After attending George Watson's College Xavi studies at Heriot-Watt University, while in Spain Joe Aislado buys a failing Catalan newspaper, Girona Dia and begins to improve its fortunes.

Xavi embarks on a career as a professional footballer with Heart of Midlothian, where he is nicknamed 'Big Iceland' because of his 6 ft 7in frame, but after being introduced to journalism on a visit to his father's newspaper while holidaying in Spain, his ambition is to become a reporter.

Pam Norfolk of the Lancashire Evening Post gave the book a very positive reception: "Packed with characters from every walk of life and a storyline that moves from the dark streets of Edinburgh's underbelly to the sunlit countryside of Spain, The Loner sees Jardine as his enigmatic best.

"[1] However, reviewing The Loner for The Guardian, John O'Connell was generally unenthusiastic about its content: "For the most part it's a sentimental coming-of-age story narrated by Xavi (as he's known) with all the brio of a Christmas round-robin.

"[2] The online crime and thriller ezine Shots was more positive, describing The Loner as a "book of two halves": "It foregoes pace and quick kicks in favour of a slow-burn that cleverly hides the shocks to come into its narrative...