William Lorimer Series

Book 4

***Discover your next reading obsession with Alex Gray's bestselling Scottish detective series***

***Don't miss the latest from Alex Gray. Book 20 in the Lorimer series, QUESTIONS FOR A DEAD MAN, is out now and Book 21, OUT OF DARKNESS, is available to pre-order.***

Whether you've read them all or whether this is your first Lorimer novel, THE RIVERMAN is perfect if you love Ian Rankin, Val McDermid and Ann Cleeves

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT THE LORIMER SERIES:

'Warm-hearted, atmospheric' ANN CLEEVES
'Relentless and intriguing' PETER MAY
'Move over Rebus' DAILY MAIL
'Exciting, pacey, authentic' ANGELA MARSONS
'Superior writing' THE TIMES
'Immensely exciting and atmospheric' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH
_______________

When the dead body of a man is fished out of Glasgow's River Clyde the morning after an office celebration, it looks like a case of accidental death. An anonymous telephone call and a forensic toxicology test, however, give DCI Lorimer reason to think otherwise.

Probing deeper into the life and business of the deceased accountant, Duncan Forbes, a seemingly upright member of the community, Lorimer find only yet more unanswered questions.

And when the firm's human resources manager is found dead in her riverside flat these questions become only more complex -- not to mention more disturbing. And Lorimer is having to cope not only with deceptions devised to hide the facts, but also with suspicions from those far closer to home . . .

Book 5

Pitch Black

by Alex Gray

Published 3 April 2008

***Discover your next reading obsession with Alex Gray's bestselling Scottish detective series***

***Don't miss the latest from Alex Gray. Book 20 in the Lorimer series, QUESTIONS FOR A DEAD MAN, is out now and Book 21, OUT OF DARKNESS, is available to pre-order.***

Whether you've read them all or whether this is your first Lorimer novel, PITCH BLACK is perfect if you love Ian Rankin, Val McDermid and Ann Cleeves

WHAT THEY'RE SAYING ABOUT THE LORIMER SERIES:

'Warm-hearted, atmospheric' ANN CLEEVES
'Relentless and intriguing' PETER MAY
'Move over Rebus' DAILY MAIL
'Exciting, pacey, authentic' ANGELA MARSONS
'Superior writing' THE TIMES
'Immensely exciting and atmospheric' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH

___________________
When Chief Inspector Lorimer returns from his holiday on the island of Mull, he feels a welcome sense of calm. But it doesn't last long.

Kelvin FC's new star midfielder is found brutally stabbed to death in his own home and, with his wife apprehended trying to leave the country, a seemingly straightforward new case begins. But the grisly murder of a referee after a Kelvin match throws light on some dark secrets at the ground.

As lies emerge and tensions build, Lorimer knows there's a serial killer on the loose - one that's only beginning to show his true colours.

Book 6

Glasgow Kiss

by Alex Gray

Published 5 March 2009

Eric Chalmers is one of the most popular teachers at Muirpark Secondary School in Glasgow. Gentle and kind, he is the person the students come to when they want to confide in someone. So when precocious teenager Julie Donaldson accuses Chalmers of rape, the school goes into shock. How could a deeply religious family man like Chalmers do anything like that? With some students and teachers supporting Julie, and others standing by Chalmers, life at Muirpark is far from harmonious. And then things get much worse - Julie Donaldson goes missing, and the police are called in. For DCI William Lorimer, this is the second missing persons case in a week. He's been having sleepless nights about a toddler who has been missing for several days - with each day, the likelihood of her being found alive diminishes. Julie's disappearance adds a further burden to Lorimer's already overstretched workload. With hope fading, it becomes a breakneck race against time to find both missing girls.

Book 7

Five Ways To Kill A Man

by Alex Gray

Published 1 February 2008

The perfect murder takes practice.

An unpredictable killer is loose on the streets of Glasgow, experimenting with death. Beginning with brute force, the murderer moves on to poison and drowning, greedy for new and better ways to kill.

Faced with a string of unconnected victims, DCI Lorimer turns to psychologist and friend Solomon Brightman for his insights. Lorimer is also assigned to review the case of a fatal house fire. His suspicions are raised by shocking omissions in the original investigation. Some uncomfortable questions have been buried but Lorimer is the man to ask them.

As the serial killer gets closer to Lorimer's family, can the DCI unmask the volatile murderer before the next victim is found too close to home?

Book 8

Sleep Like The Dead

by Alex Gray

Published 3 February 2011

Everyone is searching for Billy Brogan and his sister, Marianne. Marianne's ex-husband Kenneth Scott is gunned down in his home and two men are found dead in Billy's West End flat. But Billy is on the run to Spain, with the money that was meant to pay the hit man who killed Kenneth. Now the hit man remains in Glasgow, seeking not just his fee for his job but the elusive Marianne. The woman has been a mature student of Dr Solomon Brightman, psychology lecturer at Glasgow University and criminal profiler. Why, when she meets him unexpectedly in a Glasgow bookshop, does she tell him she owes him such a lot? And what is her relationship to Amit, the educated Pakistani refugee from Lahore? DCI Lorimer is given the news that psychological profiling is no longer allowed following a case of wrongful arrest down South, but can his friendship with Solly produce the necessary clues in this case? And will Solly be able to find his missing student before time runs out for her?

