Lin Anderson and Alex Gray started the festival in 2012 and now it’s huge. This year’s featured authors include Chris Curran, Val McDermid, Irvine Welsh, Louise Penny, Ann Cleeves, Peter James, Stuart Macbride, Chris Brookmyre, Ragnar Jonasson, Mark Billingham, Abir Mukherjee, Denise Mina, James Oswald, Felix Francis, Stella Duffy and many more: this does become an exercise in name-dropping all your favourite crime writers so if they’re not listed above, please do check out the website: they’re probably attending!

For a full programme of events including the theatrical and musical entertainment like you’ve never seen it before – Murder at the Knickerage, anyone? –visit here.

Then there’s the Bloody Scotland book; with stories by Chris Brookmyre and Denise Mina CWA Dagger shortlisted. A quality production: not to be missed. Buy it from the website if you’re unfortunate enough not to be able to attend: https://shop.historic-scotland.gov.uk/bloody-scotland