Product Description

A stylishly written, highly suspenseful murder mystery set in Glasgow.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #6802 in Books
• Published on: 1999-05-01
• Binding: Paperback
• 444 pages

Synopsis
Maureen, a mental breakdown survivor, is about to end her affair with a married man when she discovers his body in her living room, his throat slit. Suspected of murder, Maureen must act fast - before the real killer comes after her.

From the Back Cover
Maureen O'Donnell wasn't born lucky. A psychiatric patient and survivor of sexual abuse, she's stuck in a dead-end job and a secretive relationship with Douglas, a shady therapist. Her few comforts are making up stories to tell her psychiatrist, the company of friends, and the sweet balm of whisky. She is about to end her affair with Douglas when she wakes up one morning to find him in her living room with his throat slit.

Viewed in turn by the police as a suspect and as an uncooperative, unstable witness, Maureen is even suspected by her alcoholic mother and self-serving sisters of being involved. Worse than that, the police won't tell her anything about Douglas's death.

Panic-stricken and feeling betrayed by friends and family, Maureen begins to doubt her own version of events. She retraces Douglas's desperate last days and picks up a horrifying trail of rape, deception...and suppressed scandal at a local psychiatric hospital where she had been an inmate. But the patients won't talk and the staff are afraid, and when a second brutalized corpse is discovered, Maureen realises that unless she gets to the killer first, her life is in danger.

About the Author
Denise Mina
Denise Mina was born in 1966 in Glasgow. She worked as an auxiliary nurse in geriatric and terminal care nursing homes before studying law at Glasgow University. As an academic researcher she has written extensively on the medicalization of deviant women, and until recently she taught Criminology and Criminal Law. She lives in Glasgow, where she now writes full time. She is the author of four novels, GARNETHILL, which won the John Creasey Award for Best First Crime Novel, EXILE, RESOLUTION and SANCTUM.

Customer Reviews

An excellent read!
I am completely sold on the work of Denise Mina- in her novels she creates the kind of woman who could drink Rebus under the table- read this and you will want more- I guarantee it!

Garnethill
Far more effective as a drama rather than a crime novel. The mystery is not as interesting and as such I found myself struggling to finish it. After a while I grew a little tired of Maureen.

I was also distracted by trying to work out when the book is set. I assumed it was the late '90s but there are constant references to pound notes and television programmes from the '80's. Was this intentional or just carelessness?

All in all this was ok but if you are expecting a gripping mystery and a new crime author look elsewhere.

love at first word
I LOVE this book. the writing, characterisation & Glasgow burst off the pages & hit you right in the face. It made me dream of home. Why has Denise Mina not had the kind of high profile of other new young writers? She is far better than most.

Like all excellent writers of crime novels, she does not rely on over-egging violence, sex or co-incidence. Nor does she trot outthe the stale old stereo types who populate so much crime fiction today.

As an x-psychiatric nurse, she just plunged me right back in there....she will know exactly what I mean.