Gordon Ferris

In the aftermath of the Second World War, Danny McRae has been demobbed from the Special Operations Executive and has turned his talents to private investigation. Clients are few and far between, though, and even by post-war standards he is not doing very well. Then in comes Kate Graveney, an upper-class woman who says that she thinks she’s killed a man. A promising start to a case, and she pays cash in advance.

In addition to being demobbed and living a precarious existence, Danny is plagued with migraines, blackouts, and memories of his time at Dachau concentration camp. The memories are horrifying, the migraines are painful, but the blackouts are terrifying because they also seem to coincide with attacks by a serial killer who seems to fancy himself the new Jack the Ripper. Danny isn’t a killer, is he?

This was a vivid, occasionally disturbing book. Post-war London is a grim place indeed, and it is not sentimentalized in these pages. And Danny’s post-traumatic stress is certainly not glossed over. That said, the solution was a little weird for my tastes, and there were some parts that were probably too disturbing (namely how one of the women is killed).

Nevertheless, I would suggest you try this book if you’re interested in books set in London post-WW2, the private-eye genre transplanted to England, or maybe the Red Riding series by David Peace—both that series and this book feature similar sets of murders, they have a similar atmosphere, and both feature corrupt coppers.… (plus d'informations)

Glasgow, 1946. Rationing is still in effect, and everyone is trying to adjust to the new post-war society. Douglas Brodie, former police officer, former soldier, now journalist, is on the crime beat at the Glasgow Gazette. He soon becomes the contact person for the “Glasgow Marshals”, a group of vigilantes dispensing Old Testament-style justice. Why are they picking on Brodie as their media messenger? And who is behind them? Brodie and advocate Samantha Campbell investigate, and discover crimes that reach up to the highest levels of Glasgow society.

This is the second book in the Douglas Brodie series and I enjoyed the setting and characters very much. I did find some of the dialogue felt a bit silly, if only because there are more exclamation marks than I would consider warranted, and using repeated letters to draw out a syllable (e.g., “You bastaaaaaards!”) just looks strange in a grownup mystery novel.

The blurb on the front cover brands Ferris “the new Ian Rankin”, and I think that creates undue pressure on Ferris. Their similarities are as follows: both write about cities in Scotland, and their books are printed in the same typeface. Ferris’s protagonist is currently a journalist and the story is told in the first person, while Rankin’s protagonist is a police officer (ret’d) and the story is told in the third person. Ferris writes about the post-war period, and Rankin writes about the present day. Ferris’s debut, The Hanging Shed, is stronger, and was possibly written with a view to beginning a series; Rankin wasn’t intending to write a series with Knots and Crosses, and Rebus isn’t fully fleshed out yet. Both writers are good, in different ways, and I’d say both are worth checking out.… (plus d'informations)

This is my third book in the Douglas Brodie series. I read The Hanging Shed first then got a hold of the 4th one, Gallowglass before reading number 2- Bitter Water. You don't need to read them in order but it helps because there are references in each to past events. Anyway, like the others, this book is beautifully written. It just flows so smoothly and engagingly. As always, great suspense and fascinating characters. All set in Glasgow shortly after WWII. Brodie is nominally a crime reporter but he is really a detective who doesn't hesitate to get involved in shoot-outs to stop the bad guys. Really great read, highly recommended. Brodie is a classic hero-type but with feelings and real human emotions, positive and otherwise.… (plus d'informations)

I loved the first book in this quartet - The Hanging Shed. I usually read a series in order but this time I jumped to number 4 - will still read the middle two soon. Douglas Brodie, the protagonist, is an ex Police Officer who is now a journalist - the series is set in Glasgow shortly after WW 2. I found this book hard to put down, fantastic suspense and action all the way through. The writing style is so focused and concise, never slow or ponderous. All the characters are interesting. Really, this series has everything that a suspense/mystery/crime lover could ask for. I really cannot think of anything negative to say about it except I will be sorry if it is only a quartet. I suppose I could complain that the middle two are not available outside the UK in e-book format, which is why I jumped to the fourth one, but I see that my local library has the middle two in paper-based format.… (plus d'informations)