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And When I Die
Families Can Be Murder His family believes he’s dead. The police believe he’s dead. But Ray Scobie, a killer who can’t feel pain, doesn’t die so easily. Betrayed by his own father, near-fatally wounded and lying in hospital as ‘John Doe’, Ray wants payback against his family – who just happen to run one of Glasgow’s most brutal crime syndicates. Family secrets and old grudges collide with the dark motives of an undercover cop who’s strayed beyond his brief to the point of no return. And the cop’s still in thrall to Ray’s favourite cousin, with whom he’s had an illicit relationship, endangering them both.
240 pages, Kindle Edition
Published June 10, 2016
1 person is currently reading
23 people want to read
About the author
Russel D. McLean
16 books46 followersRussel McLean has written for Crime Spree Magazine, The Big Thrill (the newsletter of the International Thriller Writers Association), At Central Booking and Crime Scene Scotland. His short fiction has been published in crime fiction magazines worldwide.
The first three novels featuring Dundonian PI J McNee are, THE GOOD SON, THE LOST SISTER and FATHER CONFESSOR.
His early short stories have been collected digitally in the collection, THE DEATH OF RONNIE SWEETS (and other stories).
Russel twitters constantly on @russeldmclean and if you want to go "like" him, his official facebook fanpage can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Russel...
The first three novels featuring Dundonian PI J McNee are, THE GOOD SON, THE LOST SISTER and FATHER CONFESSOR.
His early short stories have been collected digitally in the collection, THE DEATH OF RONNIE SWEETS (and other stories).
Russel twitters constantly on @russeldmclean and if you want to go "like" him, his official facebook fanpage can be found at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Russel...
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
December 26, 2021
I realise that my life would be better if I could just DNF things, instead of letting them hang around my neck. This had promise at the outset, but sank quickly. I found it impossible to finish - it took me down with it. I don’t know why I feel this loyalty to inanimate things 🤣
July 29, 2016
Review to follow
March 19, 2017
I enjoyed the start it was a classic gangster type of book, then the middle started to drag a bit and just described the characters and their relationships to each other which I found repetitive at times and it was confusing who was talking. The end part turned a bit too clever and arty.
February 27, 2019
Glasgow 2011, Gangsters, the scobie family mourn the death of their son Raymond in a car bombing.
An already fractured family, while it brings them together, it only serves only to create more chaos amongst them all.
Told from the POV of the two main characters John, a depressed, and a deep undercover copper who has infiltrated the Scobie crime gang and has gotten in too deep and Kat scobie, Adored Niece , who walked away from crime to become a Nurse , and lead her own life before being called back to mourn her cousin because family is family. She is drawn back in to the life, like it or not
It quickly becomes apparent that Ray isn’t Dead ,his family setup the car bombing, believing he had turned traitor, he just about survives , albeit with horrific injuries , and he’s now dead set on revenging who has wronged him.
As it turns out John and kat were a couple so there is a lot of tension in their stories and this unravels through the book as we find out why they are no longer together
Ray is an absolute man mountain, he’s a beast of a character and he’s written brilliantly. You can only love him yet he’s a murdering psychopath!
Revenge, Betrayal, a family falling apart at the seams in a power struggle for control of the family and what comes with the Scobie Name
The Writing is sharp and on point and this a dark, brutal ,powerful ,disturbing thriller
it’s witty in the right places the pacing is nailed on.
However the middle pages of the book do slow it down to a point , as it builds to the finale, which Is very well executed,
Its an engaging, enjoyable piece of Glasgow Noir
This was my first book by Russel D McLean and it will definitely not be the last
3.5⭐️
April 15, 2017
What a treat this was! Too long since I read this author and I had forgotten how effectively he impels one through a story. In addition this is so very cleverly constructed, told from John and then Kat's point of view. The change to Sarabande is a good one as far as the physicality of reading the books are concerned, but whenever did a gangster go to "the bathroom", especially in a Glasgow pub!!
