The Stone Gallows

DC Cameron Stone spent three months in intensive care before he could even recall the high-speed pursuit and accident that had not only almost finished him, but also had killed a teenage mother and her child. After the message from Audrey that she had left him and taken their young son, Mark, with her, booze, anti-depressants, and therapy all failed to enable him to resume his old job. Now he lives in a room in the worst part of Glasgow, paying rent by running errands for a private detective agency. He’s also paid by his former colleagues to do their dirty work—like threatening the newly released sex offender who has been hanging around the local high school. Stone is having a bad week. Audrey’s talking of remarriage, knife-wielding kids try to mug him, and there's a message on his front door: Burn in Hell Baby Killer. The one bright spot is his growing friendship with Liz, the sunny Irish nurse on the next floor. But then his apartment is set on fire—and now a stranger has turned up at the school and driven off with his son.

DC Cameron Stone spent three months in intensive care before he could even recall the high-speed pursuit and accident that had not only almost finished him, but also had killed a teenage mother and her child. After the message from Audrey that she had left him and taken their young son, Mark, with her, booze, anti-depressants, and therapy all failed to enable him to resume his old job. Now he lives in a room in the worst part of Glasgow, paying rent by running errands for a private detective agency. He’s also paid by his former colleagues to do their dirty work—like threatening the newly released sex offender who has been hanging around the local high school. Stone is having a bad week. Audrey’s talking of remarriage, knife-wielding kids try to mug him, and there's a message on his front door: Burn in Hell Baby Killer. The one bright spot is his growing friendship with Liz, the sunny Irish nurse on the next floor. But then his apartment is set on fire—and now a stranger has turned up at the school and driven off with his son.

Publishers Weekly

Gritty, pull-no-punches realism distinguishes Ingram's debut, the first in a series set in Scotland. One day, while speeding through the streets of Glasgow in an unmarked police car after a high-stakes surveillance target, Det. Constable Cameron Stone hits a teenage mother and her infant, killing them instantly. Stone's career in the force doesn't survive much past his hospital discharge, but a former colleague rescues him from destitution by offering him private investigative work. Stone tries to live down the notoriety of his tragic accident, which leads to the occasional graffiti on his door labeling him a baby killer, and has to fight with his former girlfriend to spend time with their son. Stone gets to take an active role assisting his boss when a client suspects her husband is having an affair with her sister. Though some may not care for the contrived closing twist or the abrupt ending, an obvious setup for the next book, the solid writing will leave most readers wanting more. (Dec.)

C. David Ingram is a nurse.