The April Dead by Alan Parks #BlogTour

NO ONE WILL FORGET . . .
In a grimy flat in Glasgow, a homemade bomb explodes, leaving few remains
to identify its maker.
Detective Harry McCoy knows in his gut that there’ll be more to follow. The
hunt for a missing sailor from the local US naval base leads him to the
secretive group behind the bomb, and their disturbing, dominating leader.
On top of that, McCoy thinks he’s doing an old friend a favour when he
passes on a warning, but instead he’s pulled into a vicious gang feud. And in
the meantime, there’s word another bigger explosion is coming Glasgow’s
way – so if the city is to survive, it’ll take everything McCoy’s got . . .

My Thoughts

The April Dead is the fourth instalment in the Harry McCoy series, and after reading the first three books I had been eagerly awaiting this latest addition.

Alan Parks never fails to provide a thrilling story, with a storyline that has the reader captivated until the very end. DI Harry McCoy is once again in the depths of an investigation, this time he finds himself -alongside his partner Wattie at the scene of a bombing that has occurred in a house in the woodlands, somewhere that is certainly out of the ordinary for an organisation such as the IRA.

When the only injury from the bombing is the young boy who made the explosive device, matters become even more confusing for the team. The boys remains are left splattered throughout his flat where he had made the co-op bomb – names so because all of the items required can be obtained in a supermarket.

McCoy is certain the case will be handed over to a specialist team, so when they respond saying they have no interest in looking in to this particular case, the Glasgow police force are left to find answers. As the story progresses and the team begin to follow several leads, it turns out that there is far more at play here than they had initially anticipated – but the overriding question is whether they will find the people responsible for committing these horrendous crimes before anyone else is made to suffer?.

With DI McCoy not having many friends in the force due to his long standing friendship with well known, extremely dangerous crime boss Stevie Cooper, he finds himself having to watch his back within the force too, as it becomes apparent that this association has made him an enemy of those he should trust the most.

This story was compelling from the start. The tension is there in the very first chapter, and as the story progresses the suspense levels reach dizzying heights, keeping you well and truly on the edge of your seat.

The characters are fascinating, and with each novel in this series we get to know them on a much deeper level. They each have well fleshed out personalities and back stories which add a lot of drive to this story. Alongside a storyline that has you on the edge of your seat throughout, this is certainly a book I will be shouting about to those who love a fast paced, well structured crime thriller!.

‘Praise for the Harry McCoy series: Fascinating and
dangerous . . . Parks has clearly studied the masters of tartan
noir but has his own voice. He shows how, among the welter of
violence, a spontaneous act of kindness can have just as great
an impact’ – The Times, Book of the Month

‘An old-school cop novel written with wit and economy . . . Think
McIlvanney or Get Carter’ – IAN RANKIN

‘1970s Glasgow hewn from flesh and drawn in blood’ – PETER
MAY

‘Bloody and brilliant. This smasher from Alan Parks is a reminder
of how dark Glasgow used to be’ – LOUISE WELSH

‘Gripping and violent, dark and satisfying. I flew through it’ – BRET
EASTON ELLIS

About the Author