Stonemouth

Stewart Gilmour is back in Stonemouth. After five years in exile his presence is required at the funeral of patriarch Joe Murston, and even though the last time Stu saw the Murstons he was running for his life, staying away might be even more dangerous than turning up.

An estuary town north of Aberdeen, Stonemouth, with it's five mile beach, can be beautiful on a sunny day. =On a bleak one it can seem to offer little more than seafog, gangsters, cheap drugs and a suspension bridge irresistible to suicides. And although there's supposed to be a temporary truce between Stewart and the town's biggest crime family, it's soon clear that only Stewart is taking this promise of peace seriously. Before long Stu steps back into the minefield of his past to confront his guilt and all that it has lost him, uncovering ever darker stories. Soon his homecoming takes a more lethal turn than even he had anticipated.

Tough, funny, fast-paced and touching, Stonemouth cracks open adolescence, love, brotherhood and vengeance in a rite of passage novel like no other.

“'There is more than a shade of Pip and Estella in Stewart and Ellie, and to create an emotionally satisfying while intellectually convincing ending is a rare achievement . . . Beguiling”

Readable, gripping . . . One of his best - Evening Standard - William Leith

- Guardian - Stuart Kelly

The mythology of Stewart's past, and of Stonemouth itself, is utterly absorbing. Addictive, funny, and brilliantly observed - Daily Mail

Banks at his waspish, intelligent, nuanced best. His fans will give thanks - Scotland on Sunday

Iain Banks came to widespread and controversial public notice with the publication of his first novel, THE WASP FACTORY, in 1984. He has since gained enormous popular and critical acclaim for both his mainstream and his science fiction novels.

'Utterly absorbing . . . Addictive, funny and brilliantly observed' Stephanie Cross, Daily Mail Stewart Gilmour is back in Stonemouth, the estuary town north of Aberdeen that on a bleak day can seem to offer little more than sea-fog, gangsters, cheap drugs and a suspension bridge irresistible to suicides. After a five-year exile, Stewart's presence is required at the funeral of patriarch Joe Murston, even though the last time Stu saw the Murstons he was running for his life. As he steps back into the minefield of the past to confront his guilt and all that it has cost him, Stewart uncovers ever darker stories, and his homecoming takes a more lethal turn than even he had anticipated. 'Emotionally satisfying . . . Intellectually convincing. . . Beguiling' Stuart Kelly, Guardian 'At the heart of the gradually menacing drama lies a romance, a thing of tenderness and devotion . . . As ever with Banks, there are nuanced questions. . . Unfailingly entertaining . . . This is Banks at his waspish, intelligent, nuanced best' Scotland on Sunday

Stewart Gilmour is back in Stonemouth. After five years in exile his presence is required at the funeral of patriarch Joe Murston, and even though the last time Stu saw the Murstons he was running for his life, staying away might be even more dangerous than turning up.An estuary town north of Aberdeen, Stonemouth, with it's five mile beach, can be beautiful on a sunny day. =On a bleak one it can seem to offer little more than seafog, gangsters, cheap drugs and a suspension bridge irresistible to suicides. And although there's supposed to be a temporary truce between Stewart and the town's biggest crime family, it's soon clear that only Stewart is taking this promise of peace seriously. Before long Stu steps back into the minefield of his past to confront his guilt and all that it has lost him, uncovering ever darker stories. Soon his homecoming takes a more lethal turn than even he had anticipated.Tough, funny, fast-paced and touching, Stonemouth cracks open adolescence, love, brotherhood and vengeance in a rite of passage novel like no other.

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