I admit to being a little surprised that this was the first book in the series, as i only read the latest episode last month? Well focussed, well researched writing...I still find the use of the Scottish vernacular confusing...yes, it's authentic, but makes it difficult to read smoothly for me personally.

Having recently read and reviewed books 11 & 12 in this series and previously read the whole series I chose not to reread this title which is clearly not a new release

Stuart MacBride is a new Rankin. His DS Logan McRae is newly back at work in Aberdeen after being seriously injured by the perpetrator in his last case. A series of childrens' bodies are found and he is on the case. The press keep publishing news they shouldn't have yet and the journalist responsible wants to latch onto Logan.. The rain is falling constantly. The plot is well constructed, pacey and compelling - a good read.

DS Logan Rae #1

This is the first book in the Logan Rae series. He has his hands full trying to find a missing toddler. Set in Aberdeen where the scenery is beautiful but the subject matter is not. A serial killer needs to be caught and quickly before another child is taken. The press are also causing problems, they are getting information (leaked to them) and getting to the crime secnes at the same time as the police.

This is the second time that I have read this book. It's a hard book to read because of the subject matter, but they are not too graphic. The characters are strong and believable. Logan is just back at work after being viciously attacked a year ago, he's also struggling with his self confidence. This is a well written book with lots of twists, it will have you on the edge of your seat. Great start to this series.

I would like to thank NetGalley, HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction and the author Stuart MacBride for my ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Love this book!

Fell in love with Logan because he’s funny and fair and flawed.

I enjoyed the writing of this book, it’s seemlessly put together and the plot is very enjoyable.

It’s quite graphic but this gives it a grittiness that some books in the genre lack.

Read this then read All That’s Dead because they’re both great.

This is a very good author and a great story. Set in Aberdeen, Scotland it depicts the hard life of the Police staff and showing they do need a bit of luck now and then. This story portrays people at their worst and best and what abuse can produce in the victims. A good flowing book and loved the dialogue used in it.

I would like to thank Netgalley and HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction for a review copy of Cold Granite, the first novel to feature Aberdonian detective DS Logan McRae.

Logan returns to work after a year long recovery from a stabbing and it’s a baptism of fire when three year old David Reid’s body is found murdered in a ditch. When more children go missing it seems like they have a serial killer on their hands.

It is over ten years and many sequels since I was first blown away by Cold Granite. My own copy is out on permanent loan because I recommend it so often I jumped at the chance to re-read it and have my own digital copy to myself! It was like reading a new book after so much time and it had me laughing from start to finish. I remember thinking at the time that it was such a fresh and original approach to the genre but now, re-reading, that feeling has dissipated somewhat (more books in the series and a slew of imitators) but it is still fresh, entertaining and did I say funny? New readers to the series should, however, be wary if graphic violence and language don’t appeal.

The plot is intricate and fast moving with the investigation uncovering more crimes as it proceeds. I wouldn’t say it’s hard to keep up but it certainly makes for a page turner with something new in every chapter. I read it in one sitting, unwilling to put it down. I enjoyed all the links as Logan and the team pull it all together.

Much of my enjoyment of the novel comes from the characterisation and dialogue. There is a bewitching realism to both which makes you feel as if you are participating. The humour is tough in a take no prisoners kind of way but something we can all relate to. It might be the Scot in me but it had me in stitches, itching at times to retaliate but Mr MacBride has all the best lines. Equally Logan McRae is an everyday kind of guy. He’s not a particularly brave man but will take a deep breath and pitch in as required. He also makes mistakes and will lie as required to cover them up. His lack of love life is an issue for him in this novel but he’s not overly confident about remedying that. It’s touching, natural and real.

Cold Granite is an excellent read which I have no hesitation in recommending.

Ok. So I have read this before and only when Aberdeen loomed up through the pages, did I recall this fact.
Nonetheless, it is a good yarn with lots of threads, dead-ends and an exhausting resolution. The objective voice, perhaps echoing police procedure, belies the horror and violence of the crimes committed.
McBride weaves a great story. The police are tough; the city is tough and the weather tougher. It is a dark world indeed and hard to shake when the last page is turned.

This is my first book by this author and the reviews were good so I thought I would give it a try. I was quite impressed for a first book in a series. I was gripped from the first page and didn’t want to put it down although I had to stop to sleep unfortunately!!! It is a very gritty police procedural with many layers to try and get through but it’s written so well this could be made into a tv series. I will definitely look to read more in this series.

