Review: An Irish hitman juggles murder with parenthood

“The Lemon Man” by Keith Bruton (Brash Books)

Patrick Callen, a Dublin, Ireland hitman with a mild case of obsessive-compulsive disorder, stays organized by making lists. On his first day in Keith Bruton’s debut novel, the list includes:

— Buy Food

— Sleep With Olivia

— Visit Ma

— Kill Henry O’Neil

Patrick, who navigates Dublin’s streets on his 1950s Modello Oro bicycle, was pedaling home from the market when he stopped off to deal with O’Neil, a drug runner and junkie who owed his supplier more than he could pay. Worried that someone might “nick” his bag of lemons, Patrick slipped it off the handlebars and took it with him to do the hit. From then on, he was known as The Lemon Man.

The details of the O’Neil hit precisely convey Patrick’s attitude about his chosen profession.

“I reach back into my shorts and pull out the gun,