And a second read (I'm lucky in that I have a poor memory) shows both the tension and the writing to hold up to fully entertain all over again.
And a second read (I'm lucky in that I have a poor memory) shows both the tension and the writing to hold up to fully entertain all over again.
November 2, 2016
Russell D McLean has produced yet another cracking novel for you to enjoy and I reckon you should pick yourself up a copy as soon as so that you can share in the pleasure of this one.
And When I Die is set in Glasgow. Like any well-written novel, the city itself is part of the fabric of the story. It’s a living and breathing entity which has moulded its population over the centuries, some for better and others for worse.
The Scobies have an interesting past. Previous successes have been whittled away by each generation as circumstance shifts against them and the only way for the current head of the family (Derek) to get back on top was to turn to crime. It turns out he’s rather good at it, too. Of course, it helps if his henchmen are super tough guys with enormous reputations and cold hearts. The most feared of all the Scobie killers is his son, Ray. Ray’s a beast. A giant. A cold-blooded killer who doesn’t feel pain, but he also has a tenderness rattling about inside him. There’s a touch of Frankenstein’s monster or of King Kong to him in that respect, and he’s just as compelling. When we meet him, he’s about to be blown up by a car bomb and he’s not going to emerge from it well. And then things get worse.
The bomb has been planted by an undercover cop (John) whose own identity has always been unstable. His infiltration into the Scobie family has done nothing to help him find clarity in life and he’s more confused than ever about what he should be doing next. He’s so deep into his undercover work that his criminal life has taken over from his police role and he no longer has a sense of what he really is. The waters have been further muddied by his feelings for Kat. Kat was his way into the family in the first place. He wasn’t supposed to fall for her, but things don’t always go to plan. Unfortunately for both of them, their relationship had to end and Kat left the city to find some of the quiet life. In the aftermath of the car-bombing, John is forced to face up to what he has done to her and to see if he can sort everything out and make amends.
Kat had another special relationship in her life, a bond with Ray that holds them tight. She comes back for Ray’s funeral, not knowing that Ray isn’t in the coffin. Returning home screws with her mind as she reflects on her past. Needless to say, the last person she wants to see is also the first she’d like to meet, and that’s her ex. When they do finally get together again, their chemistry is rather explosive, though not in any of the more romantic connotations that phrase might hold.
Kat and John tell their stories in alternating chapters and in the present tense. This means the action feels fast and that the tension is amplified as it constantly builds. As the world around them falls apart, loyalties are tested to the full. Everyone is conflicted in some way and each decision comes with a slice of doubt or a dose of guilt. Nothing is easy and none of the options are likely to end up with a simple conclusion.
Ray is magnificent. John and Kat are perfectly flawed. The surrounding cast play their parts admirably and McLean shows off his talent for creating gripping and emotionally demanding tales.
Noir with deep roots and a bagful of broken promises.
And When I Die is set in Glasgow. Like any well-written novel, the city itself is part of the fabric of the story. It’s a living and breathing entity which has moulded its population over the centuries, some for better and others for worse.
The Scobies have an interesting past. Previous successes have been whittled away by each generation as circumstance shifts against them and the only way for the current head of the family (Derek) to get back on top was to turn to crime. It turns out he’s rather good at it, too. Of course, it helps if his henchmen are super tough guys with enormous reputations and cold hearts. The most feared of all the Scobie killers is his son, Ray. Ray’s a beast. A giant. A cold-blooded killer who doesn’t feel pain, but he also has a tenderness rattling about inside him. There’s a touch of Frankenstein’s monster or of King Kong to him in that respect, and he’s just as compelling. When we meet him, he’s about to be blown up by a car bomb and he’s not going to emerge from it well. And then things get worse.
