Last Orders

Hamish warns DCI Jim Daley and his wife, Liz, not to go to London, but they go anyway. Then Brian Scott receives a phone call that Daley has murdered his wife. Brian knows that it is a set up but how can the truth be proved?

Last Orders by Scottish author, Denzil Meyrick, is the twelfth and last book in the DCI Daley series. It is the gripping story of  a crime of revenge against Jim Daley as payback for a death that occurred in Glasgow in 1977. Complicating matters is the realisation that corruption in a segment of the police force is hindering Brian's attempts to discover the truth. Who can be trusted?

Like the other books in this series, the strength of the novel is in the portrayal of the life of the main characters, plus their families and friends, as they endeavour to carry out their role of investigating crime. Although they are very much character driven novels, the reader is soon swept up in the solving of the crimes being investigated.

Denzil Meyrick died in February 2025, shortly before the publication of this book. Since discovering his DCI Daley series in 2018, I have thoroughly enjoyed reading the books in this series as well as other books by Denzil Meyrick.

Denzil Meyrick 1965-1925

Scottish crime writer, Denzil Meyrick, was born in Glasgow on 28 November 1965. His early life was spent in Campbeltown on the shores of the Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre Peninsula. After studying politics at university he became a police officer, then a freelance journalist and later a director of several companies. He then dedicated his time to writing crime novels set in Scotland, particularly the twelve books in the DCI Daley series. Denzil Meyrick died on 14 February 2025.

DCI Daley series: 

Whisky From Small Glasses

The Last Witness 

Dark Suits and Sad Songs

The Rat Stone Serenade

Well of the Winds

The Relentless Tide

A Breath on Dying Embers

Jeremiah's Bell 

For Any Other Truth

The Death of Remembrance

No Sweet Sorrow

Last Orders 

DCI Daley Series Prequels: 

Single End: a DC Daley story - (a DCI Daley Prequel)

Dalintober Moon: a DCI Daley story

One Two Three: a DCI Daley prequel 

Other novels:

The Christmas Stocking Murders

Murder at Holly House 

Terms of Restitution

The Estate

Short Stories:

Kinloch Tales: the collected stories

Ghosts in the Gloaming: a tale from Kinloch (also published in the Kinloch Tales)

One Last Dram Before Midnight

A Toast to the Old Stones: a tale from Kinloch (also published in the Kinloch Tales)

A Large Measure of Snow: a tale from Kinloch  (also published in the Kinloch Tales)

Empty Nets and Promises: a Kinloch Novella 

Denzil Meyrick - Home Page

Denzil Meyrick - Wikipedia

The Christmas Stocking Murders

It is 1976 and once again Inspector Frank Grasby recounts events recorded in his diaries. Three days before Christmas in 1953 he is summoned to the office of Superintendent Juggers and informed that they are to travel to the fishing village of Uthley's Bay to investigate a murder. The body of a man with a stocking wound around his head had been found on the beach. Shortly after their arrival another body is found and in the evening quantities of packets of ladies' stockings cover the beach. Grasby soon realises that they are in Uthley's Bay to investigate a murder.

What follows is the often bungling attempt of the two police officers as they attempt to solve the crimes. Snow has arrived in the area and the White Christmas is not helping the investigation. The villagers are closing ranks and it is difficult for the police to know who to trust. Superintendent Juggers also has a tendency to make rash decisions leaving Grasby with the task of finding a solution. Grasby is well aware that Superintendent Juggers will claim the credit for any success made in the investigation.

The Christmas Stocking Murders by Denzil Meyrick a sequel to Murder at Holly House.  There is plenty of action, an array of eccentric characters and lots of humour as the two policeman attempt to solve the crime against the odds.

The Estate

Sebastian Pallander, head of the large hedge fund company Pallander Glossop, dies while doing a television interview. When his family gather for the reading of the will some months later, they realise that most of the family fortune is missing. Then another member of the family dies and other family members are threatened.

Inspector Cara Salt, head the Succession, Inheritance and Executory (SIE) for Police Scotland in Glasgow, is surprised when she is asked to investigate but hopes that this investigation may help her to be taken more seriously in Police Scotland. DS Abernethy Blackstock is appointed as her assistant.

In The Estate by Denzil Meyrick the reader is taken on a tense journey as we follow the dangers encountered by family members and the progression of Cara's investigation. We also learn of events from the past in her police career with her former partner, Sorley MacLeod.

As with other books by Denzil Meyrick there is plenty of drama with many twists and turns as the author introduces an array of characters as the plot is revealed. There is also humour interspersed with the action. I suspect that we may meet Cara again in future novels.

