The Bloodsmith has been active in Oldcastle for 17 months. With a review of the case new clues are discovered by DS Lucy McVeigh and DC Dunc Fergus. As Lucy closes in on a suspect she realises she has a stalker - could it be the Bloodsmith targeting her.

I normally fly through Stuart MacBride books but to be honest I struggled with this one. It was quite a slow read and I didn’t feel it flowed well. The last few chapters just had me confused.

Thanks to Netgalley, Random House and Stuart MacBride for the ARC of this book in return for an honest review.

DS Lucy McVeigh is working on Operation Maypole, trying to catch the serial killer known as The Bloodsmith. For 17 months he has evaded them and with the media and police bosses demanding results the pressure is really on. Unfortunately, much to her DI’s annoyance, Lucy gets side-tracked when newly released killer Benedict Strachan appears to be preparing to kill again.
Lucy is still suffering the after effects of a traumatic experience and professional standards are following her. She will need to pull out all the stops to catch the Bloodsmith before the whole thing swallows her up whole.

Free with Netgalley

A book of two halves for me. The story is built up around a serial killer called the Bloodsmith, Operation Maypole has been working on the case for 17 months and getting nowhere. DS Lucy McVeigh is on the case and start making progress, when they start from scratch and look at the evidence again.

In the meantime Benedict Strachan has just been released from prison for killing a homeless person when he was 11. He goes to Lucy for help. Is this linked to the serial killer, or is something else going on

The story is exciting, and worth reading until it gets strange and off kilter, when Lucy has some sort of psychotic break down.

I personally think the story would have been better, if it was just played straight and not have all the mental health bit in it. It's a shame as it was on track to be an excellent book instead of just okay.

I am a fan of Stuart McBride's books and wasn't disappointed. A dark and macabre storyline with DS McVeigh and her sidekick leading the investigation provided a great read and one to be recommended.

Operation Maypole is seventeen months running, trying to catch the Bloodsmith. The police are getting nowhere with the case, the media are gleefully pointing this out, and the public are getting worried. Detective Sergeant Lucy McVeigh is put on the case, and it is to be treated as priority. However she finds herself pulled into an old case. Eleven year old Benedict Strachan killed a homeless man, and was sentenced as an adult. He never told anyone why he did it. After serving sixteen years in jail, he is out, but seeking help from ‘Them’.

This book started out as a fairly standard murder/serial killer mystery. Then the old murder case gets worked in, and starts bringing the investigation down some very strange paths. Detective McVeigh is only just signed back on after medical leave, and this starts to bring in some of the gradual unwinding in the story. As all the strands begin to really intertwine, and we are privy to more nuggets of investigation, the waters become more and more clouded. I finished the book and honestly did not know what to make of it. I was confused. Bemused. Disgruntled? Overall, I felt the story had been leading up to a good finish, but I am still not sure it got there. The cumulation of all the twists and turns almost felt disjointed from the rest of the story. The murderer was caught. Or were they??

I love Stuart macbrife & this certainly didn’t disappoint. Bring Scottish I enjoy his dry dialogue & wit. Also references to places I know. I would highly recommend this to anyone another well written amazing read.

Like if Good Omens met Hot Fuzz.

What did I just read? Not the first 80%, that was fine, the usual sarcasm and Scottishness. But the last 20% - just silly.

The good parts - the vivid, distinct characters MacBride always draws. The witty, dry dialogue.

This is hard to review without giving the game away. And I appreciate it must be a challenge to write crime fiction when your readers are always desperate for big twists… But this one will likely divide. Either you’ll go with it and enjoy it. Or you’ll have to skim read the last 20% because of the comic book style baddie network and fantasy superhero/villain origin story.

Hmm, a long and at times a heavy going book . Lucy is investigating a series of murders with her sidekick. After 17 months the investigation is not moving forw
Quite a few strange encounters, with a man who does not stay around, with Benedict who has been in prison for 16 years for murdering a homeless man, but is now out on parole. An exclusive school is also featured and you get a sense of something not being right there.
I did not care for the detectives very much, though warmed to Lucy slightly after the incident which resulted in the death of her best friend was described. The descriptions of her collegues were two dimensional. The crimes are bloody and overly complicated.
Towards the end, the story takes a different turn and I have ended the book with a feelibg of what was that all about and how on earth did Lucy get into the police.
Thank you to Net Galley for the ARc in exchange for an honest review

The book starts with DI Tudor being placed in charge of the case of tracking down serial killer, the ‘Bloodsmith’. As it's been seventeen months since the ‘Bloodsmith’ killed his first victim and a few months since the fifth one, it's the case no one wants. DI Tudor therefore wastes no time in delegating it to DS Lucy McVeigh and her sidekick DC Duncan Fraser, ‘the Dunk’. There is a second story line of Benedict Strachan, a recently released child killer, who killed a homeless man and asks Lucy to help, when he is attacked after his release and feels he is being hunted.

The first three quarters of the book is about Lucy and her side-kick ‘The Dunk’ tracking down the ‘Bloodsmith’ and Lucy trying to help Benedict and is a conventional police procedural, however, the last quarter turns the story on it’s head with Lucy starting to unravel. I enjoyed this as a stand-alone book, with it being well written and ties up neatly at the end but it wouldn’t work as a series for me.

