Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Prize Longlist - A Bad, Bad Place by Frances Crawford

after a tough of illness last week, I'm finally back reviewing the Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Prize Longlist books. And today it's A Bad, Bad Place by Frances Crawford. This is one of several debut novels on the list, and is also shortlisted for the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize. And it recently won the Val McDermid Crime Debut Award. 

The Blurb

What happened to the dog walker who found the body?

Glasgow, 1979.

Twelve-year-old Janey won’t take her dog, Sid Vicious, for a walk. Not anymore. It’s Sid’s fault she found the murdered woman.

Janey claims she can’t remember what she saw at the abandoned railway, but the police think she’s hiding something. And they’re not the only ones interested.

Fear and rumour rip through the tight-knit community of Possilpark. Janey and her nana, Maggie, are dragged into the hunt for a murderer. And Maggie’s struggle to keep her beloved granddaughter safe becomes ever more desperate.

Because Janey’s memories can’t stay hidden forever.

And neither can the killer…

My Review

This book opens five days after the murder in 1979. We get two points of view - 12 year old Janey and her nana, Maggie, with whom Janey lives. There are lots of books featuring children but it's not that often we see thing from their point of view (see my review of Where are the Kings for another recent example of this). And older people, especially women, don't often feature centre stage.

A Bad, Bad Place looks at how the discovery of a murder victim might affect the person who found the body. In this case, it's 12 year old Janey who finds the body of a young woman whilst walking the dog, the excellently named Sid Vicious. Janey doesn't know how to process this discovery, what to do, how to move past it and thinks it's her job to find the truth. It's also clear from the start that she hasn't told the police everything.

Meanwhile, Maggie is worried sick about Janey who is less and less herself in the days and weeks following the murder. On top of that she has general worries about money, and putting money on the table - they are not wealthy people and they live in a rougher part of Glasgow. Many of the other characters in the book are slightly dodgy - at the minimum, living by their wits, some a lot worse. But most of them have their own moral code - Maggie gets help from an unexpected place and Janey is generally treated kindly. I loved the descriptions of Gibby.

The novel is written in the Glasgow vernacular. I am English but have lived in Glasgow for thirty years so some of these words are ones I know use. I think everyone, though, will be able to understand unfamiliar words just by looking at the phrases around them. Also, I read from a proof copy but I believe the book comes with a glossary of terms. The use of the vernacular is perfect for this book and for Janey and Maggie - it really helps build the characterisation and scene setting - it helps it feel real.

A Bad, Bad Place is an excellent study of a neglected area. of crime fiction - what happens afterwards to those affected. The characterisation and scene setting is brilliant - I loved both Janey and Maggie. It was a glimpse at Glasgow in the late 70s. The story is perfect - sad, angry, confusing, scary. And it's great to have it told through the eyes of the 12 year old at the centre of it all. A very assured debut.


The Author

As a passionate advocate of lifelong learning, Frances was delighted to graduate in 2022, age 60, with MLitt (Distinction) Creative Writing from Glasgow University. In 2026, her novel A BAD BAD PLACE won the McDermid Debut Award for fiction.

Frances grew up in North Glasgow and credits the good people of Possilpark and Milton as her writing inspiration. She still lives in Glasgow with her family and likes libraries and punk rock.

Ghost Notes by Doug Johnstone

It's been a couple of years since the last book in the Skelf series from Doug Johnstone. He hasn't been resting on his laurels as The Transcendent Tide was published last year and this year has seen a couple of his early novels released to mark twenty years in publishing. But I am absolutely delighted to see the return of Dorothy, Jenny and Hannah in Ghost Notes, the seventh novel in the hugely popular series about the Skelf women. My thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me on the tour and to the publisher for my review copy. 

 

The Blurb

The highly anticipated seventh novel in the unforgettable, critically acclaimed Skelfs series,featuring three generations of women in the Skelf family: funeral directors and part-time investigators.

The Skelf women have been keeping their heads down, running the family’s funeral directors and private-investigation businesses. But when a woman collapses at her husband’s funeral and is saved by Dorothy, she finds herself drawn into the murky world of ‘grief tech’ – a booming new industry that creates digital avatars of the dead.

Jenny’s latest case – a simple blackmail job for an old school friend – quickly spirals into chaos as the woman’s tangled love life pulls Jenny towards dangerous old habits.

Meanwhile, Hannah and her wife, Indy, are confronted by the unexpected arrival of Indy’s ex-boyfriend, claiming to be dying and eager for the Skelfs to arrange his funeral. But his arrival uncovers more ghosts from the past, and threatens to upend everything they’ve built.

As their cases collide and their personal lives spiral, the Skelfs face danger from all sides.

My Review

Oh, I've missed these women! Coming back to their lives feels a bit like coming home. And I wonder if that isn't, at least in part, down to the atmosphere in Dorothy's kitchen - the warmth she creates just by being her, for both her family and employees, but others as well.

