What do you think?
Rate this book
Bob Skinner #2
Skinner's Festival
In August each year Edinburgh is filled with thousands of tourists, performers, and enthusiastic spectators who flood into the ancient city for its Festival of the Arts - a display of culture ranging from the highly professional to the rank amateur.
But this year, on the very first day, an explosion rocks a hospitality center at Princes Street, and one man is killed. Assistant Chief Constable Robert Skinner, head of Edinburgh CID, soon establishes that it was no accident.
A few hours later a threatening letter is delivered to the Secretary of State from a group calling itself Fighters for an Independent Scotland, which demands the end of parliamentary union England.
Skinner quickly assembles a team and maintains a news blackout on the terrorists' threat to avoid widespread panic. Every Festival event must now be rigorously checked for security - but the following afternoon an American opera singer becomes the second victim.
As atrocities escalate, Skinner realizes this is no gang of bloodthirsty fanatics, but an international team with access to the most sophisticated armaments and technology. Even though every known agitator in Scotland has been rounded up for questioning, the mayhem continues. And the imminent visit of the Prime Minister provides the police with a nightmare scenario...
But behind this terror campaign lies a hidden agenda, and with the ancient honor of Scotland at stake, Skinner is under pressure to solve the riddle soon.
But this year, on the very first day, an explosion rocks a hospitality center at Princes Street, and one man is killed. Assistant Chief Constable Robert Skinner, head of Edinburgh CID, soon establishes that it was no accident.
A few hours later a threatening letter is delivered to the Secretary of State from a group calling itself Fighters for an Independent Scotland, which demands the end of parliamentary union England.
Skinner quickly assembles a team and maintains a news blackout on the terrorists' threat to avoid widespread panic. Every Festival event must now be rigorously checked for security - but the following afternoon an American opera singer becomes the second victim.
As atrocities escalate, Skinner realizes this is no gang of bloodthirsty fanatics, but an international team with access to the most sophisticated armaments and technology. Even though every known agitator in Scotland has been rounded up for questioning, the mayhem continues. And the imminent visit of the Prime Minister provides the police with a nightmare scenario...
But behind this terror campaign lies a hidden agenda, and with the ancient honor of Scotland at stake, Skinner is under pressure to solve the riddle soon.
310 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1994
94 people are currently reading
245 people want to read
About the author
Quintin Jardine
97 books243 followersQuintin Jardine (born 1945) is a Scottish author of three series of crime novels, featuring the fictional characters Bob Skinner, Oz Blackstone, and Primavera Blackstone. He was educated in Motherwell and in Glasgow where he studied at what was then the city’s only University. After career as a journalist, government information officer and media relations consultant, he took to the creation of crime fiction.
His first wife, Irene, with whom he shared over 30 years, from their teens, died in 1997. He is married, to his second wife, Eileen. They live in both Scotland and in Spain
His first wife, Irene, with whom he shared over 30 years, from their teens, died in 1997. He is married, to his second wife, Eileen. They live in both Scotland and in Spain
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews
February 5, 2014
We have been in Edinburgh during the Festival so Jardine's descriptions resonated. The plot was not totally believable, but the action was strongly presented. Surprisingly, the tension did not seem to rise to the level it should have. I think it might be because the actions and thoughts of the bad guys were never made part of the reader experience. Also, Skinner did not seem as 100% involved as he might have been - playing a round of golf? Thus, 3*** instead of 4****. Entertaining, but not gripping.
December 9, 2016
Truly awful. Top cop Mr Perfect (recently married to Mrs Perfect, with beloved daughter Miss Perfect never far away) puts together a handpicked team who, because he’s such a brilliant judge, all turn out to be excellent (even the flaky DS Rose who only ever seems to panic) as they attempt to foil a major criminal plot which is dressed up as terrorist activity. An utterly predictable plot, embarrassingly cliched dialogue and the only attempt at characterisation (our hero and his good lady) had me hoping they’d be blown up by page 5. No such luck. My first, and most assuredly my last, encounter with Mr Skinner.
December 27, 2020
Set in Edinburgh during the annual festival. Assistant chief constable Bob Skinner is the head of CID and also a security advisor to the Secretary of State for Scotland. A bomb explodes in a marque killing one person. Written threats are received from the Freedom Fighters for an Independent Scotland. The situation quickly escalates and the death toll rises. Bob Skinner is a strong character and is rather too hands-on for a senior police officer and rather takes over the whole story.
