Richie, a man fresh out on licence and desperate for money to support his new family, agrees to pick up a converted air pistol for local drug dealer Goose. When Richie is beaten up and robbed, he’s forced to retrieve the gun, as well as question his career choice.

“Banks is part of the post-Rankin generation for whom hardboiled is not just a state of mind but a reality. Tough-guy colloquial prose and a pace fast enough to skin a rabbit, at the service of a tale of down-and-dirty realism: this is fiery stuff.” – The Guardian

Ray Banks is the author of four previous crime novels: The Big Blind, No More Heroes, Saturday’s Child, and Donkey Punch. He currently lives in Newcastle but is known as part of the Scottish crime writing scene. He also writes for the rock magazine Bullet. Banks joins John Harvey, Stephen Booth, Rod Duncan and Lawrence Block on the Crime Express.