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Once again a great plot. 2 cases ongoing dfor the sort-of dynamic duo Ash and Alice. Both with their own demons to bring along and both of which are constantly reminded of. 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. I really enjoy this MC. He’s grumpy, snarky & never at a loss for words. The dialogue is particularly entertaining & some of the conversations made me laugh out loud….often followed by a cringe and/or “eeeww”. He’s the perfect foil for Alice, a timid psychologist who can introduce more topics into a single sentence than any other human.
Stuart MacBride is the No.1 Sunday Times bestselling author of the Logan McRae and Ash Henderson novels. He’s also published standalones, novellas and short stories as well as a children’s picture book. BLIND EYE is the 5th and latest volume in the increasingly popular series of Aberdeen thrillers with DS Logan McRae at the helm. In turns grim, gritty and gruesome, but also with mordant humour and sparkling dialogue between his warring cops, this is Tartan Noir at its very best, and literally begs for a TV adaptation. Not all Scottish cops are as polished as Ian Rankin’s Rebus, and MacBride’s coppers would jump out of the screen.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. 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. I did work out a few of the twists in the tale along the way, and perhaps that is just because I read so much crime fiction that I just kind of expected it. But it didn’t spoil my enjoyment of the story, or stop me from wanting to see just how Ash would ensure that the killer was caught or at the very least received their dues. And it was a rather fitting ending to be fair, quite dramatic and right down to the wire, but very apt. It must be painful to live in Ash Henderson’s world and if you are thinking that Stuart MacBride may have been. a little easier on him with his advancing years, you’d be wrong. It is more a case of how much he can take than how much can you expect to be doled out. Throw into the mix a ruthless tabloid journalist and a neighbour of Gordon Smith who also has a colourful criminal history, and you have an eventful road trip for Ash and Franklin. As events escalate, Ash strikes out on his own, and then with his best friend DI Morrow, aka Shifty, to mete out his own particular brand of justice. 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.
Logan McRae is the everyman, a decent guy trying to do good in a world that is both cruel and absurd. When he does break the rules, it’s for the greater good. Ash Henderson is a very different character, a vigilante fuelled by a need for revenge, constrained only by what he can get away with. While the humour is there, the overall feel is bleaker. 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)?
Ash Henderson is arrogant, rude, violent and treats everyone as less intelligent than himself. The only person he appears to have some tenderness for is McDonald, a functioning alcoholic who can't work unless she's had a large helping of alcohol. 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.” The media are baying for blood, the top brass are after a scapegoat, and ex-Detective Inspector Ash Henderson is done playing nice. He's got a killer to catch, and God help anyone who gets in his way. About This Edition ISBN: I’ve been reading this author’s work for ages & while I enjoy the Logan McRae books, have to admit I prefer this series. It’s been 7 years since A Song for the Dying. So I’m thrilled to see the return of Oldcastle’s crankiest, perpetually injured ex-DI. I have enjoyed the 'Logan, McRae' series for a few years now and would highly recommend it to readers who fancy a crime series that's full of humour and a little different. I have been meaning t start this series for sometime and although I realise it is not an ideal place to start with book 3 I didn't feel that it spoilt my enjoyment of this book. There was plenty to like about this book and I had mixed feelings throughout without completely connecting with either the characters or plot. For me the characters were too similar to the one's I already know from Stuart MacBride's other series.
It would be great if the author were to alternate these novels with the Logan McRae ones on an annual basis, thus keeping both series fresh for the reader. It was a dark and stormy night in Clachmara and police are called because of human bones reported in Gordon Smith’s garden - now visible as part of the cliff face has fallen into the sea. Because of his own bleak history, Ash tends to throw caution to the winds and he wants to search the house which is in danger of following the bits of garden into the North Sea. He finds a trapdoor to the basement and, ignoring pleas from Alice and others descends into the gloom where he finds....a kill room. Unfortunately there is no safe way to search it to identify, or even count, the number of victims but Ash does manage to snag a bunch of Polaroids showing before and after - you can guess. 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. As a massive storm batters the Scottish coast, Gordon Smith's home is falling into the North Sea. But the crumbling headland has revealed what he's got buried in his garden: human remains.My first Stuart McBride book and boy what a fun read! Ultra violence, dark humour, gruesome subject matter and most importantly a compelling story. The book begins in the coastal village of Clachmara ,which due to coastal erosion is slowly falling into the North Sea. A massive storm is blowing and a fishing boat is in trouble with the Coastguard helicopter in attendance.. Single parent Margaret Compton is horrified to realise that her young son Alfie is missing, a lad with a fascination for helicopters. Rushing into the storm she finds him watching the rescue attempt on the cliffs next to an abandoned house, Part of the cliff falls into the sea ,just after Margaret has snatched Alfie to safety and a cache of human bones is exposed.. The story is about the murder of young boys and as we're introduced to this horrific news item, Ash finds himself at a row of houses by the sea, all being speedily taken by the storm that's eroding the coast and one house in particular hides a gruesome secret. All those small, square photographs in their rectangular white 'frames', the greying plastic stained with the dark swirls of bloody fingerprints.
For years I’ve been saying that crime writers reflect the fears of society. That’s why 1970s crime fiction is so different to 2000s, or 2010. It holds up a mirror to our collective psyche and asks, ‘What are you afraid of?’ 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:
I also didn't like the alternation between third- and first-person narrator. It's confusing and it feels like lazy writing.
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