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DCI Gilchrist #8
Dead Catch
When Joe Christie's fishing boat is swept onto Tentsmuir beach during a fierce storm, a man's mutilated body is found in the hold. DCI Andy Gilchrist of St Andrews CID is called in to investigate. But his murder investigation deepens when he learns that Joe Christie and his boat have been missing for three years.
The police pathologist, Dr Rebecca Cooper, retrieves a five pound note from the dead man's throat. Is this the killer's calling card? And whatever happened to Joe Christie? Cooper offers Gilchrist a clue to the dead man's identity - a scar from a recent operation to repair a bone shattered by a bullet.
The dead man is found to have been on the payroll of big Jock Shepherd, Scotland's premier crime patriarch, and when three more of Shepherd's men turn up brutally murdered, Gilchrist fears a tectonic shift in the criminal underworld.
Gilchrist and his partner, DS Jessie Janes, set off along a murderous trail where they uncover a plot involving drug shipments and police corruption, and come face to face with a man for whom human life means nothing.
PRAISE FOR T.F. MUIR:
'Rebus did it for Edinburgh. Laidlaw did it for Glasgow. Gilchrist might just be the bloke to put St Andrews on the crime fiction map.' Daily Record
'A truly gripping read, with all the makings of a classic series.' Mick Herron
'Gripping and grisly, with plenty of twists and turns that race along with black humour.' Craig Robertson
'DCI Gilchrist gets under your skin. Though, determined, and a bit vulnerable, this character will stay with you long after the last page.' Anna Smith
296 pages, Kindle Edition
Published February 7, 2019
30 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
T.F. Muir
19 books68 followersAka Frank Muir and T. Frank Muir
Born in Glasgow, Frank was plagued from a young age with the urge to see more of the world than the rain sodden slopes of the Campsie Fells. By the time he graduated from University with a degree he hated, he’d already had more jobs than the River Clyde has bends. Short stints as a lumberjack in the Scottish Highlands and a moulder’s labourer in the local foundry convinced Frank that his degree was not such a bad idea after all. Twenty-five years of working overseas helped him appreciate the raw beauty of his home country. Now a dual US/UK citizen, Frank divides his time between Richmond, Virginia, and Glasgow, Scotland, carrying out research in the local pubs and restaurants. Frank is currently doing some serious book research in St Andrews' local pubs, and working on his next novel, another crime story suffused with dark alleyways and cobbled streets and some things gruesome.
Born in Glasgow, Frank was plagued from a young age with the urge to see more of the world than the rain sodden slopes of the Campsie Fells. By the time he graduated from University with a degree he hated, he’d already had more jobs than the River Clyde has bends. Short stints as a lumberjack in the Scottish Highlands and a moulder’s labourer in the local foundry convinced Frank that his degree was not such a bad idea after all. Twenty-five years of working overseas helped him appreciate the raw beauty of his home country. Now a dual US/UK citizen, Frank divides his time between Richmond, Virginia, and Glasgow, Scotland, carrying out research in the local pubs and restaurants. Frank is currently doing some serious book research in St Andrews' local pubs, and working on his next novel, another crime story suffused with dark alleyways and cobbled streets and some things gruesome.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
February 7, 2020
TF Muir's DCI Andy Gilchrist Scottish crime series set in St Andrew's is one I have dipped in and out of through the years. This great addition is a particularly grisly and brutal one which begins with Gilchrist at Tentsmuir Beach where a grounded fishing boat yields a gruesome discovery, the body of a black male, viciously tortured and murdered. The forensic pathologist extracts a £5 pound note from his mouth, is it a calling card or a warning? DS Jessie Janes has a deaf son, Robert, that she loves to bits, her own family has now been reduced to just her, and her hard man, criminal brother, Tommy, wanted for murder by Police Scotland. So when a scared Tommy contacts Jessie, against good reason, he is her brother after all, she ends up collecting information from him for the police, which includes a list of six men, all allegedly on the payroll of a now dying Glasgow Scottish crime patriarch, Jock Shepherd.
Gilchrist's colleague at Strathclyde police is able to shine a light on the victim's identity and the fishing boat turns out to have belonged to the missing for three years, Joe Christie, assumed to have been murdered. Tommy claims to be innocent of any killings, but his list of names is a matter of concern as the men on it are turning up dead, killed in the most horrifying of ways. Gilchrist has an uneasy relationship with his children, Maureen and Jack, but he tries to do his best as Maureen finds herself in fraught personal circumstances. Jack has acquired an older artist girlfriend, Kris, about whom he waxes lyrical, head over heels in love for whom he has, surprisingly, given up the demon drink. Connections between the body in a boat and Tommy's list begin to emerge, but as Gilchrist and his team are ordered to hand over the investigation to Strathclyde Police, the case turns far more sinister, dangerous and far reaching in the corners it extends to.
