The north-east’s best-selling crime novelist Stuart MacBride will be talking to fans in Aberdeen about his new book.

The author, who has penned a number of Aberdeen-based crime books such as Cold Granite and Broken Skin, will be at The Lemon Tree on January 9 – just days after his new book Birthdays for the Dead is released.

Ben Torrie, head of programming for Aberdeen Performing Arts, said: "Stuart MacBride is one of the biggest names in crime-writing today and it’s a coup to have him talk about his new novel.

"We know fans will enjoy hearing what he has to say and getting some insights into this new work – and have a chance to ask the author about how he works and where he gets his inspiration from.

"Past events with Stuart sold out and we’re pretty sure on this outing we're going to make a killing!"

Stuart is famed for writing several bestselling novels based in Aberdeen and featuring DS Logan McRae, including Shatter the Bones, which reached No 1 in the Sunday Times bestseller list.

The McRae novels have sold over a million copies so far, and have won him multiple accolades, including the CWA’s Dagger in the Library, the Barry Award for Best Debut Novel, and Best Breakthrough Author at the ITV3 crime thriller awards.

His new novel, Birthdays for the Dead – to be published by Harper Collins and out on January 5 - is a gritty stand-alone thriller in which detectives race against the clock to catch a killer the tabloids have dubbed The Birthday Boy, as he snatches, tortures and kills girls in the run-up to their 13th birthday.

But heading up the investigation is Detective Constable Ash Henderson who has his own dark secret and a compelling need for revenge.