Description

Winner of The Bloody Scotland Crime Debut of the Year 2021

Shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year 2021 and the CWA Historical Dagger 2022

‘A mesmerizing debut. Early gangland Glasgow with the gloss razored off’ – Peter James

‘Peaky Blinders meets William McIlvanney in this rollocking riveting read’ – Adrian McKinty, bestselling author of The Chain

Glasgow, 1932. When the son-in-law of one of the city’s wealthiest shipbuilders is found floating in the River Clyde with his throat cut, it falls to Inspector Jimmy Dreghorn to lead the murder case – despite sharing a troubled history with the victim’s widow, Isla Lockhart.

From the flying fists and flashing blades of Glasgow’s gangland underworld, to the backstabbing upper echelons of government and big business, Dreghorn and his partner ‘Bonnie’ Archie McDaid will have to dig deep into Glasgow society to find out who wanted the man dead and why.

All the while, a sadistic murderer stalks the post-war city leaving a trail of dead bodies in their wake. As the case deepens, will Dreghorn find the killer – or lose his own life in the process?

Edge of the Grave by Robbie Morrison is a dark historical crime novel set in Glasgow, 1932. A city still recovering from the Great War; split by religious division and swarming with razor gangs. For fans of William McIlvanney’s Laidlaw, Denise Mina and Philip Kerr.

‘A magnificent and enthralling portrait of a dark and dangerous city . . . Chilling and brutal, but also deeply moving and, most importantly, beautifully written’ – Mark Billingham

Publisher Review

The dark heart of 1930s gangland Glasgow is brought back to vivid, violent life in Robbie Morrison’s brilliant first novel. Fast moving and evocative, the prose cuts like a razor, straight through to the heart — Martyn Waites Robbie Morrison really is a breath of fresh creative air in crime fiction. Edge of the Grave is a stunning debut: razor sharp prose and a superbly crafted sense of place and time. A great Glaswegian page-turner: I could smell the smog and feel the grit throughout — Craig Russell, author of the LENNOX series 1930s Glasgow portrayed in all its ragged glory — Alan Parks Sharp and lethal as a cut-throat razor. Deeply researched, with strong characterisation and a fluent narrative, Robbie Morrison’s first novel is a book to savour — John Harvey, bestselling author of the Charlie Resnick novels Wonderfully gritty, violent and nasty in all the right ways — James Oswald, bestselling author of the Inspector McLean series Robbie Morrison serves up a delicious slice of 30s gangster noir set in the grim and greasy, sodden and savage streets of Glasgow when it was the Empire’s Second City. Peaky Blinders meets William McIlvanney in this rollocking riveting read — Adrian McKinty, bestselling author of The Chain A magnificent and enthralling portrait of a dark and dangerous city and the men and women who live and die in it. I can’t wait to spend some more time with Jimmy Dreghorn and Archie McDaid. Robbie Morrison has produced an astounding debut — Mark Billingham A mesmerizing debut – raw, brutally violent but immensely human. Early gangland Glasgow with the gloss razored off — Peter James, number one bestselling author of the DS Roy Grace series