Dying Light (Logan McRae 2)

Travel Guide

“It was a narrow one-way street at the heart of Aberdeen’s red light district…”.

Aberdeen is known as the granite city and  if you’ve read Cold Granite, you will be familiar with many places on Logan’s stomping ground.

Granted, Aberdeen is not as cold in this book as it was in Cold Granite  – it is summer after all but the atmosphere is cold, raw and unforgiving.

Someone is stalking and killing prostitutes, there’s an arsonist on the loose who takes  a perverse pleasure in locking buildings before torching those trapped inside. Then there’s a suitcase found and what’s inside will make you sick.
The dark cloud of disgrace hanging over Logan follows him around and working for the ‘Screw up Squad’ is not the best of situations, However DI Steel and her colleagues with their gallows humour and bonnie banter more than lighten the mood. The contrast between the serious police work and the nature of the crimes with the summer and the lighthearted banter really show Aberdeen from a multitude of angles.

Gruesome angles.
As the novel opens –

“The rest of the street was deserted, abandoned, condemned like is in habitants, not a soul to be seen. No one about to watch him work.”

Aberdeen does appear to be awash in crime in The Dying Light. Someone is beating prostitutes to death and burning people and the docklands are awash with blood. The dampness of this part of the city, damp even in summer reflects the mood of the entire police force. This is a police force under pressure and understaffed and imagine the moral working for the Screw up Squad? These DIs and the team are not going to take things lying down.

The language

If you’re new to Aberdeen and its unique accent then imagine calling the control room for back up and getting –

‘Hud oan a mintie’ in broad Aberdonian

The snippets of Aberdonian sprinkled like pepper on a haggis supper will more immerse you in more than just the setting, but the language and daily life too.