When a controversial US diplomat is attacked during the opening of a Donegal gold mine, Garda Inspector Benedict Devlin is disciplined for the lapse in security. The gunman turns out to be a young environmentalist — related to an old friend of Devlin's. Within days, the killing of an illegal immigrant near the Irish border leads Devlin to a vicious people-smuggling ring. Then Bradley himself is found dead near the mine and Devlin begins to suspect that the business is a front for something far more sinister than mere mining. Bleed a River Deep is the new novel from one of the most acclaimed young crime-writers around, a labyrinthine tale of big business, the new Europe, and the dispossessed.