Muir writes a rattling good yarn with a Gilchrist feeling his age, coming so close to considering the unthinkable, retirement, with a case where justice is far from straightforward with the involvement of the government, criminal gangs and the intelligence services. This is compulsive storytelling, in a story of the criminal underworld, police corruption and where little is as it seems. This will appeal to those who love their Scottish crime fiction and police procedurals. Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.
Gilchrist's colleague at Strathclyde police is able to shine a light on the victim's identity and the fishing boat turns out to have belonged to the missing for three years, Joe Christie, assumed to have been murdered. Tommy claims to be innocent of any killings, but his list of names is a matter of concern as the men on it are turning up dead, killed in the most horrifying of ways. Gilchrist has an uneasy relationship with his children, Maureen and Jack, but he tries to do his best as Maureen finds herself in fraught personal circumstances. Jack has acquired an older artist girlfriend, Kris, about whom he waxes lyrical, head over heels in love for whom he has, surprisingly, given up the demon drink. Connections between the body in a boat and Tommy's list begin to emerge, but as Gilchrist and his team are ordered to hand over the investigation to Strathclyde Police, the case turns far more sinister, dangerous and far reaching in the corners it extends to.
Muir writes a rattling good yarn with a Gilchrist feeling his age, coming so close to considering the unthinkable, retirement, with a case where justice is far from straightforward with the involvement of the government, criminal gangs and the intelligence services. This is compulsive storytelling, in a story of the criminal underworld, police corruption and where little is as it seems. This will appeal to those who love their Scottish crime fiction and police procedurals. Many thanks to Little, Brown for an ARC.
January 30, 2020
When a boat washes up on the shores of St Andrews rescuers are horrified to find a mutilated body in the hold. The mystery deepens when the boat is discovered to belong to Joe Christie, a fisherman who disappeared three years ago and the dead man to be an alleged associate of Scotland’s leading gangster, Jock Shepherd. DCI Andy Gilchrist and DS Jessie Janes have a feeling they’re not seeing the big picture.
I enjoyed Dead Catch which is a tightly plotted police procedural with a bigger picture and a hint of conspiracy about it. I like that it is narrated from the investigative point of view as this means that the reader can guess along with the characters and get deeply involved in the narrative. I also like that it is set in Scotland as it gives the novel the familiarity of home turf (not that I know the east coast well) with the main landmarks easily identifiable and imaginable.
The plot runs along familiar lines, maverick detective team determined to investigate despite opposition and orders from above find imaginative ways to do so and then find themselves in over their heads. It is well done with reveals, action and tense moments used strategically to keep the reader interested although the ending stretched my credulity and I think that the novel lacks a certain depth as all the developments seem too easily come by. Even the reasons behind the blocking of their investigation are easily deciphered by Gilchrist. This, however, is nitpicking as it held my attention throughout.
Gilchrist is a rather jaded figure in this novel. He’s grumpy, tired and unwilling to let anyone stand in his way, even considering retirement at one point. He’s a lonely man with no obvious friends, an uneasy relationship with his adult children and no discernible hobbies except drinking. So far, so clichéd but he is also a caring man who looks after his team’s wellbeing and does his diffident best with his children.
Dead Catch is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
I enjoyed Dead Catch which is a tightly plotted police procedural with a bigger picture and a hint of conspiracy about it. I like that it is narrated from the investigative point of view as this means that the reader can guess along with the characters and get deeply involved in the narrative. I also like that it is set in Scotland as it gives the novel the familiarity of home turf (not that I know the east coast well) with the main landmarks easily identifiable and imaginable.
The plot runs along familiar lines, maverick detective team determined to investigate despite opposition and orders from above find imaginative ways to do so and then find themselves in over their heads. It is well done with reveals, action and tense moments used strategically to keep the reader interested although the ending stretched my credulity and I think that the novel lacks a certain depth as all the developments seem too easily come by. Even the reasons behind the blocking of their investigation are easily deciphered by Gilchrist. This, however, is nitpicking as it held my attention throughout.
