Although born in Australia, Tony Black was brought up in Scotland and his voice resounds powerful and authentic. D.I. Bob Valentine, a particularly troubled species of cop, is back on the force after an enforced break following a near-fatal stabbing and is now struggling with both authority and his own post traumatic stress. The body of a banker is found with a spike running through him and the shock waves resonate along the sleepy costal town of Ayr and the case falls into Valentine's hesitant hands. The plot and the writing are slick and assured and unfold like dark clockwork. Black is the veteran of two previous series, respectively featuring D.I. Ron Brennan, and private eye Gus Dury. Valentine is a welcome addition to his palette of troubled but fascinating sleuths.
'It's a dead man...Can't you see someone's put a bloody great spike through him?' The discovery of a dead banker sends shock waves through the sleepy coastal town of Ayr. And it's up to DI Bob Valentine - recently back on the force after his near-fatal stabbing - to find the killer. But leads are hard to find and the pressure is on from an anxious Chief Superintendent who is being hounded by the media and still has serious concerns about her DI's mental health. And as it becomes clear that there's a serial killer on the loose, Bob Valentine must battle the demons of his post-traumatic stress, an investigation team that's leaking like a sieve and frightening visions that might just be the key to unlocking the mystery. Valentine is close to breaking point, but can he crack the case before he cracks up?
Tony Black is the author of twelve previous novels, including Artefacts of the Dead and His Father's Son. An award-winning journalist, he was born in Australia and grew up in Scotland and Ireland. Tony has been described by Irvine Welsh as his 'favourite British crime writer'. Tony was shortlisted for The Guardian's Not the Booker Prize in 2014 and has been nominated for the Crime Writers Association Dagger six times.
Maxim Jakubowski's view on Tony Black...
Tony Black's third novel LOSS is another bleak investigation for his poignant Edinburgh washed up journalist turned involuntary private investigator Gus Dury. Black writes about urban blight and the curse of alcohol like no other, but his down at heel tales are also full of everyday humour. Harrowing but indispensable.
