Every Night I Dream of Hell

Glasgow Underworld Series #5

by Malcolm Mackay

"Don't pick up a Mackay book unless you've got spare time. They're habit-forming." -- New York TimesFrom the award-winning author of The Glasgow Trilogy comes Every Night I Dream of Hell, a dark and thrilling Glaswegian crime drama.Nate Colgan would be the first to admit that his violent reputation makes him very good at his job--and bad at everything else. After eighteen years spent working on the sidelines of Glasgow's criminal underworld, there's no question he'll accept the central position that Peter Jamieson's organization offers him, despite his better judgment. The organization isn't as strong as it once its most powerful members are either dead or behind bars, including Jamieson himself, and the time is ripe for change.Chang begins with an execution--a message for Jamieson's supporters--which promptly sets the various factions within the organization against one another. Colgan's position as "security consultant" means his duty is idneitfy the killer and find out who's willing to seize power, even if it means igniting a war. Meanwhile, on the other side of the law, DI Michael Fisher conduscts his own investigation into the murder. Both men can't help but Why do these events coincide with the return of Zara Cope, the mother of Colgan's child, a disreputable woman with an uncanny ability to attract trouble and troublemakers?A dark and thrilling crime drama, Every Night I Dream of Hell takes us deep into a world of violence, fear and double-crosses.

Genres: Fiction, Mystery, Thriller, Crime, Audiobook, Noir, Scotland

400 pages, Paperback

First published August 13, 2015

About the author

Malcolm Mackay was born and grew up in Stornoway where he still lives. The Necessary Death of Lewis Winter, his debut, is the first of a trilogy set in the Glasgow underworld.

Reviews

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was fast-paced Glasgow noir with a large cast of gangsters warring with and double crossing each other. For me, the chief appeal of the book was the crisp, colorful language, although I admit that the accents on the audiobook were a challenge sometimes. I'll look for more by this author.

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Night I Dream of Hell – Brilliant Glasgow Noir

Every Night I Dream of Hell is the fifth book from the excellent writer Malcolm Mackay who has captured the dark heart of Glasgow in terrifying detail and imagination. Mackay is getting better with every book he writes, the characters are getting stronger, more defined completely unforgiving and totally compelling. None of these characters are written as anti-heroes but as the dark nasty criminals that they are.

This thriller is narrated through the eyes of Nate Colgon, a very violent man, who is the muscle for the Jamieson Organisation. Colgon is the guy you do not cross, or simply annoy; he is the one who should be feared otherwise ones meals will be fed through a straw. He has been promoted to the Organisation’s ‘security consultant’ now that Peter Jamieson is locked up, and there is a power battle taking place. Many in the organisation are not happy about his appointment, but understand why it has taken place; even he will be shocked at how things rapidly unravel.

Colgon at the same time knows that the eyes of DI Michael Fisher will be on him now that there is a power vacuum that he caused by arresting Peter Jamieson and other members of the organisation. He is following Colgon’s ex-wife Zara who is seriously dangerous in her own right, especially as people around her tend to wind up dead or in a serious amount of trouble, has arrived back in Glasgow.

One of Jamiesons organisation is executed after being lured to a flat and nobody has heard of the team behind the killing but they are very clear about the message it sends. A meeting is called and all the important members of the Jamieson Organisation are together as Lafferty one of the heads takes the lead and demands action quickly and that a message is sent in return.

As Colgon and Fisher are separately investigating the execution, one to find the killer and the other to find out who, what and why. The only problem is they need to find this new group that has arrived from Birmingham and committed the execution to first find out what they want and then put an end to their attack on the organisation.

Colgon realises soon enough this could be a race to the death if things are not handled correctly and he certainly does not want to see things blow up in his face. He also knows that his ex Zara attracts trouble like bees round a honey pot and would like to know what she is also doing back in Glasgow. Colgon might be the muscle but he soon realises that he will have to work out who to trust and will he be able to find that and survive.

Malcolm Mackay has written a gripping thriller and Every Night I Dream of Hell is what every reader enjoys starts at a blistering pace and keeps it up throughout the book. There are no wasted words, like Colgon every word is meant to convey the story and the harshness of the world they operate in. Mackay uses words like bullets from a snipe all carefully loaded and aimed to make sure they hit the target every time.

