The Hangman’s Song, James Oswald

The Hangman’s Song opening lines: The important thing is to get the drop right. Nothing else matters, really.’

My blurb:

Inspector McLean is faced with a tough situation. He has been given too many tasks by his new boss to focus properly on any one of them and he is in charge of people who would rather not do their work. A series of apparent suicides that are probably homicides is one of his cases. He is also investigating the beating up of a local prostitute, as well as dealing with some personal issues with his girlfriend who is recovering from a coma.

The Hangman’s Song

The Hangman’s Song is the thrilling third novel in James Oswald’s Inspector McLean series set in Edinburgh. A young man is found hanging by a rope in his Edinburgh home.

A simple, sad suicide, yet Detective Inspector Tony McLean is puzzled by the curious suicide note. A second hanged man and another strange note hint at a sinister pattern. Investigating a brutal prostitution and human trafficking ring, McLean struggles to find time to link the two suicides. But the discovery of a third convinces him of malicious intent. Digging deeper, McLean finds answers much closer to home than he expects. Something terrifying stalks the city streets, and bringing it to justice may destroy all he holds dear.

My verdict:

Despite not having read the book that led up to why Emma is in a coma, and why Tony is being split between too many tasks, this was a great read. I could not put the book down and even though I had an idea of how the suicides were coming about it did not detract from me wanting to get to the end of the book. Set in Edinburgh, a city I have visited, this book is one I can highly recommend.

Publishing information:

Penguin Random House South Africa sent me this novel to review.

What I blogged:

• one year ago – Burger and Chips
• two years ago – Tomato Pasta Sauce
• three years ago – Cupcakes
• four years ago – Exotic Mushroom Pasta With Sun Dried Tomatoes

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