Ian Rankin

William McIlvanney

In this scorching crime collaboration, bestselling author Ian Rankin and Scottish crime-writing legend William McIlvanney join forces for the first ever case of DI Laidlaw, Glasgow's original gritty detective. William McIlvanney changed the face of crime fiction when he created DI Laidlaw, the original brooding Glasgow cop. He wrote three Laidlaw books and, as recently discovered, left one handwritten manuscript tantalisingly unfinished when he passed away in December 2015. In the early 1980s one young fan, Ian Rankin, took Laidlaw as inspiration for his own detective, John Rebus. Now, Rankin is back to finish what McIlvanney started. The Dark Remains, the story of Laidlaw's first case, is written by William McIlvanney and Ian Rankin.

A Novel

The Dark Remains

First in “a crime trilogy so searing it will burn forever into your memory. McIlvanney is the original Scottish criminal mastermind” (Christopher Brookmyre, international bestselling author). The Laidlaw novels, a groundbreaking trilogy that changed the face of Scottish fiction, are credited with being the founding books of the Tartan Noir movement that includes authors like Val McDermid, Denise Mina, and Ian Rankin. Says McDermid of William McIlvanney: “Patricia Highsmith had taken us inside the head of killers; Ruth Rendell tentatively explored sexuality; with No Mean City, Alexander McArthur had exposed Glasgow to the world; Raymond Chandler had dressed the darkness in clever words. But nobody had ever smashed those elements together into so accomplished a synthesis.” In Laidlaw, the first book of the series, readers meet Jack Laidlaw, a hard-drinking philosopher-detective whose tough exterior cloaks a rich humanity and keen intelligence. Laidlaw’s investigation into the murder of a young woman brings him into conflict with Glasgow’s hard men, its gangland villains, and the moneyed thugs who control the city. As the gangsters running Glasgow race Laidlaw for the discovery of the young woman’s killer, a sense of dangerous betrayal infests the city that only Laidlaw can erase. “From the opening chapter of Laidlaw, I knew I’d never read a crime novel like this.” —Val McDermid, international bestselling author “It’s doubtful I would be a crime writer without the influence of McIlvanney’s Laidlaw.” —Ian Rankin, New York Times–bestselling author “Laidlaw is a tough novel, with an exciting ending, and it is superbly written. You should not miss this one.” —The New York Times “A classic of the genre.” —The Guardian

Laidlaw

Tam Docherty's youngest son, Conn, is born at the end of 1903 in a small working-class town in the west of Scotland. Tam will stop at nothing to make sure that life and the pits don't swallow up his boy, the way it did him. Courageous and questioning, Docherty emerges as a leader of almost unshakable strength, but in a close-knit community tradition is a powerful opponent.

Docherty

Eck Adamson, an alcoholic vagrant, summons DI Jack Laidlaw to his deathbed. Probably the only policeman in Glasgow who would bother to respond, Laidlaw sees in Eck's cryptic last message a clue to the murder of a gangland thug and the disappearance of a student. With stubborn integrity, Laidlaw tracks a seam of corruption that runs from the top to the bottom of society.

The Papers of Tony Veitch

Meet Jack Laidlaw, the original damaged detective. When a young woman is found brutally murdered on Glasgow Green, only Laidlaw stands a chance of finding her murderer from among the hard men gangland villains and self-made moneymen who lurk in the city's shadows.

Los papeles de Tony Veitch

THE SECOND IN THE ORIGINAL LAIDLAW TRILOGY. WINNER OF THE CWA SILVER DAGGER THE DARK REMAINS, Laidlaw's first case, out 2 September 2021. PRE-ORDER NOW! 'In a class of his own' Guardian 'Reads like a breathless scalpel through the bloody heart of a great city' Denise Mina Eck Adamson, an alcoholic vagrant, summons Jack Laidlaw to his deathbed. Probably the only policeman in Glasgow who would bother to respond, Laidlaw sees in Eck's cryptic last message a clue to the murder of a gangland thug and the disappearance of a student. With stubborn integrity, Laidlaw tracks a seam of corruption that runs from the top to the bottom of society. Acclaimed for its corrosive wit, dark themes and original maverick detective, the Laidlaw trilogy has earned the status of classic crime fiction.

One of McIlvanney's first novels now back in print.

The Kiln

This is the re-issue of the powerful portrait of a heroic figure in a Scottish mining town before the Great Depression, which won the Whitbread Award in 1975.

AS SEEN IN THE MOTION PICTURE STARRING LIAM NEESON The big man is Dan Scoular, a legend of physical prowess in a decaying Ayrshire mining community. When a bare-knuckle fight offers both money and a purpose, he finds it turns into a monumental struggle to keep his heritage and integrity intact.

The Big Man

McIlvanney's first novel, winner of the Geoffrey Faber Memorial Prize Charlie Grant, an intense young student at Glasgow University, watches his father die. Overwhelmed by the memory of this humble yet dignified death, Charlie is left to face his own fierce resentment for his adulterous mother. With shades ofHamlet and Camus, William McIlvanney's first novel is a revelatory portrait of youth, of society, and of family.

Remedy Is None

Glasgow, 1972. L’avvocato Bobby Carter ha lavorato troppo a lungo per le persone sbagliate. Adesso è morto, e non per un incidente. Chi è il colpevole tra i suoi molti nemici? La reputazione del detective Jack Laidlaw lo precede. In commissariato tutti sanno che è un battitore libero, con un pessimo carattere. Non fa gioco di squadra, è taciturno e inadatto a qualsiasi convenevole, ma ha un sesto senso infallibile: intuisce subito cosa succede in strada. Il suo capo imputa la morte di Carter ai soliti regolamenti di conti tra bande rivali, ma è davvero così semplice? Mentre i due principali gangster di Glasgow si preparano a una guerra, Laidlaw dovrà scoprire chi ha ucciso Carter prima che la città si trasformi in una polveriera. Con l’invenzione del detective-filosofo Jack Laidlaw, William McIlvanney ha cambiato il genere giallo, dando vita al tartan noir. Il testimone passa ora al suo principale erede, Ian Rankin, in un incontro di fuoriclasse, un noir fulminante che scava nei bassifondi dell’anima fin dentro ai recessi più oscuri.

Le indagini di Laidlaw

Oscuri resti

At the end of 1903, in working-class town in the West of Scotland, Tam Docherty's youngest son, Conn is born. Tam is determined that life and the pits won't swallow up his boy the way it has him. Courageous and questioning, Docherty emerges as a leader of almost indomitable strength, but in a close-knit community tradition is a powerful opponent.

Surviving the Shipwreck

Papers of Tony Veitch

THE THIRD IN THE ORIGINAL LAIDLAW TRILOGY THE DARK REMAINS, Laidlaw's first case, out 2 September 2021. PRE-ORDER NOW! 'The Laidlaw books are not just great crime novels, they are important ones' Mark Billingham 'It's doubtful I would be a crime writer without the influence of McIlvanney's Laidlaw' Ian Rankin When his brother dies stepping out in front of a car, Jack Laidlaw is determined to find out what really happened. Laidlaw begins an emotional quest through Glasgow's underworld, and into the past. He discovers as much about himself as about the brother he has lost, in a search that leads to a shattering climax. Acclaimed for its corrosive wit, dark themes and original maverick detective, the Laidlaw trilogy has earned the status of classic crime fiction.

Strange Loyalties

le indagini di Laidlaw

Come cerchi nell'acqua

Jack Laidlaw returns in the groundbreaking series. “The Laidlaw books are like fine malt whiskey—the pure distilled essence of Scottish crime writing” (Peter May, international bestselling author). In this second book in his monumental Laidlaw series, McIlvanney tells the tale of Eck Adamson, an alcoholic vagrant who summons Jack Laidlaw to his deathbed. Probably the only policeman in Glasgow who would bother to respond, Laidlaw sees in Eck’s cryptic last message a clue to the murder of a gangland thug and the disappearance of a student. With stubborn integrity, Laidlaw tracks down a seam of corruption that runs through all levels of Glaswegian society. “Excellent . . . McIlvanney, the undisputed grandfather of tartan noir, gives reader a complex, existential hero struggling to right myriad wrongs.” —Publishers Weekly (starred review) “The good news is that Laidlaw is back.”—The Observer Praise for William McIlvanney and the Laidlaw series “A crime trilogy so searing it will burn forever into your memory. McIlvanney is the original Scottish criminal mastermind.” —Christopher Brookmyre, international bestselling author “Fastest, first and best, Laidlaw is the melancholy heir to Marlowe. Reads like a breathless scalpel cut through the bloody heart of a city.” —Denise Mina, award-winning author of Conviction “Compelling . . . McIlvanney lays bare the soul of Glasgow, capturing every nuance of its many voices.” —Alex Gray, author of the DCI Lorimer novels “Laidlaw is an enduring hero with the dry wit and insight to make other literary detectives seem two-dimensional. McIlvanney is the razor king of Scottish crime writing.” —Gordon Ferris, author of the Douglas Brodie Investigations

William McIlvanney

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