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Hard Man
Pearce, an ex-con and Edinburgh hard man who's still recovering from the recent loss of his mother, is invited by the dysfunctional Baxter family to protect their pregnant sixteen-year-old daughter from her martial-arts-expert husband, Wallace?a man ten years her senior with a penchant for killing family pets. Having found out that the baby's not his, Wallace has sworn vengeance. Pearce declines the He's no babysitter. But when Wallace kills Pearce's dog, he goes too far. Now it's personal.Revenge is part of the grieving process. But has Pearce finally met his match?Time to find out how many psychedelic drugs one man can take.Time to find out why Jesus is living in a cage in Wallace's basement.Time to find out who the real hard man is.
268 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2007
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews
September 21, 2017
An interesting story - part family drama, part Scottish crime thriller - this I found pretty enjoyable. Guthrie has a style somewhere in the region of Stuart MacBride's gritty/gory dark humour and Chris Brookmyre's acerbic with concerning hapless criminals doing nasty to each other. It's by no means perfect - at times I started to stop caring what happened to the sometimes interchangable nasty pieces of work - but there were frequent moments which I found utterly hilarious (a description of a tumescent gerbil in a pet-shop window especially).
July 19, 2016
PROTAGONIST: Gordon Pearce, ex-con and hard man
SETTING: Edinburgh
SERIES: Standalone
RATING: 3.75
The following quiz will help you determine if you should read HARD MAN or not:
1. I prefer books where at least 50 percent of the humans and animals are alive at the end of the book.
____ True ____False
2. My favorite kind of book is one where a little old lady solves a crime while sipping tea and knitting.
____ True ____False
3. If Train A is going east at 50 miles per hour and Train B is going west at 75 miles per hour, I would prefer to be on Train C which is sitting at the station but has no bar car.
____ True ____False
If you answered TRUE to any of the questions above, then HARD MAN is not the book for you. In a nutshell, here's why:
The Baxter clan may not be your typical happy Edinburgh family, but they have a lot going for them in their own way. For one thing, they are fiercely loyal to one another and prepared to defend each other, even though they are not particularly skilled at the martial arts. The father, Jacob, is a bit of a geezer. The oldest son, Rog, has the physical build but not the mental capacity; the younger son, Flash, has the mental capacity but not the physical build. May is their 16-year-old sister who married a psychopath named Wallace. When she becomes pregnant by another man, Wallace kicks her out and then decides to exact revenge. The Baxter boys are terrified for May and attempt to hire someone to protect her, as they are clearly unable to do so—having been bullied, broken and busted. However, their choice, a hard man and ex-con named Pearce, is not at all interested until something he loves is threatened. His life only has meaning because of his love for his 3-legged dog, Hilda, who, by the way, is a male. And when Wallace kills Hilda, well, that's all it takes.
From this point on, it's "go straight to hell, do not pass go". Various characters are shot, drugged, poisoned, stabbed and crucified. Trying to contain Wallace is no easy feat. He's like a cockroach who's become immune to the Roach Motel. You can step on him, you can pull his legs off, but he's going to keep on going. And going. And going.
What we have in HARD MAN is a love story. Wallace still loves May, even if he is trying to kill her. The Baxter family all love one another deeply. And Pearce loves Hilda. This may not be like any other love story you've ever read, but the feeling is there, if buried under a pile of black humor, violence and misadventure.
Reading HARD MAN is like putting yourself in a dryer with a load of clothes. You might be uncomfortable, but you can't help but watch the socks and shorts tossing about around you. If you replace socks and shorts with humans and animals, you get the picture. Certainly the book is absurd and over the top, but you have to hang in there until the tumbling stops.
SETTING: Edinburgh
SERIES: Standalone
RATING: 3.75
The following quiz will help you determine if you should read HARD MAN or not:
1. I prefer books where at least 50 percent of the humans and animals are alive at the end of the book.
____ True ____False
2. My favorite kind of book is one where a little old lady solves a crime while sipping tea and knitting.
____ True ____False
3. If Train A is going east at 50 miles per hour and Train B is going west at 75 miles per hour, I would prefer to be on Train C which is sitting at the station but has no bar car.
