Sometimes it’s nice to enjoy a wee dram as you soak in the ambiance of a cleverly crafted mystery novel, and Illicit Still by William McIntyre looks like it could be just the thing. What we have here is some Scottish crime fiction to go with your Scotch, and a mystery with the Scottish whisky industry and book publishing woven into the plot. It sounds like a no-brainer for crime fiction lovers…
Illicit Still is the 16th novel in William McIntyre’s Robbie Munroe series, but I don’t think you’ll need to have read any of the previous ones to enjoy this story. It starts off with the arrival of a popular author at Robbie Munroe’s office of defence solicitors in Livingston. Jilly Jean Lyon – real name Gillian Halkett – has been bumped along by a bigger, more prestigious law firm. Perhaps they hated her last novel, Wine and Whispers, but more likely it’s because the procurator fiscal seems to have a strong case against her, for Mrs Halkett has been accused of killing her husband.
There’s no body, but the husband’s severed arm has been found. The victim in this case is a whisky entrepreneur. As things develop, Munroe and his ex cop father dig into affairs at the man’s distillery, uncovering hidden debts, casks of valuable spirits unaccounted for and something distinctly off about a 40-year-old single malt. It looks like Munroe might be able to prise the top off an apparently air-tight case, but a big distraction is coming his way as a former client turns his attention to Munroe’s 12-year-old daughter.
While all of this may sound a little dark and heavy, we’ve dipped into the story and McIntyre’s tone is light and lively, never dwelling too long in the shadows. A dram, a glass of wine or a coffee would be entirely appropriate alongside Illicit Still and Munroe’s narration will have you chuckling every few pages. He’s cynical but silly too and backed by William McIntyre’s career in the Scottish legal system, it does feel like you’re immersed in the milieu of a defence lawyer. We’ll say more in our upcoming review, and you can check out our interview with the author here.
Illicit Still is out now for Kindle and on 27 August 2026 as a paperback from Vinci Books. You can order a copy using our buttons below, and check out some more images of this new release.
