This is the third book in the Ash Henderson series, and my first read in that series.

I enjoyed it overall - Ash is ex-police and a consultant to them now. He works with Alice, an alcoholic forensic psychologist. In this book they're tackling two crimes - an active child-killer and a serial killer who had lots of bones hidden in his garden - until falling cliffs gave the game away.

There's a dark humour here, and I suspect it works better if you've read the previous two titles because sometimes it felt at odds with the seriousness of the investigation, without knowing exactly how the characters came to be as they are. The crimes are truly grim but it takes a while to get into the plot (partly due to all the banter between various characters), which puts the pacing off a little bit. It took me longer to read this than most crime/thrillers.

The ending was suspenseful and violent (I had to 'look away' a few times which is a bit ridiculous when you're reading - which at least shows the author had created some great tension!) and generally satisfying. I would read the author again but would prefer to start with the beginning of the series next time.

would like to thank netgalley and the publisher for letting me read this gripping book

windswept scotland, gale force winds and a headland disappearing into the sea as nature batters the coastline...many houses have been abandoned as they go over the cliff due to the landslides

one house and the garden becomes a place of interest as its starts to slide down into the sea as skeletal bones start to appear...

its a race against time for the police to try to collect the evidence

i was on the edge of my seat with this book....right from the first page i was hooked and couldnt put it down...this was my first book by this author but its not going to be my last

the characters are well established and likeable... i loved ash's character, old style cop who would get a few punches in before arresting anyone...how can you not like him, but he takes a few as well

i cant wait for the next book with these characters in, they were not so pc in this day and age for me to like and love

My first Stuart McBride book and boy what a fun read! Ultra violence, dark humour, gruesome subject matter and most importantly a compelling story.

This is the third in Ash Henderson series, an ex DI now working in the Lateral Investigative Review Unit with his sidekick forensic psychologist, the heavy drinking Alice McDonald.

We have duel investigations going on with these two, a serial killer who has been undetected for decades and also a child murderer who is escalating his crimes with every kill.

I really loved this one. Loads of back story in this that I have obviously missed having not read the previous two(something I plan to rectify), the characters are great fun to spend time with. Ash especially is a really funny, narky, straight to the point kinda guy who doesnt take well to authority.

Some of the villains in this border on cartoonish in their ott personas (not a criticism, the book is more fun for it)and play a huge part in making this a compelling read.

I found myself both reviled and then laughing out loud in the space of a few seconds numerous times throughout this book. It really is a blast to read. The story is very nicely told, the book is just shy of 500 pages(I think!)but isnt padded out at all and needs every page.

Another author Im late to the party with. I will most certainly be looking into his back catalogue.

Many thanks to HarperCollins for an Arc.

Yet another outing with Stuart McBride’s Misfit Mob - and you can be sure that all the usual ingredients are present: black humour in plenty; active criminals and killers righteously pursued by our hero; and plenty of violence. As ever, though, - and as readers familiar with the Misfit Mob will appreciate - the violence is mainly decorative and not gratuitous. Again, as is often the case with McBride’s novels, the reader needs to take careful note of the story and characters if they are to gain maximum benefit and avoid too many trips back in the book to check what is happening to whom!

If unconventional police and former police officers pursuing criminals within and outside the law is your thing, particularly if you also appreciate the benefits of well described black humour, you will undoubtedly enjoy The Coffinmaker’s Garden. Recommended.

Nice premise in this book as former DI Ash Henderson and the team get involved in two parallel enquiries - both involving serial killers. I’m a big fan of Stuart MacBride’s Logan McRae series, and I found that I didn’t love this team quite as much, although I still thoroughly enjoyed the book. I think I would have enjoyed it even more if I’d read the earlier books in the series - although you can perfectly easily read this as a standalone, I found myself wondering about the backstory at points. All in all, I think if you like Logan McRae, you’ll like this.

After reading the first few pages I thought I was going to be in for a real treat. Sadly that didn't last. I haven't read any Stuart MacBride books before so I was really looking forward to being introduced to a new author.
The book was overlong and too much padding. Did we really need a protracted conversation about potholes? Spiders in lofts? The banter between the police officers was sexist, immature and unprofessional. Mother is an inappropriate moniker for a boss but in this case rather apt- the junior officers really did need to grow up.
I found the characterisation rather weak and somewhat stereotypical. I disliked the swapping between first person and third person voice. It all felt a bit "blokey"
The plot idea I thought was a good one just not very well executed. I gather that this is a new series for the author and he possibly wanted to try something different which is commendable but sadly didn't come off. I will try one of his other books to see if they are any different- I suspect they might be

This is my first outing with Stuart MacBride and his Scottish police force and I thoroughly enjoyed myself. Just the right amount of suspense, who dunnit, characterisation and geography to keep an active mind busy. It was great to travel with Ash Henderson and colleagues to beautiful, scenic places to take in the view and then dark, shady dives to eat greasy food.
Although this was my initiation into the squad, I did not feel left behind at the start. This was a complete book without all the previous books in the series. My interest has been sparked and I'll now pursue the earlier books to my probable delight.

