Bookseller Reviews
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I loved this book
It's always a good sign when the characters in a book stay with you long after you've finished it. Janey and her Nana, alongside all the other people in th... READ MORE
A richly detailed, moving, and evocative thriller.
A Bad, Bad Place is a thoughtful and gripping crime thriller set in a grounded and detailed Glasgow. It’s a moving and insightful story that unravels dark ... READ MORE
Pitch perfect Scottish noir
This is great crime story set in a tough 1970s Glaswegian neighbourhood. it focusses on 12 year-old Janey, who with her dog, Sid Vicious, has found a body ... READ MORE
A rare mix of tender and brutal
Janey, 12 years old and growing up as a working class kid in late 70’s Glasgow, is walking her dog when she finds the body of a murdered woman. She and her... READ MORE
A great book from an exciting new voice
A Bad, Bad Place stands out from other thrillers due to its utterly sympathetic characters and vibrant, lovingly recreated setting of 1970's Glasgow.
Th... READ MORE
What a Debut!
With two amazing and well/fleshed characters at the heart of this story: twelve-year-old Janey and her Nana, Maggie, Frances Crawford has written a brillia... READ MORE
A rare book
This is not just an outstanding crime debut, but a total work of humanity. It would be underselling this novel entirely to restrict it to one category, and... READ MORE
An incredible debut crime novel
I love that this story is told from the perspective of Janey and her Nana, rather than the detectives.The emotional impact of the crime hits so much harder... READ MORE
An iconic new Glasgow crime novel
The Scottish crime fiction scene has been on FIRE lately and I'm pleased to say things aren't showing any signs of slowing down!
This book is told from tw... READ MORE
Synopsis
What happened to the dog walker who found the body?
Glasgow, 1979.
Twelve-year-old Janey won’t take her dog, Sid Vicious, for a walk. Not anymore. It’s Sid’s fault she found the murdered woman.
Janey claims she can’t remember what she saw at the abandoned railway, but the police think she’s hiding something. And they’re not the only ones interested.
Fear and rumour rip through the tight-knit community of Possilpark. Janey and her nana, Maggie, are dragged into the hunt for a murderer. And Maggie’s struggle to keep her beloved granddaughter safe becomes ever more desperate.
Because Janey’s memories can’t stay hidden forever.
And neither can the killer…
Publisher information
- Publisher: Transworld Publishers Ltd
- ISBN: 9780857508003
- Number of pages: 384
- Dimensions: 240 x 162 x 35 mm
- Weight: 604g
- Languages: English
Customer Reviews
View allSimply amazing
Thank you to the publisher Random House UK for providing this book for review purposes via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
In Glasgow 1979 while w... READ MORE
A Bad, Bad Place
We start with a young girl - Janey Devine - finding the body of Samantha Watson as she is out walking her wonderfully named dog, Sid Vicious. She runs for ... READ MORE
A Good, Good Read
I was lucky enough to attend crime fiction festival, Bay Tales, last week and heard Frances Crawford discuss the book on a fabulous panel discussion with o... READ MORE
Outstanding debut!
‘A Bad Bad Place’ by Frances Crawford is going to go down a storm in 2026.
This amazing novel is set in 1979 in Glasgow. Janey Devine is 12 and her life... READ MORE
Wonderful debut with an amazing sense of time and place
It’s 1979 and Janey Devine, a 12 year old from Possilpark, Glasgow, is walking her dog, Sid Vicious, when she finds the murdered body of Samantha Watson. T... READ MORE
Heartrendingly beautiful
When her dog discovers a dead body, 12-year old Janey falls into a state of confusion. She lives with her Grandmother Maggie, a woman who has experienced ... READ MORE
An excellent read.
A superb debut novel and a very different way of writing a murder. Set in Glasgow in 1979, 12 year old Janey-at the insistence of her dog, Sid Vicious - st... READ MORE
A Good Good Read
Loved A Bad Bad Place by Frances Crawford. Quite the debut.
Set in late ‘70s Glasgow, young Janey finds a body while she’s out walking her dog, Sid Vici... READ MORE
A gritty story with love and light
This was a gritty and dark read, set in my home city so I know the setting and the local language.