The story has a downward spiral as it becomes more an Army shoot out that policing of a festival. Bob spends a lot of his time having sex with his wife out of context with the story. The violence is too great to complement the story and rather graphic in places. The book becomes more like American cops and robbers as the death toll rises.
A good angle to have the story set among the festival and all its many mainstream and fringe events. I thought the author became caught up in shoot outs with little thought for public safety. The politicians were much as you might expect, inept and self-centred.
An easy read and worth 3 stars.
The story has a downward spiral as it becomes more an Army shoot out that policing of a festival. Bob spends a lot of his time having sex with his wife out of context with the story. The violence is too great to complement the story and rather graphic in places. The book becomes more like American cops and robbers as the death toll rises.
A good angle to have the story set among the festival and all its many mainstream and fringe events. I thought the author became caught up in shoot outs with little thought for public safety. The politicians were much as you might expect, inept and self-centred.
An easy read and worth 3 stars.
October 6, 2018
REVIEW OF AUDIOBOOK; OCTOBER 5, 2018
Narrator: James Bryce
Took awhile to gather speed but once it did, it kept me interested. Skinner has his hands full dealing with the threat and with the idiotic Secretary of State and we see a much more emotional Skinner than usual.
While this installment turned out better than I thought it would, I still prefer Skinner investing murders and such, and hope the author doesn't turn out more political thrillers like this one.
Narrator: James Bryce
Took awhile to gather speed but once it did, it kept me interested. Skinner has his hands full dealing with the threat and with the idiotic Secretary of State and we see a much more emotional Skinner than usual.
While this installment turned out better than I thought it would, I still prefer Skinner investing murders and such, and hope the author doesn't turn out more political thrillers like this one.
February 15, 2025
Another really enjoyable Bob Skinner story. This is fast becoming my favourite detective series. The characters are well developed and the stories are fast paced and exciting.
July 8, 2025
I'm enjoying these books. Good plot, twists and turns and surprising ending? Well no as I spotted the villains early on, but it didn't spoil my enjoyment.
Just wish Mr Jardine didn't go so over the top on the sex bit and far too much unnecessary swearing, which I think is a bit lazy. Sorry squire but you could do better. You'd have got 5 stars but alas and alack.
Just wish Mr Jardine didn't go so over the top on the sex bit and far too much unnecessary swearing, which I think is a bit lazy. Sorry squire but you could do better. You'd have got 5 stars but alas and alack.
March 18, 2018
4 stars. The second book in Jardine's Bob Skinner mysteries was an interesting read. Skinner is tasked with trying to stop terrorists who appear to be targeting the Edinburgh Festival, with an unknown objective in mind. As bombs go off in his city, Skinner realizes that these people have a different agenda than expected. And when that agenda involves danger to someone he loves, Skinner becomes a ruthless man. A very good read.
January 17, 2010
I thoroughly enjoyed this second book in the Bob Skinner series. He is a white-hat hero you love to cheer on as he battles "the bad guys", both criminals and politicians. This time around he is trying to stop terrorist attacks during Edinburgh Festival. Again there is an international facet to the plot. A bit of a fairy tale because the good guys win, but a pleasure to read.
August 23, 2011
Fun to read a mystery about the Edinburgh Festival while at the festival. Definite junk food mystery, lots of action, and the attempts to humanize the protagonist felt particularly flat... just get on with the terrorist plotting and festival scenery, I don't need to know about Skinner's home life, or inner emotional realities. Not the least of which is because those came over as a cliche.
February 12, 2009
This is the 2nd book in the series. I enjoyed the first but found this one even better - perhaps because I know have an idea who everyone is.Looking forward to reading the rest of the series.
January 12, 2014
the second book in the Bob Skinner series. Excellent read!
January 28, 2017
Liked the twist, which I won't give away! Readable, fast pace.
January 4, 2018
Didn't work for me (at least the first 60 pages didn't work and that's all I read). Skinner is a take charge kind of guy and that seems to be all that happened in the first bit. Couldn't engage.
March 25, 2019
I do enjoy these books easy to read and always a good twist.
March 19, 2024
Skinner’s Festival is the second book in Jardine Quintin’s Bob Skinner series. The first book in the series left me somewhat disappointed and very conflicted. As the series is a favourite of someone I work with, and they have let me borrow the books, I decided to dive into the second book in the series to see how things develop.
