The Dark Remains is the prequel to McIlvanney's Detective Constable Jack Laidlaw series and was unfinished at the time of his death in 2015; now, bestseller Ian Rankin brings to life the untold story of Laidlaw's formative years in law enforcement set, as always, against the gritty, richly atmospheric backdrop of Glasgow city, in October 1972. You could even say this is the godfather of Tartan Noir, McIlvanney's, final (highland) fling. A war between rival gangs is set to explode on the streets of Glasgow after the stabbing of a local foot soldier. A fragile equilibrium that has been keeping the city relatively safe for many months is at risk. The death toll could be high, and the impact on the lives of innocent people calamitous. D.I. Jack Laidlaw is beginning to suspect that kingpins John Rhodes and Cam Colvin are being manipulated into a confrontation. His superiors, however, are quick to chalk the violence up to the usual gangland rivalries. Perhaps too quick. Then fraught tensions across the city get even worse when a local lawyer who dealt with money laundering and specialised in representing mob bosses, in particular Cam Colvin, is reported missing by his wife, Monica, and is later found stabbed to death behind the pub known as The Parlour by proprietor Conn Feeney.

Feeney immediately recognises him as Bobby Carter, but the fact that he was found on John Rhodes’s territory has both Glasgow residents and the police in fear that it could spark a turf war between Rhodes and Colvin who both control a third of the city each. Everyone including young Laidlaw, who is a new recruit to the Glasgow Crime Squad but just as troublesome to his bosses then as he is in the original trilogy, wants to know who murdered him as it's not likely that a guy up to his neck in the dirty business of the mob would just be let go with all of those sinister secrets rattling around his head. With the police supervisor in charge of the investigation primarily concerned about keeping the peace between the rival gangs rather than finding the killer, Laidlaw decides to go rogue to discover the origins of the dispute, try to solve it and identify and locate the murderer in the process. This is a scintillating and exhilarating treat for any crime enthusiast and Rankin’s result is gobsmacking. It’s Laidlaw at his very best – white-knuckle plotting, real-life complexity and writing sharper than a gangster’s blade.

I relished the return to McIlvanney's Glasgow, with its gangs, organized crime bosses, crooked politics, corrupt police, hard men and innocent battlers caught in the crossfire. In the midst of this melee stands D.I. Jack Laidlaw, as memorable and distinctive a noire character as has ever been created. He is like a diamond in the rough who knows he must strive for justice even though he knows justice is simply not possible. It's a gritty and essential book for fans of either author, and I was extremely impressed that it was so beautifully compiled that it was impossible to tell who wrote what. The mean streets of ’72 Glasgow are portrayed with a richly atmospheric authenticity and are ripe with abject poverty, loveless marriages, gang warfare, drunken aggression, sectarian bile, sexism, misogyny, rampant domestic abuse and peopled by a diverse cast of gangs fighting gangs, informants selling out former allies, bosses threatening their underlings and married partners arguing over each other's betrayals. An exquisite and unmissable crime novel that I cannot recommend highly enough.

Bobby Carter. A lawyer who worked for the wrong kind of people has just been found murdered and the suspect pool is not a small one. A man who had quite a few enemies but he also had some very notoriously powerful friends.
DC Jack Laidlaw is a man who doesn’t play well with others. He has a reputation that precedes itself, a sixth sense that has served him well throughout his controversial career on the streets of gangland Glasgow and has the knack to solve cases others can’t. This time it’s no different as he will have to solve the case to stop a war between two of the biggest gangs in the city.
A master class of tartan noir fiction by two of the greatest writers to put pen to paper.
A hard gritty prequel to the Laidlaw series.
A story that captures the period perfectly with seamless writing and a brilliant atmosphere throughout. A book I absolutely loved and couldn’t put down until its incredible ending and one I highly recommend.

I've never read the Laidlaw books but as I look forward to reading a new Ian Rankin book this seemed a good way in. The writing does well at creating the 1970s setting and the story of crime gangs and their possible territory battles is a great set-up. I found the book a little hard to get into because it’s set in the 1970s but it took me longer to get through than I expected. I'm sure if you're a fan of the existing Laidlaw stories this will appeal to you. If you're a new reader your enjoyment may vary.

When McIlvanney died, he left a half-finished manuscript, years later Ian Rankin was invited to finish it. And he did it brilliantly.

The story is set in a dark side of 1972 Glasgow. With gangsters running the city, casino and strip clubs being something normal and general poverty. It's written in such a perfect way that you feel the atmosphere, the cold and gloom spilling from the pages and filling the space around you.

