The Blood Is Still: A Rebecca Connolly Thriller

In Skelton’s excellent sequel to 2020’s Thunder Bay, Scottish newshound Rebecca Connolly of the Inverness tabloid the Highland Chronicle senses a scoop when Mo Burke, a crime family’s outspoken matriarch, spearheads demonstrations to prohibit the relocation of a pedophile to a housing estate on the edge of the city. A prominent politician, who’s the charismatic leader of Spioraid nan Gàidheal, an extreme right-wing nationalist movement, unexpectedly joins the rallies, upstaging Mo and agitating the increasingly aggressive crowd. Rebecca and a freelance photographer are soon in the thick of the action, enduring intense anti-media hostility instigated by Spioraid activists. When a body, killed by a claymore sword and clad in full Highland dress, is found at the nearby historic battle site of Culloden, Rebecca vies for national coverage with a rising hotshot BBC reporter as she uncovers ties between the murder and a controversial new movie and a terrorist group. Credible, multilayered characters enhance the intricate, high-tension plot. Skelton’s growing legion of fans will avidly await brave, dogged Rebecca’s next outing. (Jan.)