Reviews

I would like to thank William McIlvanney, Canongate and NetGalley for a copy of this book and a chance to review Laidlaw.

This is a republication of the first book in the Jack Laidlaw series. Its great crime fiction set in Glasgow in the 1970s it is dark with Laidlaw using unorthodox methods to solve the crime. I read this on holidays, it’s a good read and I will read the following two books in the series. Definitely recommend to lovers of crime fiction.

myrdyr's review against another edition

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2.0

I was underwhelmed. On the jacket of the version I borrowed, there are positive comments from Val McDermid, Denise Mina, Ian Rankin, Peter May, and Mark Billingham - all authors I really enjoy, and the book won the CWA Silver Dagger, but I just don't get all the hype. I wanted to stop reading it repeatedly, but I persevered thinking that it had to get better to justify the positivity surrounding it. Unfortunately, my commitment did not pay off. Had it been a longer book, I really don't know if I would have seen it through to the end. I won't bother with others from the McIlvanney.

ztkrogman's review against another edition

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dark mysterious tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

finlay27's review against another edition

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challenging dark tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Content Warnings

laurapf's review

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adventurous challenging dark emotional tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

andrew61's review against another edition

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4.0

I am not sure where I heard about this book but when I picked it up and read the plaudits on the cover from the great and good of Scottish crime writing I was sceptical, however it was an excellent read. Set in 1970's Glasgow it didn't feel dated, having been written in 77, and it tells the tale of a maverick policeman solving a murder which then involves the Glasgow criminal underbelly. It was very reminiscent of Ian Rankin's Rebus and Rankin himself gives a strong reccomendation on the cover. I am definitely going to read the next two in the series and for lovers of Tartan noir it would seem to be one of the books that inspired the trend.

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