Of Wee Sweetie Mice and Men
by Colin Bateman starts out in Belfast and quickly moves to New York
City where Dan Starkey joins Fat Boy Bobby McMaster and team - his
mission: to write a book about the European Heavyweight Champ from
Northern Ireland taking on Mike Tyson at Madison Square Garden on St
Patrick's Day.
What a novel! You want action and more action,
hype and more hype, romance and more romance, you've come to the right
place - Eros and Thanatos in full Irish bloom laced with signature
Starkey humor.
I enjoyed Colin Bateman's Divorcing Jack (Dan Starkey #1) and I certainly enjoyed Of Wee Sweetie
(Dan Starkey #2). What a wild ride. There's way too many twists and
curves, swivels and zigzags as the story hits on nationalism, ethnic
blending, racism, bigotry, religious extremism, terrorism (mostly
Irish), beauty (mostly female) and the effects of booze and mass media
for me to even begin to outline arc of plot. Thus, I'll shift to a
highlight reel featuring a number of my favorite bits, as per -
Dan's Wife - Patricia and Dan have been married for seven years and now
their relationship is in crisis. Patricia stays in Belfast when Dan
goes to the Big Apple but Dan does something he's never done before - he
writes Patricia a letter. A life changer.
Press Conference -
Once their plane lands in New York, Dan attends a press conference with
both Bobby McMaster and Mike Tyson. The press asks question; Bobby gives
them answers that bring a scowl to many faces and a smile to Mike's.
Turns out, in addition to being a boxer, Bobby might have made it as a
stand-up comic. I read this chapter (and listened to the audio) multiple
times - one of the true howlers in the book. 
Irish
Twist - Bobby McMater's team includes one Stanley Matchett who has
spent much of his younger years slitting Catholic throats back in
Belfast. Hey, if you want some protection, Stanley's the perfect guy.
Dan isn't exactly thrilled having Matchett around and the exchanges
between murderer and journalist can get a tad touchy.
Lovely
Lauren - What's a trip to New York without a visit to a Times Square live
sex show? Dan partakes and meets a young beauty - well, you'll have to
read for yourself.
Thar
She Blows! - Dan, Bobby and others from the Boxer's crew hire a boat
(not in New York, a bit further to the north) to catch sight of whales.
Surprise! A whale pushes itself into the plot and creates a dramatic
turning point.
Northern Ireland - Although in the US, the
fighting spirit of the Protestant versus Catholic country lives on. You
can take the boys out of Belfast but you can't take Belfast out of the
boys.
Hey, Colin! Thanks for another Dan Starkey novel. I'll be reading the next novel in the series, for sure. 
Belfast's finest - Colin Bateman, born 1962
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