Every Night I Dream of Hell is a fantastic book that keeps the reader gripped from the beginning to the end, an enjoyable trip on to the dark heart of Glasgow.

[Mark · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was happy to see this book emerge, because it continues the story of Scottish mob enforcer Nate Colgan, a smart, pessimistic man involved in Glasgow's underworld. The first three books in the series, with one exception, were all cracking good reads, and this one is as well.

While there is a mystery component to this, what really makes Mackay's books stand out is the way his character describes the operations, shifting loyalties and nitty gritty details of the criminal life, with almost erudite expositions on how to be an enforcer in an effective, brutal way. It also shows how Nate struggles with retaining his humanity and trying to be a father to his young daughter without putting her in harm's way.

In this novel, Colgan's bosses have been jailed (the outcome of book No. 3), and there is a dangerous power vacuum in the crime gang. While everyone is ostensibly still following orders issued by crime boss Peter Jamieson from prison, three very different subleaders are all interested in exercising leadership in his absence.

Into this tense scene comes a small crew of criminals from Birmingham, and who has attached herself to them but Zara Cope, the mother of Colgan's child? The English gang begins by bumping off a low level drug dealer attached to a drug importer in Glasgow, who then calls a meeting of all the major criminals to decide how to retaliate. But who is actually paying the Birmingham group, and what is its ultimate goal? That provides the driving force of the plot, along with Colgan's growing reliance on a young protege, Ronnie, who he is trying to teach on each job, the way any professional mentor would.

The outcome is bleak but satisfying, and we can only hope Mackay will continue to write about this dyspeptic, smart and troubled man.

[Carrie Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm in awe of Malcolm Mackay: the huge cast of characters, the claustrophobic atmosphere, the way he makes his characters likeable enough to be human but not likeable enough to actually like. It's yet another superb Glasgow gangster story.

[AC · Rating 4 out of 5]

This follows on book 4, but can be read as a stand alone. It is good, but it has a flaw. Part of the book is written in the first person. A tough guy who is smart. He is a sociopath with a heart. And that contradiction does not quite convince. Still, a good read.

[Del · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my first Malcolm Mackay book - I should probably have started with the Glasgow trilogy, but I picked this up in a booksale at Hillhead library, so what the hell. It's a decent, if unspectacular, foray into the Glasgow underworld, and I thought, for the most part, it was pretty effective, and made a nice change from the Yank crime stuff I usually delve into.
There's not a great deal in the way of character development; Nate Colgan is a 'gangland enforcer' (I sound like I'm writing for the Daily Record) set to work out who is behind the assassination of a low level member of the Jamieson crime clan (there I go again). Nate's the only character we really find out anything about - even his nine-year-old daughter, who he repeatedly tells us is the only good thing in his life, gets only one short chapter, and about three lines. But Nate's a good narrator, and the story moves at a brisk enough pace so that you don't mind the other characters feeling a bit threadbare. I was expecting a bit more violence, but you can't have everything...

[Michael Martz · Rating 3 out of 5]

'Every Night I Dream of Hell', a relatively short yet complicated novel about a criminal enterprise in Glasgow, is about a 3.5 on my precision scale. It's docked a half-point for being so complicated that it requires an index of characters at the beginning (which I admittedly referred to constantly). Mackay seems to have a good handle on the inner workings of Glasgow's underworld and writes like Scotland's answer to Elmore Leonard, with sharp narrative and great dialogue, so the novel moves at a good clip.

Nate Colgan, the main character in ENIDOH, is who I'd normally call its 'hero' except for the fact that he's pretty much a stone-cold sociopath. He's a big, hard, enforcer for one of the city's crime 'families' who has just been promoted into the role of 'security consultant'. Many changes are afoot in the organization since its leader has been incarcerated and the org chart is evolving. That's the root of the problem here, as the vacuum created by the temporary vacancy at the top leaves several underlings vying for bigger (and the biggest) roles. One of the organization's top men is killed via a 'honey trap', Colgan is sent to investigate, and all hell breaks loose. Could it be that out-of-towners are now attempting a takeover? If anyone's going to find out it'll be Colgan.