Book 9

A Pound of Flesh

by Alex Gray

Published 1 March 2012

Detective Inspector Lorimer's worst nightmare is a serial killer loose in his city. But two serial killers operating at once in Glasgow is a nightmare come to life. Is there any link between the brutal slaying of prostitutes in the backstreets of the city and the methodical killing of several unconnected businessmen? Lorimer is never one to jump to conclusions but something about these cases just doesn't add up. When the latest murder is that of a prominent politician, Lorimer finds the media's relentless scrutiny turned on his investigation. Psychologist Solly Brightman is helping with both cases, but someone within Lorimer's team is unwittingly sabotaging their efforts by leaking confidential police information. Their whispers will cost lives ...As the freezing winter weather grips Glasgow, two killers are relentlessly taking lives in cold blood. For Lorimer, time is running out.

Book 10

The Swedish Girl

by Alex Gray

Published 7 March 2013

Eighteen-year-old Kirsty Wilson can't believe her luck when she lands a room in a luxury Glasgow flat owned by the beautiful Eva Magnusson, a wealthy fellow student from Stockholm. But her initial delight turns to terror when Kirsty finds the Swedish girl lying dead in their home and their male flatmate accused of her murder. Kirsty refuses to accept that he is guilty and, inspired by family friend Detective Superintendent Lorimer, sets out to clear his name. Meanwhile, Lorimer calls on his trusted colleague, psychologist Solly Brightman, to help unravel the truth behind the enigmatic Eva's life and death. But it is not long until another woman, bearing a marked resemblance to Eva, is brutally murdered in Glasgow. Horrified, Lorimer and his team realise that Kirsty could be right. Is it possible that Glasgow's finest detective has put the wrong man behind bars? And is there a cold-blooded killer out there orchestrating the death of their next innocent victim? In this absolutely gripping read, Alex Gray sends her dynamic Scottish detective from the gritty heart of Glasgow to the snowy streets of Stockholm in his toughest case yet.

Book 11

The Silent Games

by Alex Gray

Published 19 June 2020

Book 12

Keep the Midnight Out

by Alex Gray

Published 19 March 2015

When the body of a red-haired young man is washed up on the shore of the beautiful Isle of Mull, Detective Superintendent Lorimer's tranquil holiday away from the gritty streets of Glasgow is rudely interrupted. The body has been bound with twine in a ghoulishly unnatural position and strongly reminds Lorimer of another murder: a twenty year old Glasgow case that he failed to solve as a newly fledged detective constable and which has haunted him ever since. As local cop DI Stevie Crozier takes charge of the island murder investigation, Lorimer tries to avoid stepping on her toes. But as the similarities between the young man's death and his cold case grow more obvious, Lorimer realises that there could be a serial killer on the loose after all these years. As the action switches dramatically between the Mull murder and the Glasgow cold case twenty years earlier, Lorimer tries desperately to catch a cold-hearted killer. Has someone got away with murder for decades?

The Darkest Goodbye

by Alex Gray

Published 3 March 2016

'Brings Glasgow to life in the same way Ian Rankin evokes Edinburgh' Daily Mail

When an elderly woman is found dead in her home, newly fledged DC Kirsty Wilson is called to the scene. It appears that the woman had a mysterious visitor in the early hours of that morning - someone dressed as a carer, but with much darker intentions. It soon becomes obvious that this was not death by natural causes - it was murder. Before she can catch her breath, DC Wilson is thrown in at the deep end as another body turns up; this time the victim is a well-known drug dealer from Glasgow's mean streets, and there's no question that this was a brutal execution.

The two cases appear to have nothing in common, but when another vulnerable person is murdered in their sleep, the police realise that it's only a matter of time before the next victim emerges, and Detective Superintendent William Lorimer is called in to help DC Wilson investigate. This case is big and it's about to get more personal than either of them could have imagined...

Still Dark

by Alex Gray

Published 23 March 2017

'Brings Glasgow to life in the same way Ian Rankin evokes Edinburgh' Daily Mail

New Year's Eve should be a time for celebrating. A chance to spend time with loved ones and look forward to the year ahead. For DSI William Lorimer, however, this New Year's Eve will be one that he will never forget. Called to a house after gunshots are reported, the carnage he finds there will have a powerful impact on his life - leaving him questioning his future with Police Scotland.

Meanwhile, the man who eluded police capture during Lorimer's last investigation - the Quiet Release case involving the euthanasia of vulnerable patients - is back, and this time he's aligned with a powerful gangster from Glasgow's underworld.

As Lorimer struggles to return to duty and stop this mystery killer once and for all, he discovers that there are forces high up within Police Scotland that are protecting the gangster that holds the key to finding the man they are looking for. Can Lorimer and his team get a killer off the streets for good before more innocent people die?