Overall, this is far from being the authors best book and it’s not one for me. It’s a real shame as there is the makings of a very good plot here but it gets lost along a convoluted and meandering way. This is a real gem of a novel, and in my opinion, Stuart Macbride’s best for many years, if you like gritty, dark, Scottish crime fiction with a dose of really dark humor thrown in then you need to rush down to the bookshop, and buy The Dead Of Winter, you won’t be disappointed. I view Dunk as the alter ego of the author. MacBride is laughing at himself. Not just comedy relief then, but a statement of where he fits into this cultural environment — fiction based on reality. Dunk is constantly complaining about writers who don’t use punctuation properly in their reports and, at one point, likens himself Dr. Watson following Holmes (Lucy) — in other words, a writer, telling a story about Lucy’s investigative prowess. The scenery and settings of the various locations are well described as always. The cover also fits well with the story. Now onto my biggest issue – DI Montgomery-Porter. My god, that woman is absolutely insufferable. She’s ratty, defensive, and just a good old-fashioned bitch. I really felt for DC Reekie, not only did he have to manage the problems that the case brought but having to constantly apologise for his DI’s unacceptable behaviour. I mean, I get that the constant problems that kept cropping up is infuriating but my god the woman took it out on everyone. I found myself muttering to my kindle “stop yelling at everyone.”

It sounds like paranoia, but what if he's right? What if the Bloodsmith isn't the only monster out there? I have read and enjoyed this author's work before and am sure I will again but this was a disappointing and strange experience. It was a little confusing at the start but seemed to find its feet encouraging me to feel hopeful for the remainder of the story. Instead everything got seriously weird and, to me at least, more than a little unrealistic. Although I didn't feel the PTSD was clearly signposted it did gradually became more apparent, unfortunately it wasn't enough to even begin to explain the sudden changes which became the main focus of the story. I received a suprise copy of No Less the Devil by Stuart McBride from Penguin Books Australia and immediately my husband stole it and read it. So here are his thoughts:There’s still an element of ‘crime fiction as a mirror’ about it, but a lot of ‘crime fiction as an escape’ too. Maybe not quite as much of an escape as Tufty the Vampire Slayer, or The Horrible Haunting of Tartan Haggis MacFunland, but an escape nonetheless. Whilst being a stereotypical MacBride character setup, No Less The Devil also stereotypical in the sense that it is a thrilling, darkly humorous, gory, well-written and brilliantly plotted tartan noir thriller. Recommended. I read THE DEAD OF WINTER in two days, but it has taken me four weeks to write a review. The problem was not the rating. I knew as soon as I’d finished that I would give it four stars. It wasn’t as good as his very best, but it was a solid four-star read.

The storyline is as expertly plotted as I've come to expect from the MacBride books. As an author myself, I love deconstructing the plot lines and following the different strands through. As a reader, every twist and turn, every carefully placed piece of additional information, every morsel of information all come together to a satisfying, grab you by the throat, fast paced read.

It’s been nearly 18 months since the Bloodsmith killed his first victim of five and a few months since the last one. The investigation entitled ‘Operation Maypole’ is getting nowhere fast in apprehending this callous killer and the press and police top brass are getting impatient for results. DI Tudor is now placed in charge and DS Lucy McVeigh is made part of the team. Lucy however, is very distracted as not only is she struggling with possible PTSD, she has a stalker and if that’s not enough Benedict Strachan, a recently released child killer is pleading for her help and protection.

Stuart MacBride is an automatic must-read for me... always fast, hard, authentic - and different' LEE CHILD DC Reekie is an inspired characterand with most of the narrative being form his viewpoint, I was totally gripped - his humerous antipathy towards his boss, his caustic observations combined with his vulnerability makes him a fascinating character. DISCLOSURE: Thank you to Random House UK, Transworld Publishers, Bantam Press via Netgalley for providing a digital ARC of The Dead of Winter by Stuart MacBride for review. All opinions expressed in this review are entirely my own personal opinions.I always find MacBride's prose to be almost poetic in parts and his weather descriptions imbued the weather with its own unique character. There were times when it was a 3, and also times when it was a 5+++ so in the end I've plumped for a 4. No Less The Devil is more than just a crime fiction novel though. It is a stunning commentary on post Covid society and MacBride has chosen to mainly provide this commentary through the eyes of The Dunc, which works beautifully in my opinion. It's been 17 months since the Bloodsmith butchered his first victim and Operation Maypole is still no nearer catching him.