Tag - You're Dead by Douglas Skelton #BlogTour @DouglasSkelton1 @SarabandBooks

Maverick investigator Dominic Queste is on the trail of missing butcher Sam Price. But he soon uncovers links to a killer with a taste for games. What began as a simple favour for his girlfriend quickly descends into a battle for survival against an enemy who has no qualms about turning victims into prime cuts. Amidst a twisted game of cat and mouse, suspicious coppers, vicious crooks and a seemingly random burglary, Queste has to keep his wits about him. Or he might just find himself on the butcher s block.

Tag ~ You're Dead by Douglas Skelton was published in paperback by Saraband Books on 27 April 2017 and is the second in the Dominic Queste series. The first, The Dead Don't Boogie was published in September last year.

I haven't read the first in the Dominic Queste series, and was a little worried if that would make Tag ~ You're Dead difficult to follow, I needn't have worried. Douglas Skelton is a skilled storyteller, this works very well as a tense and exciting thriller on its own, I was soon caught up in the antics of this incredibly well created lead character.

Douglas Skelton gets right into the heart of Glasgow, it's tough and gritty and there's a particularly
nasty murderer about. There's a dark humour running through this tale and Dominic Queste's dry wit really appeals to me very much. Queste is an unusual character; he's not a policeman, or officially a private investigator. He's a local guy who is tough, lives on his wits and finds himself in the middle of something he didn't anticipate.

I wanted to talk about the plot that runs through Tag ~ You're Dead, but found that everything that I said was a potential spoiler, so those thoughts are gone - sorry!  However, I can comment on the extremely clever use of film references that are littered throughout this story. I absolutely love the way that the author has done this, it adds a particularly nasty depth to the murderer who uses Queste's film obsession to get so very personal.

A great crime thriller. Gritty, memorable writing, a superb lead character, witty dry humour, all in a multi-layered, enjoyable story.  Great stuff, I'll certainly be reading more from Douglas Skelton.

My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review and to Gordon at Grab This Book who invited me to take part in this Blog Tour.

Douglas Skelton has published 11 books on true crime and history. He has been a bank clerk, tax officer, shelf stacker, meat porter, taxi driver (for two days), wine waiter (for two hours), reporter, investigator and editor.
His first thriller BLOOD CITY was published by Luath Press in 2013.
The gritty thriller was the first in a quartet set on the tough streets of Glasgow from 1980 onwards. It was followed by CROW BAIT, DEVIL'S KNOCK and finally OPEN WOUNDS, which was longlisted for the first McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the Year.
The first Dominic Queste thriller, THE DEAD DON'T BOOGIE, is now available from Contraband. The second, TAG - YOU'RE DEAD, will be published in April 2017.

Author Web Page: www.douglasskelton.com

Twitter:  @DouglasSkelton1