____ True ____False
If you answered TRUE to any of the questions above, then HARD MAN is not the book for you. In a nutshell, here's why:
The Baxter clan may not be your typical happy Edinburgh family, but they have a lot going for them in their own way. For one thing, they are fiercely loyal to one another and prepared to defend each other, even though they are not particularly skilled at the martial arts. The father, Jacob, is a bit of a geezer. The oldest son, Rog, has the physical build but not the mental capacity; the younger son, Flash, has the mental capacity but not the physical build. May is their 16-year-old sister who married a psychopath named Wallace. When she becomes pregnant by another man, Wallace kicks her out and then decides to exact revenge. The Baxter boys are terrified for May and attempt to hire someone to protect her, as they are clearly unable to do so—having been bullied, broken and busted. However, their choice, a hard man and ex-con named Pearce, is not at all interested until something he loves is threatened. His life only has meaning because of his love for his 3-legged dog, Hilda, who, by the way, is a male. And when Wallace kills Hilda, well, that's all it takes.
From this point on, it's "go straight to hell, do not pass go". Various characters are shot, drugged, poisoned, stabbed and crucified. Trying to contain Wallace is no easy feat. He's like a cockroach who's become immune to the Roach Motel. You can step on him, you can pull his legs off, but he's going to keep on going. And going. And going.
What we have in HARD MAN is a love story. Wallace still loves May, even if he is trying to kill her. The Baxter family all love one another deeply. And Pearce loves Hilda. This may not be like any other love story you've ever read, but the feeling is there, if buried under a pile of black humor, violence and misadventure.
Reading HARD MAN is like putting yourself in a dryer with a load of clothes. You might be uncomfortable, but you can't help but watch the socks and shorts tossing about around you. If you replace socks and shorts with humans and animals, you get the picture. Certainly the book is absurd and over the top, but you have to hang in there until the tumbling stops.
June 14, 2009
What a fucking beautiful book. Sick, violent, touching - for the hardcore violent crime novelist this one's really a challenge. On a reread I might revise this from four stars to five - best modern noir I can think of. And there's funny jokes in the midst of it all.
Excellent crime novel with an effective plot twist that occurs less than half-way through the book and throws the already careering plot into further disarray. Yeah!
The thing is, author Allan Guthrie not only tells a magnificent tale but makes what looks like a potentially typically bland denoument an emotionally compelling conclusion.
Loved this book. Absolutely. Oh, and he's a Scot, so there's cool phrases I can understand only due to context, phrases like "skelped his bahookie."
Yeah!
Excellent crime novel with an effective plot twist that occurs less than half-way through the book and throws the already careering plot into further disarray. Yeah!
The thing is, author Allan Guthrie not only tells a magnificent tale but makes what looks like a potentially typically bland denoument an emotionally compelling conclusion.
Loved this book. Absolutely. Oh, and he's a Scot, so there's cool phrases I can understand only due to context, phrases like "skelped his bahookie."
Yeah!
August 15, 2012
This book just cannot be taken seriously. It is meant to be a comedy of continuous violence, isn't it?
When the sixteen year old wife of an extremely violent man, Wallace, falls pregnant by another man, he vows vengeance on the girl, her unborn child, her lover, and anyone else who gets in the way. That's a bit OTT in itself, but when her father and two incompetent brothers leap to her defence, and try to involve half of the criminal fraternity of Edinburgh, the situation rapidly dissolves into a farcical Scotch broth.
Subsequent scenes make The Life of Brian look like a serious documentary. You'll discover why that comment is so relevant when you reach that particular scene.
There is lots of bad language in this book, and I mean that in two senses. Firstly, I suppose that all the effing and cee'ing in the speech adds authenticity to the shallow East Lothian characters. Secondly, some of the local phrases and expressions would make an Edinburgh comedy show audience rock with laughter at their crass stupidity.
This book is hilarious. Well, I found it so. Others may not.
When the sixteen year old wife of an extremely violent man, Wallace, falls pregnant by another man, he vows vengeance on the girl, her unborn child, her lover, and anyone else who gets in the way. That's a bit OTT in itself, but when her father and two incompetent brothers leap to her defence, and try to involve half of the criminal fraternity of Edinburgh, the situation rapidly dissolves into a farcical Scotch broth.
Subsequent scenes make The Life of Brian look like a serious documentary. You'll discover why that comment is so relevant when you reach that particular scene.
There is lots of bad language in this book, and I mean that in two senses. Firstly, I suppose that all the effing and cee'ing in the speech adds authenticity to the shallow East Lothian characters. Secondly, some of the local phrases and expressions would make an Edinburgh comedy show audience rock with laughter at their crass stupidity.
This book is hilarious. Well, I found it so. Others may not.
