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The Ossians

Published
Jul 2012
Main Genre
Mystery Mystery

About This Book

A rollicking and hugely enjoyable contemporary novel describing the outrageous mid-winter tour around Scotland of a group of musicians called 'The Ossians'. The band's driving force is twenty-four-year-old lead singer, Connor - intelligent but self-destructive, pretentious but charismatic, gloriously opinionated and with an extraordinary ability to get beaten up.

The band is on the verge of signing a major record deal before setting off on a two-week tour of the cities and hinterland of Scotland, a tour expected to culminate triumphantly in a defining Glasgow gig. On their travels there is a seagull massacre, hapless drug deals, a mysterious stalker, a radioactive beach, a bomb-testing range, an epileptic fit, a town full of riotous Russian submariners, deadly snowstorms, epiphanies, regular beatings and random shootings.
The Ossians is both hilariously readable and satirically astute, a story of rock'n'roll obsession as well as a search for identity and a sense of community, written with delicious insight, pace and brio.

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Paperback

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May 2009 Penguin (UK) ISBN 0141031557
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Jul 2026 Orenda Books ISBN 1917764200
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eBook

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First Edition Jul 2012 Faber and Faber (UK) ISBN 0571290507
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Jul 2012 Faber & Faber Crime ISBN B0086KQ09Q
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Apr 2026 Orenda Books ISBN 1917764219
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Audio

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Apr 2026 -- Not Selected ISBN B0GLYVNGFR
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