With the long shadow of the First World War's trenches ever present, Gaw's 1920s-set detective thriller finds a brilliant Scottish pathologist unearthing disturbing secrets when two bodies are found in a London park.
Waterstones Scottish Book of the Month for January 2025
Winner of the Bloody Scotland Debut Prize 2024
‘No one likes death. It just happens to be our business.’
Nobody who meets Dr Jack Cuthbert forgets him. Tall, urbane, brilliant but damaged, this Scottish pathologist who works with Scotland Yard is the best the new DCI has seen. But Cuthbert is a man who lives with secrets, and he still battles demons brought back from the trenches.
When not one but two corpses are discovered in a London park in 1929, Cuthbert must use every tool at his disposal to solve the mystery of their deaths. In the end, the horrifying truth is more shocking than even he could have imagined.
As he works the case, Cuthbert realises that history rarely stays in the past. And even in the final moments, there is still one last revelation that leaves him reeling.
Publisher: Birlinn General
ISBN: 9781846977206
Number of pages: 288
Weight: 255 g
Dimensions: 198 x 129 x 22 mm
'Heartbreaking and harrowing in equal measure. Dr Jack Cuthbert is a brilliant, damaged genius you’ll want to follow to hell and back' - Pauline McLean, BBC Scotland Arts Correspondent
'This murder mystery makes for compelling reading... Cuthbert himself is a finely conceived and drawn character' - Allan Massie, The Scotsman
'We liked that Allan was trying to take the crime novel to new and interesting places. The central character perfectly expresses the damage of both the period and his environment, and the author’s pathology background was skilfully deployed in this highly original thriller' - Tariq Ashkanani, author and Bloody Scotland judge
'Deliciously dark, vividly visceral, heartbreakingly harrowing' - Sharon Bairden
'An outstanding whodunit with a difference... a compelling and memorable tale. What you find between the covers is a beautifully paced account of the forensic examination of the victims of a double murder by Scottish pathologist Dr Jack Cuthbert' - Ken Lussey, Undiscovered Scotland
'The first in Allan Gaw’s Dr Jack Cuthbert mysteries ... [has] a gritty historical edge' - Rosemary Goring, The Herald
'one of the most exciting debut novels in years, with a central character who is utterly complex and compelling' - Scots Whay Hae podcast
'I loved this mystery, slow burning and gripping. There’s a sense of doom, there’s a complex and damaged main character . . . vivid and well researched life of LGBT people and the medical procedures' - Scrapping & Playing blog
'A fascinating yet gritty historical mystery with complex and compelling characters' - Ljwritesandreviews
'Excellently paced and full of tension' - BooksbyBindu.com
Dr Jack the main character is both flawed and brilliant and such an interesting and complex man you want to find out more about him and his work. It’s a little grisly in places but fascinating to learn about the... More
Set in the 1920’s with a pathologist as its main character. Fans of Sherlock Holmes’s would probably enjoy this. Found it hard to put down, will be looking out for the follow up books.
I have just finished this book, purchased on a whim at Waterstones after reading the blurb. I have already ordered the follow up books! A truly excellent piece of crime writing and beautifully written by Mr. Gaw.... More
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