The story of the retired postman who set out to assassinate JFK in 1960
This week it’s almost exclusively fiction and mostly murder mysteries but there’s one book about an attempted murder that’s all facts, a must-read for fans of mid-20th century history, and really, you couldn’t make this stuff up.
The JFK Conspiracy, Brad Meltzer and John Mensch, Ithaka, €16.99
Much has been written about the assassination of John F Kennedy in 1963. But not much has been written about a plot to kill him much earlier, one that would put an end to his presidency before it ever began. Meltzer and Mensch are expert storytellers and keep the reader riveted as they unravel the story of Richard Pavlick, a retired postman, then 73 years old.
In December 1960, after Kennedy’s election but before his inauguration, Pavlick gave his home away to a local youth camp and travelled to Palm Beach, Florida, with the intent of blowing both Kennedy and himself up with the dynamite he had in his car. What stopped him was that as Kennedy emerged from his house, he had his wife and children with him (it was Sunday and they were going to Mass) and Pavlick didn’t want to hurt Kennedy’s family.
It’s scary stuff, especially considering the many suicide bombers who have emerged in the early years of the 21st century and also considering the fact that religious sectarianism was at the root of Pavlick’s unsuccessful attempt. He had a pathological hatred of Catholics and believed Kennedy’s dirty Catholic money had bought him the presidency. Like I said, you couldn’t make it up, but it’s a compelling read.
On the Run, Kerry J Donovan, Vinci, €12.99
Beginning with protagonist Ryan Kaine launching a surface-to-air missile at sea, meeting its target which was meant to be a drone but is in fact a passenger airplane, subsequently escaping by swimming 10km to shore, you could say from the get-go the reader is… er… thrown in at the deep end. And it’s breathless action all the way to the end in this novel, the first in a new series of Ryan Kaine novels and already gaining traction. Why has Kaine just blown up a plane full of innocent people?
This novel is set in the dirty world of the arms trade and those who run it, competing against each other for government contracts and only too willing to get rid of anyone who might stand in the way of profit. If you like past-paced thrillers full of political and commercial intrigue, this will fit the bill nicely.
The Lighthouse Keeper’s Wife, June O’Sullivan, Poolbeg, €17.99
While Skellig Michael is considered a holy island, there are others who think it’s a cursed rock, despite the monks’ settlement, full of stories of misfortune. Inspired by finding the graves of two little boys, lighthouse keeper’s sons who died on the island in the 1860s, the author was prompted to write a novel, and this is the result. James and Eliza Carthy arrive on Skellig Michael in the mid-1860s, James a confident and experienced keeper and Eliza a devoted young wife and mother, unafraid of hard work, although not quite prepared for the west coast weather.
When Edmund and Ruth Hunter arrive, Edmund as assistant keeper and his wife Ruth, pregnant with their first child, things are not quite right. They’re not exactly a normal couple and Eliza at first thinks it might just be that they’re strict Northern Methodists. But the Hunters have an agenda. And to say any more would be to spoil, but there’s great tragedy in this novel and the tension of mystery too, as the merciless Atlantic pounds the rocks and Eliza is left with no option but the most drastic one. A fine historical novel.
Old Soul, Susan Barker, Fig Tree, €19.99
A supernatural thriller with a Dracula-like air about it, this might keep you awake nights. When two strangers, Jake and Mariko, miss their flight in Osaka airport and later get talking, they find that both have lost loved ones in odd circumstances. Not so unusual, you’d think. But both of the deceased had befriended a female photographer not long before they died. And the woman disappeared immediately after their deaths. Coincidentally, both of these unfortunate dead people were found to have their internal organs the wrong way round at the time of death.
Jake decides to do some investigating and alternate chapters are the testimonies of other people who had loved ones have died in similar circumstances. It seems this woman has been around for centuries, travelling the world looking for souls to keep herself alive and youthful. While the idea of vampires (though she’s not exactly a vampire) and the undead have been around for a long time, it’s not often you get such a story delivered with such elegance. It’s dark, disquieting, beautifully written and will keep you enthralled – and horrified – to the end.
Death on the Red Sea, CL Miller, Macmillan, €18.99
A great fireside read for cosy crime fans and even more so if they happen to be Antiques Road Show fans. This is the second novel in Miller’s Antique Hunters series, following on from the successful An Antique Hunter’s Guide to Murder, but of course this is a standalone book, if you’ve missed the first.
The hunters in question are Freya and her eccentric Aunt Carole who have set up an agency to trace stolen precious antiques and works of art. They’re investigating the disappearance of a painting from a maritime museum, where a dead body was found nearby, and they find themselves on board a luxury cruise liner heading for Jordan. When they discover a whole stash of stolen art on board, they realise they’re probably chasing the notorious Collector, an art thief who’s never been caught and who has no problem with murder, if that’s what it takes to complete a mission. It’s like Agatha Christie crossed with the Thursday Murder Club.
Footnotes
The Ortús Chamber Music Festival is happening in Cork from February 26 to March 2 with some outstanding guests. See ortusfestival.ie for details.
Bowie fans won’t want to miss the David Bowie Festival in Dublin from February 26 to March 2. See dublinbowiefestival.ie for more information.