With the storm still raging, it’s too dangerous to retrieve the bodies and waves are devouring the evidence. Which means no one knows how many people Smith’s already killed and how many more he’ll kill if he can’t be found and stopped.

You’d think that things wouldn’t have changed all that much for writers. Yes, we can’t get out to do events at festivals and libraries and bookshops anymore, but we’re mostly homebodies anyway, so what is there to whinge about? This is just business-as-usual. Only it really hasn’t been. A stormy night in Clachmara, a boat floundering near an unstable cliff, a helicopter attempting rescue, a rumble and disaster as the cliff collapses revealing the Coffinmakers Garden. Di Malcolmson (aka Mother) of Oldcastle Division, Ash Henderson and Dr Alice McDonald of LIRU (Lateral Investigative and Review Unit) investigate and make further horrifying discoveries. As if this isn’t bad enough there also a child killer to catch. Only, what do you do when society is, quite rightly, really sodding concerned about a virus that’s officially killed four million of us (though estimates say the real total is probably more than twelve million)? I was fortunate to hear Stuart MacBride speak at a book festival several years ago (remember them?!) and found him to be extremely entertaining, but for some unknown reason I’d never got around to reading one of his books. I’ve friends (and library customers) who’ve read and enjoyed all of the Logan McRae books, but the main character of Ash Henderson in this series was unknown to me.

By (author) Stuart MacBride; Read by TBA

None of the characters was likeable: Alice in particular acts and talks like a sulking toddler rather than a grownup, a forensic psychologist no less. Then came a spell of working for myself as a graphic designer, which went the way of all flesh and into the heady world of studio management for a nation-wide marketing company. Then some more freelance design work, a handful of voiceovers for local radio and video production companies and a bash at being an actor (with a small 'a'), giving it up when it became clear there was no way I was ever going to be good enough to earn a decent living. Ash Henderson, ex police officer and now a 'consultant' of some kind, and Dr Alice McDonald, a forensic psychologist, are sent to the scene to assist the police and become embroiled in the hunt to find the serial killer. Simultaneously, they are involved, to some degree, in an ongoing investigation into another serial killer who is strangling young boys. I do love a serial killer and I do love writing about fictional serial killers,” he says, “but I cannot stand reading about real ones because I can’t get past the fact these are real people, and the people they kill never get remembered – it’s always the person who does the killing. I love writing and reading about made-up ones because no one was hurt in the production of a book.”

As more horrors are discovered, ex-detective Ash Henderson is done playing nice. He’s got a killer to catch, and God help anyone who gets in his way. First, that title. Rarely does a title alone grab me but I was sold on sight. The book was smiling at me - the barely there sort covering a wealth of mordant humor. I wanted to mine it all. It’s too dangerous to go near the place, so there’s no way of knowing how many people he’s murdered. Or how many more he’ll kill before he’s caught. I loved this book! The author’s stylized technique, dialog, and biting wit between characters carried it into exceptional territory causing me to laugh in several instances despite content:

Customer reviews

As much as I love the Logan Macrae series, I have really struggled to like Ash Henderson. The previous stories were good but the character never sat well. It's all changed in this book. Maybe it's because the murdered daughter storyline is resolved (as much as losing a child can be resolved, it is still prevalent in this book) and we've moved on a few years and it's a wholly new serial killer (two actually, we are spoilt here) with no personal attachments but this book feels like a breath of fresh air after the first two. Ash is likeable and I wanted to know more. Granted he's still a thug and very dodgy and has very little morals but this time his character worked for me.