![\"A](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/DrawingDead.jpg?resize=200%2C300&ssl=1\")
Faolan O\u2019Connor Book 1\nBy Brian McKinley
\n\u00a9 August 17, 2016
\nASIN: B01KN27CPA
\nKindle Version, file size 1028 KB\n
<\/p>Faolan O\u2019Connor Book 1
\nBy Brian McKinley
\n\u00a9 August 17, 2016
\nASIN: B01KN27CPA
\nKindle Version, file size 1028 KB\n
First and foremost, I want to point out that this book is completely unlike the stories I usually choose to read; vampires and gangsters aren\u2019t really my jam. So even though the book\u2019s blurb made it clear from the outset that those were key elements in author Brian McKinley\u2019s novel, I didn\u2019t know what to expect.<\/p>\n
None of that mattered. Drawing Dead bit into me almost immediately, and I was hooked. The main character, Faolan O\u2019Connor, sucked me in completely. His charm won me over even as his shenanigans surprised, entertained, and captivated me. I couldn\u2019t wait to see what he would do next, or whether his plans would succeed or fail. In a world where failure usually carried a death sentence, I was rooting for him at every turn.<\/p>\n
The author\u2019s storytelling is well-spun. Its complex and multi-layered intrigues, all the back-stabbing, plotting, and scheming kept me fully engaged. I will admit I had a bit of trouble keeping up with who was trying to target whom, but as long as I kept my eye on Faolan, I was able to track the story. With all that happens on these pages, it\u2019s a pretty non-stop adventure, violent and dark in many places, but with a ray of hope and light\u2014not sunlight though; vampires, remember?\u2014that runs throughout the story. I loved every minute.<\/p>\n
Because the story takes place in 1930s New York, there are threads that, at first glance, might seem racist, sexist, classist; but I understand McKinley\u2019s purpose in including these details. They were, after all, part of that era in the real world, so readers should go into this story with that in mind. The thing that made those characteristics bearable, in my opinion, was the fact that they were found in the antagonists\u2014yet another reason to boo them. Faolan did not embody any of those traits himself, and in fact despised them. He is not racist, not sexist, not classist. He is who he is, a New York Irishman who loves his city and its people, all flavors, colors, and stripes. He champions them in most instances, which raised him even higher in my estimation.<\/p>\n
I even loved the \u201cAbout the Author\u201d page, and the description of \u201cBrian McKinley\u201d himself. You have to read it to see what I mean, but don\u2019t do it before you read the book. Do it after. That\u2019s when it will have more meaning. Trust me on this.<\/p>\n
The only thing I could find to critique is that the book could have used a bit more proofreading. Still, even those little \u201cglitches\u201d faded as I read, and I stopped noticing them at all. The story was that good.<\/p>\n
I thoroughly enjoyed Drawing Dead, and hope McKinley will write more of Faolan\u2019s story at some point. Most highly recommended.<\/p>\n<\/body>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Faolan O\u2019Connor Book 1 By Brian McKinley \u00a9 August 17, 2016 ASIN: B01KN27CPA Kindle Version, file size 1028 KB First and foremost, I want to point out that this book is completely unlike the stories I usually choose to read; vampires and gangsters aren\u2019t really my jam. So even though the book\u2019s blurb made it…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-5275","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-reviews"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p8n0kX-1n5","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":5187,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2025\/02\/05\/void-drifter\/","url_meta":{"origin":5275,"position":0},"title":"Void Drifter","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"February 5, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By J. N. Chaney and Jason Anspach \u00a9 June 11, 2024, Variant Publications B0D2382W95 632 pages I enjoyed VoidDrifters\u00a0from the very first page, and was captivated by the main character, Will, an archeologist-turned-spacer. I totally bought the story's explanation of how he stumbles into the ship and accidentally activates it.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"One human and three aliens are drawn against the background of an extra-solar world. Text reads \"Anspach, Chaney; VoidDrifter.