Field of Blood

Field of Blood is a clever and unique but perfectly plausible mystery. It took about 1 1/2 hours of listening to slug through the introduction of characters and get used to the Scottish accent. After that it was quite smooth. The plot was well crafted, and as with all good thrllers keeps just ahead of what you can guess will happen next. The prose combined local dialect with excellent turns of phrase. The characters, particularly the underconfident but determined protagnoist, were a delight. The subplots and development of the minor characters were interesting and satisfying as well.
This book starts slow but builds quickly, and the listener who sticks with it you will be amply rewarded.

I mistakenly bought an abridged version of this book. It would have been so much better in its entirety. However I found myself caught up in it anyway. The protagonist, an overweight woman from a dysfunctional middle-class Glasgow famiy and an ambitious journalist, was a refreshing change from the usual well-heeled, well-groomed "perfect" person who sniffs out a crime and runs amuck. The insights into this woman's inner life and her culture that is at the same time related to ours yet alien, kept me listening. At first the narrator's Scottish dialect was annoying but then became bonded to the story and surrounded me in the grey cloud of North Scotland. I hope this writer comes up with another soon.

This story describes the background of how Patty Meehan gets into the newspaper business.
Mostly enjoyable, but the part where she is beat up by the villain and just bounces back stretches credulity.
I enjoy the setting of her books in working class Glasgow.

I love the main character and her dissatisfaction with having to do only what is expected of her and her wanting so much more than that.

This was much less searing than the trilogy, so for me it was even more enjoyable. The author has a unique take on characters, and a real talent for sharing their voices. The twists and turns got a bit contrived at times, but I never lost interest. A great story, if you're tired of the humdrum. The reader was pure magic.

Believable, well-written, well-narrated

I've become a recent convert to Denise Mina, and have now read all of her released books. I love this character for her complexity and lack of stereotype. All the characters are believable. Her writing takes unexpected directions and her ability to evoke a scene and a feeling are remarkable. My only wish is that they had not abridged this.