I really enjoyed this! I loved the police banter and humour woven into the story which detracted from the gruesome case. There are quite a few suspects and different crimes but by the end all the threads are tied up. (I did not guess the perpetrator!) This would make for great TV. I will definitely look out for the rest of the series as I have become quite attached to the characters!

I enjoyed Cold Granite, but I did have my reservations.

I have come very late to this series; this is the first Stuart MacBride I have read and overall I’m impressed. He writes very well and creates good characters and very realistic dialogue. He is especially good on the setting, and I cold almost feel the chill and wet of the Aberdeen winter seeping into my bones.

The story is quite well done, of child deaths and the hunt for the killer. It’s grim stuff which MacBride doesn’t flinch from, so there are some very dark, graphic scenes but they are never gratuitously grisly. There are some pretty obvious clues and red herrings, but it’s just about plausible until the inevitable Cornered Killer Climax, which I found rather silly and laboured. And I have to say that at nearly 500 pages the book is too long; tightening it up to nearer 350 pages would have improved it a lot.

Despite my reservations, I thought this was well written and atmospheric enough to encourage me to read more in the series. I won’t be rushing to get hold of them, but I’ll definitely persist and I can recommend this as a good starter.

(My thanks to HarperCollins for an ARC via NetGalley.)

What an incredibly well crafted book for the first in a series, it had me hooked from the get go and, although I had to sleep, I made sure I completed it in 24 hours. A gritty, nasty tale about murders, all of which were so realistic. The hunt for the murderers makes one realise a little better what painstaking work needs to go on behind the scenes for an arrest. Fiction this may have been but it raised my respect for coppering. Really looking forward to seeing what Mr M has for me in the second volume.

Have read all the Logan McRae books when published.
Got the opportunity to read this as available on NetGalley to coincide with the new publication.
Given it was many many years ago I first read this, thought I'd go back and start the series all over again.
Delighted that I did. Every bit as cutting edge, gritty and close to the bone as I remembered.
Aberdeen Tourist Board must love the picture Mr MacBride paints of the city !

Love stuart macbride and these Logan McRae books are no exception! Recommended to police procedural fans especially Val mcdermid fans :) Recommended

A friend recommended Cold Granite (2005) by Stuart MacBride. It's the first in the Logan McRae series which currently runs to eight books.

Cold Granite is a competent police procedural set in Aberdeen where a child killer is on the loose. DS Logan McRae, back at work despite still having stitches in his stomach following a knife attack, is a classic of the genre: a grizzled, single, heartbroken, driven, hard drinking, fast food loving cop who still manages to attracts the attentions of a younger WPC.

The other characters in the book are quite distinctive and it's easy to see why it has sustained so many follow up books. The characters are all distinctly un-PC which didn't really ring true, although this was written in 2005 so perhaps things were still a bit unreconstructed back then.

The case involves a sadistic child killer and this makes for some grim and gritty reading. Overall, whilst entertaining enough, it is not distinctive enough for me to feel motivated to invest more time in the rest of the series.

3/5

Loved this book.
I have read several of Stuart McBride’s books and this one is my favourite so far.
DS Logan McRae is a great character and in this book excels as a top notch investigator.
A complicated, many layered book that is difficult to put down.
The love/hate relationship between the police and the press is excellent.
Logan returns from sick leave and gets into the thick of it right away with the body of a small child being found.
Great characters - WPC Watson and DI Insch really add to the enjoyment of this story as does Colin Miller a new journalist in Aberdeen.
The backstory of Logan’s relationship with the pathologist Isobel MacAlistair adds another complication to his life.
Thoroughly recommend this book. A real 5 star piece of writing

Logan McCray Aberdeen’s answer to John Rebus, my second time of reading this book and it was just as enthralling as the first time! A fantastic read. Come on mr MacBride why no TV series, this character certainly warrants a series!

Is it really 13 years since Cold Granite was released? I remember, a long time ago, sitting in a tent at Edinburgh Book Festival listening to Stuart MacBride giving only his second public reading. He was funny, engaging and personable. I asked a question about identity cards and years later he still remembered me. And he signed the book with a doodle :)

I read Cold Granite on the back of that appearance - and many other Logan McRae novels followed. This, though, was where it all began. Bleak humour, lots of rain (which is a bit of a myth since Aberdeen is more cold than wet), lots of gore, severed fingers and rotting corpses. What shone through it all was the pleasure that had been taken in the writing, Smug puns,. one liners, wordplay.

I remember the plot being engaging, the characters being gritty and real, even if some of they actions were a little lurid. And I remember the disdain MacBride showed for journalism.

If anyone has any doubts, please set them aside, Granite City is a superior police procedural with some great twists, a great Scottish setting and plenty of titles to follow.