\"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/VoidDrifter-191x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":195,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2017\/05\/15\/too-like-the-lightning-by-ada-palmer\/","url_meta":{"origin":5275,"position":1},"title":"Too Like the Lightning, by Ada Palmer","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"May 15, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Tor Books, \u00a9 May 2016 ISBN 9780765378002 Hardcover, 432 pages, $11.42 Several hundred years in the future, Earth\u2014and human civilization\u2014is completely unrecognizable. Religion has been outlawed. Gender pronouns are eradicated, as is a binary gender system. Select criminals are no longer imprisoned. Instead, they are put to work as Servicers\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/05\/TooLikeLightning-198x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":6308,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2025\/08\/17\/project-hail-mary\/","url_meta":{"origin":5275,"position":2},"title":"Project Hail Mary","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"August 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Andy Weir \u00a9 May 4, 2021 File Size: 11.6 MB ISBN-13: 978-0593135211 Ryland Grace awakens from a coma with no idea who he is, where he is, or what happened to put him there. Only time, and slowly returning memories fill in the blanks. He\u2019s a middle-school science teacher.\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"A single human figure in a white space suit attached to a long white tether floats in the midst of a background that is half gold and half black. Text reads \u201cProject Hail Mary,\u201d \u201cAndy Weir, Author of The Martian.\u201d \u201c#1 New York Times Bestseller.\u201d And \u201cAn epic story of redemption, discovery, and cool speculative sci-fi. \u2013 USA Today.\u201d","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ProjectHailMary-195x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5183,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2025\/01\/22\/carpathians\/","url_meta":{"origin":5275,"position":3},"title":"Carpathians","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"January 22, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"By Paul A. Dixon \u00a9 September 27, 2023 B0CHTD3N7C 560 pages I was hooked on this book from the very first chapter. Not only was the story itself captivating, its worldbuilding and culture creation was quite well done, and made me want to keep reading to see what else I\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"An enormous silver orb nests in the valley of a rocky crater; snowy mountainsides and a starry sky fill the background. A single human stands before the orb, dwarfed by its size. Text says \"Carpathians, Paul A. Dixon.\"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/Carpathians-199x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5291,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/25\/no-regrets\/","url_meta":{"origin":5275,"position":4},"title":"No Regrets","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"December 25, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Wedding Dress Promise Series Book 1 By Ronnie Roberts \u00a9 October 21, 2014, Pajama Therapy Books ASIN: B00ORVTM2U Kindle Version, file size 2329 KB I don\u2019t usually read romances. They just aren\u2019t my thing. But this one caught my eye while searching for a light, humorous read, so I decided\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Cover shows a drawing of a black and gray camera against a light blue and gray background. Shown in the camera\u2019s lens is a woman with short black hair against the backdrop of a VW van. Text says, \u201cNo Regrets. A Wedding Dress Promise Sweet Romance \u2013 Book 1; A Secret Past Romance. Ronnie Roberts.\u201d","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/NoRegrets-188x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]},{"id":5295,"url":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/2024\/12\/25\/dognapping-for-beginners\/","url_meta":{"origin":5275,"position":5},"title":"Dognapping for Beginners","author":"DremaDeoraich","date":"December 25, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Dog Walker Mysteries Book 1 By Rene Roberts \u00a9 November 24, 2021, Pajama Therapy Books ASIN: B09ML1C41V Kindle Version, file size 1416 KB Cozy mysteries are fast becoming a second favorite genre for me, mostly because of books like this one. Dognapping For Beginners is just that\u2014a mystery that\u2019s light\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Reviews"","block_context":{"text":"Reviews","link":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/category\/reviews\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Cover shows a drawing of a house in the background, with two dogs in the midground. In the foreground, a woman with long brown hair winks, while holding a finger against her lips. Text reads, \u201cDognapping for Beginners. A Dog Walker Mystery Book 1. Rene Roberts.\u201d","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/12\/Dognapping-188x300.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5275","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5275"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5275\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5281,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5275\/revisions\/5281"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5275"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5275"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.dremadeoraich.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5275"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}