The bomb has been planted by an undercover cop (John) whose own identity has always been unstable. His infiltration into the Scobie family has done nothing to help him find clarity in life and he’s more confused than ever about what he should be doing next. He’s so deep into his undercover work that his criminal life has taken over from his police role and he no longer has a sense of what he really is. The waters have been further muddied by his feelings for Kat. Kat was his way into the family in the first place. He wasn’t supposed to fall for her, but things don’t always go to plan. Unfortunately for both of them, their relationship had to end and Kat left the city to find some of the quiet life. In the aftermath of the car-bombing, John is forced to face up to what he has done to her and to see if he can sort everything out and make amends.
Kat had another special relationship in her life, a bond with Ray that holds them tight. She comes back for Ray’s funeral, not knowing that Ray isn’t in the coffin. Returning home screws with her mind as she reflects on her past. Needless to say, the last person she wants to see is also the first she’d like to meet, and that’s her ex. When they do finally get together again, their chemistry is rather explosive, though not in any of the more romantic connotations that phrase might hold.
Kat and John tell their stories in alternating chapters and in the present tense. This means the action feels fast and that the tension is amplified as it constantly builds. As the world around them falls apart, loyalties are tested to the full. Everyone is conflicted in some way and each decision comes with a slice of doubt or a dose of guilt. Nothing is easy and none of the options are likely to end up with a simple conclusion.
Ray is magnificent. John and Kat are perfectly flawed. The surrounding cast play their parts admirably and McLean shows off his talent for creating gripping and emotionally demanding tales.
Noir with deep roots and a bagful of broken promises.
September 7, 2016
What do you do when you are born into one of Glasgow’s most notorious crime families but you just want to live a normal life? Well if you are Kat Scobie you adapt as best you can but it’s never going to be as simple as walking away.
Family ties are too strong and Kat returns to the city to attend a family funeral, her timing could not be worse as divisions in the family are threatening to tear the Scobie empire apart. Kat’s is trying to avoid coming into contact with John, her former lover, who now works for the Scobies. John is actually an undercover cop who has stepped too far over the line and is now caught up in the attempted murder of one of the Scobie family.
Kat and John are the main focus of And When I Die – they are pursuing different agenda but I desperately hoped everything would resolve in a way that meant they would both be okay at the end of the book.
Sigh. So much for that hope!
Everything is about to come to a head and Russel McLean is not going to give Kat or John an easy time of it, but that is okay as reading And When I Die is an absolute treat. Russel McLean has crafted an extraordinary story which I absolutely devoured in a single sitting it is one of the best stories I have read this summer.
I absolutely loved the depiction of the different characters within the Scobie family. Kat seems so out of place yet knows how to manipulate her family. John is on the cusp of discovery and one wrong step could see him exposed and likely killed – the tension in his scenes was wonderfully handled.
You need to read this, it is as simple as that.
Family ties are too strong and Kat returns to the city to attend a family funeral, her timing could not be worse as divisions in the family are threatening to tear the Scobie empire apart. Kat’s is trying to avoid coming into contact with John, her former lover, who now works for the Scobies. John is actually an undercover cop who has stepped too far over the line and is now caught up in the attempted murder of one of the Scobie family.
Kat and John are the main focus of And When I Die – they are pursuing different agenda but I desperately hoped everything would resolve in a way that meant they would both be okay at the end of the book.
Sigh. So much for that hope!
Everything is about to come to a head and Russel McLean is not going to give Kat or John an easy time of it, but that is okay as reading And When I Die is an absolute treat. Russel McLean has crafted an extraordinary story which I absolutely devoured in a single sitting it is one of the best stories I have read this summer.
I absolutely loved the depiction of the different characters within the Scobie family. Kat seems so out of place yet knows how to manipulate her family. John is on the cusp of discovery and one wrong step could see him exposed and likely killed – the tension in his scenes was wonderfully handled.
You need to read this, it is as simple as that.
October 23, 2016
Good crime story told at a cracking pace.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews