Published by
Corvus. April 2012.
ISBN: 978-0-85789-604-9
It is the summer of 1946 and ex policeman, ex Soldier Douglas Brodie is now working as a journalist for the Glasgow
Gazette as understudy to Chief Crime Reporter Wullie McAllister.
The brutal
murder of a Town Councillor has Wullie’s nose twitching - Wullie is old school
heading towards retirement and looking for that one last scoop by which to be
remembered.
Accosted by
a Highlander who says ‘call me Ishmael’ Brodie is asked to help a man accused
of stealing some food. The man like so
many other’s who fought in the war for king and country, has returned home to
…nothing. No job. No family. No future.
Ishmael had heard how along with lawyer Samantha Campbell, Brodie had
fought for justice for his old friend Hugh Donovan (see The Hanging Shed). And he
wants Brodie to obtain justice for Johnson.
With
rumours of corruption in local government the people of Glasgow are tired of
corrupt officials, so the appearance of a group of vigilantes who start to mete
out their own brand of justice, is at first welcomed by the people, pleased to
hear that those whom the law has failed to put behind bars are getting their
comeuppance, but then things go too far.
Unfortunately,
the vigilantes have chosen the Glasgow Gazette to air their views of violence
against those they think deserve punishment, and soon Brodie is caught up in a web
of deception, as he suspects he knows the identity of the leader of the
vigilantes.
Bitter Water, like The Hanging Shed, portrays starkly the post war years, the poverty and shortages, and in many cases little
immediate hope of anything better. Beautifully written this is an enthralling thriller,
and highly recommended by this reviewer as a book not to be missed.
-----
Lizzie
Hayes
Gordon Ferris is an ex-techy in the Ministry of Defence, and
ex-partner in one of the Big Four accountancy firms. He writes about the
important things in life: conflicted heroes and headstrong women embroiled in
tangled tales of life, love and death.
Other books are The Unquiet
Heart, Truth, Dare, Kill and
the highly acclaimed The Hanging Shed.
No comments:
Post a Comment