The Loner (Jardine novel)
OCLC 48999242 | | |
The Loner is a 2011 crime/thriller novel by Scottish writer Quintin Jardine. Written as an autobiography, it is an account of the life of its principal character, Xavier 'Xavi' Aislado, a journalist with the fictional Edinburgh-based broadsheet, The Saltire. The book is a standalone novel, but features an appearance by Jardine's Edinburgh police detective, Bob Skinner. The Loner received generally positive reception from reviewers.
Plot summary
The book is presented as a manuscript written by Aislado, which he has passed on to Jardine for him to
Born in the early 1960s of
After attending
Xavi meets his fiancé, the hypnotic Grace Starshine while at school, and they move in together as students, sharing a flat with close friends Scott Livingstone and Bobby Hannah. Xavi and Grace are later married. Inevitably, however, Xavi's life and his love become entwined with his work, and he is immersed in tragedy; firstly by the horrific murders of his in-laws during a robbery at their pharmaceutical company, and later by the death of his wife. With the help of Edinburgh detective Bob Skinner, and through his loss and the betrayal of those closest to him, Xavi is forced to travel to a distant shore in search of the truth.
Main characters
- Xavier 'Xavi' Aislado – Professional footballer and journalist, and the book's central character. He is of Scottish and Catalan heritage.
- Joe Aislado – Xavi's father. Edinburgh businessman who runs a chain of pubs, but later sells them to return to Spain, where he buys the newspaper Girona Dia
- Paloma Puig – Xavi's paternal grandmother who raises him. A Catalan woman forced to flee from Spain because of the Civil War.
- Grace Starshine – Xavi's fiancé and later his wife. Xavi first meets her while they are studying at George Watson's College. Her parents are Jewish.
- Scott Livingstone – A friend from George Watson's who later shares a student flat with Xavi.
- Bobby Hannah – A friend from George Watson's College who later shares a student flat with Xavi.
- Mary Partridge – Xavi's estranged mother, who left the family when he was a boy.
- Tommy Partridge – Xavi's stepfather and Mary's husband. A detective with Lothian and Borders Police.
- Rodney and Magda Starshine – Grace's parents.
Reception
Pam Norfolk of the Lancashire Evening Post gave the book a very positive reception: "Packed with characters from every walk of life and a storyline that moves from the dark streets of Edinburgh's underbelly to the sunlit countryside of Spain, The Loner sees Jardine as his enigmatic best."[1] However, reviewing The Loner for The Guardian, John O'Connell was generally unenthusiastic about its content: "For the most part it's a sentimental coming-of-age story narrated by Xavi (as he's known) with all the brio of a Christmas round-robin."[2] The online crime and thriller ezine Shots was more positive, describing The Loner as a "book of two halves": "It foregoes pace and quick kicks in favour of a slow-burn that cleverly hides the shocks to come into its narrative... The Loner is a genre-defying novel, with a depth beyond the remit of many crime stories."[3]
References
- ^ Norfolk, Pam (6 September 2011). "Book review: The Loner by Quintin Jardine". Lancashire Evening Post. Johnston Press. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
- ^ O'Connell, John (23 April 2011). "Thriller review roundup | Books". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
- ^ "The Loner". Shotsmag.co.uk. 31 March 2011. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
External links
- The Loner at goodreads.com
- Quintin Jardine's wsbsite