Shatter the Bones – By Stuart MacBride
ISBN: 978-0-00-734422-2
Reviewed by: Kylie Fox
Stuart MacBride is nothing if not gritty. His writing style, his characters, the world his detectives live in and the cases he creates for those detectives to solve are gritty. There is nothing pretty about his books. And I like that!
In MacBride’s novels, he explores some of the most heinous of crimes and those on the frontline trying to solve them – there’s nothing pretty about that. He creates characters and settings that are believable. I don’t want fancy words and flawless detectives – and victims – I want them to become real to me. That is exactly what MacBride delivers. Shatter The Bones is no exception.
In this case, DS Logan McRae, who readers will recognise from earlier books, is embroiled in a crime that has rocked the world. Alison and Jenny McGregor are a mother-daughter singing sensation set to take out the coveted title of “Britain’s Next Big Star”. Their lives have been the spotlight of all the gossip magazines, they have millions of hits on YouTube – in short, everybody loves them.
Now they’ve hit the headlines in the worst way – they’ve been abducted, the kidnappers demanding a ransom to be paid by the people who adore them. The nation must dig deep, telethon-style, to save their darlings. Only if enough money is raised will the pair be released.
The ransom demand is the focus of all the papers, the radio, TV and the internet – and grief and anger amongst the media and the public reach fever pitch.
Some though, don’t believe the kidnapping to be genuine, asserting that the television network that airs Britain’s Next Big Star has set it up as a publicity stunt. Nothing could be further from the truth, as they soon discover, when the kidnappers up the ante.
DS Logan McRae and his team must overcome public perception to interview scores of suspects, which, at times, is like an episode of Keystone Kops. The team fumble their way through, making error after error, which would be laughable if the stakes weren’t so high.
McRae, with his own personal demons to face, finds himself all too close to the action when someone starts targeting him personally with devastating consequences.
Shatter the Bones is a gripping read, with a somewhat frantic pace, giving the reader the very real sensation of that ticking clock. The story twists and turns as more details are revealed, so that we always feel as though we’re making each new discovery along with the police – not as though we are merely witnesses to a crime orchestrated by the author.
The most enjoyable aspect of all of MacBride’s work is the sense that anything can happen – and usually does. The good guys don’t always come away unscathed. The shocks at the conclusion of this story will leave you reeling long after you’ve finished reading.
