Scottish Crime

As Logan Martin begins his prison sentence for the brutal murder of his father, the eighteen-year-old’s aunt hires private investigator Teàrlach Paterson. She believes Logan is innocent and wants Teàrlach to uncover the truth. Teàrlach’s visit to the Martin family home yields two disturbing discoveries: a pentagram etched under the carpet in Logan's sister’s bedroom, and a link to the sinister deaths of their elderly neighbours—a journal with the same ominous symbol lies in the couple's home.

Jennifer MacKenzie being hit by a car was a tragic accident. Or so it seemed. Until Connor is summoned to a meeting with his girlfriend's dad, Duncan McKenzie. MacKenzie claims that Jen's accident was actually a message intended for him - and a way to force him to kill his trusted Lieutenant Paulie King, who has now mysteriously disappeared. His request to Connor is simple. Find Paulie and the men who hurt his daughter. Do whatever it takes.

'A real page-turner' – Ian Rankin A deeply atmospheric psychological thriller set in the Scottish Highlands, The Party House by Lin Anderson is a standalone novel perfect for fans of Lucy Foley and Ruth Ware. From the author of the pulse-pounding Rhona MacLeod series. Devastated by a recent...

As women disappear from the city streets, a blood-curdling discovery is made in a Glasgow cemetery. Easy Kill is the fifth novel in Lin Anderson's forensic crime series featuring Rhona MacLeod. 'One of the most satisfying characters in modern crime fiction' – Daily Mail A vulnerable young...

From the dramatic Highlands to bustling cities, the unique landscapes and locales of Scotland have enthralled and shaped generations of mystery writers. This new collection presents 17 classic stories, spanning a period from the 1880s to the 1970s, by a host of Scottish authors alongside writers from south of the border inspired by the history and majesty of the storied country.

The disappearance of a three-year-old girl from her isolated Highland home one summer shook the nation. A massive police search involving divers in the loch and dogs combing the moorland and mountains had failed to find Lily Masterton. Three years later, the world may have forgotten the blond-haired girl with the big blue eyes, but her grief-stricken parents hire Private Investigator Teàrlach Paterson—an expert in finding missing children—to bring their precious Lily home. But this is no ordinary family struck by tragedy.

Brody: I’ll die for me clan. Though, I never met a woman worth a single bullet - until I set eyes on Justice Flowers. Justice’s in trouble, but won’t ask for clan protection. I give it anyway. Justice: I’m living for me now. Although Brody MacKenzie’s tropical blue eyes pierce through me, the rest of him is rugged, deadly. Brody paid my debt without my consent. I never intended to trade in a lunatic, to be chained to the devil. He’ll realize that I won’t submit. And I never will.

One winter's night, bookseller Delaney Nichols and her coworker Hamlet are invited to a Burns Night dinner, a traditional Scottish celebration of the poet Robert Burns. She's perplexed by the invitation, but intrigued. The dinner takes place at Burns House itself, a tiny cottage not far from the Cracked Spine bookshop but well hidden. There, it becomes clear that Delaney and Hamlet were summoned in an attempt to make amends between Edwin, Delaney's boss, and one of the other invitees, who suspected Edwin for burning down his own bookshop.

A wildlife photographer plummets to his death above Fingal's Cave. A young fisherman vanishes without trace. The body of a marine scientist is pulled from the sea, his last recording a haunting piece of evidence. Three seemingly unconnected events on the Isle of Mull draw Private Investigator Teàrlach Paterson back to his childhood home. Hired by the photographer's widow to investigate her husband's death, Teàrlach quickly unravels a tangled web of family feuds, forbidden love and deep betrayals.

A mutilated body is found dumped at Cowane's Hospital in the heart of historic Stirling. For DCI Malcolm Ford it's like nothing he's ever seen before, the savagery of the crime making him want to catch the murderer before he strikes again. For reporter Donna Blake it's a shot at the big time, a chance to get her career back on track and prove all the doubters wrong. But for close protection specialist Connor Fraser it's merely a grisly distraction from the day job.

