Thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this eARC.

Doug Sinclair’s “A Deadly Flame” is the third installment in the DS Malkie McCulloch series, and it delivers a gripping Scottish crime thriller that will captivate you. Set against the moody backdrop of the Pentland Hills, this novel weaves a complex tapestry of mystery, suspense, and emotional depth.

The story begins with a devastating fire at a whisky distillery, leaving behind charred ruins and a body. DS Malkie McCulloch is thrust into a case that quickly spirals into a labyrinth of secrets and lies. Sinclair masterfully crafts a narrative that is intricate and fast-paced, ensuring the reader is constantly guessing and re-evaluating their theories.

DS Malkie McCulloch is a brilliantly complex detective, haunted by his past yet driven by a relentless pursuit of justice. His personal struggles add a layer of vulnerability that makes him incredibly relatable. The supporting characters, from the grieving widow to the young firefighter’s fiancée, are equally well-drawn, each one adding depth and emotion to the story.

Sinclair’s writing is sharp and evocative, painting vivid pictures of the Scottish landscape and the tense atmosphere of the investigation. The plot is peppered with twists and turns, keeping the suspense high and the pages turning. The themes of revenge, justice, and the impact of past traumas are explored with sensitivity and insight, making this more than just a standard crime thriller.

“A Deadly Flame” is an utterly unputdownable read that will appeal to fans of Angela Marsons and JD Kirk. Doug Sinclair has crafted a compelling story with a memorable protagonist and a plot that will keep you hooked until the very last page. Highly recommended for anyone looking for a thrilling and emotionally resonant crime novel.

If you love heartfelt police procedurals, you have to read this wonderful 5 star book!

A Deadly Flame has investigators looking to determine the cause of a fatal fire at a distillery. DS Malkie McCulloch seeks to discover if there is a killer on the loose while dealing with his own trauma of having lost his mother in a fire. I read about a third of the book, but I didn't find the characters nor the plot particularly compelling, so I skipped to the end to wrap things up.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC. All opinions are my own.

The third book in the DS Malkie McCulloch series, A Deadly Flame (2024) by Doug Sinclair, is a Scottish police procedural. Not having read the earlier novels was no disadvantage to enjoying this tale with its interesting characters and three subsequent murder cases. Malkie is given an arson call to attend in the middle of the night and has to cool his heels while the firefighters do their work. Body in the burnt-out factory and the death of a firefighter requires Malkie’s team of detectives to investigate. A subsequent murder muddles the cases, with the impact on the protagonist becoming the real focus of the crime fiction tale. A somewhat benign murder mystery tale, with the foibles of Malkie and Steph and various choices of the characters, making for a pleasant read with a three stars rating. As always, the opinions herein are totally my own, freely given and without any inducement. With thanks to Storm Publishing and the author, for an uncorrected advanced review copy for review purposes.

A Deadly Flame is the third in a series. As much as I enjoyed it I wished I read the other books. Mostly because I really enjoy the characters of Malkie and Steph. Even though they are colleges there is a deep personal connection between them plus I’d really like to know their backstories. There seems to be a lot with the two of them and as I read the book I only got bits and pieces of who they were.
The whiskey factory is on fire. A young firefighter loses his life and then once things calm down another body is discovered. The factory’s owner. Then throw in an attack on another firefighter with a murky background. Suspicions of who caused the fire is running rampant. Then we have Steph having to confront the memories of her mother and her past and what it could do to her career. What is the relationship between Malkie and Deborah? That is the part I wish I knew.about. The child he thought he had then didn’t. Would he have been able to save his mother from her death? Many questions to be answered.
All in all I liked the characters and how they were written and the story was interesting. I’d suggest reading the books in order. Yet I look forward to the next installment. Thank you NetGalley and Storm for the ARC and Mr. Sinclair for a thrilling read.

A fully engulfed liquor warehouse is reported on fire one morning. Calls that early are never good. As DS Malkie McCuloch and DC Steph Lang observe the fire, they learn that there is a body burned beyond recognition inside. Then the unthinkable happens. A firefighter is also reported down. A police procedural with complex, flawed characters, side stories and partners, Malkie and Stephanie, both struggling to not let their own personal demons overtake their determination to find a murderer. Well written, intriguing and action packed, I thank Netgalley and Storm Publishing for an early copy. This review is my personal opinion.

