DS McRae came across as less than the good detective he was in the previous novel, and there were a large amount of characters floating around in this one.

Stuart MacBride's characteristic grittiness, gallows humour and lively characterization make this his second unputdownable novel, confirming his status as the rising star of crime fiction. While DS Logan McRae is trying very hard to solve cases and thus also his own position, DI Steel will try to take the credit in an attempt to improve her own situation within the police-system, and so DI Steel will thwart him in a lot of ways until even she will have to concede that DS McRae has the right in most cases, resulting in the discovery of some thugs from Edinburgh as the main perpetrators behind some cruel and lethal activities, while in other cases some interesting culprits will turn up. I don't mind gritty, but the general tenor of these books makes Aberdeen sound like the most disgusting place on earth. There were segues into sexual fantasies and prostitution, playing games to pass the time, and drinking to excess.

So, if like me you are always a bit hesitant when picking up a second book in a series, I wouldn't worry too much when it comes to Dying Light. My problem comes from the language which seems to be one long run of curses and constant use of the "F" word. She has no integrity, the manners of an untrained chimp, talks like a drunken sailor, and smokes like a chimney. Added to which, a couple of Edinburgh heavies have recently arrived in town and are throwing their weight around.

The characters are just so well-drawn, and endearing, even the prickly, insensitive ones, and I love the dark humor. Logan McRae is a talented, well intentioned policeman who seems to manage to not quite stuff things up. DS Logan McRae was in disgrace from the botched warehouse raid in which DC Maitland was shot – his punishment was to be transferred to DI Steel’s team. MacBride's publishing deal was secured with the writing of Halfhead, however the publishers were more interested in Cold Granite, concerning DS Logan MacRae.

the person in question that the police arrest just didn't seem to be capable of planning a killing so it just felt natural when Logan got the right killer towards the end.