I doubt I'll read a better book this year. Dark, funny and humane, Louise Welsh tells the stories that nobody else dares -- VAL McDERMID Complex and very atmospheric, with plenty of sardonic humour and sharp observations about injustice, like its predecessor this is a hardboiled gem * * Guardian * * Rilke's return is a treat: a dark, complex literary crime novel bursting with life. Louise Welsh's band of outsiders and misfits are lovingly drawn, her Glasgow vibrant and gritty, the crimes she depicts terrifying and tragic -- PAULA HAWKINS Well-wrought . . . The specificity and style of Welsh's prose - peppered with such fine Scottish words as 'bawface', 'coorie' and 'shoogly' - the depth of her characterisation and depiction of place, her gallows humour and her compassion all make The Second Cut a superb piece of work * * The Times * * One of the most enjoyable mysteries I've read this year, The Second Cut had me from the word go. Rilke's world feels rife with possibilities for dark doings - and Welsh's writing is fresh, funny, fearless and fun -- JOSEPH KNOX Superbly drawn and exquisitely written, the story moves at an exceptional pace: this is modern Glasgow at its most compelling with a contradictory * * Daily Mail * * Richly layered, gloriously carnal, bursting with patter and irresistibly seductive -- CHRIS BROOKMYRE Bleak, witty, unfailingly compassionate and beautifully written all at the same time . . . a lightly fictionalised love letter to Glasgow * * Spectator * * Getting another look behind the curtain at Rilke's world was a squalid thrill. Louise Welsh reclaims her crown as the queen of Glasgow's grubby glamour -- KIRSTIN INNES If writing a sequel to a bona fide Scottish classic weighed heavily on Louise Welsh you'd never know. The Second Cut grips from the very opening pages. The Glasgow it portrays is seamy but humane, its cast of characters flawed but endearing. The whole thing is compelling, immersive and brimming with life. A great achievement -- GRAEME MACRAE BURNET
