I mentally squealed with delight when I saw that my audiobook service had this book. Even though it was over 16 hours to listen through. But, if there is one author I can trust completely to make all those 16 hours of pure fun and bloody joy is it Stuart MacBride. And, I speed it up so the narrator speaks as fast I speak and think (and I speak fast)!

As I was saying, this book is pure fun straight through and it all starts with a dead body of Detective Inspector Bell. He's been murdered. The problem is that they buried him two years ago. So, who is it they buried, and what has "Ding Dong" Bell been doing these last two years? Logan shouldn't be working the case since he now works for Professional Standards, policing the police. But, he gets dragged in to do the investigation. And, the more he investigates the more problem he gets, especially dangerous kind of problem...

Honestly, I just love this book so much! I love Logan, his cat Cthulhu that he talks too (perfectly normal), I love his daughters (oh the part when Logan's girlfriend has to babysit them when Roberta drops them off hilarious), and of course Roberta Steel. She's a rock in Logan's shoe. But, wait until the end of the book, then she shows her through colors concerning Logan. And, well just read the darn book! You love it! ( )

The Blood Road by Stuart MacBride is the 11th entry in the DI Logan McRae series that is set in Aberdeen, Scotland. By now I am familiar with the author’s style of setting up multiple plot threads, his macabre sense of humor and the grim, dark and violent story-lines. When DI “Ding Dong” Bell is found fatally stabbed at the site of a car crash, Logan is called to the scene as Bell had committed suicide over 2 years ago. Why did Bell pretend to be dead, and who did they bury in his place? As well as tracking down this mystery, the Aberdeen police force is getting shamed by the media for their inability to find who is behind a number of child abductions and investigating the rumours of an underground Livestock Mart where these stolen children are being auctioned off to the highest bidder.

McRae and his usual group of support, DS Rennie and Tufty now also includes the recently demoted DS Steele. They bumble and stumble along but actually uncover more information than the rest of the police force. This information puts McRae in danger but also puts him in the position of being able to attempt to save the abducted children. The story is fast paced and exciting. The pairing of McRae and Steele is full of sniping and insults that are meant to cover their actual liking for each other.

The Blood Road, like many of MacBride’s books is a unique combination of slapstick humor, dark stories and memorable characters. This is series that I fully enjoy and look forward to reading. ( )

In questo romanzo Logan McRae torna protagonista (dopo il precedente libro dove era la Steel a condurre le indagini).
Un inizio un po' lento ma poi la vicenda diventa avvincente e tutti i nodi della trama si dipanano.
Sicuramente da leggere. ( )

Look, we all know what I'm going to say here, so let's just get straight to it.

The Logan McRae series is the bees knees of Scottish police procedurals. The plots are intricate, often confrontational (as is very much the case with this one) and the characters are brilliant. Grumpy, put upon McRae (is that a new girlfriend we spy, god knows what's going to happen to her then) to AKA Detective Sergeant Simon Occasionally-Useful-When-Not-Being-A-Pain-In-The-Backside Rennie, DS Roberta Steel (demoted / still over-the-top) and PC Quirrel (together they are North East Division's answer to Blackadder and Baldrick), all make an appearance in THE BLOOD ROAD.

Quick bit about the plot - McRae's now works for Professional Standards (followers of this series will be aware that's .... a tad of leap in it's own right...), so when DI Bell turns up dead in the driver's seat of a car, stabbed, it's a bit of a surprise to all. What with them having buried him two years ago, or so they thought. Needless to say a bit of a shufty around in Bell's past is called for, which is right up Professional Standard's corridor (so to speak). When that expands to include the investigation of the possible suicide of a currently serving officer, McRae and his little team of mad buggers find themselves knee deep in dodgy coppers, old cases, odd goings-on, and unfortunately the series of missing kids that the major crimes division is also investigating. There's a lot of cross over, crossing under, crossing off, and generally getting cross - as you'd expect from a Stuart MacBride novel.

There's also the question of missing kids, and the possibility that something seriously horrible is happening to them, so if you're a reader who doesn't like that sort of (fictional) plot then this may not be the novel for you. Which will be a pity because you'll be missing out on a heap of wise-cracks, an impressively bolshie young lady, some dedicated coppering, some seriously manipulative behaviour (Steel wants a night out with the wife, whether McRae likes the idea or not), and some clever thinking and persistence as you'd expect.

But then again you knew I was going to say all of that, and you know I've already pre-ordered ALL THAT'S DEAD - 12th book in the Logan McRae series, due to lob into my Google Books account around the 19th of May.

https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/blood-road-stuart-macbride ( )

I really like this series even if I do have some conflict with how the police are portrayed. I sincerely hope there is no police force in the world as incompetent and stupidly careless as the way that Police Scotland is portrayed in this series. There is a great deal of humor in these books in spite of the bodies piling up and evil rearing it's ugly head. The constant bickering among the police officers causes the plot to drag along at times but it really picks up toward the end and presents a more than satisfactory conclusion. Looking forward to #12. ( )