Brilliant! Malkie and Steph get called to a warehouse fire with fatalities. Was it arson or an accident? Will it trigger Malkie's memories of his Mom's death in a house fire? The case is very involved and complicated with more issues occurring afterwards. And Malkie learns some disturbing information regarding his Mom's fire. Really well written and interesting. Kept me hooked from the first page.
Thanks to Netgalley, Storm Publishing, and Doug Sinclair for a free ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is the 3rd DS Malkie McCulloch thriller but the first time I've encountered the Scot.
A body has been spotted by the fire service as they tackled a blaze at a whisky warehouse, which also claims a fire officer. McCulloch's team are at the scene to gingerly investigate, while mindful of fire service codes.
I enjoyed Sinclair's realistic approach in writing a warts and all police procedural, including the profanities that would routinely be used. He clearly knows his way around the police force and often reminds us how foolish the TV detectives are when they assign certain routine checks to their team, outlining each one just for the benefit of the viewers.
Not knowing Malkie's full history I didn't have a full sense of him as a person. I liked his loyalty to the team, although it went to extraordinary lengths. Gucci and Steph are both excellent characters and Malkie acknowledged he'd probably be working for them in the future, but didn't mind the idea.
The plot was unusual as it combined the efforts of police and fire service, and I liked the tension that created.
It ended with me hungry for more, particularly as two enticing angles have been left unexplored, ready for book 4.

Malkie is called in to investigate the death of someone in a factory that burned down. It brings back bad memories of his mother who died in a house fire.
A firefighter is attacked, and the suspect has gone into hiding.

I read the first in this series, and was put off by Malkie's self pity. I see that in this, the third book, he is still feeling sorry for himself.
The investigation is good, but I felt that it was put on the back burner, the novel concentrating on the personal stories of Steph and Malkie.
I battled to get into this book, and it took me longer to read than I liked. The whole story could have been condensed by at least a quarter or more.
3/5 stars from me.

Thanks to Netgalley and Storm Publishing for the opportunity to read this book.

I really enjoy the series and book 3 is no exception (can also be read as a stand alone). I found it compelling and also interesting as much information about firemen's work. What I particularly enjoy in this series and which is a bit different from many other police books, is that much focus is on the psychology of the police officers. A brilliant team works here, always backing each other, professionally or privately! On top of that, the concept of empathy is ever present. Empathy towards murderers, how is that possible, one might ask? It is, sometimes, as long as it doesn't interfere with justice, it is ok and makes one reflect.... A couple of sub-plots are also dealt with, interesting ones again on a psychological level. I liked the conclusion very much, agreed with it, and now I am waiting for book 4!
I received a digital copy from NetGalley and I have voluntarily written an honest review.

I read A Deadly Flame as a stand-alone, and it's my first encounter with this author. I love reading police procedural crime fiction, but I found this one hard to get into. The plot itself is well thought out, and it is full of complex characters, I just wasn't gripped by it. I think partly because I haven't read the first two in the series and partly because the crimes committed just didn't hold my attention that much.
There were parts I enjoyed, and I'm glad to have finished it to know what the outcome was.

Thank you, Storm Publishing, for my advanced copy.
My opinions are my own.

The third book to feature Malkie and his partner Steph is another great read! The character development shows their vulnerabilities, I just want to hug Malkie! They are very much alive through Doug's excellent writing and there is so much going on in this multi-layered read. As always, I was totally immersed in the read from the first chapter and the author is fast becoming a favourite for fans of crime thrillers. Dive in and enjoy the series, I can't wait to see where Malkie goes next! Thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.

I enjoy all the books I have read from this author. A solid four star read. Great premise. Well written. Good characters. Page turner. Plenty of suspense to keep me guessing. I wouldI definitely would read the next novel. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it.

A Deadly Flame is another phenomenal book in the DS Malkie McCulloch series though it could be read as a stand alone.

Once you read this one you will quickly go back and start with the first book Blood Runs Deep .

I love Malkie and Steph.

They are so much more than detectives: they care, they want justice but not at any price, they both break and yet follow the rules.

When the local distillery is burnt to the ground and the result is two dead, the team quickly goes into action .

They are suspicious of the fire .

Malkie is dealing with his own demons as is Steph and this makes them fallible and real.

