3.5 stars, rounded up
The second in the Allie Burns series has moved ten years ahead to 1989. Because of the large move forward in time, it can easily be read as a stand-alone.
Allie is now the northern editor of the decimated news operation at The Sunday Globe. The Globe is owned by a Murdoch rival as part of his huge media conglomerate. The Lockerbie Pan Am bombing has just happened. HIV/AIDS is a real issue with no cures yet. The Soviet Union is teetering.
I love this series for taking me back to a time when answers couldn’t be found by just googling. The newspaper library is still all paper. Reporters have to actually go out in the field to do their research.
McDermid does a great job of weaving real life front page events into the story. Allie wants to write a story about the treatment of Scottish AIDS patients, which turns into a lead about a pharmaceutical company moving a study on an antiretroviral drug to East Germany due to harmful side effects. Meanwhile, there’s a separate storyline about the daughter of this mogul trying to court the radicals that may be on the verge of wresting freedom for the Soviet satellite countries. Before you know it, these storylines have merged.
While I enjoyed this book for its entertainment value, It had a very disjointed feel to it. Storylines would be dropped only to reappear at the tail end. It’s a slow burn of a story and I was pleased that it didn’t rely on any wildly unbelievable plot points. There’s no real violence.
Allie was an interesting main character, with her own set of ethics. I’ll be curious to see where she goes next.
My thanks to Netgalley and Little, Brown for an advance copy of this book.

Hard-Hitting

4.5 stars

1989 is a dark, thought-provoking read about a reporter investigating the AIDS epidemic in Scotland and England in the 1980s. In addition, the Lockerbie boming, East Berlin, media conglomerates, and militant environmental activists are linked to a mysterious murder.

This is book two in the Allie Burns series, taking place 10 years after book one (1979), and it can be read as a standalone.

While Allie’s personal life has changed for the good, her career has taken a turn for the worse, as she is now under the power of a media mogul who rivals Rupert Murdoch.

Perspectives alternate between various characters, but Allie’s voice is the most prominent. Allie’s character is well-developed, flawed, and raw. She feels like a real person.

The novel is told interestingly. The first chapter sets one up for the murder, but it isn’t until the last 20% of the book that the murder plays a central role. I actually forgot about the murder until this point in the novel, as I was caught up in the supporting storylines.

This book transported me back to the 1980s. As depressing as the topics explored, there are some lighter moments between Allie and her girlfriend, Rona, and the playlist is awesome. Themes of sexuality, social services, antisemitism, and homophobia are also explored.

While there are multiple storylines, McDermid weaves them together seamlessly. The pacing is slow, but the various threads kept me captivated. While I know a great deal about how the AIDS epidemic played out in America in the 1980s, I was both fascinated and horrified to learn what was happening in Scotland. I look forward to exploring the horrors of the 90s in the next book in the series.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley and Grove Atlantic in exchange for an honest review.

Val McDermid, Scotland’s Queen of Crime, gave us a brilliant new protagonist in Allie Burns when she wrote the historical thriller 1979. Now it’s ten years later and Allie faces new journalistic and personal challenges in 1989. The AIDS epidemic is sweeping through the world, and the Soviet Union is showing signs of crumbling.

As Allie chases stories, she fights her bullying boss, an ego-driven newspaper owner who only wants her to write celebrity gossip and other drivel.

McDermid’s brilliant and propulsive story telling will keep readers engrossed and turning pages until the very satisfying conclusion. Highly recommended. #1989 #Netgalley #SaltMarshAuthors

Although this is the second book in a series, I didn't feel I'd lost out by not having read the first. This may be a personal one for McDermid seeing as she was an investigative journalist at that time, before she morphed into one of our most well respected crime writers, able to juggle several series at once and keep specific identities intact. Allie Burns and her partner Rona live in Manchester, after finding it hard to come out in Glasgow. They felt they had "found their lost tribe," and were comfortably surrounded by friends, both working in the still vibrant world of print journalism. What McDermid has done so well in this book is to recreate a chaotic year that, given may have taken on a sheen of nostalgia, but at the time, there were world-changing events that presaged today's world of chaos. Put together, the events of Lockerbie tragedy, seemingly endless horror of AIDS, dissolution of the Soviet Union and what life was like in East Berlin under the Stassi. Tucked inside is a mystery, but as Tony Hillerman once said, if every plot he wrote didn't have padding, his books would only be 50 pages long. This was so good that I'm going to backtrack and read its predecessor, 1979.

1989 is a wonderfully absorbing novel that gets increasingly layered as chapters fly by. McDermid masterfully juggles several big real-life issues along with intertwined crime plotlines: abduction, pseudo-spy craft, murder, revenge. From Allie and Rona to several new faces, the characters are fascinating. Two books in, this is a terrific series, and I can’t wait to see what unfolds as the millennium looms.

4 solid stars
“We live with the habit of secrecy here.”

This is my second mystery by Val McDermid, featuring journalist Allie Burns. Like 1979, it presents a good picture of the times, in this case the AIDS epidemic and the breakup of the Soviet Union. McDermid is an experienced writer who shows, not tells.

In the first third of the book, unnecessary f-bombs sprinkle the pages, but they mostly dissipate as the action picks up. No graphic violence, mild sexual references, including lesbian relationships. After an intriguing opening, the first third of the book felt slow, then became a sprint to the exciting end with kidnapping, murder, the Eastern bloc Communist countries and spying.

Will there be a 1999 with Allie Burns? I hope so.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Nineteen eighty nine was a good year...I remember it well. I am not sure some of the word usage in this book was used then...difficult to remember that...however, the historical part is well researched...accurate...took me back to that time...this is a talented author in telling a story of what was...this book was sent to me by Netgalley for review. Thanks to the publisher for the electronic copy. Will look forward to the next book by this gifted author.