March 15, 2017
Quote:
"Pearce gauged the situation instantly, grabbed the frame of the door and shoved.
Cracked against Wallace's forehead. Knocked his glasses at an angle. Almost comical, but nobody was laughing.
Pearce pushed the door again.
Wallace managed to scamper out of the way before he was hit a second time. Just as well. Had to be a good joke to be funny twice.
Pearce stepped inside, switching the knife into his right hand."
Another gritty, occasionally amusing, violent story from Guthrie. I'm sure this is the second story by Allan Guthrie to feature Pearce, but i can't recall it's title. There's also at least one novella featuring Pearce.
An enjoyable read. 4 stars from this reader.
"Pearce gauged the situation instantly, grabbed the frame of the door and shoved.
Cracked against Wallace's forehead. Knocked his glasses at an angle. Almost comical, but nobody was laughing.
Pearce pushed the door again.
Wallace managed to scamper out of the way before he was hit a second time. Just as well. Had to be a good joke to be funny twice.
Pearce stepped inside, switching the knife into his right hand."
Another gritty, occasionally amusing, violent story from Guthrie. I'm sure this is the second story by Allan Guthrie to feature Pearce, but i can't recall it's title. There's also at least one novella featuring Pearce.
An enjoyable read. 4 stars from this reader.
November 29, 2014
Pearce and his 3 legged dog, Hilda return in another rip roaring read fm Allan Guthrie. For once Pearce isn't looking for trouble, in fact he's had enough of it. His sister turned to drugs, was raped and killed herself - Pearce found the drug dealer who'd fed her habit and killed him. He got 10 years in prison. Then his mother died in a robbery. So Pearce has no one left, besides Hilda.
When Pearce is approached by a family to protect a pregnant 16 year old from a mad man called Wallace Pearce say no, whatever the price. Then Hilda goes missing, apparently stolen by Wallace. Pearce cannot lose the one good thing he has left and goes after Wallace, with deadly results.
An excellent story told at pace, laced with broad language and a prose that'll make you laugh and punch you in the face this is a top story from a master of tartan noir.
When Pearce is approached by a family to protect a pregnant 16 year old from a mad man called Wallace Pearce say no, whatever the price. Then Hilda goes missing, apparently stolen by Wallace. Pearce cannot lose the one good thing he has left and goes after Wallace, with deadly results.
An excellent story told at pace, laced with broad language and a prose that'll make you laugh and punch you in the face this is a top story from a master of tartan noir.
July 12, 2014
Pearce and his 3 legged dog, Hilda return in another rip roaring read fm Allan Guthrie. For once Pearce isn't looking for trouble, in fact he's had enough of it. His sister turned to drugs, was raped and killed herself - Pearce found the drug dealer who'd fed her habit and killed him. He got 10 years in prison. Then his mother died in a robbery. So Pearce has no one left, besides Hilda.
When Pearce is approached by a family to protect a pregnant 16 year old from a mad man called Wallace Pearce say no, whatever the price. Then Hilda goes missing, apparently stolen by Wallace. Pearce cannot lose the one good thing he has left and goes after Wallace, with deadly results.
An excellent story told at pace, laced with broad language and a prose that'll make you laugh and punch you in the face this is a top story from a master of tartan noir.
When Pearce is approached by a family to protect a pregnant 16 year old from a mad man called Wallace Pearce say no, whatever the price. Then Hilda goes missing, apparently stolen by Wallace. Pearce cannot lose the one good thing he has left and goes after Wallace, with deadly results.
An excellent story told at pace, laced with broad language and a prose that'll make you laugh and punch you in the face this is a top story from a master of tartan noir.
July 29, 2010
Manic comedy, slow to start, then goes off the rails, but in a good way.
June 20, 2023
Hard Man is the ultimate in twenty-first century hard-boiled noir. The opening lines:
“Another hot day in July. That was four in a row. Pretty good for Scotland.
Not so good for the corpse in the boot.”
The whole book takes place in east Edinburgh, in the Portobello Beach neighborhood, over the course of a week during an uncharacteristically hot July. It follows the course of a family feud more reminiscent of the highlands than the lowlands. Lots of shootings, stabbings and a crucifixion.
I read it during a two-week stay in Edinburgh in an uncharacteristically hot June. One of the highlights of my stay was a three-hour lunch with Allan at the Conan Doyle (a pub across the square from the place where Doyle was born.).
“Another hot day in July. That was four in a row. Pretty good for Scotland.