Dorothy saves the life of a woman who collapses at a funeral that Dorothy has organised. The ceremony is for the woman's husband, and the family have already experienced heartbreak and grief. Looking into the man's death, Dorothy uncovers some deeply unpleasant things in a murkier corner of death industry. Jenny's blackmail case for an old school acquaintance takes her to some dark places but also brings about a realisation about herself and Indy's ex-boyfriend makes Hannah question everything she thought she knew about her wife and their relationship.

What I love is that each woman has a puzzle to solve, whilst keeping themselves safe, strong and together. They are each other's support network and need each other more than any of them would probably care to admit. The characterisation, as always, is brilliant. Dorothy warmth and care, Jenny's rougher edges and Hannah's lovely nerdiness. But what helps make them feel complete are the characters around them, particularly Indy, Archie, whom I adore and Brodie. Indy has a more central part to play in this novel when Yannis turns up for the team to plan his funeral, we learn much more about her back story and it's great to have that information. But it's hard to see Hannah when she doesn't know what or who to believe. Jenny realises much about herself in this book which is great to see, but I fear it won't all be smooth sailing ahead. And Dorothy... oh, my heart hurt for her.

The three storylines are very different, some more violent than others and a couple really infused with a lot of sadness. But they all feel real, and that's down to the skill of the author. The world building and scene setting is great and the characterisation of all involved is wonderful. As always with a Doug Johnstone novel, he touches on issues I knew nothing or very little about, and I love that. And he mentions lots of bands I've never heard of because he's cool and I'm not!

As you may have guessed, I am delighted to see these wonderful, strong, flawed women back. Ghost Notes is well written, full of brilliant characters and interesting storylines. But at the centre of it all is family and love. And I really liked the meaning behind the title but also how it could refer to other things across the book. Roll on book eight!


The Author

Doug Johnstone is the author of twenty novels, many of which have been bestsellers. The Space Between Us was chosen for BBC Two’s Between the Covers, while Black Hearts was shortlisted – and The Big Chill longlisted – for Theakston Crime Novel of the Year. Three of his books – A Dark Matter, Breakers and The Jump – have been shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize. Doug has taught creative writing or been writer in residence at universities, schools, writing retreats, festivals, prisons and a funeral home. He’s also been an arts journalist for 25 years. He is a songwriter and musician with six albums and three EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a band of crime writers. He’s also co-founder of the Scotland Writers Football Club and lives in Edinburgh with his family.

Bloody Scotland McIlvanney Prize Longlist - 138 Main Street by Gavin Bell

A while back I promised to try to review all of the books on the McIlvanney Prize longlist this year before the Bloody Scotland festival weekend and then....nothimg! The festival starts in just under four weeks - it's come around so quickly! - so I really need to get back on this, see how far I get.

I'm going to start by resharing my review of the one book on the list that I have reviewed, just before the list was published, actually. You can find my original post (including a short Q&A with the author) here but below is a recap of my thoughts on 138 Main Street by Gavin Bell.

The Blurb

There is a killer on the loose.
And he is targeting one specific address – 138 Main Street.
The problem? There are over 7,000 Main Streets in the USA.
And no clue which one will be next.

For FBI Special Agent Ben Walker and his rookie colleague, Officer Zoe Hill, the pressure to solve the case is unimaginable. There aren’t enough police officers to cover every house, and vigilante residents are attacking anyone who rings their doorbell. Main Street might be one of America’s most popular addresses, but for those living at number 138 it comes down to fight or flight.

Then a manuscript is sent to the New York Times, purporting to be the manifesto of the Main Street Killer and demanding radical social change. The killer demands that Wall Street be shut down for a day. The financial implications will be huge, but unless it happens he will escalate to bombings. Soon it won’t just be whoever lives at 138 Main Street who is at risk, but entire residential blocks.

As the effect of the terror campaign takes hold across the nation, Ben and Zoe find themselves in a race against time to stop the killer. But with their target always several steps ahead, and almost 3,800,000 square miles of ground to cover, they'll have to find him first…

My Review

Woohoo! Been so excited for this one - it's been a long time coming! 

The premise is brilliant. Murders are taking place across the US, seemingly unconnected - no links between the victims, different MOs. Until after three or four the realisation hits that all the crimes have taken place at the same address - 138 Main Street. The trouble is, there are an awful lot of those across And and nobody has any idea where will be hit next. 

Zoe Hill is one of the first attending police officers at an early crime scene and impresses FBI guy Ben Walker with her observations. Now all they, and the rest of the team, including analyst Matthew Brodie, have to do is work out who is committing these crimes, where he or she might hit next -  from thousands of potential targets - and how to stop that happening. They have an overwhelming task ahead of them. 

I loved this! As well as following the FBI investigation, we meet some of the people living at various 138 Main Street addresses, and learn a little of their lives and their thoughts around the whole thing. The characters are great and beautifully written. I particularly loved Zoe. Coming from a small town police department to a national FBI case, she's understandably anxious but determined to get the job done.  And Ben seems like a real stand up guy. They make a great team, especially when you add Brodie, with his puppy dog excitement and enthusiasm and sideways way of looking at things, into the mix - very different people, different skills, a formidable team. We see their frustrations as they fail, their thought processes and analysis as they pick themselves back up and carry on. 