This second book also left me conflicted. The start of the story had me engaged and curious to see how the elements would come together. While some details were far too obvious, I was intrigued by the way they would play out. As the book progressed, it was hit by the same problems as the first – that is, the same things that left me conflicted. The book does not want to be solely a police procedural, and it mixes in too many other elements. This takes away from the classic crime elements I enjoy, especially when all these elements are introduced and yet everything comes together far too easily. Through this, the book went from one I was enjoying much more than the first and became one where I was conflicted again.
All in all, this second book has left me curious to see what book three does – I am hoping I will soon see why this is so strongly recommended to me – but it has not done enough to earn this series a spot on my favourites list.
This second book also left me conflicted. The start of the story had me engaged and curious to see how the elements would come together. While some details were far too obvious, I was intrigued by the way they would play out. As the book progressed, it was hit by the same problems as the first – that is, the same things that left me conflicted. The book does not want to be solely a police procedural, and it mixes in too many other elements. This takes away from the classic crime elements I enjoy, especially when all these elements are introduced and yet everything comes together far too easily. Through this, the book went from one I was enjoying much more than the first and became one where I was conflicted again.
All in all, this second book has left me curious to see what book three does – I am hoping I will soon see why this is so strongly recommended to me – but it has not done enough to earn this series a spot on my favourites list.
October 26, 2019
31/2 to 4 stars. Earlier Bob Skinner mystery set in the summer during the Edinburgh Festival. A bomb detonates near Waverly Station and people are killed. Skinner as ACC sets up a police squad to find the terrorists and enlists the help of an elite SAS unit headed by Adam Arrow.
Skinner thinks the bombs are set as a distraction from the real event and two more bombs occur with deaths.
A good page turner. When it was written I would have thought a little far fetched but these days anything goes with terrorism.
Skinner thinks the bombs are set as a distraction from the real event and two more bombs occur with deaths.
A good page turner. When it was written I would have thought a little far fetched but these days anything goes with terrorism.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 29, 2025
Rather a dull start to this one, I had to force myself to continue to when the clues started, and the two sex scenes were, for me, far too descriptive and added nothing to the story. But once the action started it gained pace and for me the climax/highlight was the battle in the castle. The twists that came especially at the end were a nice touch- sometimes these seem to me a bit gratuitous. I'm not a fan of killing for killing's sake so the character of Adam left a bad taste in my mouth.
March 3, 2025
This is one of the best thrillers I have read. Non-stop action, fascinating plot and great characters. Because these stories are set in Scotland they are not as well known as many other thriller writers. It may be they were only published in Great Britain so did have world wide exposure. If you like Action adventure stories, make an effort to search these out. You will not be disappointed.
June 21, 2017
It's a good read, but strangely unsatisfying. I saw his plot surprises (both of them) very early on, but enjoyed the book enough to keep reading. The sex scenes between Skinner and his wife and the emotional resonance made me cringe --prose too purple.
February 27, 2018
These are fun and quick reads with lots of classic Edinburgh locations. I liked this one better than the first book, since it was a little more realistic--though still quite fantastic. I expect the series will continue to get better and better.
April 16, 2018
Solid beginning which did not fulfil it truly, and maybe from too much Patterson I'm a bit over the bad guys getting involved in detective's families. It played out well but it had that slight irritation factor. A good read though.
March 17, 2025
Interesting and scary turn of events which took place during the Edinburgh Festival. It was quite intense at times but it did seem unusual for the main detective to take time out in the middle of an investigation to play golf rather than work on the matter in hand.
June 29, 2017
Good story
Enjoyed this book and warming to the characters. Minor reference to bedroom scene's but not really required. Worth a read.
Enjoyed this book and warming to the characters. Minor reference to bedroom scene's but not really required. Worth a read.
October 2, 2017
This had lots of elements to be a really good book but just never reached that height.
February 1, 2018
2.5 stars
December 17, 2018
A cracking 'Bob Skinner' series! Another brilliant Edinburgh, Scotland-based crime thriller, with Author Quintin Jardine riding high amongst his north-of-the-border contemporaries.
April 28, 2019
Really exciting
November 20, 2019
Another one of this authors book of plots and intriquing stories.
Excellent read as always
Excellent read as always
November 28, 2020
Really like the story characters and the way the plot develops will move on with series Would recommend
December 27, 2021
Three stars for location and not much else. A Mission Impossible plot and characters to match.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 52 reviews