Not so good for the corpse in the boot.”
The whole book takes place in east Edinburgh, in the Portobello Beach neighborhood, over the course of a week during an uncharacteristically hot July. It follows the course of a family feud more reminiscent of the highlands than the lowlands. Lots of shootings, stabbings and a crucifixion.
I read it during a two-week stay in Edinburgh in an uncharacteristically hot June. One of the highlights of my stay was a three-hour lunch with Allan at the Conan Doyle (a pub across the square from the place where Doyle was born.).
April 16, 2024
I wanted to give this 4 stars as I enjoyed it overall but was frustrated with unanswered questions at the end. Many of the characters are quite dumb and in over their heads so while it’s comical at times and I do like how the author describes things and brings them to life, I found the characters very frustrating due to all the incredibly dumb mistakes
September 19, 2019
Pearce meets the Baxter family. Brutal and tragic dysfunction ensues. Scottish noir at its best, or worst. Massive collateral damage. Highly recommended.
February 1, 2022
Dysfunctional family, violent, funny, crazy - all these things. I nearly put it down at the beginning, but then I couldn’t put it down.
February 7, 2022
An absolute Train Wreck. And I mean that in a good way.
December 19, 2013
I first came across the author Allan Guthrie in the ebook anthology True Brit Grit. Being curious I decided to investigate more of his work. Bad Men is a crime novel set in Edinburgh featuring one of Mr Guthrie’s most interesting characters. Gordon Pearce is an ex-con and loner with only his three legged dog Hilda for company. But he’s also a hard man with a heart who unwillingly gets mixed up with the Baxter family whose pregnant daughter May is being threatened by her abusive husband Wallace. Events soon pit Pearce against Wallace but things are not as black and white as they seem. Suddenly halfway through the book events take a dark and sinister direction where horror and terror are absolute. The narrative is packed with short, very readable passages full of random violence and is definitely not for the faint hearted. The novel ends with a bleak finale where no one escapes without some heavy damage. If you’ve got the stomach for it this may be just your thing. Enjoy.
May 30, 2008
‘If we can’t find a bodyguard for May, how are we going to persuade someone to kill to kill Wallace?’
This is the critical question for the Baxter men as they seek to protect May, their daughter and sister, from her husband, Wallace. Their answer: to try to involve Pearce, a local hard man (tough guy).
This is an action-filled novel: peopled with dysfunctional individuals. This is not a novel that requires (or even invites) detailed analysis. The equation is simple: stupid people doing stupid things. But doing them in a way that has you wondering how far they will go and what the outcomes might be.
This novel is full of gratuitous violence, moronic behaviour and with a deep undercurrent of black humour. The most likeable character, for me, was Pearce’s three-legged (male) dog, Hilda.
This is the critical question for the Baxter men as they seek to protect May, their daughter and sister, from her husband, Wallace. Their answer: to try to involve Pearce, a local hard man (tough guy).
This is an action-filled novel: peopled with dysfunctional individuals. This is not a novel that requires (or even invites) detailed analysis. The equation is simple: stupid people doing stupid things. But doing them in a way that has you wondering how far they will go and what the outcomes might be.
This novel is full of gratuitous violence, moronic behaviour and with a deep undercurrent of black humour. The most likeable character, for me, was Pearce’s three-legged (male) dog, Hilda.
July 5, 2008
Line by line this book was well written and engaging. My issue with it, why I only gave it two stars is that what I was hoping for and what inside blurb seemed to hint it was a sort of Scottish Charles Bronson sort of thriller. That isn't what it turned out to be.
Things started well with some engaging scenes and dialogue, but failed to build to a satisfying conclusion for me. Most disappointing was that the main character, Pearce, has little effect on how events play out and is almost more of an observer.
I've read plenty of praise for Allan Guthrie and I'll certainly try another book of his (KISS HER GOODBYE published by Hard Case Crime seems a likely candidate). This one kind of annoyed me though.
Things started well with some engaging scenes and dialogue, but failed to build to a satisfying conclusion for me. Most disappointing was that the main character, Pearce, has little effect on how events play out and is almost more of an observer.
I've read plenty of praise for Allan Guthrie and I'll certainly try another book of his (KISS HER GOODBYE published by Hard Case Crime seems a likely candidate). This one kind of annoyed me though.
November 3, 2010
Violent and over-the-top, and that's definitely a compliment. Guthrie has a lot of fun beating the crap out of all his characters, including the dogs. And while the story is never predictable, the reason is because it often feels like it's being made up as it goes.