This was my first encounter with Val McDermid's writing and I would happily come back for more. For those of us old enough to remember the events of 1989 the historical touchpoints throughout the novel serve as a reminder of this eventful year. A younger reader should also find the book interesting, especially the early attitudes to AIDS/HIV sufferers and their treatment.
The late 80's saw the rise of trashy tabloid journalism and, as a journalist at the time, McDermid would have first-hand experience. Ali's struggles to maintain her career as a serious reporter feel very authentic.
The crime at the centre of the novel is almost secondary to the story and seasoned crime readers may feel a little short changed by this but as a novel representing the real issues of the day I found 1989 very satisfying.
Many thanks to the publishers and Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I have heard that Val McDermid’s books are always highly anticipated and I can see why after reading 1989.

Having not read the first book of the series, I was going into the book completely blind. Unlike past experiences where I can get lost while reading books that are continuations of another, that was not the case for 1989.

As reading the story of Allie Burns, it made me sit at the edge of my seat in a subtle way. And it is one of the best ways because you’re wondering what happens next, but at the same time you don’t worry about it so much that you forget to enjoy reading the book.

This book is also a reminder of how screwed up the world we live in is. You start to think how awful what the book mentions is, and then you realize “oh, this is us.”

Reading 1989 makes me want to read the book that precedes it, 1979. Val McDermid truly is the Queen of Crime.

1989 by Val McDermid-A sequel of sorts to 1979,Ally Burns first outing, in which she was a fledgling reporter who has become an editor. Val McDermid has a journalist background and informs the story with her knowledge. As much as I love her other books, I did not care for this one anymore than the first one in the series. I'm sure there's an audience for this book, but I struggled to read as much as I could until I finally gave up. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

Val McDermid and Allie Burns return in a novel rich in both nostalgia and suspense. In 1989, Allie continues the journalistic career begun in McDermid's 1979--and, while I liked the earlier book, this one is stronger: a smart, fast-paced, challenging page-turner.

Many thanks to Grove Atlantic and to Netgalley for the opportunity and pleasure of an early read.

I received an ARC of, 1989 by Val McDermid. I just could not get into this book, it seemed like a good premise, but I did not care for it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for allowing me to read an ARC of 1989.
I'm a huge Val McDermid fan so whenever I can review a book of hers I jump at the chance. Ms. McDermid is a good writer who happens to write mysteries. Her books are so popular because they are well researched, and have interesting characters. Ms. McDermit gives them lives, challenges, and relationships. In the end, they aren't so different from you and me. I care about her "people."

1989 is the second book in the Allie Burns series and I think a better book than the first one: 1979. Allie is an investigative reporter and much of what we read about her is based on Ms. McDermid's history as a reporter before she became a full-time author. Each book (I believe there will be five total in the series) takes famous incidents to ground the story in an era. In 1989, the Lockerbie airplane crash was in the news as well as the growing HIV/AIDs epidemic and how Scotland and the UK were addressing this crisis. Allie and her partner Rona, have moved to Manchester to have better jobs. As this book opens, Allie's paper has been bought by a billionaire who is competing with Rupert Murdoch for the most papers owned. He is a jerk and the paper has quickly degraded into a daily gossip rag. Everyone has been fired except Allie but she is to toe the line and only write what is approved.

In her search for a "story", she runs up against bosses, gets caught in East Germany without a passport, and has to work with the billionaire's daughter, Genevieve. Her story on AIDs leads her to investigate Genevieve's kidnapping which opens more doors, more mysteries, and in the end questions how much of the life she can handle.

One of the things I most love about Allie as written by Val McDermid is that she is smart and we are treated as intelligent readers. We, the reader, can see what might happen next and are not put in the position of watching the main character foolishly blunder around. I usually put down books where the author treats women as slow in figuring out the obvious.

I highly recommend this book. Probably you should read 1979 first to learn how Allie starts as a journalist but it's not absolutely necessary. I'm looking forward to 1999. Thank goodness VM is a prolific writer.

I absolutely loved this book, I really like the Character of Allie Burns. It follows on albeit 10 years from the first book. However it had a resonance it starts with the Lockerbie disaster and living only 20miles away from Lockerbie it certainly brought back memories. Never one to shy away from the realities of the difficult story Allie looks at the AIDS crisis. We see how her relationship with Rona has panned out, such another great character However their is a crime to be solved. Val McDermid hasn't let us down with this follow up, the writing is as compelling as ever, with a hit of nostalgia....well worth picking up!

I am utterly disappointed by this novel. Val McDermid is one of my absolute favorite writers, but this latest novel is a total snore and waste of time. Nothing happened, and I must say Allie and Rona come across as cartoons. Bring back Tony and Carol….this latest, is a definite miss for me.

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review. Val is always a priority read for me, and I was eagerly looking forward to the next instalment in the Allie Burns series, following the earlier 1979. As you’ve guessed, we’re 10 years on and that’s a whole new chapter in Allie’s career. I loved seeing more of her and Rona, and what their work and lives held. The only small niggle that stopped this being 5 stars for me, was that it started with a focus on AIDS drug trials, then veered off into more of the Genevieve/Green story, a brief detour into Hillsborough, and then everything kind of wrapped up quickly at the end. It’s maybe a 4.5 stars from me - well worth the read though as always with Val who’s queen of crime.

Thanks to NetGalley and Grove Atlantic for the opportunity to read Val McDermid's 1989.

"Readers are having a great time time-traveling with Val, and 1989 is a seamless, riveting novel that brings us once again face to face with how very much past is prologue, and how history’s sins stay with us." I am in love with this series!