Out of Bounds by Val McDermid - Revision history

Sue at 08:19, 15 April 2023

2023-04-15T08:19:53Z

Sue at 20:24, 11 August 2020

2020-08-11T20:24:53Z

Sue at 13:43, 1 March 2018

2018-03-01T13:43:42Z

Sue at 12:47, 18 February 2018

2018-02-18T12:47:03Z

Sue: Sue moved page Out of Bounds by Val Mc Dermid to Out of Bounds by Val McDermid

2017-01-26T09:19:04Z

Sue moved page Out of Bounds by Val Mc Dermid to Out of Bounds by Val McDermid

Sue: Created page with "{{infobox |title=Out of Bounds |author=Val McDermid |reviewer=Sue Magee |genre=Crime |summary=The fourth book in the DCI Karen Pirie series works well as a stand alone, althou..."

2016-12-17T11:09:08Z

Created page with "{{infobox |title=Out of Bounds |author=Val McDermid |reviewer=Sue Magee |genre=Crime |summary=The fourth book in the DCI Karen Pirie series works well as a stand alone, althou..."

New review

{{infobox
|title=Out of Bounds
|author=Val McDermid
|reviewer=Sue Magee
|genre=Crime
|summary=The fourth book in the DCI Karen Pirie series works well as a stand alone, although I suspect that you'll get more out of the books if you read them in order. Either way, it's top class crime writing.
|rating=5
|buy=Yes
|borrow=Yes
|pages=496/12h 59m
|publisher=Sphere
|date=August 2016
|isbn=978-0751561432
|website=http://www.valmcdermid.com/
|video=
|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0751561436</amazonuk>
}}

When a teenage joyrider crashed a stolen car and ended up in a coma a routine check of his DNA revealed a connection to an unsolved murder from years before his birth. On the face of it, it looked as though solving the cold case should be straightforward, but it's not. Detective Chief Inspector Karen Pirie is an expert at clearing cases which have proved unsolvable but in this case it looks as though the ''law'' itself might prove to be an insurmountable barrier. She's drawn to another case too - one which she really has no business investigating - and one which has its roots in a terrorist bombing two decades earlier. Like the case of the teenage joyrider ''nothing'' is quite as it seems.

I've an embarrassing confession to make: despite having read crime fiction and particularly police procedurals for more than half a century, I'd never read any of Val McDermid's books. The excuses were weak: I've read a lot of [[:Category:Ian Rankin|Ian Rankin]] and there's only so much you can read about Edinburgh without wanting to move there permanently. She's got quite a back catalogue (''Out of Bounds'' is her thirtieth book) and it always seems a little unfair to come into a series when it's already got into its stride. It was a sleepless night and nothing immediately to hand to read which overcome the niggles. Then I couldn't sleep because I didn't want to.

The plotting is rock solid, but twisted, tangled and utterly compelling. There's an elegant combination of the ethical dilemmas thrown up by the advances in forensic science and commentaries on modern society. I ''can'' understand why details of an adopted child's parentage shouldn't automatically be available to the police: it's something which can be argued either way, but I'm less clear about why refugees who ''want'' to work are prevented from doing so. McDermid brings the issues to life, vividly.

The book is intelligent and chilling; the pace and tension are handled by a master, but it was McDermid's eye for detail which lifted the story above the norm for me. I walked the streets of Edinburgh with the characters and felt bereft when I got to the end. I was completely taken by Karen Pirie despite the fact that I ''have'' grown rather tired of police officers who are insubordinate and senior officers who are less than honourable. Here it seemed to work and work well.

''Out of Bounds'' read well as a standalone, but I suspect that there are spoilers, if not for the endings then for major incidents which would lose their shock value if you were expecting them. You might be better reading the books in [[Val McDermid's DCI Karen Pirie Novels in Chronological Order|order]]. I doubt you'll regret it.

For another Edinburgh cold case we can recommend [[Rather be the Devil by Ian Rankin]].

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 The book is intelligent and chilling; the pace and tension are handled by a master, but it was McDermid's eye for detail which lifted the story above the norm for me. I walked the streets of Edinburgh with the characters and felt bereft when I got to the end.  I was completely taken by Karen Pirie despite the fact that I ''have'' grown rather tired of police officers who are insubordinate and senior officers who are less than honourable.  Here it seemed to work and work well.
-''Out of Bounds'' read well as a standalone, but I suspect that there are spoilers, if not for the endings then for major incidents which would lose their shock value if you were expecting them.  You might be better reading the books in [[Val McDermid's DCI Karen Pirie Novels in Chronological Order|order]].  I doubt you'll regret it.
+''Out of Bounds'' read well as a standalone, but I suspect that there are spoilers, if not for the endings then for major incidents which would lose their shock value if you were expecting them.  You might be better off reading the books in [[Val McDermid's DCI Karen Pirie Novels in Chronological Order|order]].  I doubt you'll regret it.
-For another Edinburgh cold case we can recommend [[Rather be the Devil by Ian Rankin]].
+For another Edinburgh cold case, we can recommend [[Rather be the Devil by Ian Rankin]].  For something more unusual from McDermid, try [[Resistance: A Race Against Time to Save Mankind by Val McDermid|Resistance: A Race Against Time to Save Mankind]].
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 For another Edinburgh cold case we can recommend [[Rather be the Devil by Ian Rankin]].
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-{{amazontext|amazon=0751561436}}
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 |title=Out of Bounds
 |author=Val McDermid
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-|amazonuk=<amazonuk>0751561436</amazonuk>
+|cover=Mcdermid_Out
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