What a weird book! First 80% was like a normal enjoyable police murder story then it became very very confusing as too who was real & what was real!

As usual with Stuart Macbride books, I make his books jump to the top of my book pile. I did the same for this one.

I'm not sure if this book is the start of a new series or a standalone. Either way, it doesn't come across as anything new. I feel tastings of Logan and Ash coming through in streams with Lucy. Some similarities from these other series are evident. I thought maybe a cameo appearance would happen but no such thing.

Poor Lucy is struggling to hide the fact that something happened to her in the past which eventually comes out to us the reader, but I don't think her partner, The Dunk, does. Higher officers do and encourage or force or to see à shrink.

Lucy and the drunk have a serial killer case to solve that other police teams haven't managed to solve. Gruesome killings with the hearts taken out.

A side case of trying to catch up with another killer linked to a prestigious private school.

It must be in my reading style of only reading a few chapter at night and nodding off that I miss vital happenings n the plot so I will have to reread this at some point, maybe again once its released. It does go a bit doo-lally near the latter part of the book but I won't reveal why as it confused me to start with.

Not one of the best from Stuart in MY opinion. Go try it for yourself. I normally give his books 5 stars but this was nearly 3 stars but plunged for 4 instead coz macbride is awesome!

I initially thought No Less The Devil was Stuart MacBride going through the motions. DS Lucy McVeigh and her long-suffering sidekick DS Duncan "The Dunk" Fraser both seem familiar from previous characters of his and despite the trademark dark humour and sarky one-liners it took a while for the story to grip me. McVeigh and the Dunk are tasked with tracking down a serial who has been on the rampage for 17 months with the police, literally,clueless. At the same time Brendan Strachan,newly released after serving time for murder as a young boy, asks her for help claiming that dark forces are out to get him.
For the first couple of chapters the book is a bit "busy" and a bit of effort is required to keep up with the various plot strands, then it really picks up,not least as McVeigh's past is slowly revealed.
Once into my stride and enjoying the unrolling tale MacBride throws a complete curveball and the whole nature of the book changes,after initial confusion I loved it,not everyone will. Without spoiling anything this is a wild ride, and unlike anything Stuart MacBride has written before. All is very far from what it seems and it's often quite surreal. It's one of those books you'll finish and think hard about afterwards and interpret in your own way .
I really enjoyed the book once it picked up from a rather messy beginning,it's certainly something different from Stuart MacBride,and very brave as this one will certainly split opinions,not least amongst his vast loyal regular readership. Be aware also that there are sensitive issues addressed and part of it is plain brutal. That said congratulations to MacBride for slamming home the reality of a life-changing experience for those affected,I'm not squeamish but had to stop reading for a while.
Powerful,surreal,different.

What a disappointment. I was excited to get this book as I loved the Logan series.
The premise sounded exciting but Lucy, the protagonist is the most irritating character I've read in quite a while. I almost gave up on this one a few times because she was so annoying.and and unbelievably rude to superiors..And then....I don't know what the author was thinking but the story went off on the most ridiculous and often confusing tangent and I really struggled to finish the book. I actually just scanned the last few pages and if this is a series I’m afraid it is just not my cup to tea. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

No Less the Devil is a standalone thriller from Stuart MacBride, master of the Scottish police procedural. DS Lucy McVeigh is fast talking, easy to angry and suffering (although she won’t admit it) from PTSD. She and her partner Dunk are assigned to the Bloodsmith case and that near constant work lets her continue to avoid much needed therapy. Seventeen months ago, the serial killer named the Bloodsmith began his work and, after a lull, new cases escalate. Lucy and Dunk begin to revisit locations where the murders took place and discover some new leads. However, the plot takes some odd and confusing turns which cannot be mentioned without spoilers. I am, however, unsure whether some of the events that happened in Lucy’s past are real or imagined. Does the title No Less the Devil refer to children who commit crimes?

Obviously, I had some problems with this mystery. However, Stuart MacBride is one of my favorite authors and a talented writer. No Less the Devil may fall short but its still a 4 star read.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House UK and Stuart MacBride for this ARC.

