#Review of Bloody Scotland Panel – Watching the Detectives featuring Alex Grey, Neil Lancaster, John Sutherland, Graeme Macrae Burnet @BloodyScotland @neillancaster66 @GMacraeBurnet #AlexGray @policecommander @HQstories @OrionBooks #BloodyScotland #CrimeFiction

Watching the Detectives
Featuring Alex Grey, Neil Lancaster, John Sutherland, Graeme Macrae

Crime in the Spotlight debut novelist before the main event was Reme Kone who has previously worked on producing Killing Eve, Lewis and more… The book sounded mysteriously dark and gripping.

The main event

This was an insightful talk into the minds of crime writers, viewers and readers of crime fiction, hostage negotiation situations, forensics and the human condition.

The authors were compelling to listen to and chose interesting slants about how they approached the topics they wanted to speak about.

The authors talked about people fascinating them and celebrating scenic locations such as The Highlands of Scotland. You could just imagine them drawing upon experiences and people watching, taking everything in for their next books, including the darkness of humans, such as incels, having to negotiate hostage situations and more…

They mentioned how now, people think they are experts in the field of crime. Now, most of these authors have worked in this field, such as in the police. Now, and you see it when people watch or read detective novels, people assume they’re experts because they read everything that they deem to be true. There is a great deal of detail and truth, but as previous people have mentioned, such as Sue Black, not all the details go into a book as it is also there for entertainment. I thought this an incredibly important point they made, perhaps to have people re-assess their position when they are reading or watching crime dramas unfold.

They dug around the reasons for such a thirst for crime fiction at the moment and it isn’t all because we are a blood-thirsty society. We like to explore the human condition, dig beneath the surface into the psychological make-up of a person, they observed. Characters are pushed to extremes and unlike in real life, when an end result could take years, it’s done all in one or a few sittings, so a lot faster for a resolution.

Each have books newly published and a book in the pipeline…

#Review by Lou of Murderous Media. A Bloody Scotland Panel featuring Jeremy Vine and Steph McGovern @theJeremyVine @StephLunch @BloodyScotland #Deadline #MurderOnLineOne #BloodyScotland

Murderous Media
Jeremy Vine and Steph McGovern

Review by Louise Cannon

Jeremy Vine is someone who lots of us have listened to on the radio on BBC Radio 2 over many years. I practically grew up listening to Ken Bruce’s Popmaster, a bit of music and then Jeremy Vine, even when young on the radio on long car journeys to a UK holiday destination. He truly likes Agatha Christie.

Steph McGovern is known for doing some of the financial news on BBC Breakfast, who knew someone could actually make that watchable?! She has also done Steph’s Packed Lunch and has something else lined-up.

They are both highly entertaining and joyous on a panel together.

Both have debut novels published and have another on the way. These ones are set where they know, but in the case of Steph, she informed that she will be moving away a bit from the tv studio world in her second…

Jeremy’s is Murder on Line One and takes place at places where the radio listeners are tuning in… It sounds mysterious and entertaining. I’ll review in due course.

Steph McGovern’s is set on a tv set when the earpiece gets hacked and turns out there is an abduction… It sounds intriguingly immersive and I will review in due course…

The talk was illuminating and very entertaining. The insight behind the scenes, that they can carefully fictionalise through their experiences and what they’ve seen sounds interesting. They have terrific anecdotes about workplaces, Trump, Archer and more… They also talked about fiction being freedom from fact-checking to the same intensity and discipline you need to for the news, but there were some details they did check to ensure they were giving their readers correct information. They also gave insight into the beginnings of their careers and in Steph’s case, also the construction industry and the fact she dispelled the myth of needing a “BBC accent” to be on the telly.

They talked about their authentic selves and how they felt they needed to be their authentic selves on both the page and on-screen. What I often find interesting is that people who act or present, look confident, perhaps even a bit loud in that role, but in real life can be quite shy, something I have witnessed from some people I’ve had the privilege of meeting too. I think it gives hope for people and shows courage to be so exposed even when naturally shy and to be that honest with a room full of people too.

If you ever get the chance to see Jeremy Vine and Steph McGovern do a talk, I highly recommend it.

#BloodyScotland News #CrimeFiction #TrueCrime #Bookfest

BLOODY SCOTLAND INTERNATIONAL CRIME FESTIVAL KICKED OFF WITH THE PRIZE ANNOUNCEMENTS, A DAY OF THE DEID PARADE LED BY AN EFFIGY OF SIR IAN RANKIN AND THE BIG REVEAL OF THE MYSTERY CRIME WRITER

The winner of the McIlvanney Prize was revealed – in the ballroom with a giant crystal glass – to be Tariq Ashkanani with The Midnight King. It was presented to him on stage on the opening night of the Bloody Scotland International Crime Writing Festival by the winner of the 2024 McIlvanney Prize, Chris Brookmyre. Tariq, a solicitor from Edinburgh, appeared as a support act for Ian Rankin in Crime in the Spotlight at the 2021 festival and went on to win the Bloody Debut Prize in 2022. The McIlvanney Prize win brings the process of nurturing authors at Bloody Scotland full circle.

