A review by lazygal
Blind Eye by Stuart MacBride

4.0

Five books in and we've finally got a clear idea as to why DS Logan McRae has so many problems with the higher-ups: his high "fuck-up to brilliance ratio" (quoth DI Steel). Sadly, so many of the problems happen between books and all too often there's stuff going on in between books we're not privy to (or get hints about, but no real exposition). In many ways that's one of the things that appeals to me, as there's a clear sense that life goes on in-between, that we're not tracking every minute of the character's lives.

Again, this is pretty gruesome, with people having their eyes gouged out and then lighter fluid poured in to the cavity. Why? Is it because they're Polish (there's a large influx of Polish immigrants/workers in Aberdeen)? Is there something else going on? McRae assumes the latter because one of Aberdeens 'finest', Simon McLeod, is blinded and he's sure that someone will be paying. Now that DI Insch is gone, DI Finnie is working with McRae and hoping for a Lazarus-like resurrection of his career (surely McRae can't be a much of a mess as rumored). Finnie has his own ideas as to how to do the investigation, and there are clashes between him, Steel, McRae and Professional Standards. No guesses as to how it all plays out. Despite the earlier books' portrayal, DI Steel really seems to be in McRae's corner, perhaps because her unit is "not at home to Mr. Fuck-Up".

I do feel sorry for McRae! In the past few books he's lost his girlfriend (twice), been forced to eat human meat, had several career set-backs and here, gets blown up (literally). Oh, and there's the question of the turkey baster and DI Steel's wife... What's next?