The dead body of a lawyer Bobby Carter is found in a small alleyway. It wouldn't be that bad, if not for the fact, that Carter was associated with a gangster Cam Colvin, and his body was found on the other gangster's territory - John Rhodes'. That can mean war.

DC Jack Laidlaw works for the Crime Squad and with his partner DS Bob Lilley they try to solve the crime. To be fair, Laidlaw is mostly doing whatever he wants and feels and Lilley is keeping an eye on him. Strangely, this pair makes a fantastic team, they trust each other and achieve results that they wouldn't, if they were to follow the rules.

A murder that can destroy the city must be solved. Someone wants a war. And Jack Laidlaw needs to stop them. He's not a likeable character as such, he lives in a hotel when he's working on a case, leaving his wife worried at home, he knows all the criminals and sometimes is even very friendly with them, but he also has a good heart and great instincts.

It was my first William McIlvanney's novel and I definitely want to read the rest of his books.

Very atmospheric, clever and engaging.

This was written by William McIlvanney and finished by Ian Rankin after McIlvanney's death. It's set in 1970's Glasgow and has references to the Ibrox football stadium and Bible John. DC Jack Laidlaw has joined the Crime Squad with a reputation as a good copper with a nose for the streets but who is running out of chances. A gangster's lawyer Bobby Carter who is known for moving money out of the reach of the taxman is found in the lane next to the pub of a rival gangster. This raises the possibility of a gang war.

I could imagine Laidlaw as a template for later fictional shambolic detectives. He seems like a really troubled character but a brilliant detective and this hinders his chances of promotion even though his undoubted talents mean he should be promoted. This has made me want to search out the rest of the books in the series.

Considering Ian Rankin has finished off around half of the book you wouldn't know by reading it as it doesn't seem disjointed or coming from two voices in anyway. Highly recommended and makes you want to read the rest of McIlvanney's books.

Ian Rankin can do no wrong in my book - my absolute favourite author with Rebus the stuff of legend in my house.
So this could be said to be a bit of a tall order to live up to with Mr Rankin turning his hand to a story initially outlined by somebody else. William McIlvanney is not somebody I've come across before but realise that perhaps I should have now I've seen it mentioned that Rankin and Rebus have a lot to thank from his earlier works. (I'll be rectifying that soon).
As for this book - a lot of similarities to Rebus and his Edinburgh setting. This one is Laidlaw in Glasgow and the same humour and grit is present here too.
A great mix of story and characterisation - difficult to get right but deftly handled again, as usual.
6 stars if I could - but I'll settle for the max 5. recommended to anybody that loves a crime/detective novel.
Many, many thanks for the ARC as ever.

A great read about the gangland crimes of 1970’s Glasgow and we are introduced to DC Laidlaw , this is a prequel to the Laidlaw series . This is tartan noir at its finest , easy to read and left me reading late in to the night.
Laidlaw is a complex character with a dry sense of humour and an analytical mind that would put Poirot to shame! He is able to irritate and annoy his colleagues without trying m he is more of a loner than a team player but he gets the results that are needed.
Bobby Carter is a gangland lawyer and he is found dead behind a pub owned by a rival crime boss , this leads to taxis being torched , pubs being fire bombed and an escalation of the war between the rival factions, or is it as it seems?
The writing is excellent and the story is fast paced and I can’t recommend this book highly enough!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher.

A posthumous prequel to the Laidlaw trilogy by William McIlvanny an initiator of Tartan Noir completed by the well known Ian Rankin. Who swaps his usual Edinburgh for gritty Glasgow.. set in 1972 there is enmity among the city’s powerful gangs in their continuing turf wars.. A lawyer Bobby Carter , who mixed in the wrong crowd is found murdered. The younger DC Laidlaw , at loggerheads with his superior officer Milligan , carries out the investigation his way uncovering conflicts , gang warfare, informants and betrayals.
A

Having read just one William McIlvanney book, Docherty, (which is brilliant by the way) I'm not qualified to say how faithfully Ian Rankin has reproduced the late author's style but as you'd expect from either writer, this "Tartan noir" murder mystery takes us deep into the mean streets of Glasgow's gang culture, where rival factions battle it out to be top dog of the city's underworld. The story opens with the discovery of the body of bent lawyer Bobby Carter. Laidlaw (McIlvanney's dour detective) is assigned to the case. Hard-headed, experienced and afraid of nothing, he cracks the crime through dogged determination and deduction. The plot is solid but what I enjoyed most was the atmospheric glimpse into Glasgow of the 1970s, peopled with men and women you wouldn't want to mess with - and that includes at least half the police force! It's a very macho, masculine story and plot, but the humour is spot on - one young thug is described as "thicker than the doorstep on a plain loaf" which did make me laugh. McIlvanney/Rankin has the ability to sketch characters in plain pithy prose, and so Laidlaw's boss Ernie Milligan smells of "Old Spice and Ambition"! It's writing like this that brings characters to life and draws you into the story.

