My Review (5 stars out of 5)
Self-made rich bloke Mike Mackenzie is bored. On the lookout for something exciting to grab his attention, and having a keen interest in art, he decides to target Edinburgh’s National Gallery of Scotland. Along with a few pals and a well-known gangster, he hatches a plan that will allow them to steal a load of priceless paintings without the gallery realising they’ve been robbed.
It’s been a while since I read anything by the illustrious Mr Rankin, so I thought I’d give this one a shot. The detective in this tale is a chap named Ransome who pokes his nose into another copper’s case – the theft of a load of paintings – and who has a sneaking suspicion he knows who’s behind the theft. However, it is the villains and their activities who get most of the limelight. The plot is a clever one that relies on knowing which paintings to steal and when to steal them.
It did take me a little while to warm to this book but once I got into it, I found it an entertaining and exciting read, with plenty of double-crossing bad guys and the occasional bit of backstabbing, which adds to the fun.
Colin Garrow 