Last Christmas brought a safe escape from anxiety by opening a detective novel that lingers in the mind long after the last page. The story unfolds with a calm, extensive sentence rhythm that invites readers to settle in. It moves at a deliberate pace, letting the prose breathe as the plot unfolds through a careful construction that rewards attentive reading. Readers are invited to feel a range of emotions—from deep disgust to the tenderness that love can demand—before the genre pushes toward a melodramatic moment that still serves the needs of the story and the reader.
From the outset, the mystery is intriguing. The identity of the Glasgow serial killer remains hidden, yet the steps to capture him become clear: a relentless pursuit to Catch the Beast. The narrative takes readers through a British city in the 1960s and 1970s, then shifts to Bilbao in the 1980s, where the killer’s influence seems to linger. The author’s approach is to interpret evil through a steady, omniscient narrator who anchors past events to the present investigation, presenting facts that illuminate how consequences trace back through time.
As a preface, the author ties the novel’s events to personal history, lending a dose of realism. This blend works well when moments described echo real cases. The work then presents chapters of varying length, offering decisive notes on several fronts: the detective genre’s expectations, the killer’s behavior, the dark fixation on victims and the quirks of the killer’s family history, often framed as retrospective reflections and commemorations of victimization in Bilbao. The narrative also explores the roles of the good guys, led by a steadfast inspector who is nearing obsolescence yet remains central to the investigation, all set against the backdrop of Bilbao. Joining the cast are a village keeper and a friend with cerebral palsy, who emerge as meaningful discoveries within the tale.
The summer of 1983 in Bilbao sets the stage for a brutal chase that tests endurance and resilience. The city’s daily life—its streets and bars—unfolds in the shadow of terrorism and ongoing conflict, revealing how people learn to live with danger. The inspector, the village keeper, and the helper become intertwined as the serial killer continues to act, and the narration carries the tension with precise control. Before the killer can be stopped, the investigation presses toward a nearly impossible verification, heightening grief as the narrative narrows its perspective to that of the victim and those affected, a move described as ingeniously crafted.
Symbolism threads through the story, with references to the flood and to faithful figures who bear witness to the unfolding events. The waters returning to the streets for days signal an epic finish, aligning the narrative’s momentum with a climactic historical moment. The storytelling feels cinematic, with a structure that supports a reader’s immersion and a title that mirrors the overarching arc.
So, why read this novel? It belongs to the detective genre yet offers a literary will that lets characters, landscapes, and the various character arcs complete a daring, fact-driven narrative. The author revisits strong pages of craft, even as a curious note lands in the form of a controversial musical choice by the killer. The work stands as a compelling example of how crime fiction can blend mood, setting, and investigation into a cohesive experience for readers seeking depth and atmosphere in a suspenseful tale. The result is a story that resonates with fans who value intricate plotting, vivid cityscapes, and a careful study of motive and consequence, all while maintaining a human-centered focus that keeps the investigation intimate and compelling. [citation: critical reception and thematic analysis, 2020s].