The Darkness won silver in the Mystery category of the Forward National Literature Awards 2011.
Its trailer won the 'Most Intriguing Trailer' in the New Covey Awards, July 2009.
When Tommy Davidson is found withhis throat cut, his brother Andrew’s shock turns to thoughts of vigilante retribution.Known villains, including the person indirectly responsible for the death,begin to disappear. Thanks to the efforts of one of Cairnburgh’s cleverestlawyers, each has managed to evade justice. But not any more. Meantime, rape victimRhona Kirk starts a new life in Dundee butfinds it difficult to shake off her past. As DCI Jack Carston tries to findwhat links the various missing persons, he’s aware of his own darker impulsesand of an empathy between himself and the vigilante. His investigation becomesa race against time and against the pressure of darkness.
Praise and Reviews
‘a
wonderful, thrilling, dark, compassionate book’
(Gillian
Philip, author of Bad Faith and Crossing the Line.)
http://www.bookpleasures.com/websitepublisher/articles/692/1/The-Darkness-Reviewed-By-Norm-Goldman-of-Bookpleasurescom/Page1.html
Bill Kirton’s The
Darkness will hold you in thrall with the quality of its writing, spare
unflinching scenes, and the questions the author raises. Is it more than a
crime novel? Is it a melodrama focused on murder and revenge? Is it a good
yarn? Is it a clever portrayal of the inner thoughts of a depraved person who
also reminds us that perhaps under the right circumstances we could likewise
fall prey to the same course of criminal behavior? Is it possible to
sympathize and perhaps even condone the premeditated crimes of forceful
confinement and murder committed by a doctor of medicine, who carried with him
a primitive urge for vengeance, the result of caring for patients who were
victims of abominable crimes?
After reading this
fascinating novel, you may come to the same conclusion as I did with an
emphatic yes on all counts. Multitalented Kirton, who was born in England but has lived most of his life in Scotland, has
over the years worn many hats as playwright, song and sketch writer for revues,
novelist, short story writer, university lecturer, actor, director, and
television presenter. As he states on his web site: "I love writing. I
love the power of even the simplest words. I love the intimacy that's
established between the writer and reader as, together we turn fiction into a
reality."
In The Darkness it
only takes a few chapters to set the hook that will grab you by the jugular and
keep you reading. The plot unfolds as we read about thirty-five old Tommy
Davidson taking his own life, having cut his throat. We learn that Davidson was
a successful attorney who had recently lost his wife and two daughters, the
result of a car accident caused by a drunken driver. The driver was
fortunate enough to engage a top criminal attorney, F.K. (Freddy) Reismann,
someone you would call upon if your case were hopeless. This attorney was
outstanding and an ace at taking the best evidence the prosecuting attorneys
could present and turning them around. The result was that he had a string of
victories involving the most hideous crimes involving among others wife
beating, murder, and pedophilia.
Upon further reading, we
discover, along with detective Jack Carston of Cairnburgh Scotland that
without any logical explanation a string of individuals have disappeared. The
only element tying them together was that they were all quite nasty and they
had previously being involved in some kind of a criminal proceeding wherein
Reismann had been their defence attorney helping them to evade justice. Was
someone out there doing the police a favor by removing these dregs from
society?
And to throw us a curve,
Kirton inserts into the plot three other individuals who likewise disappear,
one of whom was a prostitute. Is there some kind of connection or conspiracy?
Kirton has a fine ear for dialogue and a talent
for picking out tiny, telling details that make his scenes come alive,
particularly some of the crime scenes. In addition, he is exceptionally
gifted as he deftly captures the psychotic thoughts and fury of Davidson’s
brother Andrew who during the course of his medical practice has witnessed some
atrocious crimes committed against some of his patients. The struggle within
his psyche to deal with demons, the anger and the smell are so real that we
resist temptation to turn away as Andrew beckons us to listen to all that he
has to say and listen properly to all of it. As he states, perhaps our
psychiatrists can make something of it. He certainly can’t. A difficult
pill to swallow and therein lies the brilliance of this audacious and haunting
novel that deserves public attention.
Michael Malone (Dumfries and Galloway Standard, March 20th 2009, repeated on Amazon)
Mild-mannered GP, Andrew
Davidson's world is turned upside down with the murder of his brother, Tommy.
Quite apart from the emotional upheaval, he begins to notice that more and more
criminals are managing to evade justice. In his darkest moments he begins to
wonder if he...could he...should he do something about it?
Cairnburgh's finest DCI Jack Carston becomes aware of a pattern linking several
missing persons and begins to wonder if there is a vigilante on the loose.
Given the type of people involved he begins to ask himself; is he happy for the
vigilante to continue?
When you read The Darkness be prepared to be manipulated and have your moral
compass reset by this master storyteller. This book is clever, tightly
constructed, immensely satisfying and peopled with a cast of completely
believable characters, who pull you into their story and don't let you go until
the final word.
Bill Kirton also manages to double up on his detective's cases with the story
of a rape victim who moves to Dundee in an
attempt to shake off her past. The two tales are woven together with consummate
skill, with the author staying true to his characters and never being tempted
to go the easy route, which a man of lesser talent might have been tempted to
do. So go on, get yourself a copy of The Darkness and ask yourself this; what
would you do?
