What is the author's style in the novel, Defending Billy Ryan?

The principal technique in Defending Billy Ryan, as in all of Higgins's fiction, is the use of dialogue as the vehicle for revealing character and moving the plot. In this respect, the novel is as good as any, and because the underlying plot is relatively simple (despite some shifting time frames), it provides a convenient opportunity for examining the revealing nuances Higgins discovers in the conversations which his characters engage in.