Gilchrist is a rather jaded figure in this novel. He’s grumpy, tired and unwilling to let anyone stand in his way, even considering retirement at one point. He’s a lonely man with no obvious friends, an uneasy relationship with his adult children and no discernible hobbies except drinking. So far, so clichéd but he is also a caring man who looks after his team’s wellbeing and does his diffident best with his children.
Dead Catch is a good read that I have no hesitation in recommending.
August 18, 2021
Dead Catch (DCI Andy Gilchrist Book 8)by T F Muir
Dead Catch by T F Muir is book 8 in the Andy Gilchrist series and I have book 9 Dead Still already on my Kindle ready to read next.
This is another of the Scottish crime thrillers that you just look forward to reading. Thereis something no nonsense and unremitting about this crime series.
Highly recommended
Dead Catch by T F Muir is book 8 in the Andy Gilchrist series and I have book 9 Dead Still already on my Kindle ready to read next.
This is another of the Scottish crime thrillers that you just look forward to reading. Thereis something no nonsense and unremitting about this crime series.
Highly recommended
July 18, 2020
DCI Andy Gilchrist with DS Jessie Janes are called to the execution and murder of a body found in the hold of a boat. When he is taken off the case and Jessie’s brother wants to do a deal on information Andy knows this is not a straight forward murder. Drugs and police corruption will come to the front of the investigation and the fallout will lead Andy to even consider resigning. A well paced book that looks into modern police procedures and the pressures that can affect family life.
I was given an arc of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
I was given an arc of this book by Netgalley and the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
September 27, 2025
Following on from Life For a Life, a previous book of Muir's I read, I would most likely never have looked at this, crime fiction not really being my thing, except that the good lady had borrowed it from the local library so I thought I might as well.
A fishing boat washed up on Tentsmuir beach is found to contain a body restrained by wire in such a way that any movement would have resulted in a slow death. The boat belonged to Joe Christie who had disappeared – along with the boat – several years ago. The victim isn’t Christie though but Stooky Dee, an alleged associate of big Jock Shepherd, Scotland’s criminal kingpin. Muir makes much use of italicising alleged in the book in relation to Shepherd’s activities. DCI Andy Gilchrist, based in St Andrews, investigates the case.
Gilchrist has problems with his adult children and difficulties with the forensic pathologist Dr Rebecca Cooper whose brief liaison she cut off when she decided to reconcile with her husband. These attempts to humanise our hero are something of a distraction from the main plot. There is a nice moment, though, when Gilchrist tells his daughter when she says he knows how to talk to women as if he knows what they’re thinking, “No man knows what any woman is thinking.”
It soon turns out others of Shepherd’s henchmen, Cutter Boyd and Hatchet McBirn, have been killed recently but it seems the police in Strathclyde, Shepherd’s main area of operations, do not want Gilchrist muscling in on the case.
Further complications arise from Gilchrist’s DS Jessie Janes’s brother Tommy - on the run accused of murder, though Jessie doesn’t think he did it - contacting her about information he wants to give her.
All is mixed up with a big drug deal the Strathclyde force - along with HM Government - is hoping will lead to the arrests of major dealers, for which they send DI Fox, a supercilious creature to retrieve the case files from Fife.
Things become a bit too conspiracy laden when Gilchrist and (Jessie) Janes are tied up in a lock-up garage in Anstruther before a shoot-out resolves their problem.
This book confirmed that modern crime fiction is not for me. I doubt I’ll sample Muir’s work again. (It’s also enough to give anyone an aversion to visiting Fife.)
A fishing boat washed up on Tentsmuir beach is found to contain a body restrained by wire in such a way that any movement would have resulted in a slow death. The boat belonged to Joe Christie who had disappeared – along with the boat – several years ago. The victim isn’t Christie though but Stooky Dee, an alleged associate of big Jock Shepherd, Scotland’s criminal kingpin. Muir makes much use of italicising alleged in the book in relation to Shepherd’s activities. DCI Andy Gilchrist, based in St Andrews, investigates the case.
Gilchrist has problems with his adult children and difficulties with the forensic pathologist Dr Rebecca Cooper whose brief liaison she cut off when she decided to reconcile with her husband. These attempts to humanise our hero are something of a distraction from the main plot. There is a nice moment, though, when Gilchrist tells his daughter when she says he knows how to talk to women as if he knows what they’re thinking, “No man knows what any woman is thinking.”
It soon turns out others of Shepherd’s henchmen, Cutter Boyd and Hatchet McBirn, have been killed recently but it seems the police in Strathclyde, Shepherd’s main area of operations, do not want Gilchrist muscling in on the case.
