Stuart MacBride

Alison and Jenny McGregor, Aberdeen's own mother-daughter singing sensation, are through to the semi-finals of TV smash-hit Britain's Next Big Star. They've got millions of YouTube hits, everyone loves them-- until their reality-TV dream turns into a real-life nightmare. The ransom demand appears in all the papers, on the TV, and the Internet, telling the nation to dig deep if they want to keep Alison and Jenny alive.

Shatter the Bones

Sian Wadey

I've always been a massive fan of Stuart MacBride but when reading the blurb for this novel I wasn't as excited as I normally am diving into Logan McRae's Aberdeen. 
In Shatter the Bones Alison and Jenny McGregor, the main attraction of the latest reality show 'Britain's Next Big Star', have been kidnapped. McRae and team are doing their best to find out who did it but they keep meeting dead ends. Meanwhile Trisha Brown and her partner Shuggie Webster keep getting into all kinds of trouble.
There are several things I loved about Shatter the Bones. The characters are always brilliant, the most well rounded, well loved bunch of fictional people I've ever come across and the dialogue between them zings. I particularly enjoyed the introduction of Green, in fact I found myself infuriated with him most of the time and that proves to me just how excellent the author is at creating characters with depth and all sort of different nuances. 
MacBride also keeps up a speedy pace ensuring the reader never gets bored and there's always something new to be revealed. I also enjoyed the take on reality television and the lengths people will go to for fame and fortune. With every weekend being taken over by The X Factor, Britain's Got Talent and The Voice, this book illustrated the madness of it all, being plucked from obscurity and plunged into the limelight with no safety net.
What I struggled with in this particular novel is the amount of suspects and characters. At points I wasn't entirely sure who they were talking about and would have to skip back a couple of pages and check. There were also some unnecessary characters. I understand that MacBride wants to portray a realistic police service and therefore certain officers would be used for certain roles, but it got a bit much for me. I was also a bit disappointed with the ending. It wasn't the huge twist I was hoping for (and normally expect) and it all seemed a bit hurried. 
So overall, three out of five stars for Shatter the Bones. I will definitely read more of MacBride's work in the future. This one just wasn't my cup of tea.

Shatter the Bones

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