The judges who included broadcaster, Nicola Meighan, journalist and writer Arusa Qureshi and crime reviewer Gordon McGhie said:

“Tariq Ashkanani manages to create an atmosphere of dread while uniquely exploring the theme of nature vs nurture…When we speak about thrillers being page turners (this) should be used an example of how it should be done”

The winner of the 2025 Bloody Scotland Debut Prize was revealed to be David Goodman with A Reluctant Spy (Headline). Like Tariq he was previously selected for Crime in the Spotlight. He appeared as a support act for thriller writer Frank Gardner at Bloody Scotland last year. This year it is he who takes centre stage. He also won the inaugural Theakston Old Peculier McDermid Debut Award in July. He lives in East Lothian with his family.

The 2025 prize was judged by crime writer and Bloody Scotland founder, Alex Gray; broadcaster Bryan Burnett and Kenny Tweeddale from The Glencairn Glass. They said:

‘Everything about this feels authentic. In fact, the only thing that’s not believable is that this could be a debut novel.’
Kirsty Nicholson, Design and Marketing Manager at the awards sponsor Glencairn Crystal, said:

‘A huge congratulations to Tariq Ashkanani on winning the McIlvanney Prize with his page-turning thriller The Midnight King, and to David Goodman on receiving the Debut Prize for his gripping first novel A Reluctant Spy. Being a Scottish family company, we are proud to sponsor these distinguished annual awards with the Glencairn Glass, the official glass for whisky – both of which are deeply rooted in Scotland. It is an honour to help celebrate and shine a spotlight on such exceptional authors in the wonderful world of crime fiction.’

The prize giving was followed by the inaugural Bloody Scotland Day of the Deid procession with actors and local pipeband in full make up led by the two winners and an effigy of Sir Ian Rankin. It concluded at the Albert Halls where the ‘mystery authors’ behind Evelyn Clarke’s, The Ending Writes Itself, (HQ, 7 April 2026) were finally revealed to be #1 Sunday Times bestselling author, V.E. Schwab and longtime friend and screenwriter Cat Clarke. V.E. Schwab is best known for The Invisible Life of Addie LaRue and Bury Our Bones. HarperCollins acquired rights in a nine publisher auction and will be publishing simultaneously in the US and Australia.

Highlights on Saturday included Mick Herron (author behind TV series Slow Horses), broadcasters Steph McGovern, Jeremy Vine and The Reverend Richard Coles, bestselling writer Kate Atkinson, actor Richard Armitage and superstar of American crime fiction Kathy Reichs. The day concluded with a Bloody Scotland take on Crime Family Fortunes and the sold-out Karaoke at the Coo where famous authors took to the mic.

#Review by Lou of Dark Islands featuring Morag Pringle, Ronnie Turner, Chris Barkley @BloodyScotland #BloodyScotland #CrimeFiction #psychologicalthriller @ronnie__turner @TufferBarkley #MoragPringle @PolygonBooks @OrendaBooks #ReadingCommunity

Bloody Scotland Panel – Dark Islands
Featuring Morag Pringle, Ronnie Turner, Chris Barkley

review written by Louise Cannon

Morag Pringle’s book is The Final Truth. She used to write medical romances for Mills & Boon, which appears of higher quality writing than perhaps some readers give credit to. She mentioned about the high standards and high quality that has to be adhered to and met, which in-turn honed her skills.

Ronnie Turner’s book is Small Fires she is interested in folk lore, fairytales, nature vs nurture, identity, beauty, psychology. Now, this sounds an intriguing, yet winning combination to explore.

Chris Barkley talked of Man at the End of the Stair being a metaphysical, locked room mystery.

I read and reviewed this book and it is thought-provoking with strong themes and exceedingly atmospheric. It pulls you in with its ability to intrigue and its intensity.

They drew you into their talk of their islands, creating a sense of dark, moody atmosphere as they talked of losing phone signals, creating a claustrophobic feeling. Folklore and myth being woven together like a tapestry. Ronnie was especially interested in this and in-turn made you enter that world.

Chris Barkley brings up many thought-provoking points, such as an island being a psychological symbol.
They all mentioned how trauma and guilt is a journey. You could tell, they really examined these traits of the human condition and the what happened to a person to cause trauma.

Their books aren’t all heavy, they explained how there is a sweet innocence thread through them to lighten the themes and reading experience up a bit.

