Ken Bruen was born in Galway in 1951. After turning down a place at RADA and completing an MA in English and a doctorate in Metaphysics, he spent 25 years as an English teacher in Africa, Japan, SE Asia and South America. An unscheduled stint in a Brazilian prison where he suffered physical and mental abuse spurred Ken Bruen to write and, after a brief spell teaching in London, he returned home. Brandon Press in Ireland publishes Ken Bruen’s four earlier Jack Taylor novels. The first, The Guards, was short-listed for four Crime Awards in the US in 2004, winning the Shamus in October and film rights have attracted the interest of David Soul. Ken Bruen now lives in Galway city with his wife and daughter. For published works by this author click here