I love the crime genre, but this is the first time I have read anything by this author. As this was the seventh of a series I did wonder if I would be able to follow it, however it did work as a stand alone novel. The bleak descriptions of a wintery Edinburgh are very atmospheric and add to the novel.. I was left with some questions but that may be because I am not familiar with the series. The characterisation was excellent and the plot complex enough to keep you interested but not to the extent that you cannot keep up with what is Happening.
I could well imagine this successfully being made into a tv series.

This is a really good detective story keeps you guessing from start to finish.

Terrific addition to the series. Getting to be a serious challenger to Rebus as Edinburgh's favourite detective!

So this is the 7th book in the Inspector McLean series, and the 3rd that I've read. This time the body of an ex cop is found. He has fallen from a significant height, and witnesses think a flying dragon might have let him fall...
I'm going to keep it short, as there are a million other things I should be doing right now. Unfortunately, I didn't like "Written in Bones" as much as the second book of the series. It wasn't bad by any means, but kind of average. I found myself bored most of the first three quarters of the book, yet I can't really pin down why. The last quarter really packed a punch though in my opinion. Overall an "okayish" read and I hope that I'll find the next book in the series more gripping again :)
Last but not least I'd like to thank NetGalley, James Oswald and Penguin for this free ebook in exchange for an honest review!

I have never read any of James Oswald's McLean books which is a shame as I think I would have got more out of it as there were a lot of references to things that had happened in previous stories. That said it didn't take me long to warm to the character of Tony McLean and become involved in the story. Any story that starts with a body descending from a great height & becoming entangled in a tree has certainly got to grab the attention!

This was an gripping police procedural tale. There were lots of ins & outs and lots to keep you guessing. The characters were interesting and engaging. All in all a satisfying read. I think I need to go back & read some more in this series!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for giving me the chance to read and review this book.

This was a fascinating and absorbing police procedure story. So many different threads and the interesting way everything came together in the end. Really good, believable characters and a very clever story line.

Written in Bones by James Oswald.
Rating ****.3 4.3/5
A good well written police thriller set in beautiful Edinburgh albeit in some of the seedier parts. The novel is the seventh in the Inspector McLean novels but can be read as a stand alone.
A body is discovered by a wee lad out walking alone, early morning. Unusually, the body has been dropped into the trees by no less than a dragon.
From the imagination of the youngster the investigation winds into the seedier, criminal side of the city and beyond. Just who is involved and why do they want McLean to investigate. The more he discovers, the less he finds he knows. What and who are tying this together and what does it have to do with the past.
A good read as James Oswald keeps the reader turning the pages but McLean has a past: which would make a new reader want to find what has come before. I don't think they will be disappointed.
Thank you to James Oswald and NetGalley for giving me the chance to immerse myself in this novel. In return I have written an unbiased and honest review.

This was a great read that never went off the boil but didn't feel rushed at any point. Thus although is book number 7 is the first in the McLean series I have read and don't know where I've been to miss the first 6!!!
McLean is a likeable character and the other main characters are also likeable but because you know more about how McLean ticks you do err to his side. I didn't feel that by not reading the others in the series I couldn't enjoy this book, so you can read this as a standalone but there were a couple of times, mainly between McLean and Emma that there were things that had happened in the other books that would have helped me with their predicaments, this was just a couple of times though in exchanges between the two of them that remained unsaid. This did not detract from my enjoyment though.
I enjoyed this greatly and if I believe in dragons or not I don't suppose this mattered!!
I would like to thank netgalley and penguin random house for this ARC I received in exchange for an honest review.

I have not read any James Oswald before and had not realised that this was book seven in a series, as I do not like jumping in, preferring to grow into the author and his characters as I read.

However, I am so glad that I made the mistake and read it. I was hooked from the very beginning and quickly found myself reading into the small hours to feed my appetite for the story.

The characters are obviously well formed by now and there was enough reference to previous books that I did not feel that I lacked context, although I will head back to the beginning and catch up.

The story zipped along and had the reader missing links to the solution or jumping to the wrong conclusions, so that nothing was predictable.

There was nothing that I thought could be written vetter.or the story improved upon.

A really good book.

Another great installment of this compelling police drama

This book is obviously part of a series. Whilst it read ok, it would have been easier to read if i had read the rest.

A fantastic additopn to the series and each book seems to get better . Eagerly awaiting the next book

Brilliantly written and enticing book. Plenty of twists and turns in this novel. The series featuring McLean as the chief protagonist just keeps getting better and better. This book pulls you in from the first chapter and before you know it's 4 am and you still don't want out it down. Really enjoyed it and can't wait for the next one.

The gruesome murder of an old colleague in Edinburgh is the starting point for this fast-paced police procedural. DI McLean is in charge and trying to unpick this crime whilst others put barriers in his way. This is the seventh McLean story and the first one I have read. Whilst there are references to events that have happened before in other books, I didn't feel like I had missed significant elements, or that I would not understand how they were contributing to this story. The hints, though, did make me want to go back and read the rest of the series and I will do so.

The story is a great one, with lots of red herrings and distracting leads along the way. However, I did feel it unraveled too quickly into an ultimately disappointing conclusion given the tense build up there had been. It felt as if there was too much focus on trying to set up the next in the series rather than bring this story to a more satisfying conclusion.

Despite this, there are well rounded and likeable characters that all bring different elements to the story and I look forward to seeing how they develop in future books.

I have read the previous titles in this series and this one is one of the best. Much less 'magical' than the others, which plot device I found unsatisfying. That is my only gripe with this book. The small element of magic/unexplained seems to me to be a bit of a cop-out in tying up the plot lines. Still, it's only a small part towards the end and the rest of it is very tidily written. Good book. I highly recommend it.

I still think you shouldn’t rule out dragons completely. I’m with the smart kid, if it looks like a dragon-kill it probably is one. Just Saying. Aside from the possible involvement of fiery scaled flying creatures, the story offers an interesting mixture of crime and something with an undertone of the occult.

Oswald has a tongue in cheek humour, the kind of humour that makes you smirk as you read. It’s very subtle and it doesn’t disturb the serious intent of the plot.

The opening scene is an excellent example of what the author is capable of. You can almost hear the blood dripping and smell the fear. It is an unusual and very violent crime. There is a strange undercurrent of something evil and supernatural woven into the fabric of what appears to be the culmination of an internal feud between criminals. The author toys with the unexplained element in a way that makes the reader think it could possibly just be an exaggeration by the main character.

Is it his imagination or stress induced hallucinations? Then again if it quacks like a duck and walks like a duck, it probably is some kind of duck.

Hopefully McLean will encounter his nemesis in the next book and the strange entity will be explored a wee it more.
*Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for my copy of Written in Bones.*

brilliant as i knew it would be! fast becoming one of my favourite authors.

Definitely not what I had expected.....but definitely kept me guessing just that little bit longer. Something I would definitely recommend to to others !

I have been with Inspector Maclean from the beginning and I have loved the series. I wasn't too impressed with the sixth one - "The Damage Done" but "Written in Bones" has restored my attraction to the series. I'll be watching out for the next one.

I enjoyed this book more than the previous because of the supernatural elements in the earlier issues. I love how the characters change from book to book and let's you feel that you know them a little more as the series progresses. I would definitely recommend this book and thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an advance copy for an honest review