Delighted with this review from Donna's Book Reviews for Vile City.
Review
I'm a big fan of Scottish crime, and the crime writing standard in Scotland is particularly high. I had never heard of this author, but the title and blurb sounded intriguing, and I was right to take the plunge. The story follows Di Waddell, who has to investigate missing women in the city of Glasgow. His partner and friend is lying in hospital in a coma, so he has to work with McKeith. He is already up against it, not being the man Waddell wants, but his is also gangly and clumsy, but luckily does provide some useful insights. Their pairing made for an entertaining read. Waddell alone is exactly the type of character I love to read, he has a sarcastic humour and it certainly endeared me to him almost immediately.
Shelley is the woman who is abducted, and you follow a lot of the story through her eyes. It shows the abduction and captivity from her point of view. It was difficult to read at times, but Shelley's strength shone out. She was determined to survive the ordeal and wouldn't be broken no matter how much they tried.
"The plot is full on intense"
The plot is full on intense, it goes all over the place, not confusing, just breathtaking in its speed and multi layer. approach. You are kept guessing, and even when you think the case is finished and passed over, the author laughs and throws a grenade in to blow everything wide open again. It covers the sex trafficking trade, and discusses many of the awful acts that are inflicted on women, but on the other hand there are a cast of incredibly strong women to balance this out.
The detective in the coma remains so throughout the book, and does rather make you wonder why he gets the title, but it does intrigue me as to what will be done with his character as the series progresses. He will clearly have been able to hear what has been discussed with him, but whether his condition leads to any useful outcome remains to be seen.
Whatever happens I will be reading more from this author, I will look forward to re-inserting myself in the tough Glaswegian streets, amongst this great team, to see what they get up to next.
What's it about then?
Detective Inspector Duncan Waddell has his hands full. A wave of burglaries in Glasgow has targeted the elderly. Two young women have gone missing, and a report has just come in about a third victim. He is training his new partner, DC Brian McKeith. He and his wife are raising their children. It is no wonder that he visits and talks often with his former partner.
His former partner, DC Stevie Campbell, is lying comatose in the hospital, with no sign that he will ever recover enough to wake up. Stabbed by a criminal with a broken bottle, he now lies inert, fed intravenously, turned regularly to prevent bedsores. Waddell visits him, shares details of cases with him, jokes with him and reads to him, hoping against hope that he can somehow hear him despite there being no evidence of this.
Until the day that Stevie sits up and talks to him! Except, no one else can see him. There is no medical sign that he ever moved, no one else heard him, and when the nurses come into the room to check on him he is as deep in his coma as ever. Only Duncan can hear him.
Read an extract here
Buy it on Amazon here
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