I guess I'd never really speculated as to the many ways a vacancy at the top of a criminal enterprise can be addressed. I mentioned initially how complicated this novel is, and the manner by which the organization is managed creates a lot of that complexity. Comparable to a legitimate business, there are 'departments', sub-departments, specialists, department leaders, 2nd in commands, competitors, and so forth. In ENIDOH, all or most of those pieces are in motion, either trying to move into the role at the top by hook or crook (there is no honor among thieves, at least in this novel), or working to figure out who's behind crimes seemingly related to the enterprise. The key thread through it all is Colgan, whose efforts are impacted by the presence, somewhere in the mix, of his ex (the mother of his child), his assistant (a young guy he talked into taking the role), and a dogged detective (trying his best to keep a lid on the violence he expects to erupt). Numerous twists and turns are along the way and we finally are able to discern what the heck really happened in the previous 250 pages. I'd like to say the good guys win, but there really aren't any good guys around in this one.

If you're a fan of crime fiction, this is a good way to get into Mackay's work. He tells a good story in a very straightforward way, his main character is well crafted and his dialogue is sharp. Just as an aside.... I found it interesting to read how firearms are portrayed in this Scotland-based book. At one point, a police SWAT team is sent in, unarmed, to arrest subjects holed up in a house. Every crime family has a 'gunman', who seemingly is the only person in the group who routinely has access to a pistol, and fear of getting caught with a gun is a big deterrent. Violence definitely isn't lacking in ENIDOH and there is some gun play involved, but the difference between how guns are used by criminals and the police between here and the UK couldn't be more stark.

[Gloria Feit · Rating 4 out of 5]

From the publisher: Nate Colgan would be the first to admit that his violent reputation makes him very good at his job - and bad at everything else. After eighteen years spent working on the sidelines of Glasgow’s criminal underworld, there’s no question he’ll accept the central position that Peter Jamieson’s crime organization offers him, despite his better judgment. The organization isn’t as strong as it once was: its most powerful members are either dead or behind bars, including Jamieson himself, and the time is ripe for change. Change begins with an execution - - a message for Jamieson’s supporters - - which promptly sets the various factions within the organization against one another. Colgan’s position as “security consultant” means his duty is clear: identify the killer and find out who’s wiling to seize power at any cost - - even if it means igniting a war. Meanwhile, on the other side of the law, DI Michael Fisher conducts his own investigation into the murder. Both men can’t help but wonder: Why do these events coincide with the return of the mother of Colgan’s child, Zara Cope, a disreputable woman who seems to have an uncanny ability to attract trouble and troublemakers? A dark and thrilling crime drama, “Every Night I Dream of Hell” takes us deeper into a world of violence, fear, and double crosses.

Early on we meet Kevin Currie, a major part of “The Organization,” a “guy in his late forties getting slowly far and jowly.” Colgan, a member thereof since he was 18, is now replacing the man formerly Jamieson’s hitman, a line Colgan himself “had never crossed.” Actually and directly causing the death of another was against his principles, as odd as that may sound, as Colgan is and can be as brutal as necessary. An insomniac, Colgan thinks “the only world darker than the one I lived in was the one I slept in. . . I was always waking up growling at the darkness, scared of the things I was yet to do” He says of himself “I’m not an ugly man, a little weathered and starting to grey at the side of my dark hair, but not wholly unattractive and certainly well built. I’m smarter than most in this business, but not exactly a bundle of laughs.”

To call Colgan “morally complex,” as some readers have done, is an understatement. The novel is hard-boiled, filled with dark humor, and Colgan is a fascinating protagonist, if one wants to so characterize him. This is the fifth book written by Malcolm Mackay, the 2nd standalone after The Glasgow Trilogy, and is, as were the earlier ones, highly recommended.

Not to detract from that sentiment, it should perhaps be noted that there is a five-page long list of characters provided at the beginning of the novel, and that is a good thing, although I must admit I did not refer to it as often as I needed to – the plethora of characters at times [many!] making it difficult to keep them straight in my mind.

[Eric_W · Rating 4 out of 5]

Picked this up for $1 at Dollar Tree on a whim. I was not familiar with the author and thought I would give it a try. I was a bit intimidated by the five pages of character lists at the beginning and it took a bit to get into, but I was rewarded with a good story of Glaswegian bad guys and thugs. Told primarily from the perspective of Nate, one of the gang's "security consultants" (enforcer), the crime boss has been jailed and there is a power struggle going on.

I have no idea if MacKay writes from personal experience. I hope not, but I will move on to his Glasgow Trilogy which promises to be just as good.

[Nick Davies · Rating 3 out of 5]

Probably partly because this wasn't (on reflection) the book I wanted to be reading at the time I read it, this came over like a stylish but inferior addition to the series. Nasty people doing nasty shit to other nasty people, hard to keep track of who was who, hard to stay interested in the cast of bad man and vulnerable defeated women. For all the quality of the writing and depth provided to the characters, this never fully engaged me. It felt like a step too far for the series.

[Christopher Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am enjoying these books by Malcolm Mackay. Contemporary tartan noir with a realistic feel and some great characters. Set in Glasgow with rival gangs competing for territory and more. Only the second I have read but greatly impressed so far.

[Woody Chandler · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was a great, fast read with a plot that reminded me of J.J. Conolly's "Layer Cake" with loads of deviousness that included double- & triple crosses. It acts as the epilogue to Mackay's The Glasgow Underworld Trilogy, but do not despair if you have not read them. I haven't either, awaiting the first book to come in on interlibrary loan (ILL).

There are two factions at work, the usurpers up from Birmingham & the resident Glaswegians with Nate Colgan as the latter's enforcer & our narrator. The plot moves quickly and made for a quick read. I was riveted throughout & I am looking forward to reading his other novels.

[John McDonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Nate Colgan is a criminal whose job assignment within his criminal organization is to impress adversaries by his use of force, his violence, and his efficacy. He is thoughtful, but he is a wicked person by any standard and cannot escape just how wicked his occupation has made him. In his own mind, he tries to deploy reason to his life and at times he hates himself for what he does for a living. He is the father of a child whom he tries to be decent to, from a mother, Zara, who is, perhaps, more evil than he. What a future that kid has.

Nate is a member of a gang of Glaswegian thugs who traffic in drugs, engage in loansharking, and collect debts that got every one of those violent characters in the book banged up. He is a member, whether he realizes it or not, of a gang of monsters who hold what looks to me like board of directors meetings to decide who will get thumped next, whether it can be delivered efficiently, and the costs which emanate from it. This confirms that the tenants of governance from corporate capitalism to criminal enterprises is easily and naturally transferred. The problem in this novel is that Nate has been left out of a few of the "special meetings" that create the mystery in this story. Enough said.

This is a terrific book with one flaw: the ending flopped and created a contrived redemption of sorts for Nate. Nate, despite the ending, is a wicked man and probably doesn't have the will to try a legitimate line of work. Still, that was the only flaw I detected, and it only lasted for about 8 pages at the end. This book whetted my appetite for more by Malcolm Mackay, a vivid storyteller.

[Monique Snyman · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pan Macmillan SA sent me an advanced reader's copy of Every Night I Dream of Hell by Malcolm Mackay a while ago, and although I was reluctant to begin it (I have to be in the mood for crime novels), I was hooked from the get-go.

This intricate tale of mobsters and crime is beautifully written, and has an intriguing plot that'll keep crime junkies glued to their seats from beginning to end. The author has a unique voice, which works really well in this genre, and I'm interested to see what else Malcolm Mackay has to offer ...

What's more, the setting is a bit different to what I'm used to (yay, Scotland! *Googles where Glasgow is just to make sure* YAY! SCOTLAND!), which makes it one of my favourite crime reads this year - so far.

What I especially liked is the fact that I can't make up my mind whether I like any of the characters or not. This, my friends, is surprisingly refreshing. Then there's the terrifying bits that are truly terrifying, and the imagination, and ... you know what? Let me cut this short: Every Night I Dream of Hell a great freaking read, and if you enjoy crime novels you're going to devour this book whole.

Review originally posted at:

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Every Night I Dream of Hell by Malcolm Mackay is just that; a hell of a good book. I was unaware of the writer until recently and I am very happy that now know who he is. The book takes place in Glasgow, Scotland which makes the dialogue unique. Our hero, if you can call him that, is an enforcer for the organization A.K.A. the Mafia. His job is to beat the living hell out of anybody who crosses the organization. The book is full of crosses and double-crosses and at times you need the organization chart that is included, to tell who the players are. Every Night I Dream of Hell is involving and demands that the reader keep his eye on the ball. This crime tale is engrossing, contagious and wonderful. If you are looking for a book that is a little different than the average procedural, this is the one for you. I heartily recommend Every Night I Dream of Hell. Do yourself a favor, take a trip to Scotland and see how organized crime compares to the mafia in the United States. I think you'll find this book fascinating, educational as well as a tremendous amount of fun. Mr. Mackay has also written numerous other books, among the most well known the Glasgow trilogy which is on my To Be Read list as it should be on yours.

[Natalie M · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you’re in need of a dose of gangster/mobster carnage this will have you speeding through what at first seems a straight forward crime novel but turns into an in-depth and complex portrayal of life in the underbelly of society. Nate Colgan is an extremely complex character who provides an interesting perspective to a cold-hearted business. Set in Glasgow, Scotland there are more twists than you’d find in a curly fry but well-worth keeping track of the finer details. I didn’t realise it was the 5th in the series as it read very well as a stand-alone novel. Something a little different but certainly compelling.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

The plot in this one is so convoluted I still have no idea what just happened. Mackay does a good job of presenting Nate Colgan as a very complex and conflicted character. Beyond that, I didn't know who to root for and I wouldn't really care if they all perished horribly. (Except DI Fisher, of course.)

[Moirad · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very much in the same vein as his previous novels, with some of the same characters. Somehow, this protagonist left me cold, and there was little, if any, humour to leaven the mix. Lots of twists and turns, and fast-moving - a quick read.

[Missi Mar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb, Nate Is a dark soul but I want to know him. Sexy and very dangerous.

[Alex Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

The 5th book in the Glasgow Series by Malcolm Mackay and my favourite so far. As with the first 4 the writing is immaculate, superb stuff. Page turning,Brutal Violent stuff. This time around a character, hard man Nate Colgan from
the Glasgow trilogy is the main Protagonist. In the earlier 3 books Nate is a hard man who sorts problems for the organisation but other than knowing he is someone to fear there isn’t much about him. In this the character is really fleshed out and he’s a broken soul, a depressed man who is feared by all around him but you get a sense he doesn’t want to be but it’s his job. It’s what he does best it’s all he knows. I really took to him in this book. Certainly more than Callum in the first stories or the 2 young lads in book 4. This one is set after the first 3 book, without spoiling anything the head honchos of the crime organisation are now under lock and key but still just hanging on to power of their broke organisation. Enter a small gang from
Down south looking take over, that small gang is joined by Nate’s Ex and mother to his daughter, Zara Cope, they have a very fractured relationship and that’s made very abundant is this book. Nate’s job is as newly crowned ‘security consultant ‘ is to root this gang out and put a stop
To any take over smarting, but it quickly becomes apparent that all is not what it seems, is someone else in the organisation making a move? Who’s financing these young English players? It’s a great tale all
Woven together brilliantly and a great end aswell. I’m glad to see there is a book 6 which is another Nate Colgan tale, so that’s straight in order, I hope it’s not the last, great stuff and a brilliant start to my 2019 reading!

[Blurooferika · Rating 2 out of 5]

This Scottish thriller set in the Glaswegian criminal underworld is told all in the first person by the mob’s newly hired “security consultant,” 6’ 3”, 250-lb. hefty Nate Colson. Nate’s chief boss, Peter Jamieson, has been recently put in prison, and Kevin, his underling who normally handles the stolen goods wing of the business hires Nate to make sure things don’t get out of control while the organization is most vulnerable. Of course, this is exactly what happens when a group of drug thugs from Birmingham, led by Zara, Nate’s ex-lover and the mother of his daughter, kill one of those lower down on the corporate ladder. This narrative choice does much to heighten the sense of tension and the pacing of the novel, as well as make the reader sympathize with an otherwise typically unlovable character. The day-to-day movements of the main characters is very believable but the lack of detail means the novel could have been set anywhere. There is no Scots dialect, there are surprisingly few references to drugs and prostitution, two of their chief sources of revenue, and poorly-sketched detail about the whole cast of characters (who are so extensive the author has provided a handy Who’s Who at the beginning). This scarcity left an otherwise logical plot feeling a little empty. It was an enjoyable and compelling read but I don’t think I’ll be reading more by Mr. Mackay.

[Mary Beth Hustoles · Rating 5 out of 5]

We’ve been dwelling in the world of the antihero for quite some time now: you know, the good guy hiding under a bad guy exterior. This book takes that concept to an entirely new level. Nate Colgan is a “security consultant” for a Glasgow crime organization. Which means he is the muscle, the man called upon for back up, or to teach someone a lesson about debt and loyalty. Colgan doesn’t sleep well at night, and won’t commit to any personal relationships, except with his young daughter who lives with her grandparents. Colgan is hard at work trying to keep his company “safe”, but with his employer in jail, take-overs being launched from both inside and outside, and the mother of his daughter, trouble any day of the week, back in town, Colgan has his hands full. And then the betrayals start. Spare language, matter of fact in laying out the details of brutality, illuminates the commonality of inhumanity regardless of country of origin.

[J · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is almost like it's written in answer to my criticism of the previous. There is (for 85%ish) a first person narrator, but a few omniscient scenes to fill in gaps that our protagonist couldn't possibly know about. Nate Colgan, the muscle being moved toward shooter by events, is caught up in a power play between various factions holding down the fort in the Peter Jamieson crime syndicate from the Glasgow Trilogy. A nice quick tour through the various factions and that sets you up perfectly. It's mostly just Nate and his ex Zara, though some members of the organization are characters. So while it's technically far more a part of the trilogy than The Night the Rich Men Burned, those three had a very specific storyline that was being pursued across the novels. While this book ends open-ended, I don't know that there'll be a trilogy expanding out of it.

[Averil · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was on my list from years ago, based on a positive review in the New York Times. I enjoyed the tough-guy-but-with-feelings narrator, and the philosophical questions he raised about his job as a muscle/gun man for a Glasgow gang. However, even with the cast list at the front of the book, the characters and how they are connected was so complicated I got lost a number of times. I felt like I needed a string board like a detective to show how everyone was linked. For this reason, by the end of the book my care factor had diminished somewhat as I felt confused. It is a book that lends itself to a couple of long sittings rather than broken up over several days, to aid the mental picture of those connections.


Please shop at your local independent bookstore. Follow me at www.instagram.com/avrbookstuff for book reviews and www.instagram.com/averilrobertson_writer for writing updates.

[Joan · Rating 3 out of 5]

One of the most depressing books I have ever read. Nate is working for gangsters in Scotland. He has a daughter that he care for but has live with her mother's parents. The girl's mother, Zara is someone Nate works to keep away from his daughter. We Zara comes back to town, bad things start to happen. The boss of the gangsters is in jail. Others decide that they will take over the organization. Zara is trying to help them. Nate tells the reader how unhappy he is. He feels caught up in his world, but he could leave the criminal world if he wanted. He is considered muscle. Was not a compelling read.

[Rika Mead · Rating 4 out of 5]

If only this protagonist (cannot classify him a a hero) had gone into business, he could have run the world. Instead, he's the "smart muscle" for a Glaswegian mobster. Listening in on his thought process is as fascinating as it is repellent. I can easily see why his dreams are so horrible .... That said, I read all the way to the end - and it seemed to cue up for a sequel. If that happens, I'll read that, too. Nate Colgan is too compelling a character to lose track of.

[D · Rating 3 out of 5]

A crime novel set in Glasgow, Scotland. The main character is smart muscle working for a organized crime organization whose leader is in jail and who are under threat from a mysterious group from the south. The main character, a criminal who has his own rules, lives for his daughter and likes to see work down well feels like a cliché but the world the author sets up is so complete and convincing and the pacing so quick the novel is still an enjoyable distraction.

[David C Ward · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not very good. Too slow, too much explanation and too much explication of who is who. The motivation of the situation is never really clear and the plot put in place to solve that situation is much too complicated. The main character is a dupe and will obviously get fooled again. Also I have to say I'm never really convinced by British villains. Except for Dimmesdale Piranha.

[Tom · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best Mackay I've read so far. Enjoyed the "Glasgow Trilogy", but was not knocked out. Thought "The Night the Rich Men Burned" was OK but a bit of a step down. But this volume hit on all cylinders.
[Spoiler alert:] If you found the tough-guy character Nate Colgan (in earlier volumes) interesting, he's the protagonist here. I intend to track down the sequel ("For Those Who Know the Ending") ASAP.