It's Monday! What are you reading? is hosted by Sheila at Book Journey. For this meme, bloggers post what they finished last week, what they're currently reading, and what they plan to start this week.
My comments are not meant to be recaps of the story lines as I include a link to Goodreads for their synopsis of the book. I am merely stating how I felt about the book without giving any spoilers.
53 COMPLETED READS TO DATE!
1 ABANDONED
1 not finished as it expired so I will have to borrow it again. The Nightmare
FINISHED:
Synopsis here.
A new crime writer to me and another in a stream of Irish crime fiction that I am addicted to. I will be reading more of his books.
Those who like their crime thrillers diamond hard (but shot through with macabre humour) need look no further than Stuart MacBride. As Flesh House, his latest, once again proves, he has few equals in this area, and is more than worthy of the ever-growing legion of admirers he is gleaning. His tough protagonist, Logan McRae, is once again negotiating the mean streets of Aberdeen, with violence and threat forever at his elbow. Those who have read Cold Granite, Dying Light and Broken Skin will know what to expect here -- and they'll be aware that they're not in for a comfortable ride.
The city is in a state of fear. Some 20 years ago, the Grampian police nailed a particularly vicious serial killer known as The Flesher, a monster who had claimed victims throughout the country. But one of those frequent legal appeals which so often release dangerous criminals into the community has freed him, and when a container with human body parts appears at Aberdeen harbour, it looks like the stage is once again set for carnage on a massive scale. DS Logan McRae (along with his less experienced colleague, Chief Constable Mark Faulds from Birmingham -- who was on the original team tracking down The Flesher), finds himself in charge of one of the most ambitious manhunts city has ever seen. And then members of the original team tracking down their serial killer prey (whose real name is Ken Wiseman) begin to disappear -- and more human meat is making grisly appearances. All of this is delivered with the requisite grasp of tension and characterisation that we have come to expect from Stuart MacBride. There are those who will feel he has gone too far in Flesh House in confronting the less savoury aspects of human behaviour, but fans of uncompromising crime writing will be in their element.
I loved it. Almost 800 pages and I couldn't put it down. BUT this is not for the faint of heart, this had more blood and guts than almost anything I have ever read.
STARTED:
He’s back…
Eight years ago, ‘The Inside Man’ murdered four women and left three more in critical condition – all of them with their stomachs slit open and a plastic doll stitched inside.
And then the killer just … disappeared.
Ash Henderson was a Detective Inspector on the initial investigation, but a lot can change in eight years. His family has been destroyed, his career is in tatters, and one of Oldcastle’s most vicious criminals is making sure he spends the rest of his life in prison.
Now a nurse has turned up dead on a patch of waste ground, a plastic doll buried beneath her skin, and it looks as if Ash might finally get a shot at redemption. At earning his freedom.
Eight years ago, ‘The Inside Man’ murdered four women and left three more in critical condition – all of them with their stomachs slit open and a plastic doll stitched inside.
And then the killer just … disappeared.
Ash Henderson was a Detective Inspector on the initial investigation, but a lot can change in eight years. His family has been destroyed, his career is in tatters, and one of Oldcastle’s most vicious criminals is making sure he spends the rest of his life in prison.
Now a nurse has turned up dead on a patch of waste ground, a plastic doll buried beneath her skin, and it looks as if Ash might finally get a shot at redemption. At earning his freedom.
Stuart MacBride does sound really good. I'll have to add him to my wishlist. Come see my week here. Happy reading!
ReplyDeleteIf the book is nearly 800 pages and you couldn't put it down, then I'm interested. But I'm kind of a wimp, too... so maybe not a good choice for me ;-)
ReplyDelete'Dark Times in the City' sounds very good. I haven't read a lot of Irish crime fiction, so I should get to that! Somehow the cover for Stuart McBride's novel somehow reminds me of Dr. Who, but with a phonebox instead of the Tardis. Thanks for sharing :) I hope you enjoy all of them!
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Juli @ Universe in Words
Flesh House sounds good.
ReplyDeleteENJOY your reading week.
Elizabeth
Silver's Reviews
My It's Monday, What Are You Reading
MacBride's work sounds interesting!
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