Eine junge Frau ist mit ihrem Auto auf einer Bergstraße in den Schottischen Highlands unterwegs, als plötzlich ein kleines Mädchen wie aus dem Nichts vor ihr auftaucht. Sie weicht aus und kommt von der Straße ab. Als sie wieder zu sich kommt, befindet sie sich in einem dunklen, feuchten Raum … Dann verschwindet ein Tourist spurlos. Auch er hat kurz vor seinem Verschwinden ein kleines Mädchen gesehen.

All good things must come to an end . . . Acting Detective Inspector Roberta Steel has never been shy, but she’s finally retiring. After thirty years of policing Aberdeen’s underbelly, she’s all set for her twilight years to feature gardening gloves, afternoon tea, crosswords puzzles, and...

DCI Matilda Darke and her team have been restricted under special measures after a series of calamitous scandals nearly brought down the South Yorkshire police force. Now Matilda is on the trail of another murderer, an expert in avoiding detection with no obvious motive but one obvious method. When his latest victim survives the attack despite her vocal cords being severed, Matilda is more convinced than ever of the guilt of her key suspect. If only she had a way to prove it.

Blair Charlston swapped the stock market for salvation - and now he's making a killing. Once a controversial venture capitalist, Charlston reinvented himself as a personal and business development guru after surviving an attempt to take his own life when a business deal went disastrously wrong. So when he decides to host a weekend retreat on the outskirts of Stirling for more than 300 people, Connor Fraser is drafted in to cover the security for a man who is at once idolised as a saviour and hated as a ruthless asset stripper.

A woman is found dead, brutally murdered, her death made to look like an accident. DCI Sean Bracken is called in and discovers that the young woman has a very powerful father. Was somebody trying to get back at him, or has the woman's secrets finally caught up with her? Bracken also has to deal with the mysterious arson attack on his boss' house. And a name from the past resurfaces, a name that Bracken thought was dead and buried.

A mythical man known as Nightmare haunted young children for years. Until he became real. DCI Harry McNeil knows the legend all too well. Growing up in the Highlands, Nightmare was on his and every other child's mind as they went to sleep. Then, Nightmare claimed his first victim. A young girl, found dead in an abandoned cemetery with the words, I am Nightmare, carved into her chest. Two more victims, the same words carved into them. Then Nightmare disappears. Now, years later, there have been reports of graffiti being sprayed around Inverness and on graves in old cemeteries.

Three friends go on a foodie road trip to the Scottish Highlands and Islands to celebrate their pending retirement, expecting stunning scenery, great food, fine wines, and a chance to reminisce about the good old days. When they somehow secure a reservation at a remote and extremely exclusive restaurant set on a private island in Loch Broom, they know they’re in for a once-in-a-lifetime dining experience.

Portobello, Scotland. Grace McKenna is just back from a hearty breakfast at The Espy seaside pub when a perplexing mystery arrives at her door. Glamorous widow Sylvia Gordon is determined to find the truth about the death of her husband, Paul. Once a local celebrity with supposed psychic abilities, Paul is now the talk of the town after a deadly fall from the tower at a nearby college. The locals believe it was a tragic accident, maybe even a consequence of dabbling too deep into the psychic realm? But Grace has a feeling there's more than meets the eye…

One of Ian Rankin's top ten books of 2021. 'One of the thrillers of the year' Scottish Sun When you have a problem that can't be solved, you call John Tyler. Nine people are trapped on an anthrax-infested, government-controlled island off the west coast of Scotland when the door to their...

Ellen McIver, Baldrishaig's local busybody, has been found dead. Run over — repeatedly — by a tractor belonging to local farmer Glen MacGibbon. The most likely culprit is Old Wullie, MacGibbon's elderly father, who, despite his dementia, still likes to drive the tractor about the lanes. But once at the crime scene Anna can tell something sinister is afoot… this was no accident. Whoever drove that tractor did so with murder in mind.