Professional Book Nerds - Denzil Meyrick interview

My local library now has a series of podcasts available featuring 30 minute interviews with a variety of authors under the title - Professional Book Nerds. There are 425 of these podcasts currently available via the library catalogue. Being American podcasts, most of the interviews are with American authors however I did find a selection of podcasts with writers of books that I have read.

The first podcast that I listened to was with Scottish author Denzil Meyrick who just happens to be one of my favourite authors of crime novels. In this podcast he is asked about the writing of Whiskey in Small Glasses, the first novel in the DCI Daley series set in Kinloch. Denzil Meyrick explained that Kinloch is based on the small town of Campbeltown in Scotland. 

His writing of the DCI Daley series is based on his background in the police force providing him with an understanding of how policing really works in Scotland. He has also worked as a journalist. The variety of characters in his books play an important part in telling the story. DCI Daley is an important character in the books but other characters including Sergeant Scott and many of the residents of Kinloch are important to the telling of the story. Sense of community is a focal point making Kinloch also one of the main characters of the books.

Denzil Meyrick was then asked about the importance of libraries and he stressed that libraries are the centres of a community.  He expressed his concern about how libraries are being neglected in some parts of Britain and how they need to be protected as a valuable source for all the community.

Books of Denzil Meyrick.

Murder at Holly House

Scottish author, Denzil Meyrick, is best known for his series of DCI Daley crime novels set in Kinloch. However his new crime novel, Murder at Holly House, is set in north Yorkshire. Detective Inspector Frank Grasby has been sent to the small community of Elderby to investigate a series of robberies in the area. He soon discovers that Elderby is not your normal rural community. Frank describes the initial reaction of any visitor to Elderby as seeing a picture perfect place. 

'I don't think any visitor could help themselves loving it, with its little lanes, pretty shops - everything wrought in that grey Yorkshire stone that makes the village look as if it sprang from the earth by force of nature alone. As I am finding out, though, it's a village of secrets, mystery and death.' [page 259]

 While interviewing the landed gentry about another possible robbery he discovers a body in the chimney. This is only the beginning of a series of crimes, past and present, that Frank becomes aware of including attempts on his life. But it is when he is warned from headquarters to avoid over investigating the cases but just locate a culprit for the robberies that Frank knows that this is definitely not your normal community or normal crimes. The problem is is there anyone that he can trust?

Denzil Meyrick has written a fast paced, often humorous crime novel with so many twists and turns it is hard to keep up with what is happening. The novel is set during winter, a few days before Christmas, so there is also the weather to contend with. The effects of the Second World War remain, especially rationing. However as the novel progresses it is obvious that the politics of war still exists in this this part of northern England.

Kinloch Tales: the collected stories

Denzil Meyrick has written three novellas about when Hamish was a young fisherman working on the boat, the Girl Maggie, captained by Sandy Hoynes in Kinloch. The three novellas - A Large Measure of Snow, A Toast to the Old Stones and Ghosts in the Gloaming - were originally published separately as books and in electronic formats but have now been published in one volume. 

Each story is set in Kinloch in Scotland in the winters of 1967 and 1968 and also contain flashbacks to when Sandy was a boy early in the twentieth century. The Viking connection in the history of the region features strongly in the three tales. The appearance of a huge silver gull guiding those who are lost back to safety is also an omen.

In A Large Measure of Snow Sandy and Hamish set out in a storm to bring needed supplies back to Kinloch. On this voyage they are accompanied by a journalist who happens to be a woman - females were considered bad luck on fishing boats. Like the other stories there is much humour in the tale, especially when Sandy accidentally takes a drug that causes him to 'encounter' lobsters on the ship.

A Toast to Old Stones features the celebration by some of the fishermen of the old New Year. They travel to an isolated location to visit the old stones - important remains from the Viking past. Needless to say all does not go entirely to plan.

In Ghosts in the Gloaming a person from Sandy's past returns to Kinloch and continues to cause trouble for Sandy. Sandy and Hamish retreat from the town for a time however, when a boat is found drifting in the sea, Sandy's friends set out to rescue them.

In each of the stories Hona, the Viking from past times, arrives to help when all seems lost. He explains to Sandy about the 'pull of the Thin Places' where lives of people in different time zones can connect. Although originally written as three short books, combined in Kinloch Tales they form one coherent story. We also learn more about Hamish, an important character in the DCI Daley series of books.

No Sweet Sorrow

DCI Daley and his team are concerned about the use of drugs in Kinloch which intensifies with the apparent arrival of new drug dealing in the area. But when a group of Oxford University students arrive to prepare for an expedition to Mount Everest and one of them is assaulted when trying to obtain drugs it is obvious that drug related issues have definitely escalated.