I loved the perspective of both Janey and her Nana. ... READ MORE
Sucked me in from the start
Set in Glasgow in 1979, we meet 12 year old Janey who has the misfortune to stumble across a dead body, a trauma for anyone let alone a vulnerable child. T... READ MORE
Many secrets to be kept
A murder mystery, where a young girl may have the answer to solving who killed Samantha. Janey discovered the body, and has a secret. She’s not for telling... READ MORE
A dark and gritty tale of murder
Twelve-year-old Janey struggles to come to terms with stumbling across the mutilated body of a young woman. With the police unable to find the murderer, it... READ MORE
Dark and Compelling
Told through a child’s view and her grandmother’s view this is dark and gritty tale set in Glasgow. It’s a brilliant and very different take on a murder. I... READ MORE
Crime Debut
Thank you to the publishers for this early review copy.
I have seen only great reviews for this before reading so I started it with high expectations.
... READ MORE
A Bad, Bad Place by Frances Crawford
A Bad, Bad, Place by Frances Crawford is a debut book by the author and is a look back at Glasgow 1979. When 12 year old Janey Devine along with her dog Si... READ MORE
Gritty read
This is a really unusual crime read, as it is told from the perspective of a pre teen girl who makes an horrific discovery when walking her dog one day. He... READ MORE
very good debut novel
This was a very good debut novel and an interesting approach to the murder of a young woman, in that it didn't feature a police investigation but concentra... READ MORE
Absorbing Tale
I really felt for Janey, I couldn't even imagine what it's like to find a dead body. It's an area you never hear about in the news. You just know the body ... READ MORE
Scottish crime thriller, brilliant reading
This is a thriller that is set in Scotland. It is 1979, and 12-year-old Janey has been out walking her dog, Sid Vicious (excellent name for a dog), when th... READ MORE
Well written but dark tale
Although clearly a well written first novel by Frances Crawford a rather dark tale.
A well written book, but not for me
I appreciate the authenticity and hard work that went in to this book but I’m afraid it was all too dark and miserable for me, in fact it made me sad. The... READ MORE
Good story with great characters
I have very mixed feelings about this book. I found it quite hard work as it was written with so much Scottish/Glaswegian slang so really slowed my reading... READ MORE
Authentic and vivid
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.
4.5.
When I started reading this book it made me so sad that I wondered if I ... READ MORE
Excellent
Janey is 12, she lives with her Nan an and Sid Vicious, the dog, in Possil, Glasgow. It is 1979 and Sid finds a body whilst Janey is walking him down the D... READ MORE
I love this book
What a fabulous debut. 12 year old Janey is out with her dog, and finds the body of a murdered student. The victim happens to be the daughter of local crim... READ MORE
Not for me
A Bad, Bad Place by Frances Crawford is set in Glasgow in 1979 and follows twelve-year-old Janey Devine, who discovers the body of a murdered woman while w... READ MORE
Clever novel, appealing to fans of Jennie Godfrey
‘In A Bad, Bad Place’ by Frances Crawford, 12yr old Janey Devine stumbles across the dead body of Samantha Watson while walking her dog. Despite her name b... READ MORE
Amazing
A Bad Bad Place by Frances Crawford
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
A dark, gritty crime drama set in 1970's Glasgow, with a twist. When 12 year old Janey discovers a body w... READ MORE
A dark, gritty read
I enjoyed this original take on a murder mystery, The focus is on 12 year old Janey who discovers the murder victim and Janey's grandmother. I particularly... READ MORE
My Book of the Year so far
Frances Crawford’s debut, A Bad Bad Place, has really lodged itself in my mind. It has been ages since I felt this attached to characters, but Nana and Jan... READ MORE
Gritty
There's been a murder in Glasgow, but this is unlikely any crime novel you've read before. Its unique style tells the story of young Janey, who discovered... READ MORE
Bad, bad things happen.
Glasgow, the late seventies. Out walking her dog Sid Vicious, janey discovers a dead woman. The woman is the daughter of local crime boss, Billy Watson.
... READ MORE
Unusual crime story
This is a story from a new author which is set in Glasgow during the seventies. The story switches between a girl named Janey and her Grandmother. After di... READ MORE
Great read
Set in Possilpark in Glasgow in 1979. Janey Devine is taking her dog Sid vicious for a walk around the abandoned railway when she discovers a mutilated bo... READ MORE
Sid Vicious is Innocent
This is an amazing debut, full of heart and fantastic characters. It so brilliantly shows the ripple effect a terrible crime has on a whole community. Not ... READ MORE
Masterful storytelling
Janey and her Nana share the harrowing aftermath of Janey’s dog, Sid Vicious, finding a dead body. The balance between their narration is finely tuned, he... READ MORE