Quite Ugly One Evening: Jack Parlabane is back in this ingenious locked-room mystery

· Hachette UK
8 reviews
Ebook
400
Pages
Eligible

About this ebook

'Breathtaking, Succession-meets-The Traitors. Absolutely brilliant' M. W. Craven

'This is Brookmyre at his best.' Daily Mail

'A hilarious mix of farce and fury' The Times

An Atlantic voyage. A family at war. A secret worth killing over.

Reporter Jack Parlabane thrives on chasing stories in unlikely places, and where could be less likely than a fan convention on a cruise liner celebrating a contentious Sixties TV series? But unlike the media family exploiting their show's renewed relevance, he's not there to stoke controversy: he's there to solve a murder.

Already in deep water with his employer, Jack desperately needs a win, and solving this decades-old mystery could be it. Problem is, he's in the middle of the Atlantic, and someone onboard has already killed once to keep their secret.

And that's not even the tricky part. No, the tricky part is definitely the dead body locked in a stateroom with him, covered in his blood. Now Jack has to solve two murders, otherwise the only way he's getting off this ship is in handcuffs - or in a body bag.

Quite Ugly One Evening is a gripping locked-room mystery that sees the return of rogue journalist Jack Parlabane thirty years after his first appearance in Quite Ugly One Morning.

Praise for Chris Brookmyre:

'Chris Brookmyre is a genius' Richard Osman

'In the pantheon of great crime writers' Elly Griffiths

'There's nothing he can't do' Mick Herron

'Chris Brookmyre is a storytelling mastermind' Chris Whitaker

'Breathtaking, Succession-meets-The Traitors. Absolutely brilliant' M. W. Craven 'This is Brookmyre at his best.' Daily Mail 'A hilarious mix of farce and fury' The Times An Atlantic voyage. A family at war. A secret worth killing over. Reporter Jack Parlabane thrives on chasing stories in unlik...

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Ratings and reviews

8 reviews
Alison Robinson
May 8, 2026
I really enjoyed it, although Jack seems pretty athletic for a sixty-year old man (she says as an almost sixty-year old woman), I wonder if Chris Brookmyre is still writing him as the thirty-year old he was in the first book. My only gripe was that I thought the murderer's identity was a bit obvious. (view spoiler) I received an ARC from the publisher via NetGalley.
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Donald Macleod
June 3, 2026
Bought this for a long flight, really struggled to finish it. Too many characters, long sentences and dialogue that was improbable and hard to follow. The plot was weak and a bit on the boring side, turgid really. Enjoyed the social commentary, but really not good value for money at $ 15 USD.
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Michele
September 16, 2026
Once again an excellent romp with Jack Parlabane. Awash with interesting characters, Jack is on a cruise to America while a fan event is held for the resurgence of a beloved puppet series from his youth. Could there be a murderer onboard? Could it be Jack? The usual humour, adventure and madcap antics are all here. The writing is as good as usual, and I enjoyed it very much.
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About the author

Chris Brookmyre (Author)
Chris Brookmyre was a journalist before becoming a full-time novelist with the publication of his award-winning debut Quite Ugly One Morning, which established him as one of Britain's leading crime writers. His 2016 novel Black Widow won both the McIlvanney Prize and the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year award. Brookmyre's novels have sold more than two million copies in the UK alone.

Chris Brookmyre (Author) Chris Brookmyre was a journalist before becoming a full-time novelist with the publication of his award-winning debut Quite Ugly One Morning, which established him as one of Britain's leading crime writers. His 2016 novel Black Widow won both the McIlvanney Prize and the...

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