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

this book reminded me of the tv series ashes to ashes, a cop back in the 70s and this is what we had in this book...a very 70s police murder mystery with gangsters

an interesting concept and one i would continue to read as the main police officer called laidlaw has a different police style all to himself

interesting read though there are a lot of characters to get your head around but stick with laidlaw and you will be fine

This is a blistering prequel to McIlvenney’s Laidlaw series. It’s his first case and the half written manuscript has been completed, after McIlvenney’s untimely death, by Rankin.

This is a visceral gangland crime story. Glasgow in the 1970s was a law unto itself, with different crime lords ruling their territory and to transgress was to court retribution and revenge. This centres on the death of a dodgy lawyer and Laidlaw as a DC using his unique approach to solve the crime. Rankin is probably the best author to complete the unfinished work. His style matches the fast pace, the dark humour and he really brings the character and events to life. It’s a brilliant mix and it works. Very highly recommended.

My thanks to the publisher for a review copy via Netgalley.

I must admit that this is the first time I have written anything by William McIlvanney but it will not be the last.

I love reading crime fiction, especially gritty gangland crime and although I struggled a little at first getting to know the characters I persevered and I am glad I did as when you get to the end of the book you really get to know the different characters and super twists and mystery until the protagonist is revealed.

I was also interested in the back story of the writing of this book and wonder what went through the mind of Ian Rankin when he agreed to take on the task of completing the story from McIlvanney's hand written manuscript. What is amazing is that when you read the book you cannot see the 'joins' in that the story flows and it is hard to identify which author wrote which parts.

If you love books set in the 1970's (even better if you can remember the times), like tartan noir and enjoy some gritty gangland crime then this is a book for you. As this book was written as a prequel to the Laidlaw series I will definitely be adding the rest to my lists.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Canongate for providing me with an electronic advanced copy of the book in return for a honest, unbiased review

I am grateful to Canongate and to NetGalley for an advance review copy of this title that has in no way influenced the content of the review.

Laidlaw doesn't play to anyone's rules...he doesn't care about procedure he cares about results, when the right hand man of a local gangster is found dead a war on the streets seems inevitable. A trio of culprits is in the frame and Laidlaw wants to get to the truth, his boss however is very concerned with procedure and is very wary of Laidlaw and his approach.

I found this quite an interesting story with plenty of twists and turns, Laidlaw and Lilley were easy enough characters to like and to rub along with, however I did sometimes feel there was a little bit too much going on, too many names and associations that it was hard to keep on top of.

All in all a very enjoyable book that I wouldn't hesitate to recommend reading.

I’ve been reading crime fiction novels for as long as I can remember. Agatha Christie whodunnits probably started it for me and I’ve never tired of the genre. But I’m almost embarrassed to say that I’d never come across the name William McIlvanney. In fact, it wasn’t until after I’d read this book that I discovered the truth: that Ian Rankin had fairly recently been approached to complete a half written draft of what turns out to be a prequel from a very well know trilogy. Yes, McIlvanney (now deceased) had published his three well received books in the period from 1977 -1991 and had subsequently been crowned ‘the father of Tartan Noir’.

The story involves the murder of a dodgy lawyer, right hand man to the leader of one of Glasgow’s prominent crime gangs. His body had been found in a lane behind a pub, on the turf of a rival gang. And when we’re introduced to the local flatfoots who are charged with investigating the case, the least senior of which is DC Jack Laidlaw, I’d assumed that it would be one of the senior officers who we’d be tracking as the investigation is set in train. But no, it’s Jack who take prominence on the pages that follow, and what an interesting character he proves to be.

The story is set in 1972 and as someone of a certain age the references to music, television and news items of the time all brought back memories for me. I think some of this will be lost on younger readers but I don’t see this as a significant drawback. The language is raw and the actions often ruthless as answers are demanded by gangland thugs on the mean streets of this city – is this killing going to kick off a battle between the gangs? That’s the fear the cops have as they chase around the same streets seeking the same answers, albeit in a slightly more civil manner.

Laidlaw, though, is the star of the show. A deep thinker and a reader of philosophical texts, he has his own way of doing things. He has a testy relationship with the lead cop on this case, due to events that happened some years back, and this merely cements his desire to do his own thing. Although he is married, with three young children at home, he immerses himself in the city: using buses for transport and moving into a centrally located hotel for the duration of the case. He absorbs the mood and the chatter and seeks out people of interest, testing them out with provocative questions and leaving no stone unturned.

