Monday, 12 May 2014

Books to Look Forward to from Simon & Schuster

A freak accident in rural Wyoming leads the Sheriff's Department to arrest a man for a possible double homicide, but further investigations suggest a much more horrifying discovery - a serial killer who has been kidnapping, torturing and mutilating victims all over the United States for at least twenty-five years.  The suspect claims he is a pawn in a huge labyrinth of lies and deception - can he be believed?  The case is immediately handed over to the FBI, but this time they're forced to ask for outside help.  Ex-criminal behaviour psychologist and lead Detective with the Ultra Violent Crime Unit of the LAPD, Robert Hunter, is asked to run a series of interviews with the apprehended man.  These interviews begin to reveal terrifying secrets that no one could've foreseen, including the real identity of a killer so elusive that no one, not even the FBI, had any idea he existed ...until now.  An Evil Mind is by Chris Carter and is due to be published in July 2014.

Hostage is by Kristina Ohlsson and is due to be published in September 2014.  Shortly after a crowded New York-bound flight takes off from Stockholm, a bomb threat is found on board.  Anonymous hijackers demand that the Swedish government revoke its decision to deport a Moroccan man.  If their demands are not met, the plane will explode if it attempts to land.  The US and Swedish governments must choose between negotiating with terrorists in order to save the four hundred passengers held hostage at thirty thousand feet, or to stand their ground and pursue the deportation of a possibly innocent man.  Fredrika Bergman, familiar with the deportation case through her work in the Justice Department, now returns to the police force to act as a liaison between Police Superintendent Alex Recht, and the abrasive Eden Lundell, agent with the Security Service's counter-terrorism unit.  But they soon realize that the plot behind the hijacking is far more complex than anyone initially thought.  As the hours pass, the team are running out of options, and the plane is running out of fuel…

Trust in Me is by Sophie McKenzie and is due to be published in September 2014.  Julia has always been the friend that Livy turns to when life is difficult.  United fifteen years ago by grief at the brutal murder of Livy's sister, Kara, they've always told each other everything.  Or so Livy thought.  So when Julia is found dead in her home, Livy cannot come to terms with the news that she chose to end her own life.  The Julia that Livy knew was vibrant and vivacious, a far cry from the selfish neurotic that her family seem determined to paint her as.  Troubled by doubt but alone in her suspicions, Livy sets out to prove that Julia was in fact murdered.  But little does she realise that digging into her best friend's private life will cause her to question everything she thought she knew about Julia.  And the truth that Livy discovers will tear the very fabric of her own life apart.

Savage Magic is by Lloyd Shepherd and is due to be published in August 2014.  It's 1814 and the streets of London's Covent Garden are at the centre of a dark trade, enticing rich, and poor alike with a cocktail of gin and beer and sex.  Behind their own fashionable private doors in the surrounding parishes a group of aristocratic young men are found murdered, all of them wearing the mask of a satyr, all of them behind locked doors with no signs of entry.  Constable Charles Horton's investigation into these violent crimes begins, quite by chance, at Thorpe Lee House in Surrey, where accusations of witchcraft have swept the village.  What connects these broken London men, savage with the pursuit of pleasure, and a country village awash with folklore and talk of burning witches?  The answers lie, yet again, under lock and key, in a madhouse for the deranged, where Horton's wife Abigail seeks refuge from her disordered mind.  In this world of witchcraft and madhouses, whores and aristocrats, it's a savage magic indeed that holds its victims in its thrall.  Lloyd Shepherd's most ambitious novel to date is a triumph of the imagination.  His rich cast of characters weaves a hugely satisfying story of depth, insight, and exquisite drama.

Quantico-trained forensic investigator Reilly Steel is back in the country of her birth.  Unsure about both her future and her position within the Dublin police force, Reilly hopes that a relaxing stay at the Florida beach home of her old FBI mentor Daniel Forrest will help get her thoughts together.  When Daniel's son, policeman Todd Forrest, is called to the scene of a gruesome murder where the body of a beautiful woman has literally been torn in two, he is stopped in his tracks.  Not just because of the grotesque and theatrical nature of the crime but because he recognises the victim as Daniel's goddaughter.  In an attempt to find swift resolution on her old friend's behalf, Reilly finds herself drawn into the investigation.  And when another disturbing murder occurs soon after, Reilly can't help but feel that she has come across something like this before.  But where? The answer becomes apparent at a third crime scene - the killer is visually re-enacting some of the most famous murder scenes in screen history and posting his 'work' online for his followers and the whole world to see.  Will the investigative team be able to find the murderer before his thirst for 'screen immortality' drives him to kill again?  And will Reilly's brief hiatus in the US force her into a decision about her future in Dublin, and the unfinished business she has there?  The Watched is by Casey Hill and is due to be published in December 2014.

Kick Lannigan, 21, is a survivor.  Abducted at age six in broad daylight, the police, the public, perhaps even her family assumed the worst had occurred.  And then Kathleen Lannigan was found, alive, six years later.  In the early months following her freedom, as Kick struggled with PTSD, her parents put her through a litany of therapies, but nothing helped until the detective who rescued her suggested Kick learn to fight.  Before she was thirteen, Kick learned marksmanship, martial arts, boxing, archery, and knife throwing.  She excelled at every one, vowing she would never be victimized again.  But when two children in the Portland area go missing in the same month, Kick goes into a tailspin.  Then an enigmatic man Bishop approaches her with a proposition: he is convinced Kick's experiences and expertise can be used to help rescue the abductees. Little does Kick know the case will lead directly into her terrifying past…  One Kick is by Chelsea Cain and is due to be published by August 2014.

Perry Christo is a PI with a past.  A one-time NYPD homicide cop, his career was ruined when a cops-on-the-take scandal ripped through the department.  Though innocent, Perry had no way to prove it, and when he lost his job it was the last nail in the coffin of a strained marriage - his wife left him and took their young daughter with her.  In order to drown his anger and grief, Perry throws himself into mindless work as a private investigator for petty crimes.  But one day, a call from an Upper East Side matron, Julia Drusilla, throws his world upside down.  Julia needs Perry to track down her stunningly beautiful yet hopelessly aimless daughter, Angelina, who has disappeared.  Her 21st birthday is around the corner and she is set to inherit her grandfather's considerable wealth.  But as Perry digs deeper into the case, into one suspect after another, he discovers that Angelina may have more to her story than anyone may have realized, and that the person who has threatened her life is now coming after him.  Inherit the Dead is a seamless thriller with contributions from some of the biggest names in crime fiction including John Connolly, Mark Billingham, Sarah Weinman, Val McDermid, Charlaine Harris, Lawrence Block, Alafair Burke and Dana Stabenow to name a few.  Inherit the Dead is due to be published in September 2014.

Frozen Grave is by Lee Weeks and is due to be published in November 2014.The first body is found in London's East End - a middle-aged woman, brutally murdered.  The second body turns up in a disused quarry, attracting the attention of DI Carter and DC Willis.  They had interviewed the dead man, JJ Ellerman, about his links to the first crime, and somebody wanted to stop him talking.  And then the third body is found, and it becomes clear a serial killer is on the loose.  What connects the victims?  And who will the killer go after next?

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