Thanks Stuart. Great writing. I'm a new fan.

This is the first book in the Ash Henderson series I’ve read and I enjoyed it so much I’ve bought the first 2 books in the series. Wow what a superb book,. Ash Henderson and Dr Alice McDonald Forensic Psychologist are working as consultants assigned to LIRU, they are dealing with a child killer when they are assigned another case after what appear to be human bones are found is a garden in Clachmara. Ash goes to the village to assist DI Malcolmson, known as Mother. A neighbour out looking for her small son , finds the bones after her neighbours garden slips into the sea during the most dreadful storm. Ash soon ascertains that the garden and house belong to an elderly Gordon Smith who no longer resides in the empty derelict house. Putting his own safety in peril Ash goes into the house enters the basement to find a photographic display of Gordon Smith’ gruesome work as a serial killer. Ash manages to take photographs on his phone getting out in time as parts of the house begin to crumble over the cliff edge. Ash then takes on the hunt to find Smith knowing there may be more victims if he doesn’t catch him soon. The chase takes Ash round that area of Scotland described with the author’s darkly humorous detail. Ash takes some beatings in his quest to find Smith as does his friend Shifty who accompanies Ash on the latter part of the journey. In the meantime another small child has been abducted and Alice is desperately trying to assist in tracking down the child killer before another boy is murdered. The characters are well drawn. The book is gritty and pacy and I love the dark humour throughout which is characteristic of Macbride’s books. Definitely five stars from me. My thanks to Harper Collins UK, NetGalley and the author for my unbiased review

Just an ok read. I thought this had an interesting premise but it fell short for me. No likeable characters.I think there was too much going on to keep me enthralled. I felt the ending was implausible and rushed to tie everything up. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the chance to review it

Such an amazing story and plot line - the detective was written perfectly and it definitely keeps you wanting more throughout! Would love more from this author

Ex DCI Ash Henderson is brought in to assist local police when a resident near the coast discoverers bones in the neighbouring garden when the land falls into the sea in a heavy storm. The hunt is on to find Gordon Smith, whose garden it is, a friendly neighbour who turns out to be a sadist serial killer. Time is not on their side as the evidence gradually disappears into the sea at an alarming rate.
An enjoyable book, but being third in the series and a lot of reference to previous events, it would make more sense to read the series in chronological order.

The third outing for Ash, Alice and the rest of the misfit police they work alongside. A dark and gritty plot, a lot of gore and more than the average amount of violence kind of sums up The Coffinmaker's Garden but thankfully Stuart MacBride adds plenty of humour. Definitely a fast paced page turner with plenty of twists along the way.
Thanks to NetGalley, the author and the publisher for an arc of this book.

I hadn’t read any of the authors previous books so I didn’t know what to expect. I didn’t know the characters nor what had happened to them previously so it took a while to get into the story, but when I did, I really enjoyed the book. There was humour, excitement, a bit of gore and violence - everything you need in a police/murder/investigation book. Definitely a page turner.

With storms raging along the Scottish coast a small boy heads outside to watch a helicopter trying to save the crew of a fishing trawler. His frantic mother eventually finds him, alone and spellbound, but that's not all she finds because as the ground gives way close to where they're standing bones are revealed, human bones.

Ash Henderson used to be a detective inspector but those days are long gone. Now he's part of the Lateral Investigative Review Unit or LIRU who is trying to discover the identity of a serial child-killer when he is seconded to the Misfit Mob.

Not happy to have been moved he begrudgingly investigates the scene where the bones are located finding evidence of crimes which have gone undiscovered for decades. His attention successfully diverted he begins a deadly cat and mouse game with a man the press are calling the Coffinmaker knowing he has come up against one of the most dangerous and despicable killers of his career so far.

There are a couple of instances where Ash seems to gain almost superhuman strength in order to continue his investigation but there is also no denying this is a heart stoppingly excellent novel from the very first page. I am familiar with the DI Logan McRae stories by this author but not the Oldcastle books and I will definitely be reading the rest of this series.