The talk was really fascinating, especially at the beginning and the middle. Some of the talk of writing experiences was interesting too, but it did feel like it lingered there a little too long, when the interest was that feeling of being or actually being on an island.

#Review by Lou of Bloody Scotland Panel – A Puzzle of Rebuses featuring Sir Ian Rankin, James MacPherson and Gray O’Brien @Beathhigh #JamesMacpherson @realgrayobrien #Rebus #BloodyScotland @BloodyScotland

A Puzzle of Rebuses

Featuring Sir Ian Rankin, James MacPherson and Gray O’Brien

review by Louise Cannon
Bookmarks and Stages

Three incarnations of Rebus presented themselves on stage in an outstanding, fascinating talk about that famous detective, created by Sir Ian Rankin. In the mix, James Macpherson created the audio version and Gray O’Brian played Rebus on stage in A Game Called Malice.

There were many insights, I certainly hadn’t really considered before, such as the grey, sometimes controversial themes of football teams were brought up in a humorous manner, as to whether Rebus is a supporter of Hibs or Hearts, both highly rival teams.
Ian Rankin also talked about prisons and colour coded clothing systems when they are out and about. Possibly only something you would know if you work in the service or an author doing research.

Each author talked about how they bring Rebus to screen, picture him, act him, play a little around with scripts, bringing something earlier than perhaps later, to hit a better landing of a line or a joke. When it comes to stage, how something can be tweaked at the last minute, in this case by Ian Rankin. It gave deep insight into what an audience doesn’t see, so isn’t usually privy to how everything builds and comes together. There were fascinating insights how Gray O’Brien takes a character onto the stage and how James Macpherson creates audio versions of the book. You could tell they care about who they play and, testament to them, however they bring Rebus to life off the page, with their own interpretations of the character, they bring something believable that’s compelling to watch or listen to, that still rings true to Ian Rankin’s creation. All three seem a powerhouse in the way they keep Rebus alive in so many formats.

What is also very insightful and perhaps a little reflective, adding even more depth of interest is how each actor brings something different to Rebus and how Ian Rankin is still interested and still learning about his creation by watching and listening to how people play him.

A Puzzle of Rebuses panel was compelling, fascinating and humorous. It was genius in bringing 3 different incarnations of Rebus and see how they can also all work together.

The latest Rebus Book is Out Now!

#Review by Lou of Bloody Scotland Panel -Life and Death On The Edge featuring authors William Shaw, Chris Chibnall, GD Wright @william1shaw @chrischibnall @ChibnallChris @GDWrightWrites @BloodyScotland #BloodyScotland #BookFestival

Life On The Edge
Talk featuring William Shaw, Chris Chibnall. GD Wright

All three authors aren’t strangers to crime in seemingly serene, scenic places on coasts, coffee shops and communities of people who know each other well. They then twist it up a bit and delve into the psyche of a place and create a believable crime scene. They talked about the importance of making the reader believe that a crime could take place in an area and making it authentic.

William Shaw is known for book series, DS Alex Cupidi and more…
GD Wright is known for After the Storm and Into the Fire
Chris Chibnall is known for Broadchurch, Dr. Who and more…

The scenery plays a big character in each of the authors books, in the main, the characters change from book to book, but the constant is the scenery, that sense of place within each of them. What was interesting was how they write in places they know rather well and how they handle writing somewhere so close to home. They talked about Life and Death on the Edge. It’s a clever title. It perhaps isn’t what you think it means, it’s about being at the edge of something and you can’t go anywhere, you’re hemmed in. The authors are very good at allowing audience members minds paint a picture that also carries the talk along in fascinating directions, as you envisage the imagery of their books.
In most cases, even after many books, they write what they know, with the additions of researching certain topics, such as how to get deer antlers. It sounds rather involved.

They each have their own writing techniques with no real planning, sometimes visualising characters and hearing their voices and in-terms of Chris Chibnall, he was interesting in explaining the differences between writing for screen and for the written page.

The panel was jovial and sounded in good spirits as they brought tales of crime, how they researched it, rather astonishingly, what was researched. Some internet histories are going to look rather interesting in themselves. They also brought humour and frequently had the audience in peels of laughter.
The authors had imparted that they only met that day, but they came across as very natural and succinct, in a sense, in-tune with each other, making for a very cohesive, highly entertaining talk. It was the type of talk that was very easy to just settle into as time whisked away at a fast pace. It leaves you wanting more…

Check out the programme here http://www.bloodyscotland.com
Check out the authors books that are available now.

William Shaw’s Red Shore is a thriller with an emotional punch as a detective searches for the truth about his sister’s drowning off the Devon coast.

Death at the White Hart is the stunning debut from Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall as death and whispers create tension in a picturesque Dorset village.