Doug Sinclair cleverly builds the suspense with every book and A Deadly Flame is no exception.

This series is quickly becoming one of my all time favourites and I cant wait for the next case that faces Malkie.

Thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for the privilege of reading and reviewing A Deadly Flame.

Another excellent book in the Malkie McCulloch series although it can be read as a standalone if you haven't read it before.

As it is the 3rd book, you already know the main characters well so it was just the ones for this book that you needed to get to know. Good to see that it again sticks to Livingston rather than going into Edinburgh! While the fire storylines were the main ones, it was good to see some of their personal woes/issues being covered and good to see that there was less of Malkie/his dad this time and more instead of Steph. Nice that we still had Deborah and Dame Helen in it too - I really like those characters!

Definitely a very enjoyable book to read and I so didn't want to put it down before finishing it - my sign of a great book!

Although this is part of a series, it still works as a standalone book. Traumatised after the loss of his mother and family home in a fire, Malkie is confronted by another fire and dead body in a whisky factory. Added to this is the suspicious death of one of the firefighters, and subsequent attacks on another firefighter. This is a richly layered novel, with several themes going on at once. What I really liked was Malkie and Steph's acknowledgment of their weaknesses, yet their actions to overcome these. Both characters are ones I would like to read more about, as well as Deborah. The ending was very poignant. On a side note, in Australia it is easy to get the audiobooks of the first two books, but hard to get ebooks. Thanks to NetGalley and Storm Publishing for a copy to read and review.

Instalment 3 of the DS Malkie McCulloch series and the stories are getting better and better!

Once again Malkie is caught up in tragedies and events that test his complex character. With his trusty sidekick DC Steph Lang having her own personal issues, it takes the pair all their fortitude to keep up the high octane needed to solve this latest case. With some cracking one liners, this is DS McCulloch at his best.

From a poor first offering, this series has now got itself on track to become a favourite of mine. The second book was such a marked improvement, and this one follows on from that. I would say that books need to be read in order as there is such a lot of background.

The only issue I have with this book is that there is a lot of reiteration (ok, we get the idea about who Steph’s biological father is, and Malkie’s mother’s untimely death), with a fair amount of repetition too. Cut back on all that unnecessary filler and this series would easily be a 5* rating.

Thank you NetGalley and Storm Publishing.

A Deadly Flame by Doug Sinclair is a Scottish crime thriller featuring DS Malkie McCulloch, a brilliantly complex detective who will risk everything to protect the innocent, set in the shadow of the Pentland Hills, which adds such an interesting element to the story.

Anna Galbraith's world shatters when she hears the devastating news: her husband’s whisky distillery has burned to the ground and a body has been found inside. But her husband wasn’t the only victim, a young firefighter perished too, leaving behind a grief-stricken fiancée only weeks away from their wedding day.

DS Malkie McCulloch discovers their financial struggles as he delves into the Galbraith family. Was their marriage less perfect than Anne had made out?

Quite a lot going on in this book and the suspense and action is intriguing. Malkie is a flawed but likable character. I really enjoy his relationship with Steph.

I would recommend this book, this series, and this author.

#ADeadlyFlame #NetGalley @Stormbooks_co

This was a pretty good book! I read it as a stand-alone book so I didn’t get the most out of it. If I had read the other books in the series I think I would’ve gotten more context and would have enjoyed it more. I think the overall writing is good, and I enjoyed it

Thank you to NetGalley, the publishers, and especially the author for this ARC in exchange for my honest review of the book!!

Thank you to Storm Publishing and Netgalley for the arc of this amazing read.
Book3 of the DS Malkie McCulloch series which I'll have to go back and read.
This book is about a distillery that goes up in flames and a body is found plus one of firefighters dies due to faulty BA.
DS Malkie McCulloch has to discover who is behind the crime when another fire breaks out.
Fantastic read, a binge read to discover who is behind it.
The author has you hooked from the very start all the way through, the characters are well developed and executed. This work is gripping and exciting and I had huge empathy for McCulloch whose mother died in his parent's house fire.
This is such a good read that it'd be a shame to miss out on it, especially if you love a crime thriller

Wow scottish thrillers are really being churned out excellently. The pace is thrilling and exciting and the drama doesnt cease. Four stars from me enjoyed this.