February's Son

by Alan Parks

Overview

Finalist for the Edgar Award: “McCoy is so noir he makes most other Scottish cops seem light grey.” —The Times

An up-and-coming footballer has met an untimely end—and in a spectacularly gruesome fashion, topped off with the words Bye Bye carved into his chest. Harry McCoy knows this kind of violence indicates a personal, passionate motive, and since the footballer’s future father-in-law is a notorious local gangster, that’s where Harry starts his investigation. The case will take him into the seamy, drug-drenched underworld of 1970s Glasgow, and into his own dark childhood memories, in this intense crime thriller from Alan Parks, considered in “the top class of Scottish noir authors” (The Times).

“Dissects a city where cops and crooks depend on one another to maintain order.” —The Wall Street Journal

“Riveting . . . The macabre and morally ambivalent February’s Son is not one that will be quickly or easily forgotten.” —The National

“McCoy's Glasgow is a dark, brooding city, where the line between the police and the underworld is frequently blurred.” —Herald

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781609454951
Publisher:	Europa Editions, Incorporated
Publication date:	03/23/2021
Series:	The Harry McCoy Thrillers , #2
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	351
Sales rank:	144,044
File size:	2 MB

About the Author

Alan Parks worked in the music industry for over twenty years before becoming a full-time writer. His debut novel Bloody January was one of the top crime debuts of 2018 and was shortlisted for the prestigious international crime prize the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière. February’s Son, book two in the series, was a finalist for a Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award. Parks lives and works in Glasgow.

Alan Parks worked in the music industry for over twenty years before becoming a full-time writer. His debut novel Bloody January was one of the top crime debuts of 2018 and was shortlisted for the prestigious international crime prize the Grand Prix de Littérature Policière. February’s Son, book two in the series, was a finalist for a Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award. Parks lives and works in Glasgow.

Editorial Reviews

12/24/2018

Set in Glasgow in 1973, Parks’s serviceable sequel to 2018’s Bloody January finds morally conflicted Det. Harry McCoy back on duty after having been declared psychologically fit for his part in pushing a man off a roof to his death. His ability to stomach gruesome crime scenes is tested immediately when he’s called to the scene of the horrific murder of celebrity footballer Charlie Jackson. Jackson was found shot, with one eye removed, his severed penis stuffed into his mouth, and the words BYE BYE carved into his chest. The sports star was engaged to Elaine Scobie, whose father, Jake, is a powerful local gangster. The nature of the mutilations suggests a personal motive, and McCoy pursues the theory that Jake ordered that Jackson be butchered for cheating on his daughter. That angle leads to a hunt for Jake’s main hit man, Kevin Connolly. A chance discovery reawakens a childhood trauma for McCoy, which complicates the murder inquiry. While the streets of Parks’s Glasgow are certainly mean, he offers little that hard-boiled fans haven’t seen before. Agent: Tom Witcomb, Blake Friedmann Literary (U.K.). (Feb.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Bloody January

“Alan Parks’s grisly debut novel, Bloody January, is also set in Glasgow—in the first month of 1973. Though snow is blanketing the streets, it can’t hide the corruption in a city where cops and criminals are often forced to keep each other’s secrets.”—Wall Street Journal

“Bloody January has all the gritty bells and whistles expected of noir, but at the same time its main character, Detective Harry McCoy of the Glasgow Police Force, grapples with the contradictions of morality on a multitude of levels.” —LA Review of Books

“Told over the course of 20 days, Bloody January never flags in pace. Bundled with a myriad of personal flaws, Harry McCoy is an immediately compelling new character. His quest for justice (and a little measure of revenge), despite the personal cost to himself, makes for an irresistible read.”—Mystery Scene

"Rich with local details and historical anecdotes from 1970s, this is a top-notch crime fiction with high likelihood of becoming part of an exciting series in the coming years.”—Mystery Tribune

“...really tight writing, gripping and violent, dark and satisfying.”—Bret Easton Ellis, author of American Psycho and Less Than Zero

“Parks’ debut novel has an in-your-face immediacy that matches its protagonist. Compelling portraits of minor characters tucked into several scenes add texture and interest.” —Kirkus Reviews

“[A] suitably dark and violent debut novel that resurrects the tartan noir phenomenon.”—Library Journal

“An old-school cop novel written with wit and economy…Think McIlvanney or Get Carter.”—Ian Rankin, author of The Inspector Rebus series

“Tautly woven...A worthy addition to the tartan noir canon, McCoy is a flawed hero to watch, as is his creator.”—Publishers Weekly

“For noir connoisseurs, this will hit the spot.”—Booklist

“A thrilling debut from a very promising talent.”—Ragnar Jónasson, author of The Dark Iceland series

“Set in 1970s Glasgow where violence is a language everyone speaks, Bloody January is a deliciously dark read. One to be read with the lights on and the doors locked, this book is a must-have for lovers of McIlvanney and all things noir.” —Lesley Kelly, author of A Fine House in Trinity

“An authentic freefall through Glasgow’s criminal underworld from a great, intriguing new Scottish voice.” —Jenni Fagan, author of The Panopticon

“Bloody January is seriously good. It’s brilliantly evocative of the 1970s in Glasgow (and I should know as I was there!). I loved Alan Parks’ characters and I want to read a lot more of Detective Harry McCoy please!” —Alex Gray, author of the Detective Lorimer Series

“A brilliant debut. Taut, violent and as close as you’ll get to 1970s Glasgow without a TARDIS. Parks is a natural successor to William McIIvanney.” —John Niven, author of Kill Your Friends

“A blistering plot, unforgettable characters and writing so sharp it’s like it’s been written with a knife: what more could you ask? Detective McCoy is a true noir antihero and the perfect guide through the vice and violence of Glasgow’s underbelly. Bloody January firmly sets Alan Parks in the same league as Ian Rankin and Louise Welsh.” —Sarah Pinborough, bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes

“Bloody and brilliant. This smasher from Alan Parks is a reminder of how dark Glasgow used to be.” —Louise Welsh, author of The Cutting Room Floor

“A barnstormer of a crime novel that takes the police procedural and gives it a well-deserved shake. Detective Harry McCoy digs under the surface of 70s Glasgow in all its contradictory glory. Bloody January is relentless readable and so well written I couldn’t believe it was a debut.” —Russell McLean, author of The Good Son

“Parks continues to bring us hard-boiled fiction set in Glasgow in the 1970s, a town and setting that should get the noir fan sitting up straight in anticipation of some of the most brutal and beautiful prose around.”—CrimeReads

“Imbued with all the grit, blood, and pervasive damp of the best Celtic crime, this series is destined to become a favorite among Adrian McKinty’s and Denise Mina’s followers.”—Booklist

“‘February’s Son’ startles readers with surprises as its story strands pull together. As in his previous book, Mr. Parks dissects a city where cops and crooks depend on one another to maintain order.”—The Wall Street Journal

From the Publisher