Reviewed by Rod McLary
DCI Karen Pirie – head of the Historical Crimes Unit of Police Scotland – returns to the forefront in this latest novel by one of the most successful of crime writers Val McDermid. Unapologetic in its immersion in Scottish idiom and humour, Silent Bones is a thoroughly enjoyable and satisfying crime novel.
After torrential rain causes a landslide on a motorway, human remains are exposed. The motorway was completed eleven years previously so the investigation into who and why falls squarely within the remit of DCI Karen Pirie and her team. The initial investigation identifies the body as that of investigative journalist Sam Nimmo who – eleven years ago – was alleged to have murdered his fiancée and their unborn baby and then left the country. However, his family and friends refused to believe that he had committed such a heinous crime – a belief which has now been born out. But the questions now are: who killed Sam Nimmo and why? Is there a link with a more recent murder?
These are the questions which DCI Pirie and her team now must answer. And thus begins an intricate tale of secrets and lies involving the rich and powerful in Edinburgh. The novel is a textbook example of police procedural work and the detailed investigative work undertaken both through the internet and by searching the paper trails. There is an occasional reliance on one of the team knowing someone who knows someone to provide a critical piece of information but, that minor quibble aside, it is indeed an engrossing read and one which will reward the reader.
DCI Pirie and her team DS Daisy Mortimer and DC Jason Murray are engaging protagonists and their backstories provide a depth to the primary narrative – and their personal circumstances change as they do in real life.
It is also an exposure of how the rich and powerful protect each other and ensure that they are far removed from the less savoury elements of ensuring that protection remains in place – such as ‘disposing’ of threats. In itself – even without the frisson of the police investigation – this theme is worth pursuing.
As always, Val McDermid has crafted a crime novel well worth the reading.
Val McDermid has written 22 crime novels including eight novels featuring Karen Pirie. She has won numerous awards including the CWA Gold Dagger for best crime novel of the year for The Mermaids Singing and the LA Times Book of the Year Award. She considers her novels to be part of the tartan noir crime sub-genre.
Silent Bones
[2025]
by Val McDermid
Hachette
ISBN: 978 140873 403 2
$34.99; 434pp