ALT: a stuffed animal is sitting in a car seat with the words `` put that down '' written next to it .

ALT: a man wearing a hat with a smiley face on it says " there is one left "

ALT: a woman is sitting at a table and says the plot thickens ...

On the surface this may seem like a standard Tartan Noir novel, but it’s much more than that, writes Allan Massie

ALT: a woman sitting in front of a microphone with the words you 've got a great voice above her