The Cutting Room

Louise Welsh

First novels, especially thrillers, aren't supposed to be this good. Louise Welsh who herself works the auction rooms and antiquarian bookshops of Glasgow sets The Cutting Room in that same environment. She's writing what she knows and it's good stuff.

Louise Welsh has created Rilke, auctioneer and part-time detective. Picture him gaunt and middle-aged. In the film of the book Rilke will be Bill Nighy if my opinion counts for anything. Rilke's Glasgow is populated with hucksters, transvestites, drug dealers, fraudsters, pornographers and policemen. Rilke is also gay, and not in any cuddly, married sense, either. Perhaps I haven't been reading widely enough but The Cutting Room contains some of the most graphic scenes of anonymous gay sex I've come across in a long time. Actually, scratch what I wrote earlier about Louise writing what she knows. At least, as far as the sex goes.

When Rilke stumbles upon a collection of disturbing and violent photos while preparing a house and its contents for auction he sets out to try and track down details of the victim and perpetrators depicted in the scenes. The photos are decades old and the trail is cold but Rilke slowly unearths the threads connecting long forgotten crimes with modern day ones.

It's a confident and well crafted debut and a fine read. I recommend it.