When the fathers of two of the students arrive to remove their sons from Kinloch, Jim Daley and his team are removed from the investigation. It is obvious that the local drug dealing is not the main reason for events occurring in the town. It is also obvious that people with power are attempting to impede the investigation.

As well as providing a fast paced crime novel set on the west coast of Scotland the author allows the reader to immerse themselves in the lives - both professional and private - of the main characters. Jim Daley speaks regular English and although several of the characters, including Brian Scott, use Scots dialect when they speak it is easy to follow. However Brian does have a tendency to use words incorrectly in sentences, especially when he uses quotations to emphasise a point he is trying to make, much to the amusement of the other characters.

No Sweet Sorrow by Denzil Meyrick is number 11 in the DCI Daley series featuring Jim Daley, Brian Scott and the former fisherman, Hamish.The books are easy to read and difficult to put down as the reader becomes immersed in the lives of the characters in Kinloch and the crime needing to be solved. I look forward to reading the next installment in this series.

The Death of Remembrance

The tenth volume in the DCI Daley series by Denzil Meyrick does not disappoint. In The Death of Remembrance events encountered in the past of Jim Daley and Brian Scott in Glasgow impact once again on their lives in the small community of Kinloch.

Brian Scott has started drinking again and finds himself in a brawl in the local pub. This results in his suspension from the police force while his conduct is investigated. Later, Brian remembers that he recognised a person from his past in the pub that night - Hugh Machie who had been involved in a Glasgow crime syndicate. Unfortunately, when he tells James Daley about seeing Machie the report of the sighting is ignored due to Brian's condition at the time.

Shreya Dhar is sent to Kinloch to assist DCI Daley while Brian is out of action. She is also interested in investigating Ian Macmillan. a Canadian who may have criminal links. Hamish is convinced that Macmillan was behind the death of his friend Annie and informs James Daley of his visions. 

Chapters in the book include flashbacks to the Glasgow crime scene from the late 1970s and its connections to the police force. References to some of these events have occurred in earlier books but more detail is provided in this novel. With Hugh Machie being the last of the syndicate alive what remembrance is going to remain of the reign of the Machie family.

Like the other books in this series of tartan noir, a feature of the novel is the description of the characters, their strengths, weaknesses and challenges as well as the community of Kinloch.

One Last Dram Before Midnight

One last dram before midnight is a collection of seven short stories by Denzil Meyrick, author of the DCI Daley series of crime books. Four of the stories I had read previously as e-books or as a novella while the last three were prepared for this book.

Dalintober Moon was originally written as a fundraiser for the restoration of Dalintober Beach and published as an e-book. When a body is revealed on the beach by the tide DCI Daley is called in to investigate and discovers the story of a long-held family feud.

Empty Nets and Promises is set in the 1960s when fishing in seas near Kinloch was a major industry. However, this season there are few fish to be found. A young Hamish and his skipper, Sandy Hoynes specualte on the cause and devise a plan to resolve the situation with almost drastic results.

Two One Three and Single End are two stories set in Glasgow in the early days of Jim Daley's career in the police force. Two One Three is about Jim Daley's introduction to the CID and also to Brian Scott. In Single End Brian Scott finds himself in serious danger when revisiting associates from his past.

The three new stories are One Last Dram before Midnight, a story revolving around a jet necklace usually held in the local museum but about to go on short-term loan to London, The Silent Man, the hunt for an elderly man who has disappeared while Strangers examines reactions of the Kinloch community when a family of refugees arrives in their midst. 

All in all an interesting, readable and often humorous collection of stories throwing new light on the DCI Daley series and the characters in the community of Kinloch.

Terms of Restitution

Terms of Restitution by Denzil Meyrick is a gripping gangland thriller set primarily in Paisley and Glasgow. The story centres around crime boss, Zander Finn. 

After his son was murdered, Zander retreats to London where he establishes a new life for two years before a former colleague convinces him to return to Paisley. Once back home the gangland killings drastically increase with no-one entirely sure who is responsible. Determined to protect his family Zander becomes once again  involved in the growing crime wars in the area but who can he trust as a number of his former gang members have changed sides.

There is plenty of action, double dealing, intrigue and murder as members of local gangs attempt to get revenge and supremacy in their area. The growing body count is interwoven with descriptions of the local area and occasional humour. However the book is not just a tale of blood and guts but presents the reader with a number of well drawn sensitive characters. Throughout the novel we learn more about Zander Finn as a person and also of the strong women in his life including his mother Maggie. The novel also follows the investigations of DCI Amelia Langley as she endeavours to end the growing crime surge.

