil For Evil by James R. Benn, and taking notes for this review. Evil For Evil is the fourth book in the Billy Boyle mystery series. I had previously read Billy Boyle, the first book in the series. It didn't seem to require lengthy comments or analysis on this blog. So I reviewed it briefly on Goodreads. The descriptions of the second and third books in the series didn't pique my interest. So I skipped them.
In Evil For Evil Billy Boyle, now a Lieutenant, was transferred to Northern Ireland which might be invaded by the IRA (Irish Republican Army). The Irish in America were a major source of the IRA's funding. I expect that many Americans supported a united Ireland. This 21st century American thinks that the population of Northern Ireland ought to be consulted about the issue. Do the Protestants of Northern Ireland whose families had been there for generations get a say, or are they to be held responsible for their ancestors' alleged invasion of Northern Ireland? How about all the Americans who are descended from immigrants beginning in the 17th century? Are they to be considered invaders too? Some Native Americans might think so.
The British had learned that the IRA (Irish Republican Army) might be invading Northern Ireland possibly with the help of the German Abwehr. I had always associated the Abwehr with the Nazis. I learned that Abwehr means military intelligence. The Abwehr had existed in Germany since 1920. It became Nazi military intelligence in 1935 when Hitler assumed command of the Abwehr. I learned this from the Wikipedia article on the Abwehr.
Billy became associated with an Irish British Army corporal known to him as Subaltern O'Brien. She told him about an IRA agent named Jack Taggart who was called Red Jack because he was a leftist who fought against Franco in the Spanish Civil War. (I remember that Tom Lehrer had credited the faction who were opposed to Franco with having "all the good songs".) Subaltern O'Brien said that if Billy saw Red Jack, he should tell her immediately. She'd been looking for Red Jack for three years.
She also mused about whether the Arabs and Jews could peacefully co-exist if the British left Palestine. Billy, who had been in the Middle East, said he didn't know. Subaltern O'Brien had her own decided opinion. "They'd slaughter each other." Israel hasn't succeeded completely in slaughtering the Arabs. Since Israel has military superiority, it doesn't appear that the Arabs could slaughter the Jews. This urge to slaughter each other is tragic. The descendants of Isaac and Ishmael are cousins. Both are descended from Abraham.
Bringing the discussion back to Ireland, Subaltern O'Brien said that Ireland would be like Palestine. The Catholics and Protestants would kill each other off. I'd hope not.
There was a sweet ending. People who don't like that sort of thing might want to skip the end. I gave the book a B.
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