Laidlaw (Coronet Books) (Pantheon International Crime) (Textplus)

by William McIlvanney

Jack Laidlaw's Glasgow is a city of hard men, powerful villains and self-made businessmen, of big industry and its victims, of enduring women, terrible slums and, one morning, of murder. An unorthodox detective who cloaks compassion with sardonic wit, Laidlaw knows the right questions to ask, threading his way through the pubs and clubs, the bookies' and tenements, trying to find the killer of a young, apparently innocent girl.

• ISBN10: 0340576901
• ISBN13: 9780340576908
• Publish Date: 1 August 1992 (first published 1 January 1977)
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 3 February 2012
• Publish Country: GB
• Publisher: Hodder & Stoughton
• Imprint: Sceptre
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 288
• Language: English

Reviews

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Laidlaw is a re-release of the original police procedural by William McIlvanney. Originally published in 1977, this re-formatting from Canongate on their Black Thorn imprint was released in paperback and ebook format April 2nd 2020.

There has been an ocean of commentary on tartan noir (and Scandi-noir and all their siblings). I have heard Laidlaw (there are three books in all) referred to as Scottish noir (or at least a precursor) and while that might be strictly speaking true, it is certainly gritty and brooding and Scottish, it's much more than that. I love crime novels with imperfect protagonists, Laidlaw is that in spades.

One of the things that sets this one apart is that McIlvanney was a remarkably adept writer, precise and masterful. There is not one fumble in the book. There is a spareness to the prose (the author was also quite well known as a poet). The characterizations are rich, varied, and precisely rendered. This might be the best crime novel I've read; it's certainly one of the best at any rate.

That being said, this is a relentlessly dark book. It's violent, with raw language and brutality. It had been a decade or more since I read it last and though quite unflinching, it has aged surprisingly well. It's a beautifully written book. I'm glad to see it being presented to a new generation of readers.

Five stars.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.