Lee Allen's Blog - Posts Tagged "allie-burns"

1979 by Val McDermid

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


The first in a brand new thriller series featuring journalist Allie Burns.

Rookie reporter Allie finds herself relegated to writing insignificant pieces and 'women's stories' at the Daily Clarion. But her budding friendship with fellow reporter Danny also promises a blossoming working relationship as they work together to expose crime and corruption.

Uncovering a tax evasion scheme, Danny is convinced it may finally put him on the road to realising his dream of becoming an investigative reporter. He enlists Allie to assist with the story, while struggling with the implications that exposing the crimes will have on his family.

Meanwhile, Allie stumbles across the beginnings of a terrorist plot that she becomes determined to pursue and prevent, while simultaneously enabling her to tell the story which will prove her worth. But undercover journalism is uncharted territory for both Allie and Danny, posing a danger that threatens to spiral out of control for them both.

'1979' is the first in Val McDermid's series featuring Allie Burns, who has recently joined a local newspaper after returning to her Scottish homeland. I immediately warmed to Allie's character - she is passionate, morally driven, friendly and endearing, and perhaps a little naive. This is her story and it drives the multiple plotlines, juggling and intertwining personal and professional narratives as the novel evolves.

This isn't just a crime thriller that happens to be set in 1979, but also a distinct historical thriller with its social and political backdrop of 1970s Scotland and the wider UK, with elements of political thriller moulded throughout. We witness the beginnings of the devolution and independence movements, something that will no doubt feature more heavily as we move through the decades as the series continues.

McDermid's conception of the series was almost an antidote to the changing world in response to the challenges and tragedy of the global pandemic. By going back in time, we escape that world, we as readers travelling back along with its author. The series is set to continue with '1989', and culminate, presumably, with a fifth book set in 2019.

There are moments throughout reminiscent of Lynda La Plante's 'Tennison' series, both in the way it transports us back to the 70s, instilling nostalgia for a time before I was even born, and in its portrayal of a woman in a man's world, fighting the sexism and having to work even harder to prove she is both capable and worthy of her profession. Already this series feels like it will do for journalism what 'Prime Suspect' did for the police service.

A thrilling exposé of time and place, '1979' is a gripping and immersive first chapter; I eagerly anticipate meeting Allie once again a decade on.



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1989 by Val McDermid

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


Allie Burns returns in pursuit of moral and social justice.

Burnt out and emotionally exhausted, Allie is determined to rekindle her passion for investigative journalism with an exposé on the failure of medical institutions to care for the sick and dying.

Through her investigation, Allie stumbles upon an experimental drugs trial exploiting society’s vulnerable despite evidence to suggest the drugs are unsafe.

Her determination to expose the truth leads Allie into peril beyond the Iron Curtain, while an intricate plot for murder comes to fruition at home.

'1989' is the second book in Val McDermid's series featuring journalist Allie Burns. We catch up with Allie a decade since we last saw her, and a lot has changed in her life. Having relocated from Edinburgh to Manchester, she is now a small cog in a media empire, the dream she realised of becoming an investigative reporter having been dashed with her paper’s acquisition by publishing mogul Ace Lockhart. No longer content with her job; her exposure to the raw emotion of others simply to turn over reporting for her managers has taken its toll and she has become disenchanted, her job satisfaction steadily ebbing away, while she still dreams of putting her passion and skills to work for something that matters. Allie is a superb character and I love the passion she brings to her work. Also, in refreshing juxtaposition to the darkness of the plot, she is in a stable, healthy relationship with her partner, Rona – all the more refreshing to witness a lesbian couple at a story's heart, which even today still feels a rarity.

In an authentic journalistic thriller, McDermid once again demonstrates her prowess at intricate plotting, with a plethora of genre themes and character perspectives explored. The novel delves into the height of the HIV/AIDS pandemic and the beginning of the end of the Soviet Union, as well as insights into the aftermath of the Lockerbie bombing and the travesty of the Hillsborough disaster, while the shadow of the horror of the Holocaust lingers across Europe. Allie’s investigations are both fascinating and emotive, the exploration of the treatment of HIV/AIDS victims a piece of retrospective investigative journalism beneath this layer of fiction, while the explorations into Soviet satellites perfectly evoke the social unrest, stirring of rebellion and hope for revolution; the chilling threat the regime poses and Allie's realisation of danger.

With subtle displays of prejudice in the underlying presence of sexism, homophobia and racism, there is also social commentary – whether in the hierarchical capitalism of the West’s business empires or in the East’s contemporary communist regime, no matter a society’s state system or political philosophy, discrimination and mistreatment appear to be universal, albeit on different scales at different times. Looking back to history and the ramifications of extreme nationalism and fascism solidifies the concept that perhaps we’re never getting this right, with the ghosts of these mistakes still lingering today – some of them made afresh. At its core, this is a story about humanity in both its frailty and its endurance.

Having highly anticipated ‘1989’ ever since enjoying the opening installment ‘1979’, it proved to be as brilliant as expected; intensely gripping from the opening scenes and also incredibly moving – particularly in the stories of the HIV/AIDS victims and the fate of a Polish village during the Second World War. There is so much depth beneath the pages, while the story maintains its lightning pace throughout, back and forth between character perspectives and revelations until its satisfying conclusion.

Blending historical fiction, detective fiction, and political intrigue, ‘1989’ is a riveting, atmospheric thriller, as timely and relevant to the present day as its eponymous year and the history it delves into. I cannot wait to see what the next decade has in store for Allie.



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