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The Second Cut

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The Second Cut

By: Louise Welsh
Narrated by: Alan Cumming
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THE TIMES CRIME BOOK OF THE YEAR

'I doubt I'll read a better book this year' Val McDermid
'Compelling, immersive and brimming with life' Graeme Macrae Burnet

Auctioneer Rilke has been trying to stay out of trouble, keeping his life more or less respectable. Business has been slow at Bowery Auctions, so when an old friend, Jojo, gives Rilke a tip-off for a house clearance, life seems to be looking up. The next day Jojo washes up dead.

Jojo liked Grindr hook-ups and recreational drugs – is that the reason the police won’t investigate? And if Rilke doesn’t find out what happened to Jojo, who will?

Thrilling and atmospheric, The Second Cut delves into the dark side of twenty-first century Glasgow. Twenty years on from his appearance in The Cutting Room, Rilke is still walking a moral tightrope between good and bad, saint and sinner.

 Crime Thrillers Literature & Fiction Mystery, Thriller & Suspense Thriller Thriller & Suspense World Literature Crime Fiction Suspense Exciting Mystery
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Continue the series
The Cut Up cover art
The Cut Up By: Louise Welsh

Critic reviews

"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"
"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"
"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"
"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"
"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)
"A searing reading experience . . . highly entertaining"
All stars
Most relevant
This is the second in Welsh’s books in the Cut series and it is a stonker. If you like your books dark with finely drawn characters and twisting and indeed twisted plots you will adore this. Alan Cumming does a superb job of bringing the novel to life. His characterisations really bring not just the characters but the whole of Glasgows dark side to vivid life.

Puts the Nòir into Tartan Nòir

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Loved this book and the excellent reading by Cummings. Welsh paints great characters from Glasgow, slightly grotesque but dramatic and compelling. Galloway is gorgeous by the way and it doesn’t rain all the time. Well almost.

Convincing characters

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This is a worthy follow up to The Cutting Room. Times have changed but Rilke remains constant. A cracking story and fantastic performance from Alan Cumming.

Great to have Rilke back again.

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Not a writer I have tried before but I loved it, story and performance were great. Couldn’t wait to listen to it but sorry when I finished it - the mark of a great audiobook!

Brilliant

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Read the original when it came out and bought this as soon as I was aware it was out. Not disappointed in the slightest. Alan Cumming almost seems born to narrate this book, and captures the inner Rilke well.

Excellent Sequel

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