Holy … wow! This chilling thriller is going to stay with me for a long time.

A standalone story, this story is set in the same fictional Scottish city of Oldcastle that the author’s Ash Henderson books are set. There’s a reference to Ash’s last outing in passing (a journalist who wrote a book about the Coffinmaker serial killer is talked about), but otherwise there’s no cross-over her that I picked up on.

Detective Sergeant Lucy McVeigh is on the hunt for a serial killer of her own. The Bloodsmith removes his victims’ hearts and signs the scene, but the police aren’t having any success tracking him down.

In the meantime a man released from prison for a murder he committed aged 11 has gone missing, a mother who blames Lucy for the death of her rapist son is out to get her, and someone seems to be following her.

There are three or four distinct plotlines within the book, but all tie neatly around Lucy as the main character. This helps make it possible to follow the action, and Lucy herself centres it all as an engaging and increasingly layered character, and one who beings the dark humour which is a welcome feature of a Stuart MacBride novel.

I’ve read some high concept thrillers which felt overly convoluted, but this novel ratchets up the tension and keeps it there even as a more and more complex truth emerges.

Very dark, very gripping and a thriller which absolutely delivers.

Oldcastle has its very own serial killer the "Bloodsmith" ,who has evaded capture for some time .
D.S. Lucy McVeigh assigned to the murder squad along with partner DC Duncan Fraser (The Dunk) .Together they try and piece together the murders of the killer and try to form some sort of pattern in a bid to try and make headway in his apprehension . Thwarted at every move with personal difficulties they get closer and closer.

Another dark but witty thriller from Stuart MacBride with a confusing and psychotic overtone where nothing is as it seems. This leaves the reader short of breath in its pace and somewhat confused as well.

Have been a big fan of Mr MacBride for some time but I am afraid that No Less The Devil left me totally confused what started as a seemingly normal crime story became weirder and weirder as it went on sorry Stuart please bring back Logan McRae .

Stuart McBride is one of my favourite authors but I'm afraid I found this latest novel just too clumsy.

McVeigh is a talented detective but is troubled. By the end she is seeing people, having imaginary conversations and blackouts. And yet continues to function with no-one discovering what she's doing, even though they are supposedly worried about her and she is under the care of a therapist.
By the end of the novel it was such hard work and so confused, I had really lost interest.

I am an avid fan of Stuart MacBride's writing with his authentic characters, interesting plots and elements of humour.

In 'No less the Devil',' Lucy McVeigh is tasked with finding the 'bloodsmith' who is responsible for at least six murders and keeps the hearts as trophies. With 'Dunk' as her trusty sidekick. I loved the way he was painted as unfit, strugging to catch his breath at the top of the stairs. Lucy seems to have had a troublesome childhood and coupled with the 'Neil Black' case, it's no wonder she is struggling with her mental health.

It took me the first ten chapters to become invested in Lucy's story, I thoroughly enjoyed the middle section and then in the final section, I found it very confusing as to what was real and what was in Lucy's inagination.

The element of private school life and all that comes with it was interesting. It was nice to see Lucy getting a chance for some happiness when she goes on a date with Argyll, the assistant headmaster. However, was he really as nice as he seemed?

I didn't enjoy this read as much as the author's last novel, 'The Coffinmaker's garden.' That said, the premise was good and there was plenty of MacBride's signature writing style throughout.

Thanks indeed to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

I'm a great Stuart McBride fan so I was very excited to receive this book. The plot seemed to be building up and had me engaged. Lucy, the protagonist is possibly the most irritating character I've read in quite a while. I almost gave up reading a few times because she was so annoying. And then....I don't know what the author was thinking but the story went off on the most ridiculous and often confusing tangent and I really struggled to finish the book. I actually just scanned the last few pages. Very disappointing and if Detective Lucy McVeigh is the start of a series, unfortunately I won't be reading another.

No Less The Devil is another dark, addictive story by Stuart MacBride. Kept me guessing all the way through.