Further complications arise from Gilchrist’s DS Jessie Janes’s brother Tommy - on the run accused of murder, though Jessie doesn’t think he did it - contacting her about information he wants to give her.
All is mixed up with a big drug deal the Strathclyde force - along with HM Government - is hoping will lead to the arrests of major dealers, for which they send DI Fox, a supercilious creature to retrieve the case files from Fife.
Things become a bit too conspiracy laden when Gilchrist and (Jessie) Janes are tied up in a lock-up garage in Anstruther before a shoot-out resolves their problem.
This book confirmed that modern crime fiction is not for me. I doubt I’ll sample Muir’s work again. (It’s also enough to give anyone an aversion to visiting Fife.)
March 9, 2023
Ein Fischerboot wird am Strand angespült. An Bord ist ein Toter, der gefoltert wurde und an dem ein Hinweis hinterlassen wurde, der auf einen der großen Gangsterbosse Schottlands deutet. Gerade als Andy Gilchrist und sein Team mit den Ermittlungen anfangen, wird ihnen der Fall aus der Hand genommen. Trotzdem ermittelt er weiter, denn der Fall hat auch eine private Verbindung zu seinem Team.
In diesem Fall geht es viel um Familie. In seiner eigenen Familie muss sich Andy um seine Kinder kümmern, die beide gerade eine Beziehung hinter sich haben, die schlecht ausging und der Bruder seiner Kollegin ist mehr in den Fall verstrickt, als für ihn gut ist. Aber es geht auch um eine andere Familie, nämlich die, die durch das Verbrechen entstanden ist und in der sich die Alten gegen die Jungen verteidigen müssen. Andy Gilchrist wird tiefer in die Sache hinein gezogen, als ihm lieb ist.
Während der letzten beiden Fälle ist mir aufgefallen, dass Andy seine Fälle oft nach Feierabend nochmal zuhause durchgeht und das immer mit der Hilfe von großen Mengen an Whisky. Mehr als einmal kann er sich morgens nicht mehr daran erinnern, wie er ins Bett gekommen ist. Das scheint von Fall zu Fall mehr zu werden und ich frage mich, wie weit Andy noch gehen wird. Im nächsten Fall werde ich hoffentlich eine Antwort bekommen, denn der liegt schon auf meinem SUB.
In diesem Fall geht es viel um Familie. In seiner eigenen Familie muss sich Andy um seine Kinder kümmern, die beide gerade eine Beziehung hinter sich haben, die schlecht ausging und der Bruder seiner Kollegin ist mehr in den Fall verstrickt, als für ihn gut ist. Aber es geht auch um eine andere Familie, nämlich die, die durch das Verbrechen entstanden ist und in der sich die Alten gegen die Jungen verteidigen müssen. Andy Gilchrist wird tiefer in die Sache hinein gezogen, als ihm lieb ist.
Während der letzten beiden Fälle ist mir aufgefallen, dass Andy seine Fälle oft nach Feierabend nochmal zuhause durchgeht und das immer mit der Hilfe von großen Mengen an Whisky. Mehr als einmal kann er sich morgens nicht mehr daran erinnern, wie er ins Bett gekommen ist. Das scheint von Fall zu Fall mehr zu werden und ich frage mich, wie weit Andy noch gehen wird. Im nächsten Fall werde ich hoffentlich eine Antwort bekommen, denn der liegt schon auf meinem SUB.
September 3, 2020
At first glance little about this book deviates from the familiar Tartan noir template. Although St Andrews makes a welcome, if no less gritty, change of setting from Glasgow or Edinburgh. Gilchrist makes for a suitably craggy central character and the tangled private lives of him and his team make for plenty of secondary interest.
What the book lacks in originality it makes up for in solid craftsmanship, T F Muir knows how to put together a plot that provides more than its quota of thrills, if few genuine surprises. If you enjoy an old school police procedural, and when it is done as well as this it is hard not to, then this is a book and a series to savour.
What the book lacks in originality it makes up for in solid craftsmanship, T F Muir knows how to put together a plot that provides more than its quota of thrills, if few genuine surprises. If you enjoy an old school police procedural, and when it is done as well as this it is hard not to, then this is a book and a series to savour.
April 14, 2022
This is the first book I have read from T.F. Muir and he is a straight to the point writer with a no nonsense approach to his characters which is really refreshing.
Not having read any of the previous 7 DCI Andy Gilchrist based books in this series really didn't matter as this book is a great stand alone novel although having enjoyed it as much as I did I am now kinda kicking myself that I didn't start with book 1 like I am now going to.
