How a Gunman Says Goodbye

Picking up directly where the first installment, The Necessary Death of Lewis Winter, left off, Mackay's gripping and surprisingly poignant second book in his Glasgow Trilogy traces the downward spiral of 62-year-old gunman Frank MacLeod's career. Frank, considered the best in the city with an impressive body count in his wake, has been on the mend following hip surgery, but he's eager to get back to doing what he does best: killing people. Peter Jamieson, one of Glasgow's biggest crime bosses, is pleased that his top man is back in action and sends Frank to take care of an upstart dealer, Tommy Scott, who's working for one of Jamieson's rivals, Shug Francis. When Frank botches the job, Jamieson is forced to call in Calum MacLean, his new gunman, whom readers will remember as the killer of Lewis Winter, among others, in the first book. Mackay avoids the easy young-vs.-old conflict; there's a genuine respect shared by Frank and Calum for each other's skill set, even though both men realize that it's time for Frank bow out of the game. Frank and Calum are brutal criminals, but Mackay never robs the characters of their humanity. Agent: Grainne Fox, Fletcher & Company. (Apr.)