The resolution is a satisfying one but as in many books of this type it’s the journey that matters. I loved the atmosphere the book created – it felt authentic and morbidly exciting –and the characters were all brilliantly brought to life. The dialogue is top-notch too and I was left to wonder how much of all of this was present in McIlvenny’s draft and what proportion was reliant on Rankin’s deft touch. It was all over too soon but at least I now have three more books added to my pending list – and I have a feeling they’ll soon be edging their way towards the top.

I really enjoyed the premise of the book, I got hooked on the storyline straight away but I just didn’t warm to Laidlaw as I was expecting to.

The story was well written and I’d look out for other books from either of the authors.

Many thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for gifting me this arc in exchange for an honest, unbiased review.

The right hand man of a Glasgow gangster is found murdered. The Police need to solve the murder before all out war between the three main gangs in the city erupts.
Unfortunately the Detective Inspector assigned to the case is not really up to the task. DS Bob Lilley has been lumbered with Jack Laidlaw, a DC who is a bit of a loner and has been moved around various team as they find him hard to work with.
Following his instincts Jack is quite a force to be reckoned with and Bob soon realises that it's best to go with the flow.
The book is seen from several points of view and although there are a few teasers it wasn't until about three quarters of the way through I had that Duh! moment.
Nice read.

I have not previously read any of William McIlvanney’s Laidlaw books, although know of him as he is often praised by authors I enjoy including Ian Rankin,. Rankin has the task of turning a part started manuscript into a fully fledged novel, in keeping with what McIlvanney’s will be expecting from a Laidlaw novel..

Set in the early 70s Glasgow gangland the book rattles along at a fine pace. In DC Laidlaw's character you can see a bit of influence on Rankin's own creation Rebus. Laidlaw is a maverick winding up superiors whenever he can, yet he gets results and is in tune with how the various gang leaders are thinking.

One of the best crime books I have read this year and I will definitely be seeking out the original Laidlaw novels now.

Laidlaw is one of my favourite crime novels. The writing is sharp (which is sometimes not the case with crime writing) and the character himself is interesting, a one off, a thinker and an individual. When I learned that Ian Rankin was completing the unfinished manuscript left behind when William McIlvanney died, I immediately thought he had big boots to fill.
I've never read a Rebus novel, so I had no idea what to expect. I was pleasantly surprised.
This is a prequel to Laidlaw, and it lays the ground for the complicated character that is Laidlaw. His personality and behaviour carry the plots, as he often follows his own path, has issues with authority and is not the best communicator.
A seedy lawyer by the name of Bobby Carter is found in a back alley behind a pub in Glasgow. It could be gang warfare and Laidlaw and his partner D.S. Bob Lilley need to find out who killed Bobby before all hell breaks loose.
Although Bob is constantly playing catch up as Laidlaw follows his own line of enquiry, the two of them form something of a relationship, which allows for the development of Laidlaw's character as well as the plot, which doesn't disappoint.
Well worth reading.
With thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc.

This book marks a departure for Ian Rankin, leaving behind his usual Edinburgh-based detective, John Rebus, and instead see's him paired with William McIlvanney, and Rebus's literary forefather, Jack Laidlaw.

The novel is set a 'prequel' of sorts, being set in 1972 and covering Laidlaw's first case after being transferred to the Glasgow Crime Squad. The right-hand man of one of the gangs which ruled much of the West-coast criminal underworld has turned up dead in an alleyway behind a pub owned by one of their arch rivals, and it's up to Laidlaw to solve the case while simultaneously keeping a lid on the simmering tension that threats to boil over at any moment.

As you would expect from a crime writer of Rankin's calibre, the plot twists and turns while carrying the reader along for just 'a few more pages', and if you are unfamiliar with McIlvanney's work, you can quite easily enjoy The Dark Remains as a standalone 70s gangland tale. If you do know the earlier novels, however, there are plenty of references to characters who will go on to have bigger roles in those.

Highly recommended.

What a tremendous fusion of the talents of two of Scotland's greatest crime writers.

This is an enthralling tale of the mean streets of 1970s Glasgow, as portrayed by the late William Mc Ilvanney, whose gritty crime thrillers largely invented the ’tartan noir’ genre. Add the complexity, humanity and insight of the wonderful Ian Rankin and this novel is so much more than a police procedural. His finely-tuned writing drives to a devastating conclusion and takes us inside the tortured mind of of his flawed but heroic protagonist. One of the most successful combinations of classic characters and contemporary authors, I have read.

Recommended for all who love crime, authenticity and anyone who loves reading. I can not wait for thenext one.