I was able to read an advanced copy of this book thanks to NetGalley and the publishers but the opinions expressed are my own. I thoroughly enjoyed this and recommend it highly.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. It is set to be published in January 2021.

"The Coffinmaker's Garden" by Stuart MacBride was a baffling read for me.
I expected a novel, but what I got was more like comic book material.
The characters are caricatural. They make the story sound like a bad sitcom, rather than a murder investigation. Are we expected to believe police officers investigating a murder scene bicker about which one of them is going to climb into the attic because they're afraid of spiders? That's preposterous! It's not even a brief exchange, the author draws it out quite a bit, with the word "spiders" recurring 6 times in the space of a couple of pages. Where are we, in kindergarten?
The writing style itself feels inappropriate for a novel, with blatant abuse of italics, words in all caps and lots and lots of exclamation points (sometimes all three of them at the same time).
None of the characters was likeable: Alice in particular acts and talks like a sulking toddler rather than a grownup, a forensic psychologist no less.
Thank God a more senior detective, nicknamed "Mother" (!), is there to remind "Will the pair of you grow up? This is a murder inquiry".
The text feels unpolished: there are typos and repeated words, the author even swings between using "more fit" and "fitter" in a single page. Make up your mind!
I also didn't like the alternation between third- and first-person narrator. It's confusing and it feels like lazy writing.
To top it all off, this book has a disgustingly sexist streak, with a female police officer objectified because of her body (she's referred to as "your copper friend, the young black one with the big boobs" even by a woman) and an appalling depiction of feminist women as spoilt brats--they're referred to as "card-carrying nutjobs" (I'm quoting directly from the book).
Overall, this was a book I really wasn't able to enjoy.

I really enjoyed this; face-paced, really excellently drawn characters, each a little damaged but still relatable - and the alcoholic one isn't a dreary, dull, angst-ridden bore who sleeps in an armchair and always knows better. I love a good serial-killer novel and this ticks every box, but isn't like any other police procedural novel I have ever read. I really wish I had discovered this author way earlier, but now I have a whole new series, or two, to work my way through, which is very exciting.

If you like your crime fast-paced and bloody then this is the book for you. Not one but two serial killers are on the loose in Oldcastle but luckily Ash Henderson, Dr Alice McDonald and the Misfit Mob are on hand to find the bad guys. The Coffinmaker's Garden takes you on a wild ride with some comedic moments along the way. There are just enough Scottish terms and the all important wild weather to give you the feeling of being in Scotland. Just when you think you know where the story is going, it takes a sudden turn and you are left wondering what will happen next....

I loved this book! The dark humour in it made me belly laugh. I would really recommend to anyone who likes a good murder mystery with some dark humour. Also loved the characters and the settings.

Pacy, brutal, but still darkly humorous.

Rating: 3.3/5

This is the third novel to feature Ash Henderson, but it is the first that I have read. I can be reticent about picking up a book series part way through, as I often fear that I will not be able to fully appreciate the novel without the benefit of being fully familiar with the backstory. There were times when I sensed that it would have been better to have had some prior knowledge of previous events, but enough background information is supplied in the narrative to allow the reader to put the essential bits of the historical jigsaw together. As a result, I found that I was still able to enjoy the story as a one-off.

Ex D.I. Ash Henderson now operates as a form of consultant who assists his former colleagues on certain cases. In this instance, there are actually two separate serial killer cases running in parallel.

The background format will be familiar to anyone who regularly reads this genre, which is essentially a variation on a police procedural. This is a crowded marketplace, so, as ever, the chief protagonist needs to have his own specific character flaws and / or chequered history. Ash Henderson has that in spades, but for good measure, so too do the rest of the key protagonists! How much individual readers enjoy this book will largely depend on how well they take to the character of Ash Henderson. Personally, I quite liked him.

The action moves along at pace throughout the story and it certainly doesn't feel like the (almost) 500 page read that it is. Events are often quite brutal and graphically described, but this is interspersed with humorous (mostly dark) interjections. There are times when a suspension of disbelief is required, but if you are prepared to allow the writer his artistic licence and go with it, then the result is worthwhile.

I wouldn't want to read this kind of thing all of the time, but it would be fair to say that Stuart MacBride has produced one of the better examples of this type.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for supplying an ARC in return for an honest review.

Another fantastic story from Stuart MacBride, I first came across this author when I encountered Logan McRae. Now having discovered his character Ash Henderson, albeit late in this series, a fantastic read, can’t wait to catch up in his earlier cases.