This book started well, with the return to work of DS Lucy McVeigh, who was tasked with assisting in the so called Bloodsmith murders, aka Operation Maypole, which appears no nearer to finding the killer than when the first cry for help was found. The story seemed to take an overlong time to get going, and then in the last third of the book, veered off at a very strange tangent. I had to finish it to see where the story would end up and it wasn’t a place I really wanted to go. Not the book for me. 2 1/2 ⭐️

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this book.

I'm a big fan of Stuart Mcbride and I love a police procedural so I was particularly looking forward to reading "No Less The Devil"
And I wasn't disappointed. It romps along with twists and turns and with a particularly huge twist which I didn't see coming at all! Hugely enjoyable and I thoroughly recommend.

I have mixed feelings about this book, I loved the first 70 percent of it, but the remaining 30 just killed it for me. I am a huge Stuart MacBride fan and have read all his other books, so it pains me to have not loved this one. The writing is as usual fantastic but the storyline took a funny Turn and it spoiled my enjoyment somewhat. I would still recommend this book as Stuart is a brilliant writer and everyone's taste is different.

Another gripping novel by this author. His style of writing very gritty and sometimes gruesome but nevertheless draws you in and you can’t wait to turn the next page. This is a tale about a blood thirsty serial killer and the scene is set in Scotland at a nail biting pace. Three quarters through the book there is a massive unexpected twist and it was totally different to books previously read. Would highly recommend.

NO LESS THE DEVIL by Stuart Macbride.
Publish Date: 28 April 2022

It has been a while since I have read any up to date books by Stuart Macbride, and I thought I may like this book. Macbride's current writing style is as sharp and witty as I remember it to be with brilliant dialogue full of laugh-out-load Scottish humour.

I give a 4-star rating

I WANT TO THANK NETGALLEY FOR THE OPPORTUNITY OF READING AN ADVANCED COPY OF THIS BOOK FOR AN HONEST REVIEW

I am a huge fan of Stuart MacBride's crime novels - both the Logan McBride and Ash Henderson series are always a joy yo read with their intricate plots and liberal sprinklings of dark humour. As' No Less The Devil' features a female officer as the central protagonist, I was particular eager to give this new novel a read.
Detective Sergeant Lucy McVeigh works in the (fictional) town of Oldcastle, the same town where Ash is based, though he does not appear in this novel. For the past seventeen months, Lucy and her colleagues have been focused on the case of the Bloodsmith. The Bloodsmith is a serial killer rand responsible for some truly vicious murders around the town. As the death tole continues to rise and the police seem no closer to uncovering the killer, Lucy finds herself becoming disilusioned by her lack of progress and starts to investigate the case of Benedict Strachan. Strachan has recently been released from prison after completing his sentence for a murder committed when he was just 11 years old. There are still many questions surrounding Strachan's case and as Lucy delves deeper into the past, she uncovers links to a series of unsolved murders and some secrets from the past.
One of the more interesting aspects of this novel is that it is set in the post-Covid 19 world and as so, provides a commentary on life and how society has been impacted by the pandemic.
While the characters of Lucy and her sidekick, DC Duncan (Dunk) are both well-drawn and I enjoyed their relationships. However, despite the humour in their exchanges, some of the trademark humour MacBride is absent from this novel.
The story moves at a rapid pace but it is the final 20% of the novel where the situation escalates and the rollercoaster takes off. I can't comment on this aspect without revealing spoilers, but suffice to say that it really is a crime thriller that you hold your attention to the last word.

A well-crafted book, with a completely unforeseeable twist. However, I found it rather hard-going. It was a bit too long and complex, and I lost patience with Lucy and her past. An OK read but not one I would recommend.

Things aren't going well for DS Lucy McVeigh. 17 months have passed since the Bloodsmith killed victim 1, and they're no further on.

Not really the time for distractions, but Benedict Strachan (a killer at age 11) is out of jail and thinks "they" are out to get him, asking Lucy for help...

Is it too easy to dismiss it all as paranoia??

Brilliant