MacBride goes in hard and fast with No Less the Devil. There's no fannying about. No sitting around drinking cups of tea and eating scones. It's breathtaking.

No Less the Devil – STUART MACBRIDE

Next up was an elongated spell in Westhill -- a small suburb seven miles west of Aberdeen -- where I embarked upon a mediocre academic career, hindered by a complete inability to spell and an attention span the length of a gnat's doodad.Well, this new novel from Stuart MacBride is bound to stir up some controversy amongst his readers! No Less the Devil is most definitely a tale of two parts. The first 80% is a taut, twisty detective novel with wit and sarcasm aplenty…the norm for a Stuart MacBride novel. The last 20% however, had me flummoxed. I uttered the words WTF a lot and found myself physically scratching my head. If this was the plot all along it felt incredibly rushed and didn’t make much sense. I can’t give much more away without big spoilers, trust me, you’ll just have to read it for yourself. We’re celebrating with the new trailer for No Less The Devil (which was too frightening to publish today, so it’s releasing next April…) It sounds like paranoia, but what if he's right? What if the Bloodsmith isn't the only monster out there?

Oldcastle – STUART MACBRIDE Oldcastle – STUART MACBRIDE

In loving memory of Grendel MacBride, my constant companion, muse, and very own little fuzzy serial killer. 2004-2021.

I couldn't help thinking, as I got to the end, that Lucy may have made a deal with the Devil, and we all know the Devil likes to come out on top. He just might have met his match in Lucy. This is definitely going to be an interesting series. McVeigh is a very complex character. She has the potential to ride all the way to the top in her police career. She gets results and isn’t afraid to bend the rules to get them. She is joined by her partner, The Dunk, which brings some much-needed satirical relief. An anti-establishment character who isn’t afraid to tell you what he thinks about those in power. He was my favourite character with his “unfit” ramblings whilst trying to keep up with McVeigh. It's been seventeen months since the Bloodsmith butchered his first victim and Operation Maypole is still no nearer to catching him. The media is whipping up a storm, the top brass are demanding results, but the investigation is sinking fast. This heralds the arrival of the aforementioned last 20% & THAT ending. There is nothing I can say without blabbing a potential spoiler so at this point, I'm walking away. You're on our own. Stay alert, keep hydrated, maybe strap on a helmet. My only comment is W...T...F...

No Less the Devil trailer – STUART MACBRIDE No Less the Devil trailer – STUART MACBRIDE

And if anyone has the real Stuart McBride, please return him to his writing desk for his next book!However, at around 80%, someone captured Stuart McBride - probably aliens using posh umbrellas because they went to a top class school. One of the eleven year olds from the school, who had of course been brainwashed, was asked to finish the story in Stuart's absence, and so began the fantasy that was the final 20% of the book. A homeless man is found brutally murdered in a dilapidated cottage in the woods outside Oldcastle. The words "Help Me" written in blood on a nearby wall link the crime to a gruesome series of murders committed a couple of years previously by a killer dubbed "the Bloodsmith" by the baying press. Great...like she doesn't enough on her plate. Still reeling from a recent assault, Lucy is busy dealing with PTSD, a useless therapist, Tudor's expectations, Fraser's rants & the antics of a recently released killer. Oh, and there just might be someone stalking her. So does she want to be saddled with a career ending case? Sure, why not. With the case going nowhere the investigating team are restructured and DS Lucy McVeigh and her partner DC Duncan "The Dunk" Fraser are given the task of reviewing the victims and the murder scenes in the hope that someone will remember something that will help them close a case that has ground to a halt after seventeen months. I have read many books by this author and enjoy the ‘Logan McRae’ series but I’m afraid I struggled a little with this one. It felt like a fairly long read and my opinion seemed to change regularly throughout the novel. There were times when I thought I was getting to grips with it and enjoying it to other times when I couldn’t wait to finish. Some good characters written in the authors usual writing style but failed to grip me in the way MacBride’s novels normally do.

No Less The Devil by Stuart MacBride | Goodreads No Less The Devil by Stuart MacBride | Goodreads

If you are looking for Stuart MacBride's dark humour and gritty crime fiction then you have come to the right place. I personally really enjoyed this one and I liked the unconventional turn it took. Stuart MacBride is one of my favourite authors and although not perfect, this story is up there with his best in my opinion. It’s 17 months since The Bloodsmith killed his first victim, and the police are no nearer to catching him. Operation Maypole has run out of clues, the public have lost faith in them, the media are giving them a hammering, and The Top Brass are demanding answers. 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.As a huge fan of the McRae series and having read some of this series I was delighted to be given an ARC of No Less The Devil..