Published: 28/04/2022
A gruesome arson attack at a hairdresser’s escalates a flurry of violence and terror, spelling an extraordinarily thorny case for Detective Harry McCoy in Parks’ powerful Glasgow-set police procedural.
Winner of the McIlvanney Prize 2022
Glasgow is a city in mourning. An arson attack on a hairdresser's has left five dead. Tempers are frayed and sentiments running high.
When three youths are charged the city goes wild. A crowd gathers outside the courthouse but as the police drive the young men to prison, the van is rammed by a truck, and the men are grabbed and bundled into a car. The next day, the body of one of them is dumped in the city centre. A note has been sent to the newspaper: one down, two to go.
Detective Harry McCoy has twenty-four hours to find the kidnapped boys before they all turn up dead, and it is going to mean taking down some of Glasgow's most powerful people to do it...
Publisher: Canongate Books
ISBN: 9781838856748
Number of pages: 384
Weight: 598 g
Dimensions: 240 x 162 x 35 mm
Edition: Main
MEDIA REVIEWS
Praise for the Harry McCoy series:
'One of the great Scottish crime writers... Whether it be William McIlvanney, Ian Rankin, Denise Mina or Alan Parks, the way they view - and depict - the world gives great pleasure... Like the very best crime novels, The April Dead makes you keenly aware of all the pain out there and (almost) alleviates it' - The Times
'Brilliant... The April Dead should grace the bookshelves of every crime fan' - Sunday Times
'A blistering plot, unforgettable characters and writing so sharp it's like it's been written with a knife... Detective McCoy is a true noir antihero and the perfect guide through the vice and violence of Glasgow's underbelly. Bloody January firmly sets Alan Parks in the same league as Ian Rankin and Louise Welsh' - Sarah Pinborough
'An old-school cop novel written with wit and economy.. Think McIlvanney or Get Carter' - Ian Rankin
'The latest star of Tartan noir - perhaps even a successor to the late, great William McIlvanney... Gripping, utterly authentic and nerve-jangling, this novel announces a fine new voice in crime writing' - Daily Mail
'1970s Glasgow hewn from flesh and drawn in blood' - Peter May
'Draws the reader in with equal parts of twist and grit... It's McCoy, though, who makes this series something special - he's multi-layered and three-dimensional, with his own idiosyncratic work ethic... With this third instalment of the McCoy books, Parks has continued to build a series that no crime fan should miss: dangerous, thrilling, but with a kind voice to cut through the darkness' - Scotsman
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“Hints of John Rebus but this isn't for the faint-hearted”
Our Oundle Crime book group is thorough immersed in this series now and believe the books are getting better and better as the series progresses. Harry McCoy’s character has been fleshed out as the series has moved... More
“Alan Parks - May God Forgive”
Harry McCoy hasn’t really recovered after his latest case but is back to work as the whole city is mourning the loss of five women and children who were killed after somebody set fire to a hairdresser’s. The... More
“A thrilling read”
This is my first read by this author and I really enjoyed it. It is the fifth in a series and in my opinion can be read on it’s own, although I will definitely be reading the previous books when I can. I found this... More
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