This excellent stand alone novel by Denzil Meyrick who is well known for his DCI Daley series of books.

For Any Other Truth

One of the highlights of each year is the next installment in the DCI Daley series of books set in Kinloch, Scotland, by Denzil Meyrick. For Any Other Truth is a great addition to the series.

Jim Daley and Brian Scott are kept busy investigating multiple cases that arise at the same time. When a small aeroplane crash lands at Machrie Aiport the bodies of two dead men are discovered on board. It is soon obvious that the men were dead before take-off requiring many questions to be answered. Then Hamish disappears while out on his boat and a full scale search is implemented to find him. Meanwhile Chief Superintendant Carrie Symmington is being threatened by someone from her past. While Jim Daley and Brian Scott attempt to solve these cases, Iolo Harris from MI5 arrives on the scene to investigate possible links to environmental terrorists who are thought to be operating in the area.

There is much tension in this book as the investigations proceed interspersed with humour from time to time. Some of the action occurs across the waters in County Antrim. Although matters appear to be resolved, at the end of the novel the detectives do not have all of the answers they want. They are only too aware of cover-ups being implemented and there is nothing they can do about it.

Another excellent book from Denzil Meyrik, a great story teller.

A Large Measure of Snow: a tale from Kinloch

Denzil Meyrick is the author of the DCI Daley series of books set in the fictional town of Kinloch. H has also published a number of short stories and shorter books, some of which involve characters from the main series. In A large measure of Snow, Meyrick provides the reader with an amusing tall story based on the exploits of Sandy Hoynes, the skipper of the Girl Maggie and Hamish, his first mate.

It is December 1967 and the town of Kinloch is experiencing a series of heavy snow storms, so much so that the town has been cut off from the rest of Scotland and supplies are running low. When the decision is made for some of the fishing boats to venture through snow storms to Girvan for relief supplies, a jounalist asks to join the expedition in order to write an article about this daring journey. The problem is that the journalist is female and Hoynes strongly believes the superstition that women aboard a boat are bad luck.

This is the story of that fateful journey which includes an encounter with large lobsters, a Viking ship from the past and a seagull watching over the boat on its dangerous voyage. A fun story that helps explain more of the character of Hamish who features in the DCI Daley novels.

Jeremiah's Bell

The first book waiting for me at the library after the softening of the stage four lockdown in Melbourne was Jerimah's Bell by Denzil Merick, the latest in the DCI Daley series.

After a serious illness plus the threat of dismissal from the police force, James Daley returns to his position of DCI at Kinlock only to be encouter a series of mysterious deaths, threats and events from the past that need to be revealed. 

Alice Wenger has returned to Kintye to complete unfinished business started before her departure more than thirty years earlier. The Doig family - Alice's parents and three brothers - live in a small dilapidated, isolated house near the coast and keep to themselves. Rumour has it that the family has a sinister past, including causing ship wrecks and smuggling. It is shortly after Alice's return to Kintyre that the first death occurs. The police soon becaome aware that a former American gangster may be in the area.

Not only does Denzil Meyrick, a former policeman, write page turning crime stories but he also introduces the reader to the close knit community of Kinloch, based on Campbelltown, and its people. The setting for the stories in his series of books plus the development of the characters, particularly Jim Daley, Brian Scott, Hamish, Annie etc are important components of the book. An added thread in this book is the future of the County Hotel as the owners have decided to sell the building.

Each year I look forward to becoming immersed in the next book in this Scottish noir series. Jerimiah's Bell did not disappoint.

For further information about the region where the series of books are set:

Exploring the natural wonder of Campbelltown - The Scotsman 4 October 2014

 

A breath on dying embers

Denzil Meyrick has written another gripping installment in the DCI Daley series set in Kinloch, Scotland. When the cruise liner Great Britain spends a few days in the loch so wealthy passengers can learn more about what the area has to offer, go sightseeing and play golf, what could go wrong?

The story is revealed through a variety of voices as gradually the puzzle regarding an impending crime is unravelled. A bird watcher is murdered when trying to locate a rare gull. When a drone crashes into the Great Britain a body is located at the bottom of a cliff. A member of the ship's crew disappears and a police hunt is also underway for another man. Meanwhile authorities have placed a ban on the reporting of any of these events, making it difficult for the Kinloch police to carry out their investigations.

Along with the scenery around the ficticious Kinloch, the life events concerning Jim Daley and his team continue to form an important part of the book. Jim Daley discovers health problems that may terminate his police career. Liz, his wife, returns home with their son and her own issues. Much to his amazement DS Brian Scott is temporarily promoted to cover for Jim during his illness.

