Product Description

Armed Candy is the true story of one woman's struggle for survival on Britain's meanest streets. Kay has spent her whole life trying to escape. Sexually abused by her grandmother, she pleaded to return to her mother's care. But instead of finding a safe haven, Kay entered a world of drug abuse, swinging and dabbling in the occult. Although still a small child, she was soon buying drugs for her mother and being moved out of her bed as orgies ensued in her home. When she tried to escape, she ended up in a violent marriage, from which she fled in fear of her life. Turning to her mother for help, she was tricked into prostitution, her own mother acting much like a pimp. Kay became a high-class call girl, but then, through a chance meeting, she got involved with the most dangerous criminal gang in Glasgow. Women associated with such gangs are often seen as decorative arm candy, but Kay was admitted to the inner core, where she became involved in making decisions of life and death. She fell in love with the gang's equaliser, a young man feared throughout the country, and together they formed a formidable partnership. But they were too successful, and when they appeared to threaten some powerful interests they had to be taken out. The day that Kay's lover was gunned down in broad daylight saw the beginning of a reign of death in the city, as the organised crime world became paranoid and turned in on itself. For Kay, it was the beginning of her way out.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #106649 in Books
• Published on: 2002-05-23
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 224 pages

About the Author
Reg McKay is a former social worker, an investigative journalist and the author of None so Pretty: The Sexing of Rebecca Pine and The Ferris Conspiracy.

Customer Reviews

disturbing read
i thought the first 8-10 chapters of the book were a little bit graphic although it did highlight the disturbing childhood that kay had to endure.it shows how desperate some young girls are to try and escape the horror of the slums.Kay managed to escape but at what cost ?.her health suffered as she slipped into a world of drink and serious drug abuse.amongst the anguish of her life was the good points.her great love for lover Paul Sim shone through all the bad times that she was forced to endure in her hard sad life.as i read this book i felt myself caring for kay as if she was my own sibling and a part of my life.i hope that life gets better for the real-life kay and she finds happiness.

A brilliant and exceptionally written novel.
For the first time, I literally could not put down this book. It is a very detailed and magnificently written novel, which left me with a sense of really knowing the characters. At the end of each chapter you're left wondering if things will work out well for Kay, the main character, but despite kick after kick in the teeth, she perseveres. Some readers have said that they found the strong, vivid descriptions too graphic (as well as questioning the realism behind the story) but isn't that what you want when you read a novel? To be able to imagine and believe. I liked the structure Reg McKay uses: you are given parts of the story here and there, describing different periods in Kay's life - you are given a few pieces of a puzzle and are left to read between the lines. (The good thing is, it's not hard to follow, so it's easy to understand when different events take place throughout the novel.) A fascinating story, whether fictitious or not, brilliant characterisation and an 'un-disappointing' and unexpected finale. Unlike some novels I have read, there is no anti-climax here! A brilliant book to read anywhere, anytime. Perhaps not for the easily offended. Ten out of ten.

Too graphic
Far too graphic, Kay obviously had a very difficult and disturbing upbringing under the influence of her mother, but do we really want to know the exact graphic details. As the book goes on it is slightly better, and you do feel drawn to the character and sympathise with her. This book is not for the faint-hearted.