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It's been seventeen months since the Bloodsmith butchered his first victim and Operation Maypole is still no nearer to catching him. The media is whipping up a storm, the top brass are demanding results, but the investigation is sinking fast. In loving memory of Grendel MacBride, my constant companion, muse, and very own little fuzzy serial killer. 2004-2021. No Less The Devil is written in third from the perspective of DS Lucy Mcveigh as she chases down gory serial killer ‘The Bloodsmith’ and attempts to help recently released child killer Benedict. It starts with a murder and descends into multiple murders with victims over 17 months. Detective Sergeant Lucy McVeigh and her colleague The Dunc end up having to sort out the mess that The Bloodsmith Killer has caused. Multiple unsolved murders means the top brass are getting antsy. On top of this, Benedict Strachen was just 11 when he confessed to killing a homeless man, and he has just been released from prison. He begs for Lucy's help, claiming "they" are out to get him. is he paranoid? Or is it something bigger? MacBride avoids toying with readers: his sub-plots are powerful and grip the reader’s attention without weakening the storyline. Who is the Bloodsmith and how many victims will there be before justice must triumph? The book’s characters are deftly fleshed out. The single and double dimensions advance to three and even four or maybe five dimensions as their lives, personalities, characteristics, even their gaits, are illuminated through the effortless narration. There is a resounding factuality to almost every description and action, with words that are carefully honed to become tailored, precise ammunition, which are fired with clear aims.
No Less The Devil is more than just a crime fiction novel though. It is a stunning commentary on post Covid society and MacBride has chosen to mainly provide this commentary through the eyes of The Dunc, which works beautifully in my opinion. Thus, Lucy and Dunk progress through a multitude of different environments, searching for clues that will lead them to The Bloodsmith. At one point, the cat theme is again introduced, when they discover the body of a suicide. It’s been seventeen months since the Bloodsmith butchered his first victim and Operation Maypole is still no nearer catching him. The media is whipping up a storm, the top brass are demanding results, but the investigation is sinking fast. So....I'm anxiously waiting for some of my book buddies to grab this & read it because we need to talk. Don't worry, we'll skip past the first 80%. I'm referring to the last bit, the final chapters I read with my mouth hanging open. But in the meantime, a few thoughts on the story & how it all began. As well as the wonderfully vivid and descriptive language (perhaps too vivid in the case of some of the crime scenes!), MacBride also proves adept at plotting a tense and compelling crime novel. I genuinely raced through this (and it is quite a long book) because there was variety, humour and a very high body count – never a dull moment.
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When previous trauma and a recent head injury turn Lucy into a seemingly unreliable narrator, everything you thought was true will be questioned. This is book 5 in the Oldcastle novels. I am always a bit dubious about joining a series when I haven't read the others but I was mostly put at ease. My questions weren't answered as we jumped from reality to fantasy to hallucination to the bizarre, to weird. I have no idea what happened or what ( or who) was real. But university and I did not see eye to eye, so off I went to work offshore. Like many all-male environments, working offshore was the intellectual equivalent of Animal House, only without the clever bits. Swearing, smoking, eating, more swearing, pornography, swearing, drinking endless plastic cups of tea... and did I mention the swearing? But it was more money than I'd seen in my life! There's something about being handed a wadge of cash as you clamber off the minibus from the heliport, having spent the last two weeks offshore and the last two hours in an orange, rubber romper suit / body bag, then blowing most of it in the pubs and clubs of Aberdeen. And being young enough to get away without a hangover.
ABOUT 'NO LESS THE DEVIL': It's been seventeen months since the Bloodsmith butchered his first victim and Operation Maypole is still no nearer to catching him. The media is whipping up a storm, the top brass are demanding results, but the investigation is sinking fast.
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Ratchets up the tension and keeps it there' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'The plot twist is divine' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'The last quarter of the book goes to an all-time new level' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐'MacBride is an absolute master of understated dark humour' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ In the mix is old case where a young boy murdered a homeless person, he been released from prison and seeks out McVeigh for help. Added into this she is targeted by the mother of a murdered man and seemingly being stalked by the Bloodsmith, oh and then there's the small matter of Charlie from Professional Standards who is constantly sniffing around.
Well, Lucy does her utmost to follow all the leads they have, starting with revisiting the homes of the victims where they indeed find some clues to work with. These clues take them to such unfamiliar places as the home of Benedict’s parents and to a very, very posh school for gifted children. Soon after Lucy and Dunk make some progress, there is another spanner in the works because now Lucy seems to be followed, not only by a suspect, but also by Charlie, a policeman from Professional Standards. Lucy really isn’t in a great place herself right now, she’s clearly suffering from PTSD, and also has a stalker, and what with the extra pressure of Benedict Strachan, who pleads for her help, she’s definitely on a downward spiral. I have read many books by this author and enjoy the ‘Logan McRae’ series but I’m afraid I struggled a little with this one. It felt like a fairly long read and my opinion seemed to change regularly throughout the novel. There were times when I thought I was getting to grips with it and enjoying it to other times when I couldn’t wait to finish. Some good characters written in the authors usual writing style but failed to grip me in the way MacBride’s novels normally do.
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ABOUT 'NO LESS THE DEVIL': It's been seventeen months since the Bloodsmith butchered Wow. What a ride! MacBride has always possessed the ability to pull you into dark, gritty tales - served up with a large dollop of great characterisation and a side of dry humour. NO LESS THE DEVIL is no exception to that but, take my word for it, it is EXCEPTIONAL in one other major way. Hold on to your pants because you will NOT see it coming. A must read. Crime fiction that slaps you around the chops and demands that you sit up and take notice. Deborah Masson Despite all the obstacles, McVeigh and the Dunk are successful in unearthing new clues to the identity of "the Bloodsmith", including apparent links to the elite St. Nicholas's College. Can they capture the killer before he (or she) strikes again?
Anyway, there were also parts of this book that made me wonder if I'd lost my mind so look out for that...
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Genres: Fiction, Crime, Mystery & Detective, General, Police Procedural, Traditional, Thrillers, Suspense Alongside this an old case rears it's head when a young man seeks Lucy's help. He happens to be Benedict Strachan, an infamous child murdered. At the age of 11 Strachan and an accomplice brutally stabbed a homeless man to death. Released after serving 16 years in prison he is now seeking help from Lucy but is adamant he still won't give up the name of his accomplice. I couldn't help thinking, as I got to the end, that Lucy may have made a deal with the Devil, and we all know the Devil likes to come out on top. He just might have met his match in Lucy. This is definitely going to be an interesting series.
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