If you like crime novels with great characters then this could be your next read or better still start with DCI Andy Christie #1
Not having read any of the previous 7 DCI Andy Gilchrist based books in this series really didn't matter as this book is a great stand alone novel although having enjoyed it as much as I did I am now kinda kicking myself that I didn't start with book 1 like I am now going to.
If you like crime novels with great characters then this could be your next read or better still start with DCI Andy Christie #1
May 17, 2023
This is the fastest I have read a book in some time. It had me hooked from start to finish. A lot of twists and turns and a real good thriller to sink your teeth into. Throughout you really get to know the main character DCI Gilchrist, and you can’t help but want to know more page after page. The story is also so relative, you find yourself thinking while it’s fiction based that it’s so close to reality and that’s what makes it interesting and binge worthy. Defo recommend.
(Happened to find the book in the library of a cruise, really glad I did!)
(Happened to find the book in the library of a cruise, really glad I did!)
November 5, 2023
Another cracking adventure with the wonderful Andy Gilchrist who is fast becoming one of my all time favourite detectives. A compelling story of organised crime, police corruption and murder making this my favourite so far in this T.F.Muir series. Fast paced and impossible to put down this was a highly addictive read in this high end Scottish police procedural. And as always the authors descriptive narrative is on point.
December 4, 2022
A really good read. But I’m beginning to get annoyed at Gilchrist because there are tons of procedural issues with him. I know it’s not a factual event or events but at least try and make the storyline believable. Andy seems to get into lots of impossible situations and not only puts himself at risk but also puts his colleagues lives at risk too. Apart from that it was good
September 18, 2020
This is a series that has gone from strength to strength, and is solid, believable, has an excellent range of relationships and, in Andy Gilchrist, a very worthwhile central character. I've made a note of those I'm missing in the series and will hunt them out.
September 18, 2020
This is a series that has gone from strength to strength, and is solid, believable, has an excellent range of relationships and, in Andy Gilchrist, a very worthwhile central character. I've made a note of those I'm missing in the series and will hunt them out.
March 3, 2021
I read all the Andy Gilchrist books really quickly, after discovering T.F.Muir, and loved them, so it has been a while. But oh my, worth the wait! I read Dead Catch in less than a week, and have now eagerly started Dead Still. The joy of reading!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 7, 2021
Quite a good read with dci gilchrist on the trail again a lot better than number six(blood torment) .He is still going strong but you wonder how many more books with him are left to write. All in all a good read so just go out and BUY the book.
July 20, 2025
Run of the mill police / crime thriller. While it is not bad, it is not great either. The characters are insufficiently developed / fleshed out. The protagonist has various domestic issues to contend with, none of which had the slightest interest to me.
October 14, 2020
Brilliant
November 27, 2021
Police corruption and bureaucracy at its worst
February 1, 2022
Not as interesting plot as previous books
October 17, 2019
We never find out why the boat was washed up on the beach, nor what was really happening, save a 'sting' of epic proportions. Allegedly. Some of the 'nasty' characters are all a bit too cartoon-like, at least with their names, because that's all we get to know about them. 'Bruiser', 'Hatchet' and 'Stooky'. Unless you are Scots, you may not know that a 'stooky' is a plaster-cast. I am not persuaded that the barely-described Andy Gilchrist will cement St Andrews in the annals of crime the way that Rebus has. He is too ordinary. A shadowy, poorly described, 'bent' superintendent seems to have a lot ascribed to him, without any background description. A dying, awesomely powerful Glasgow king-pin crook is a very believable character but the book could lose some text padding and be a much better read.
January 28, 2020
Book 8 in the DCI Gilchrist series and it's still going strong. Gilchrist is investigating the case of a dead body in a boat washed up on the beach near St Andrew's. I love the character development, the mix of characters and the insight into his personal life. This book has a little bit of everything with corrupt police, multiple murders, Glasgow crime lord and drugs thrown in. One of my favourite series and an easy 5* from me. My thanks to Net Galley for my ARC.
February 8, 2020
A solid police procedural that involves organized crime, corrupt police, drugs and horrific violence. A strong sense of personalties, but not as strong on sense of place. This is my first in the series and it works fine as a standalone. Definitely a “Scottish noir”.
Thanks to netgalley/publisher/author for the ARC.
Thanks to netgalley/publisher/author for the ARC.
November 3, 2019
DEAD CATCH was a really good read love the character of Andy and Jessie It’s so great ...no sex scenes I really enjoyed this and would recommend
Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews