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Killing Mum
"Guthrie writes with an urgency, energy, cynical realism and mastery of casual violence that is rarely encountered in British crime writing" -- The Times of London
"dark and splendid" -- The Guardian
*** a novella ***
Receiving the package hadn't been that much of a surprise. The fact that someone knew that Valerie Anderson was Carlos Morales's mother worried him. He was careful to hide that, never spoke to anyone about his private life. But what was deeply troubling was the fact that the letter had arrived addressed to Charlie. There were only two people who called him Maggie and his mother. He'd discussed the situation with Maggie and she'd agreed he had no choice. He had to ask his mum straight "Mama," he said. "Why would someone want you dead?"
Allan Guthrie is an award-winning Scottish crime writer. KILLING MUM is a novella.
"dark and splendid" -- The Guardian
*** a novella ***
Receiving the package hadn't been that much of a surprise. The fact that someone knew that Valerie Anderson was Carlos Morales's mother worried him. He was careful to hide that, never spoke to anyone about his private life. But what was deeply troubling was the fact that the letter had arrived addressed to Charlie. There were only two people who called him Maggie and his mother. He'd discussed the situation with Maggie and she'd agreed he had no choice. He had to ask his mum straight "Mama," he said. "Why would someone want you dead?"
Allan Guthrie is an award-winning Scottish crime writer. KILLING MUM is a novella.
96 pages, Kindle Edition
First published June 1, 2009
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180 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews
May 29, 2012
'Killing Mum' explores a rather unique domestic dynamic by which Carlos (aka Charlie) is offered a contract to murder his mother. Only two people know Carlos by this moniker - his mother and his wife. Now Carlos faces the daunting task of determining who is responsible for ordering the hit. As Carlos devises a plan to out the conspirator, he is forced to battle some very real demons on the quest for truth.
Guthrie always brings a lot of justifiable violence and relevant brutality to his fiction but in 'Killing Mum' he brings the added element of dark humour and a questionable state of mind to the lead character (think Goodis 'Nightfall'). The added dimension of delusion further enhances Carlos' plight while casting a shadow of uncertainty over the intentions driving the plot.
This is a hard and fast novella which is easily consumed in a single sitting. Guthrie does not waste a word in crafting a sharp and unforgiving tale of a man wronged by those he holds dear yet delivers it in a humorous and tongue-in-cheek manner. 4 stars.
Guthrie always brings a lot of justifiable violence and relevant brutality to his fiction but in 'Killing Mum' he brings the added element of dark humour and a questionable state of mind to the lead character (think Goodis 'Nightfall'). The added dimension of delusion further enhances Carlos' plight while casting a shadow of uncertainty over the intentions driving the plot.
This is a hard and fast novella which is easily consumed in a single sitting. Guthrie does not waste a word in crafting a sharp and unforgiving tale of a man wronged by those he holds dear yet delivers it in a humorous and tongue-in-cheek manner. 4 stars.
August 3, 2012
I previously read and enjoyed Two Way Split by this author so was quite looking forward to Killing Mum.
It's a novella and therefore a quick and easy read. It's a great premise, with interesting and original characterisation. The story quickly hooks you in and the dialogue is very well put together. So, you're now probably thinking why only two stars then? Well, the ending spoiled it for me. It was (I assume deliberately)totally unclear what happened to who, when and how. I have re-read the ending and still can't decide if I've worked it out. If you have, then fair enough, but I consider myself a reasonably intelligent person and this was a degree of ambiguity and uncertainty too far for me.
I like the writing style enough to try another of his books mind you.
It's a novella and therefore a quick and easy read. It's a great premise, with interesting and original characterisation. The story quickly hooks you in and the dialogue is very well put together. So, you're now probably thinking why only two stars then? Well, the ending spoiled it for me. It was (I assume deliberately)totally unclear what happened to who, when and how. I have re-read the ending and still can't decide if I've worked it out. If you have, then fair enough, but I consider myself a reasonably intelligent person and this was a degree of ambiguity and uncertainty too far for me.
I like the writing style enough to try another of his books mind you.
February 8, 2018
not much going for this work :(
May 21, 2021
Carlos arranges to kill people. His newest case is to kill his mother. His wife has something to do with it.
April 13, 2023
Killing Mum
Is this it? My apologies but there has to be more to it. It is not much of a read.
Is this it? My apologies but there has to be more to it. It is not much of a read.
May 12, 2024
Pretty bad. Even all the characters. I rate it 2 stars.
February 7, 2011
Killing Mum by Allan Guthrie
One Man's Opinion
Every day we make hundreds of decisions. Some of them are good, some bad, many of them inconsequential.
The day I passed Waterstones on Princes Street, saw the poster for the launch of Allan Guthrie’s first novel and decided to go in and get a ticket, now that was a day on which I made an excellent decision.
He read and held a Q&A session where he had written his own questions. “What might you call an armed thief? Robin.” Stands to reason. It was a cool way to set it up and I knew immediately that I was watching someone special enter the world of published novelists. I’ve been a fan ever since. Maybe I’m not his biggest fan, I’m only five-eight and a half, but I can’t be far off.
I was lucky, too, to get the chance to see the launch event for Hard Man. The reading was accompanied by a jazz band, a trio I think, the rhythms blending and getting my adrenalin going. Pop, pop, pop, it was beatnik city and I loved every minute.
At Ronnie Scotts, many moons ago, I saw Slim Gaillard play. Thought I was cool as snow just for being there because the man had a mention in On The Road. It was a great night. Hard Man reminded me of that, as if just for a moment I had my finger on the pulse.
Good decisions all.
So...
...what would you do if you were given a contract to kill your mum? What if the two people who could have set up the contract were your mum and your wife?
When Carlos Morales found himself in that position, he wasn’t sure quite how to handle it.
He knows now.
It’s typical of Guthrie to put his characters through the mincer.
Imagine being in a tree. Someone beneath is throwing stones at you. The stones get bigger, the throws more accurate.
Climb the tree, right? Move yourself away from the thrower by heading into the places where the branches are flimsy and all the while you’re getting further from the ground.
The stones keep on coming.
Climb higher?
You have to do something. Inaction is not an option.
Carlos climbs higher and higher until he’s right at the top. The branches are as thin as straws up there, the drop's a hundred metres. It’s not looking good. All he can do is wait and see.
All I could do as a reader was hold on tight and get to the end. That’s no hardship. Not a word is wasted. The characters are real, where they live and how makes sense. They tell us about themselves not in what they say but in what they do, how they act, the way they move from one decision to another.
We get inside Carlos's head. It’s not always a good place to be, but it’s a wonderful way to follow the man’s logic and the rationale behind his twists and turns.
And boy, does Guthrie throw those rocks hard.
I’m trying to slow down when I read his work. I’m desperate to take it all in, get to the next page, the next chapter, over the next cliff-hanger. I realised a while ago that when he reads his own words the pace is key, revelling in the dialogue and the choice of words. I was able to savour ‘Killing Mum’ by taking my time.
We’ve seen some of these people and places before. There’s the tanning studio and the survivor of Savage Night (if you haven’t read it, I think it’s pretty much essential). I like the way Guthrie has created stories by using the familiar, even if there is no way any of the books could be called sequels. He has set up strong foundations and it’s good to build upon them once in a while.
‘Killing Mum’ is a pocket book from the Crime Express series. I don’t think there can be more than 20, 000 words in there. In that short space and time a complete world has been set up and a monumental chain of events has been completed. An amazing achievement.
I’m picking this as a short example, not because it’s the strongest moment, but because it tickled me. He makes me laugh, Mr Guthrie.
She took a sip of her drink, blinked slowly.
“Plumbing,” she said. “It’s never too late.”
“Cago en tu leche.”
She frowned, pouted her lips. “Something about milk?”
Something about shitting in it but he wasn’t about to tell her that.
“I’m very fucking sorry I never became a plumber, Mama.”
As few ‘saids’ as can be got away with, no ‘ands’ wherever they aren't necessary. Even the word 'and' can interrupt the flow.
We learn, even from this, something of the relationship between Carlos and his mum and the shitting in the coffee? No way I was expecting that.
The only thing I can say against the book is that it leaves me with no new Guthrie to read until he gets his next work on the shelves. I can honestly say that I can’t wait to be able to get my hands on it.
Outstanding.
One Man's Opinion
Every day we make hundreds of decisions. Some of them are good, some bad, many of them inconsequential.
The day I passed Waterstones on Princes Street, saw the poster for the launch of Allan Guthrie’s first novel and decided to go in and get a ticket, now that was a day on which I made an excellent decision.
He read and held a Q&A session where he had written his own questions. “What might you call an armed thief? Robin.” Stands to reason. It was a cool way to set it up and I knew immediately that I was watching someone special enter the world of published novelists. I’ve been a fan ever since. Maybe I’m not his biggest fan, I’m only five-eight and a half, but I can’t be far off.
I was lucky, too, to get the chance to see the launch event for Hard Man. The reading was accompanied by a jazz band, a trio I think, the rhythms blending and getting my adrenalin going. Pop, pop, pop, it was beatnik city and I loved every minute.
At Ronnie Scotts, many moons ago, I saw Slim Gaillard play. Thought I was cool as snow just for being there because the man had a mention in On The Road. It was a great night. Hard Man reminded me of that, as if just for a moment I had my finger on the pulse.
Good decisions all.
So...
...what would you do if you were given a contract to kill your mum? What if the two people who could have set up the contract were your mum and your wife?
When Carlos Morales found himself in that position, he wasn’t sure quite how to handle it.
He knows now.
It’s typical of Guthrie to put his characters through the mincer.
Imagine being in a tree. Someone beneath is throwing stones at you. The stones get bigger, the throws more accurate.
Climb the tree, right? Move yourself away from the thrower by heading into the places where the branches are flimsy and all the while you’re getting further from the ground.
The stones keep on coming.
Climb higher?
You have to do something. Inaction is not an option.
Carlos climbs higher and higher until he’s right at the top. The branches are as thin as straws up there, the drop's a hundred metres. It’s not looking good. All he can do is wait and see.
All I could do as a reader was hold on tight and get to the end. That’s no hardship. Not a word is wasted. The characters are real, where they live and how makes sense. They tell us about themselves not in what they say but in what they do, how they act, the way they move from one decision to another.
We get inside Carlos's head. It’s not always a good place to be, but it’s a wonderful way to follow the man’s logic and the rationale behind his twists and turns.
And boy, does Guthrie throw those rocks hard.
I’m trying to slow down when I read his work. I’m desperate to take it all in, get to the next page, the next chapter, over the next cliff-hanger. I realised a while ago that when he reads his own words the pace is key, revelling in the dialogue and the choice of words. I was able to savour ‘Killing Mum’ by taking my time.
We’ve seen some of these people and places before. There’s the tanning studio and the survivor of Savage Night (if you haven’t read it, I think it’s pretty much essential). I like the way Guthrie has created stories by using the familiar, even if there is no way any of the books could be called sequels. He has set up strong foundations and it’s good to build upon them once in a while.
‘Killing Mum’ is a pocket book from the Crime Express series. I don’t think there can be more than 20, 000 words in there. In that short space and time a complete world has been set up and a monumental chain of events has been completed. An amazing achievement.
I’m picking this as a short example, not because it’s the strongest moment, but because it tickled me. He makes me laugh, Mr Guthrie.
She took a sip of her drink, blinked slowly.
“Plumbing,” she said. “It’s never too late.”
“Cago en tu leche.”
She frowned, pouted her lips. “Something about milk?”
Something about shitting in it but he wasn’t about to tell her that.
“I’m very fucking sorry I never became a plumber, Mama.”
As few ‘saids’ as can be got away with, no ‘ands’ wherever they aren't necessary. Even the word 'and' can interrupt the flow.
We learn, even from this, something of the relationship between Carlos and his mum and the shitting in the coffee? No way I was expecting that.
The only thing I can say against the book is that it leaves me with no new Guthrie to read until he gets his next work on the shelves. I can honestly say that I can’t wait to be able to get my hands on it.
Outstanding.
June 18, 2022
I liked the book, I was quite enjoying the story but I was disappointed at the ending even though I presume it was deliberately left uncertain and cloudy due to the main protagonists declining state of mind towards the end of the book, but I prefer loose ends to be tied up in some sort of way, otherwise I may as well have stopped reading halfway through. The end result would have been the same.
April 7, 2011
If you want to try a little yummy, bite sized treat by Allan Guthrie, then you can't go wrong with KILLING MUM. This little gem of a book, just the right size to slip into your handbag or pocket for a quick read on that train ride to work. It's part of a Crime Express series and that's exactly what it is; a fast fix of guns, blood and fire that you can gobble up in less than an hour.
Don't be fooled however; this cute little book is packed full of Guthrie's usual mix of violence, black humour and grim urban living. He packs so much into such a short space and you'll find yourself wanting to read over passages again, convinced that you've missed some important details.
This is no simple little story either. It swoops and flows, rises and flips like a shoal of silver fish trying to escape the open jaws of a hungry shark. Carlos, the main character, is a middle man who will organise a hit if you need someone bumped off in a hurry. All is going well for his 'business' until one day he receives a package containing £10000 and instructions to get rid of a woman who lives on her own and hits the bottle too much. Unfortunately, this woman is his mother.
In his bid to work out who is behind this request, Carlos slides down a gut wrenching helter skelter ride of brutal stupidity.
Guthrie is never satisfied with just the telling of the tale. In Killing Mum, he challenges the reader to tease out what is real and what is only happening in his character's disintegrating mind. Who is real in the story? Who does the killing? Who did want his mum dead?
Read the book and work it out for yourself and I can guarantee you'll have fun.
Don't be fooled however; this cute little book is packed full of Guthrie's usual mix of violence, black humour and grim urban living. He packs so much into such a short space and you'll find yourself wanting to read over passages again, convinced that you've missed some important details.
This is no simple little story either. It swoops and flows, rises and flips like a shoal of silver fish trying to escape the open jaws of a hungry shark. Carlos, the main character, is a middle man who will organise a hit if you need someone bumped off in a hurry. All is going well for his 'business' until one day he receives a package containing £10000 and instructions to get rid of a woman who lives on her own and hits the bottle too much. Unfortunately, this woman is his mother.
In his bid to work out who is behind this request, Carlos slides down a gut wrenching helter skelter ride of brutal stupidity.
Guthrie is never satisfied with just the telling of the tale. In Killing Mum, he challenges the reader to tease out what is real and what is only happening in his character's disintegrating mind. Who is real in the story? Who does the killing? Who did want his mum dead?
Read the book and work it out for yourself and I can guarantee you'll have fun.
September 16, 2011
Set in Edinburgh this novella is short on length, but big on hits - quite literally. The story zips along like all good fiction should do, propelled by dialogue which is generally sharp and frequently witty. From the opening page, the reader is thrown right into the murky, slightly surreal world of Carlos, a burnt-out hitman who's in for one hell of a long night. I don't want to say too much for fear of spoiling the plot, but there are a couple of memorably brutal scenes, and the ending even managed to raise a spark of sympathy for Carlos - no mean feat considering what preceeded it. The characters are vividly drawn, although, other than Carlos, perhaps a little lacking in emotional depth. But then this story is all about the plot, and that builds to a satisfyingly bloody, blackly comic, almost Hitchcockian (think Norman Bates) climax. All in all then, definitely worth a look if you fancy a quick hit of action-packed Tartan Noir.
Read
February 9, 2011Great idea for a story, when a hit-man is hired to kill his own mother, and for a very high fee - more to come when the job is done. But in Guthrie's world nothing is ever quite what it seems, and he's very skilled at making you think one thing, then another, before pulling the rug from under you.
He's a very good writer of dialogue, and most of the book is progressed through dialogue. There's one long scene where a body is being disposed of which made me think of what Alfred Hitchcock once said - that it's a messy and hard business, getting rid of a dead body, and nothing at all like they do it in the movies. This novella sure shows that! If you like Ian Rankin then give this other Scottish writer a try, especially as he's making his work available cheaply on the Kindle.
He's a very good writer of dialogue, and most of the book is progressed through dialogue. There's one long scene where a body is being disposed of which made me think of what Alfred Hitchcock once said - that it's a messy and hard business, getting rid of a dead body, and nothing at all like they do it in the movies. This novella sure shows that! If you like Ian Rankin then give this other Scottish writer a try, especially as he's making his work available cheaply on the Kindle.
February 23, 2014
Carlos Morales is not a killer. He's just an intermediary. He makes arrangements for someone else to do the killing.
One day he receives a note together with a bundle of cash for such a job, but he is shocked. The note is addressed to 'Charlie' giving instructions to eliminate Valerie Anderson. Now only his wife and mum call him Charlie and Valerie Anderson is his mother! Is this a sick joke? Who wants his mother dead?
This is a short story that starts off in a very interesting and promising way, but which unfortunately gets increasingly confusing as it progresses. By the end I could not understand what was happening. The ending was disappointing and just made no sense at all.
One day he receives a note together with a bundle of cash for such a job, but he is shocked. The note is addressed to 'Charlie' giving instructions to eliminate Valerie Anderson. Now only his wife and mum call him Charlie and Valerie Anderson is his mother! Is this a sick joke? Who wants his mother dead?
This is a short story that starts off in a very interesting and promising way, but which unfortunately gets increasingly confusing as it progresses. By the end I could not understand what was happening. The ending was disappointing and just made no sense at all.
December 27, 2013
A quick black humor read from Alan Guthrie. Imagine you broker hits for a living, and you get some aanonymous big big money to knock off your own mother. That's what happens to our hero Carlos (Charlie) Morales. Granted Mum's not exactly a nice person, but...And who's hired him to arrange for her exit? It can only be two people--Charlie's wife Maggie (who knows how he makes his living) and his mother (who as far as we know doesn't know). Murder by wife or suicide by Charlie? What's a guy to do? Lots of good dialogue character development,m and twists with an ambiguous ending. I won't give it away.
June 10, 2015
I listened to the Clipper Audio version of this book.
I picked this at random in the library because it has good reviews from The Guardian and The Times on the jacket, and I did really like it until I got to the end. The characterisations are good, and you find yourself intrigued with who has hired Carlos to kill his mum.
But the ending is so ambiguous, it leaves everything up in the air, and to some extent, I was a bit unsure about what had really happened. I decided that everyone was dead and Carlos has had a psychotic break, but really this book needs a final chapter adding to finish it off properly, in my opinion.
I picked this at random in the library because it has good reviews from The Guardian and The Times on the jacket, and I did really like it until I got to the end. The characterisations are good, and you find yourself intrigued with who has hired Carlos to kill his mum.
But the ending is so ambiguous, it leaves everything up in the air, and to some extent, I was a bit unsure about what had really happened. I decided that everyone was dead and Carlos has had a psychotic break, but really this book needs a final chapter adding to finish it off properly, in my opinion.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 28, 2009
I've really enjoyed Guthrie's previous books so I was looking forward to this novella (one of a series by Crime Express). Killing Mum is a slight work though. It's well written with some wonderful characters and dialogue, but the plot seems a little off. When finished, I was not sure exactly what had happened and why, although the disintergration of the main character is very believable. If you like Guthrie, you'll probably enjoy this while waiting for the next full length work.
February 11, 2014
This mystery had a great storyline and kept me wondering how it would play out. There were only two people who called him Charlie and one of them just put out a hit on Charlie's mother. Problem is one of them is his wife and the other, his own mother. Now it's up to him to find out who.
While it kept me in suspense, it was confusing. With quotation marks used only about half of the time, it was difficult to know who was speaking. Also the ending was confusing. Was Carlos dreaming or what?
While it kept me in suspense, it was confusing. With quotation marks used only about half of the time, it was difficult to know who was speaking. Also the ending was confusing. Was Carlos dreaming or what?
February 18, 2010
Killing Mum immediately sucks you in with a dark, calculating main character that nonchalantly embraces his life as an assassins' agent. A quick novella that you won't be able to put down.
The Kindle version seems to have a few errors that are periodically annoying. Hopefully they will be fixed in a revised version.
The Kindle version seems to have a few errors that are periodically annoying. Hopefully they will be fixed in a revised version.
March 22, 2011
This novella grabs you from the very first sentence. What would you do if you knew someone wanted your Mother dead?
A fast and pacy exploration of trust. Lots of plot twists to keep your attention. A gritty and deliciously dark novella. I highly recommend this. A must read for the lover of crime fiction!
A fast and pacy exploration of trust. Lots of plot twists to keep your attention. A gritty and deliciously dark novella. I highly recommend this. A must read for the lover of crime fiction!
December 23, 2013
Carlos has a problem, someone has paid him £10k to arrange a hit - on his mother. Only two people know Carlos' true identity and his real job, his mother and his wife, so who set up the job?
In this clever psychological thriller Guthrie takes the reader through a series of tighter story arcs. It's very well written, immediately engaging and smart. Well worth a read.
In this clever psychological thriller Guthrie takes the reader through a series of tighter story arcs. It's very well written, immediately engaging and smart. Well worth a read.
July 9, 2014
The writing was good. I enjoyed the plot. I have no idea what really happened with the ending. Honestly, I have no idea how this book ended and who was dead and who wasn't. Loved it up til the last couple of pages. Unfortunately the ending ruined my rating.I can't really like I book I don't understand, or can I?
May 13, 2011
Interesting ... but strange. What happens to a hit man when he receives a contract on his mum? And it is addressed to him in a name that only his mother and his wife use... and by the way, they hate each other.
This was.my first Guthrie but I think not.my last.
This was.my first Guthrie but I think not.my last.
February 1, 2013
Having read some of the other reviews for this book, I think I may have started in the wrong place with this author. Maybe if I'd have read some of his novels first, this novella would have made more sense. As it is, I'm left here thinking "Eh?"....
Read
January 31, 2014Good read
it was really interesting but just different from crime novels, also intriguing only thing I didn't like was the way it ended not knowing who really wanted the mother dead
it was really interesting but just different from crime novels, also intriguing only thing I didn't like was the way it ended not knowing who really wanted the mother dead
July 10, 2014
Quirky little novella. On my list of mysteries set in Scotland. Made me laugh. Protagonist is a killer for higher with a boozing Mother. Everything gets mixed up, and frankly, you don't know what's what.
February 24, 2016
I was really getting into this novella and was enjoying it, but for me the ending was let down. I have no idea what happened to who, or who the person was who paid for the killing to take place. I was hoping to have all the answers when I got to the end, but it has just left me confused!
December 22, 2016
This one was a bit short for me. Still, a nice story from a man who rarely disappoints. Carlos wants to find out who wants his Mum dead. Not to many twists and turns in this one. The characters are nice and seedy. The end could of been a shade better.
February 11, 2011
Entertaining and a quick read, even for a novella. Sharp dialog and some interesting plot twists. Reminded me of some of the short work by Lawrence Block.
January 1, 2012
Strange little book, took me about an hour to read, quite enjoyable though.
April 12, 2012
good idea, lots going on,always guessing who set it all up... just not that brilliant a read
Displaying 1 - 30 of 39 reviews