Spies by Brian Gallagher is a book about three friends – Johnny, Stella and Alice – growing up during the Irish War of Independence. Stella is Canadian with a father who is an RAF wing commander, Alice and her family own the Mill Hotel of Balbriggan and Johnny is a fourteen year old orphan working for the rebels. However when Johnny starts getting deeper into the rebel operations, things start to get messy.
The things I liked about Spies were that the writing style was original and captivating – you really felt like you were in the room with the characters! Sometimes I struggle to get into books that are set in the past. Most of my favourite books are contemporary but I had no problem with this book because it was a gripping page-turner.
Overall I thought this book was really good. Not only was it an excellent story but I also learned a lot about the War of Independence even though it never felt like I was reading history school book!
By Oisín, Rang V, Scoil Iognáid, Co. na Gaillimhe
“Spies” by Brian Gallagher, published by O’Brien Press, is now available to purchase for €8.99
Disclaimer: This book was provided by the publisher, O’Brien Press, free of charge to Seomra Ranga for the purposes of this review