For all its originality, the depth of the characters never really gets past the surface. And in a story where the entire world of the story revolves around eight people, it seems like there would have been more of a chance to dig deeper.
As pure pulp, Guthrie succeeds in delivering the action. A fun read that could have been about something.
For all its originality, the depth of the characters never really gets past the surface. And in a story where the entire world of the story revolves around eight people, it seems like there would have been more of a chance to dig deeper.
As pure pulp, Guthrie succeeds in delivering the action. A fun read that could have been about something.
March 7, 2014
I read Allan Guthrie's "Savage Night" as a random buy from a small, used book store in Burbank and I absolutely loved it. Enough to want to read more of his work. I think I enjoyed "Hard Man" even better. This guy knows how to write jaw-dropping, intense, original, and suspenseful noir style crime fiction. He has become one of my favorite authors and I can't wait to read more of his works. Definitely not for everyone...especially not the squeamish. He does make me scared to ever visit Scotland, though....
February 10, 2008
C'mon, fess up. Are you hard or soft? If you're a hard man, then I whole-heartedly recommend this book. Ultra violence and torture porn were never so funny. If, on the other hand, you're a soft man, I recommend you start rereading your collection of Carolyn Keene books. Back cover quote (pay attention Kit Fox): "What Robert Aldrich and Sam Fuller did to cinema, Allan Gutherie is doing to British crime fiction."
March 18, 2013
This is a very dark comedy. A comedy of terrors. It started in a strange place and ended in an even stranger one. I will say that I did not guess how this story would go. At all.
Gordon Pearce, the protagonist, had a compelling back story but I really couldn't get a sense of him in the present. It's a problem when your character's back story is more interesting that what he's doing in the actual book.
Still enjoyed the read.
Gordon Pearce, the protagonist, had a compelling back story but I really couldn't get a sense of him in the present. It's a problem when your character's back story is more interesting that what he's doing in the actual book.
Still enjoyed the read.
April 30, 2013
A dysfunctional family bent on revenge over a perceived sleight but ill equipped to uphold their honour. Doesn't stop them trying though. This book is very violent and not for the feint of heart, very graphic all the way through. Having said that I enjoyed the twists in the storyline. I have read Guthrie before and read this book as it was the next in the series, so I had to finish it. But be warned if violence is not your thing.
January 3, 2016
Absolutely no doubt the man can write, and with a unique and powerful voice, creating a cast of dysfunctional individuals who damage each other in a never-ending spiral of nasty ways.
As to who the 'Hard Man' of the title is, there appear to be, initially, several contenders, each of whom falls painfully by the wayside.
That said, I didn't especially enjoy the tale, despite acknowledging its cleverness and tension. Partly because of the dog.
As to who the 'Hard Man' of the title is, there appear to be, initially, several contenders, each of whom falls painfully by the wayside.
That said, I didn't especially enjoy the tale, despite acknowledging its cleverness and tension. Partly because of the dog.
August 18, 2015
Pearce strikes me as "Jack Reacher light". I kept waiting for Pearce to fully engage in the story/action but he never really did. That being said, it was a well written, easy to read book. There was good foreshadowing of serious mayhem/payback to come, but it never really got there in my opinion.
August 27, 2008
A very fast paced, easy to lose oneself in crime drama. It's a story of a man and his dog, and everything that happens cause he loves said dog. Gritty tough, like using an SOS pad to clean a scraped knee. READ IT...
December 28, 2012
First half was okay, reminding me of the previous Pearce novel. But then it switched to a gore-fest instead. Skipped large parts just because it was boring. Especially the drugged parts. It's enough to know a character is drugged and babbling. I don't need to read page after page of it.
November 3, 2014
Guthrie's book is noted for its intense violence, but it's as much a story about perception as it is one of visceral bloodletting. He's definitely an emerging talent in the crime fiction genre.
January 23, 2008
angry scottish writing. funny at times, gruesome and creepy at others. Not for the squeamish or those who don't like books with people getting nailed...with nails...on wood.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 5, 2008
brutal and super funny. a sort of noir, but with some seriously deranged characters, a three legged dog, and some head spinning ultra violence.
November 13, 2008
an everyday tale of inept gangsters and their families - although a short book it still dragged. some funny lines, but it didn't satisfy either as pulp, or thriller, or black comedy.
April 14, 2009
Great noir find. I'm loving it.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 36 reviews