BOOK OF THE WEEK

A Rattle Of Bones by Douglas Skelton; Birlinn; £8.99

Rebecca Connolly is a journalist in Inverness who has recently moved from a position on an established paper to a freelance news agency.

An initial encounter with a complainant who has ties to a Scottish neo-Nazi organisation starts to escalate as he threatens and stalks her. He is not happy with the newspaper coverage of his son’s conviction and is encouraged to take revenge on Rebecca by a gangster with a grudge against her.

The story she is researching is of new evidence being found, supposedly proving the innocence of one James Stewart who is serving a sentence for the murder of his lover Murdo Maxwell – a prominent lawyer.

Coincidentally the historical story of a Jacobite James Stewart being wrongfully convicted of murder in the 1700s provides a hook to hang her campaign on.

As her investigation proceeds through interviews with relatives and friends of both the convict and

victim, it becomes clear she is stirring up a hornets’ nest. Interest in her enquiries is demonstrated by various disparate organisations – the police (at the highest levels), the local neo-Nazis, and crime lords in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

The evidence proves explosive, and the story concludes in a dramatic fashion.

Since this is the third in a series of Rebecca Connolly books, it is only to be expected there are references to, and consequences arising from, events from the previous stories. In this case I don’t believe it would spoil going back to read earlier books.

Part of the appeal of this book for me was its setting. The Highlands of Scotland are magnificent and as Rebecca pursues her story around them they are wonderfully presented.

This is a well-written detective thriller with a reporter cast in the primary role. The story develops from relative simplicity, becoming more complex as Rebecca’s investigation proceeds. Each scene held my attention and there was a sense of disappointment as one scene was abandoned for the next – building anticipation for the next time I was returned to it. Douglas Skelton’s characterisation is excellent. Rebecca herself is drawn sympathetically, with determination, obstinacy and a desire for truth and justice, despite her own past tragedies and insecurities. A note from the publisher accompanying

the review copy said: “We like Rebecca” – I do too.