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Birthdays for the Dead

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Birthdays for the Dead

By: Stuart MacBride
Narrated by: Ian Hanmore
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About this listen

 Twelve years. Twelve dead girls. Thirteen will be unlucky for some. The Number One bestselling crime thriller from the award-winning Stuart MacBride. A bloody, brilliant and brutal story of murder, kidnap and revenge.

Detective Constable Ash Henderson has a dark secret…

Five years ago his daughter, Rebecca, went missing on the eve of her thirteenth birthday. A year later the first card arrived: home-made, with a Polaroid picture stuck to the front – Rebecca, strapped to a chair, gagged and terrified. Every year another card: each one worse than the last.

The tabloids call him ‘The Birthday Boy’. He’s been snatching girls for twelve years, always just before their thirteenth birthday, killing them slowly, then torturing their families with his homemade cards.

But Ash hasn’t told anyone what really happened to Rebecca – they all think she ran away – because if anyone finds out, he’ll be taken off the investigation. And he’s sacrificed too much to give up before his daughter’s murderer gets what he deserves…

 Crime Thrillers Fiction Mystery Police Procedural Suspense Thriller & Suspense Crime Thriller

Critic Reviews

Praise for Birthdays for the Dead:

‘MacBride is a damned fine writer – no one does dark and gritty like him’ Peter James

‘The master of murderous mayhem is back to his best with a belter of a book … a page-turner’ The Sun

Praise for Stuart MacBride:

‘Fierce, unflinching and shot through with the blackest of humour; this is crime fiction of the highest order’ Mark Billingham

‘Ferocious and funny, this is Tartan Noir at its best’ Val McDermid

‘Stuart MacBride’s thrillers just keep getting better’ Express
All stars
Most relevant
great!!!!!! absolutely reverting story!!!! listened to it in record time!!! love ash and Alice!!!!! Please write more!!!!

Intensely addictive!!

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I really enjoyed this book but it was rather violent. The performance was first class.

Entertaining but a little bleak.

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But worth it. With twists and turns galore, plenty of blood, gore and depravity, these poor characters are really put through the wringer for our entertainment. Chilling to the end.

Heavy going

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Don’t expect another Logan McCrae book. This is a much darker, more serious crime novel. MacBride has successfully departed from the dark humor of his other works. This novel is everything you’d want in a serious crime novel. I nearly didn’t buy this book because of the other reviews but I’m so glad I did. The narrator does an excellent job of the story. He adds gravitas to the slow burn and multi-level subtly of the plot.
If you loved Logan McCrae (& I do) don’t expect more of the same. If you love dark crime with interesting characters and twisted plots, then this is definitely for you.

Not McCrae but definitely excellent.

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I've been listening to all of stuart mcbride's and was disappointed when the logan macrae series finished, but this has been really good. looking forward to the next.

very good.

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Loved this book...made all the better by the awesome Narration. Eager to start No2

Gripping Story, A1 Narration

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I love Stuart MacBrides work, this one is totally different.
I think gritty is a good way to describe it. Ok the violence is very descriptive, but necessary because that’s what this book is. It’s not comedic like the Logan and Steele series, it’s a completely different style and feel. I really loved it. Ash and Alice are excellent characters and I really like Sabier, the narrator has brought them to life. It’s extremely well read.

Very different from his other books

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Sounded like a great story but I could not understand the thick Scottish accent. I have enjoyed the rest of Stuart Macbrides books but could carry on with this one.

Returned

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Ash Henderson is one sick 'bastardo' Stuart MacBride manages to make you feel sorry for characters who are truly disturbed, sad, damaged and very very angry. Great gory story telling. Tragic circumstances and ending. I am reading a happy uplifting story next.

Not for the squeamish

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This book has no slow spots to allow you to catch your breath - it’s full speed from start to finish. Featuring the most wonderful duo in crime fighting, the disgraced cop, Ash, and Dr Mc Fruit Loops, the best thing about it is that these wonderful characters feature in more books, so we don’t have to say goodbye to them.

Dark, violent, brilliant

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