138 Main Street is a complex, well thought out and beautifully written novel that fully satisfies - great characterisation across the board, brilliant scene setting, from one horse towns to big cities, plenty of tension and dread, unexpected twists and an explosive conclusion. So glad Gavin is back and has arrived in style! 

Photo by Scarlett Bell

Where are the Kings by Donal Ryan

Something different for me today, a break from crime and thrillers. I thought the blurb for Donal Ryan's Where are the Kings sounded great so was delighted to take part in the blog tour. Big thanks to Anne Cater at Random Things Tours for the invitation and to the publisher who sent me a gorgeous hardback copy to review. 

The Blurb

Jack is just twelve years old when he rushes down the hill after his mother's car on his bike, desperate to reach her before she reaches the lake.

What happens next cannot be undone. Jack's life changes just at the moment he is entering those dizzying years when he will transition from boy to man; when nothing makes sense at the best of times.

Yet Jack is not alone. Enveloped as he is by his extended family - his ferociously loving Nana; Grandad, given to sudden bursts of rage; his earthy uncles Haulie and Theo who want to show him what it means to be a man, and the irascible JJ who resents him deeply. Then there is beautiful aunt Rose, whose mere presence ignites every atom in his changing body.

But how can a boy with so many questions, in a family with so many secrets, understand the person he is becoming? Without his mother to ground him on the earth, will he spin off into the stars?

The stunning, emotional story of a young boy coming of age just as his life is thrown into new waters. Beautifully poignant, deeply lyrical and layered, this is a novel that resonates beyond the page.

My Review

This is my first Donal Ryan novel although he has published several previous books and been longlisted and shortlisted for many awards and won several prizes. I wasn't sure what to expect and his is a writing style I'm not used to. He doesn't use speech marks which I thought I would struggle with a little but I found as I got absorbed in the story I  forgot they weren't there. 

Jack is twelve when he loses his mother, and her death puts his already emotionally unstable father into a mental hospital. Jack is taken to live with his mum's family who, although they live nearby, he has not spent much time with. His fiercely catholic Nana and Grandad, their unmarried sons Theo, Haulie and JJ, and their daughter Rose take him in to their home. Jack doesn't really know what to expect from them or why they expect of him. He knows he is loved deeply and is completely accepted into the bosom of the family. But he worries. He misses his mum so much but doesn't understand why he's not crying, why he's not grieving. And all the while he is growing up - we meet him in the cusp of his teens and follow him for a couple of years. 

I loved the family, all of them, but particularly Theo and Haulie. They are manly men, rough and tough, comfortable in themselves, larger than life, full of banter, but tender when they need to be. Nana sounds lovely, full of warmth, tea and cake on the go. And she's determined that Jack knows how much he is cared for. Jack's relationship with JJ, his uncle, but only a couple of years older than him, gets off to a tricky start but they soon develop a rhythm. His grandad is head of the house but we all know that for most of the time, the real boss is Nana. And then there is his auntie Rose, the family member for who causes Jack the most angst, as she causes feelings he doesn't understand, urges he's pretty sure he shouldn't be having. It's a lot for a young boy to process, especially after the loss of his mum, who was, of course, daughter and sister to these lovely folk. 

We follow Jack through days where not much happens, on day trips, on a holiday, visits from and to his dad,and when his memorable great aunt Gertrude comes to stay. We see his interactions with family, friends, girls and others, and we feel his confusion about it all. And we see the gaping hole his mother has left in his life. Sometimes it's not clear whether something is in Jack's imagination, in a dream or whether it's actually happening, but it doesn't detract, particularly as Jack doesn't always realise himself which is going on. 

The author has a very lyrical way of writing meaning a lot of this read as poetic prose. There are plenty of Irish words used but I was able to follow everything without any bother (special credit to Tom Read Wilson as thanks to his Edinburgh Fringe show I knew the word 'gee'). Where are the Kings is a beautiful coming of age novel about life, death, grief, love and family. And Jack finds his kings. Gorgeous. 

The Author

Donal Ryan, from Nenagh, County Tipperary, has published seven number one bestselling novels and a short story collection.

He has won several awards for his fiction, including the European Union Prize for Literature, the Guardian First Book Award and six Irish Book Awards, and has been shortlisted for several more, including the Costa Book Award and the Dublin International Literary Award. He was nominated for the Booker Prize in 2013 for his debut novel, The Spinning Heart, and again in 2018, for his fourth novel, From A Low and Quiet Sea. The Spinning Heart was voted Irish Book of the Decade in 2016. In 2021 Donal became the first Irish writer to be awarded the Jean Monnet Prize for European Literature.

His most recent novel, Heart Be at Peace, won both Novel of the Year and Book of the Year at the Irish Book Awards, and was shortlisted for Novel of the Year at the Nero Book Awards.

His work has been adapted for stage and screen and translated into over twenty languages.

Donal has lectured in Creative Writing at the University of Limerick since 2014 and lives in Castletroy with his wife Anne Marie and their two children.