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A review by katiecatbooks
Still Midnight by Denise Mina
4.0
A great Scottish crime novel told from multiple perspectives.
Story: There are as many stories as there are characters. First we have the story of Alex Morrow, female cop, and the two faces she wears-one for work, one for home. Then there's Eddy, a wanna-be bad guy who is really just a pawn in the hands of more serious baddies. Pat, Eddy's pal, is a co-conspirator with his own story to tell. And many more, which all tie together, and come apart and twist around to form this novel. More drama than action, on the lighter side of bloodshed, a strong crime novel.
PACE: Slow. Because there are so many stories, many are told about the same events or times. This is no action-packed crime movie, but more strategic and planned, how one imagines a similar crime would be handled in real life, over time. In spite of the slow pace, the book is a fast read, as each chapter will leave you wanting to know what another character saw and thought about the same events.
Language: The book contains a fair amount of strong curse words, so if you are not a fan then be wary of this book. It also contains a whole lot of Scottish dialects, which in this reader's opinion is the star of the book. Written by a Scottish author, the dialogue comes out authentically and gives flavor to the characters.
Frame: Scotland, present day, hard-boiled. Grey, rainy, full of hills and shipyards, sharp contrast of the rich and poor, a police station full of overworked, underappreciated staff, fighting for rank, this book is gritty.
I really enjoyed this. The ending came a bit quickly for me, so I give it 4/5 based on that but I plan to continue the series and look forward to the next book in the series.
Story: There are as many stories as there are characters. First we have the story of Alex Morrow, female cop, and the two faces she wears-one for work, one for home. Then there's Eddy, a wanna-be bad guy who is really just a pawn in the hands of more serious baddies. Pat, Eddy's pal, is a co-conspirator with his own story to tell. And many more, which all tie together, and come apart and twist around to form this novel. More drama than action, on the lighter side of bloodshed, a strong crime novel.
PACE: Slow. Because there are so many stories, many are told about the same events or times. This is no action-packed crime movie, but more strategic and planned, how one imagines a similar crime would be handled in real life, over time. In spite of the slow pace, the book is a fast read, as each chapter will leave you wanting to know what another character saw and thought about the same events.
Language: The book contains a fair amount of strong curse words, so if you are not a fan then be wary of this book. It also contains a whole lot of Scottish dialects, which in this reader's opinion is the star of the book. Written by a Scottish author, the dialogue comes out authentically and gives flavor to the characters.
Frame: Scotland, present day, hard-boiled. Grey, rainy, full of hills and shipyards, sharp contrast of the rich and poor, a police station full of overworked, underappreciated staff, fighting for rank, this book is gritty.
I really enjoyed this. The ending came a bit quickly for me, so I give it 4/5 based on that but I plan to continue the series and look forward to the next book in the series.