<p>From its bravura opening onwards, THE CROW ROAD is justly regarded as an outstanding contemporary novel.<br><br>''It was the day my grandmother exploded. I sat in the crematorium, listening to my Uncle Hamish quietly snoring in harmony to Bach''s Mass in B Minor, and I reflected that it always seemed to be death that drew me back to Gallanach.''<br><br>Prentice McHoan has returned to the bosom of his complex but enduring Scottish family. Full of questions about the McHoan past, present and future, he is also deeply preoccupied: mainly with death, sex, drink, God and illegal substances...</p>