Aubrey Nye Hamilton Reviews: Bloody January by Alan Parks

I learned about Alan Parks during the online Hull Noir conference in March 2021.  He is a Glasgow author who spent most of his career in the music industry. He wrote a book about social housing in post-war Glasgow which somehow metamorphosed into the first Harry McCoy historical thriller. It was one of the top crime debuts of 2018 and was shortlisted for the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière, the most prestigious award for crime and detective fiction in France.

Bloody January (Cannongate, 2018) introduces Harry McCoy, newly promoted to detective on the Glasgow police force. Harry has a drug addict girl friend who’s a prostitute, and his best friend from his childhood is now a criminal kingpin. Harry also has a bit of a drinking problem. He gets a tip from a coldblooded killer in prison about a murder that’s about to take place. With little to go on and not really believing the stool pigeon, Harry still looks for the prospective victim and finds her just in time to see her killed and her murderer shoot himself in full view of a bus station packed with witnesses at morning rush hour. Harry returns to the jail to question his informant more closely, only to find he’s been killed too. Three murders in 24 hours is a lot, even for Glasgow, and Harry’s supervisor says he wants a resolution fast.

Set in January 1973 amid the poverty and desperation of Glasgow, the general population is sad, depressed, and struggling. Steelworks, coal mines, engine factories, and other heavy industries went out of business about that time, leading to long-term economic decline with mass unemployment, population flight, and high levels of urban decay. New gangs moved in, younger and more violent, and hard drugs arrived with them. This backdrop of Glasgow’s low point is perfect for noir crime fiction.

McCoy is an interesting character who faints when he sees blood, unfortunate in a homicide cop. He’s got a turbulent backstory and crosses the line between the police and the felonious element occasionally because of loyalty to his criminal friend who protected him as a child. He does have a mostly good relationship with his manager, who recognizes McCoy’s innate ability. Light relief comes through McCoy’s green-as-grass sidekick, who is a new addition to the department. He is supposed to be shadowing McCoy to learn the ropes, but McCoy avoids him in creative ways. Parks worked in details from his music industry experience in a nice touch. An excellent piece of Tartan noir. The fourth in the series is scheduled for release in August 2021.

 

 

·         Publisher: ‎ Canongate Books; Main edition (May 28, 2018)

·         Language: ‎ English

·         Hardcover: ‎ 320 pages

·         ISBN-10: ‎ 1786891336

·         ISBN-13: ‎ 978-1786891334

 

Aubrey Hamilton ©2021

Aubrey Hamilton is a former librarian who works on Federal It projects by day and reads mysteries at night.