A strange one this……… it begins as a pretty standard police procedural, if a bit gruesome, but with a cracking good story and some excellent characterisation. DS Lucy Mc Veigh is tasked with solving the case of the Bloodsmith, a serial killer in the fictional town of Oldcastle in Scotland. There is plenty to keep the reader engrossed here, with Mc Bride’s customary writing skill, excellent plotting and absorbing characters. If only the mystery had been solved at the end of that section, this would have been a very satisfying read. However, it went on (and on) on a completely different and much more weird path, to the point where it became difficult to keep track of what was going on, and what was real and what was imagined. Sadly, it just didn’t work for me, and I’m still not entirely sure what happened at the end. Mc Bride writes really excellent murder mysteries, and I’m not sure that this foray into stranger territory has worked for him.

No less the devil - Stuart Macbride

I’m sorry just couldn’t get into this one it did absolutely nothing to grab my attention.

Didn’t finish.

This is a chilling read from the outset with children committing random acts of violence and murder against strangers and as the truth unfolds the horror increases.
Linked somehow to an exclusive school that she missed out on attending due to the exorbitant fees, DS McVeigh finds herself embroiled in "tradition" as she tries to get to the bottom of the recent murders whilst also trying to deal with the recently released child sentenced to murder and now a needy and frightened adult.
A great story.

I've been on the journey with Stuart McBride since his first publication many years ago.
Antone that has read anything by this particular author knows exactly what to expect.
Blood, guts dark humour and graphic details.
No Less The Devil stands the test of any McBride book and whilst if I'm being brutally honest I prefer the Logan McRae ones this is still a ripping yarn in it's own right that reachs a thrilling conclusion.
Well worthy of passing a couple of dark evenings reading

DS Lucy McVeigh and sidekick DC ‘The Dunk’ Fraser have been investigating The Bloodsmith and his murders for the last 17 months with little to go on. At the same time as revisiting old crime scenes, recently released child killer, Benedict Strachten needs Lucy’s help.
A unique standalone crime thriller with plenty of twists, the last quarter of the book goes to an all time new level. Quite a long book, but leads up to an epic ending. Persevere!

I must confess to loving all of Stuart MacBride’s book, and this was no different. Very dark and macabre at times, this book had me gripped and unable to put it down.

A great read!

This books starts out as what could arguably be described as a procedural crime drama, albeit with some great characters in DS Lucy McVeigh and her sidekick ‘The Dunk’. Throw in the mix a complicated serial killer case, a disturbing backstory, and a very intriguing side plot and you are in for a very entertaining read.

But wait, don’t get comfortable, this isn’t going to play out as a run-of-the-mill procedural crime drama.
Nope, things are going to shake up big time. So rapidly and to such extremes that you are going to wonder if you are still enjoying the ride.

Stuart MacBride is definitely pushing the envelope here, and it definitely is entertaining, just not sure how many of his readers will stick along for the ride. I personally can’t wait to learn more about Lucy and what more will transpire in the complicated world in which she finds herself.

Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher and author for this ARC.

I enjoy Stuart MacBride’s books, and was pleased to be approved for this book.

I thought this was quite an enjoyable read initially. It wasn’t one that wowed me or had me desperate to know more though. I liked the main character DS Lucy McVeigh and her DC ‘The Dunk’. DS McVeigh has a good back history and is flawed, very feisty and a good investigator and I loved the witty banter and humour between McVeigh and The Dunk. I thought the story had a good plot line and I enjoyed the little snippets the author gives about McVeighs past and how it has shaped her. The last part of the book took off in a direction that totally threw me, and as I write this review I’m not quite sure what to make of it, and am still mulling it over in my mind. Read the book and you’ll see what I mean. I liked the ending which sets up the next book perfectly and I hope to see The Dunk feature in it alongside McVeigh, and I’d like to see how her character develops.

3.5 stars

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House UK, Transworld Publishers for an advance copy of this novel.

As a huge MacBride fan, particularly the brilliant Logan McRae series, I found this a difficult novel to rate. The standalone story features DS Lucy McVeigh, a detective with a troubled past. Her back story is fed through the first part of the novel, written with a typical mix of gruesome darkness and black humour. The characters are as vivid as ever, with a whole new cast to enjoy.

I have two concerns about No Less The Devil. At almost 500 pages , it feels overlong. The story arc is detailed as McVeigh and her mostly useless sidekick The Dunk review a series of murders that have taken place over 18 months, with Oldcastle Police no closer to finding the killer. It feels like this section could have been condensed without losing anything.

Secondly, the final section of the book is different to anything MacBride has written before. It's impossible to describe without spoilers. But there are hints and clues that build to a very strange ending indeed.

Overall a good book, and great to see an author trying a new direction. But bring back McRae -and soon.

I’m really not sure what to say about this one… I have only previously read one of MacBride’s books ‘The Coffin Makers Garden’ so my experience of the author is limited. However, this novel starts off in a similar vein to that one, two police officers trying to solve a crime that has been unsolved for a long time. But then the book starts to get very strange indeed and at times I wasn’t sure I even understood what was happening of where the story was going.
I actually felt like maybe it was a bit too absurd at times?
Don’t get me wrong I definitely enjoyed it as who doesn’t like a good crime thriller but I have definitely been left feeling very confused. I think I need a follow up so some questions about the main character can be answered.

This was my first Stuart MacBride book, and I really enjoyed the first ¾ of the book, and loved the working relationshp between Lucy & her partner, the Dunk. They were hunting the 'Bloodsmith' who had commited a number of murders, leaving his calling card message of 'HELP ME', painted in his victim's blood, on the wall of each crime scene
The story was good, but I must admit to finding the last ¼ really confusing, and I started to lose interest.
I would read more of the author, but just hope the story doesn't veer off in a different direction like this one did.