6 years after the first novel, McIlvanney returns to Glasgow and his DI Jack Laidlaw. Less than a year had passed in the story though - and I suspect that this was a deliberate choice.

An old wino dies but in his last moments he calls for Laidlaw - and the policeman decide to go and listen to what the old man has to say. As it turns out, the death is not natural, despite all appearance and the DI needs to get back into the underbelly of Glasgow to find the truth. Meanwhile, one of the crime families has their own investigation going on - about another death, seemingly unrelated and about a missing student.

As with the first novel, we know more than the police or anyone else involved does as we see the action from both sides. Which makes some of the actions of some of the characters appear almost idiotic and yet realistic. Keeping track of who knows what when is important in some parts of the novel - and sorting out some of the dialogue makes that even harder. Not because it is bad - but McIlvanney continues the usage of the local dialect for most of it and sometimes you need to sound it out to actually understand it (or at least that is what worked for me). It slows down the novel and one's reading - but it adds to the grittiness and does not sound as if it is a clutch.

Overall not as enjoyable as the first novel but a good read anyway. And I can see why the current crop of Scottish noir authors like him so much. ( )

Not quite as good as Laidlaw, which is a masterpiece, but very good all the same. ( )

a wino's death is investigated by a persistant Scots detective in Glasgow, a rich boy toys with the underworld and loses

Un peu plus fade que ses autres polars. ( )

I really wanted to like this book, Laidlaw investigates the murder of a tramp which is linked to the death of a so called hard man.

Set in the late 1970s/ Early 1980s in Glasgow.
Very interesting characters just to many of them for my liking found it confusing and painful to read. ( )