This first book in Malcolm Mackay’s Glasgow trilogy sets the scene of the local underworld and the main characters. Callum is in his late twenties.  He has done some killings and he is now asked to be the main killer for a local crime boss, because the man who held the position previously is having hip surgery.  Callum has some misgivings about this career move, but he takes the job anyway.  Much of the work involved is preparation, and Mackey shows us how Callum sets out making sure the killing goes smoothly.  Lewis Winter does in fact die. But Winter also has his own life, and his live-in girlfriend wants to make sure the killer suffers the consequences of their action. She has her own connections, and she uses them.  At the same time, the police are investigating the case, and they factor into the details. Mackay sets out the thoughts of all the characters so we are able to understand them.  The narrator stays factual, with only very occasional comments to the reader that indicate any personality of his own.  Rather, the narrator is a chameleon who takes on the point of view of whichever character is in focus at the moment.  Mackay gives the impression of having a detailed knowledge of the life of crime gangs in Scotland, and also a lot about how people think. He gets into people’s heads, and it becomes a very compelling story because of this. The trilogy as a whole hangs together extremely well, remaining very consistent in its tone and building a sustained coherent story.  It’s also a picture of people as calculating, thoughtful, and often angry. Their lives are limited and sad, but some of them are capable of breaking out of the constraints of their lives, even though it will cost them a great deal to do so.

The unabridged audiobook performed by Angus King is excellent all the way through the trilogy, giving a sympathetic tone to even the most brutal of the characters.

© 2015 Christian Perring

Christian Perring, Professor of Philosophy, Dowling College, New York