Once started, this novel was difficult to put down and the conclusion leaves the reader waiting for the next book to discover the result of the final episode in this book.

The Relentless Tide

Having read all the books in the DCI Daley series plus collections of short stories by Denzil Meyrick last year, I was pleased when the local library notified me that The Relentless Tide, volume six in the series, was available for loan.

The story is set in Kinloch and in Glasgow. When archaeologists undertake an archaeological dig to discover the location of a settlement of Somerled, Lord of the Isles, a twelfth century warlord possibly of Viking origin, they discover the graves of three women. It is obvious that these are recent burials and the police quickly realise that these women were victims of the 'Midweek Murderer', active in 1994.

Early in his career DCI Jim Daley had investigated the murders of eight women after five bodies had been discovered in Glasgow. Daley's friend and retired former boss, Ian Burns, believed that another two other murders had also been committed by the same murderer some years earlier. Then Ian Burns was murdered.

The story is revealed with descriptions of events in 1994 interwoven with investigations being undertaken more than twenty years later. DCI Daley and Sergeant Brian Scott are determined to discover not only the identity of the 'Midweek Murderer' but also the murderer of Ian Burns. Meanwhile a district nurse has disappeared, a local man is murdered and a valuable treasure hoard has been discovered. In the background is the realisation of police cover-up and corruption over many years that is difficult to prove.

The descriptions of Kinloch and other locations is a feature in this series of books along with a collection of memorial characters. Although there are descriptions of violent crimes Denzil Meyrick includes humour in his stories. The Relentless Tide is definitely a page turner that I thoroughly enjoyed.  I definitely look forward to the next installment in this tartan noir series of books.

Two one three

Another short story by Denzil Meyrick, this time about the first murder case that Jim Daley, a young police constable, worked on. Characters that appear in the DCI Daley series are introduced including Brian Scott, John Donald and Ian Burns.

Daley is on patrol when he discovers the body of a young woman in a building. When DCI Burns arrives on the scene, with Detective Constable Scott, Burns invites the young police constable to assist with the investigation. Jim and Brian then team up to investigate some of the leads which suggest that this death is one of a series of murders of prostitutes. When Sergeant Donald objects to Daley's secondment to the crime team, DCI Banks intervenes.

This short story provides a good introduction to the books that make up the DCI Daley series as well as to the character of Jim Daley in his younger days. The story also appears in a complilation of stories by Denzil Meyrick, One Last Dram Before Midnight.

Well of the Winds

Number 5 in the DCI Daley series, the story recounted in Well of the Winds by Denzil Meyrick is set both at the end of the Second World War in 1945 and in the present (2016).

The postman on the island of Gairsay attempts to deliver a parcel however he discovers that the house is empty with no sign of the inhabitants. When the police are called in to investigate they discover not only an empty house but a mystery in the cellar dating back to activities during the war. Who really were the members of the Bremner family and why had they suddenly disappeared?   

Later DCI Daley comes across a journal written by Inspector Urquhart in 1945 in which he discovers a story with repercussions for  Kinloch and Gairsay years later. Suspicions grow when Special Branch officers arrive to take over the case suggesting that a cover-up is in progress. Undaunted, Jim Daley, Brian Scott and Carrie Symington decide to continue their investigations into the disappearance of the Bremner family and subsequent murders. What starts out as a possible local crime develops into a story with possible international consequences. Another Denzil Meyrick book that is hard to put down.                    

Single End

A short story written in 2016 about a time preceding the DCI Daley series. Set in Glasgow in 1989 DC Brian Scott has been summoned to Strathclyde Police Headquarters to see DCI Dines. He is issued with orders to communicate with Frank MacDougall, a former school friend, and James Machie, leaders of crime in the area. Reluctantly he agrees with dire consequences. His friend DC Jim Daley is concerned when his friend, Brian, disappears and investigates. Another tale of police corruption in high places. a theme which is continued in the first books of the DCI Daley crime series.

This short story also appears in a compilation of stories by Denzil Meyrick, One Last Dram before Midnight.

Dalintober Moon

Written in 2014 as a fundraiser for the Dalintober Beach Regeneration Fund, this 34 page short story involves the investigation that takes place after the discovery of a body in a barrel buried on Dalintober Beach. Although the murder occurred 100 years previously repercussions from the murder are still occurring in the town. DCI Daley and DS Shaw investigate what really happened in order to restore law and order in Dalintober.

This story also is included in One Last Dram Before Midnight, a comilation of stories by Denzil Meyrick.