Commentary/review

I usually try to review series in bulk but this time this would be counterproductive. I enjoyed “A Dark So Deadly” immensely while other novels by Stuart MacBride I have read so far I found good of rather good. This procedural crime novel is beautifully constructed, showing a lot of creativity, humor and something I would call a Scottish flair. The story-line is full of delightful and absurdly out-of-date soap opera takes. I also usually enjoy crime novels with children showing independence and bravery (I am sure authors know that as they use this trope quite often). The crime described in the novel is terrifying but is not really described in a terrifying way. There is a risk of nihilism in that but then again, all crime novels are at risk of trivializing death and suffering. The dread is usually counterbalanced by the complexity of characters, especially on the detective side of the story. In “A Dark So Deadly”, the assortment of characters is astonishingly varied. Perhaps it is even a feature of new crime novels – the book was published in 2017 and something similar can be observed with authors such as Robert Galbraith (J. K. Rowling).

The cover is rather… meh. Nothing to write home about.

Cover Photo by Paul Einerhand on Unsplash