First Among the Dead

A Constable Tyler Neish Novella

All coppers have a first case. His might also be his last.

Inverness, December 2015.

The streets are frozen, the days are short, and Constable Tyler Neish is entirely out of his depth.

Fresh out of training, Tyler is desperate to make a good impression. He wants to seem capable, commanding, and professional. Unfortunately, he’s mostly known for falling over in the snow and being terrified of his own shadow.

But when sixteen-year-old Laura Wilder goes missing, the job suddenly gets personal. To the weary brass at Burnett Road Police Station, Laura is just a low-risk repeat runaway who’ll be home by dinner time. To Tyler, she’s his best mate’s little sister, and he knows that something is wrong.

Ordered to stay in his lane by the bureaucratic nightmare that is Chief Inspector “Snecky” Grant, and threatened with grisly dismemberment by the terrifying Detective Superintendent Hoon, Tyler must make a choice: follow orders and keep his job, or go rogue and save a life.

For Tyler, that isn't a choice at all.

Armed only with a notebook, damp trousers, and a near total lack of common sense, the rookie constable plunges headlong into the freezing city to uncover the truth.

But in the Highlands of Scotland, the truth is like ice—slippery, dangerous, and liable to break if you push it too hard.

First Among the Dead is a standalone prequel novella following the early adventures of fan favourite character DC Tyler Neish from the DCI Jack Logan series, and the perfect introduction to the world and characters of bestselling Scottish crime fiction author, JD Kirk.

PLEASE NOTE: This is a novella of around 36,000 words, around half the length of an average DCI Logan Novel.

©2025 Zertex Crime (P)2026 Zertex Audio

JD Kirk on point

I LOVE the books that JD Kirk puts out. Characters, story lines, colorful language and all. All great.
I was disappointed that Angus King didn't narrate this book. Not that John Scougall isn't great. Once you have a character's voice in your head is hard to make someone else voicing it mesh, if you know what I mean..?

Excellent Read

This was the perfect storyline to introduce Tyler. For anyone who reads the DCI Logan Crime Thriller series, this will explain just how Tyler got to be a detective. Great addition to the series.

Fantastic Prequel

Throughly enjoyed this prequel that introduces Constable Tyler Neish. First Among the Dead is a great novella featuring Tyler’s first case.

Get over it!

I’m going to play contrarian here. This reader is excellent. No, he’s not Angus King. Yes, I’m used to the way Angus voices the characters, too, but that doesn’t mean the book is not well read. He’s actually very talented, and if you set aside your biases and preconceptions, you’ll notice that even his voicing of Hoon and Ben is truly spot on. I personally really appreciate the reader’s more natural style, and did not miss the over-the-top drama that’s typical of most things Angus reads at all.

All that said, this book felt like the introduction to a new spinoff series of books centered on Tyler’s early career. If that’s Kirk’s plan (and I hope it is, since this was an engaging start), then casting a new voice artist to read them makes perfect sense. It distinguishes new stories told from Tyler’s POV from those told from Jack’s.

So take a deep breath, remember that you’re listening to a TYLER story, not a Jack story, and give this new, talented reader a chance. You might be glad you did!

Tyler’s beginnings.

Well done. The reader’s accent was a little annoying. Sometime distracting but enjoyed the story and learning about Tyler’s start as a constable.