Before he introduced the world to Scottish Private Investigator J McNee, award-nominated crime writer Russel D McLean wrote a series of gritty short stories featuring PI Sam Bryson, a young investigator with a strong sense of justice that is tested to the limit as he walks the mean streets of Scotland's fourth largest city.

The Death of Ronnie Sweets collects all the original Sam Bryson stories in one volume, with an introduction by award-winning US author Sean Chercover and an afterword by the author.

Many of these stories first appeared in Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine while others were published by Thrilling Detective Mystery Magazine, Spinetingler Magazine and Needle Publishing. They run the gamut from two-fisted tales of justice to studies of characters who find themselves in the darkest of situations. A heady mix of homage to the American hardboiled and the modern Scottish noir, these stories demonstrate why Russel D McLean is "not to be missed by fans of straight-up hardboiled noir." (RT Book Reviews)

PRAISE FOR THE SHORT STORIES OF RUSSEL D MCLEAN:

"...the stories exhibit such a sharp and honest voice it’s hard to believe they were written by a man in his early 20s. They are dark stories – sometimes very dark – but that darkness is balanced by both a dry Scottish wit and a genuine sense of concern for the people involved" Sean Chercover (from his introduction)

"...filled with rounded, human characters - no cartoon characters, just people who love and hate and care." Steven Torres for Nasty, Brutish, Short.

PRAISE FOR THE NOVELS OF RUSSEL D MCLEAN:

"The future of Crime Fiction is in good hands" Crimespree Magazine

"An atmosphere of delicious gloom" Mystery Scene Magazine

"Stylish and atmospheric." John Connolly