Thursday 1 January 2015

Books to look forward to from Transworld and Cornerstone

Showgirls.  Millionaires.  Murder.  Jack Morgan, head of Private Investigations, the global PI agency of the rich and famous, is being pushed to the limit.  His car has been firebombed, his ex is dating someone else, and his twin brother is still out to destroy him.  But Private doesn't rest, and nor do its clients: not the LAPD who need Private's help catching two scumbags with diplomatic immunity, and not the client who has just confessed to murdering his wife.  Add to that Jack's best friend being held on a trumped-up charge that could see him locked away for a very long time, and it seems like all bets are off...  Private Vegas is by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro and is due to be published in January 2015.

A murdered family.  A dying serial killer.  A missing child.  DC Max Wolfe hunts a pitiless killer through the streets of London.  This title is written by the author of The Murder Bag.  On New Year's Day, a wealthy family is found slaughtered inside their exclusive gated community in north London, their youngest child stolen away.  The murder weapon - a gun for stunning cattle before they are butchered - leads Detective Max Wolfe to a dusty corner of Scotland Yard's Black Museum devoted to a killer who thirty years ago was known as the Slaughter Man.  But the Slaughter Man has done his time, and is now old and dying.  Can he really be back in the game?  And was the murder of a happy family a mindless killing spree, a grotesque homage by a copycat killer - or a contract hit designed to frame a dying man?  All Max knows is that he needs to find the missing child and stop the killer before he destroys another innocent family - or finds his way to his own front door...A murdered family.  A dying serial killer.  A missing child.  And a detective who must learn that even the happiest of families have black, twisted secrets that someone is ready to kill for.  The Slaughter Man is by Tony Parsons and is due to be published in May 2015.

Final Minute is by Simon Kernick and is due to be published in January 2015.  'It's night, and I'm in a strange house.  The lights are on, and I'm standing outside a half-open door.  Feeling a terrible sense of foreboding, I walk slowly inside.  And then I see her.  A woman lying sprawled across a huge double bed.  She's dead.  There's blood everywhere.  And the most terrifying thing of all is that I think her killer might be me...’  A traumatic car-crash.  A man with no memory, haunted by nightmares.  When the past comes calling in the most terrifying way imaginable, Matt Barron is forced to turn to the one person who can help.  Ex Met cop, turned private detective, Tina Boyd.  Soon they are both on the run...

14th Deadly Sins is by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro and is due to be published in February 2015.  Detective Lindsay Boxer and her three best friends are back and recovering from the events that pushed them all to the edge.  After her near-death experience, Yuki is seeing her life from a new perspective and is considering a change in her law career.  San Francisco Chronicle reporter Cindy has healed from her gunshot wound and has published a book on the infamous serial killers she helped to bring down.  Lindsay is just happy that the gang are all still in one piece.  But a new terror is sweeping the streets of San Francisco.  A gang dressed as cops are ransacking the city, and leaving a string of dead bodies in their wake.  Lindsay is on the case to track them down and needs to discover whether these killers could actually be police officers.  Maybe even cops she already knows...

Falling in Love is by Donna Leon and due to be published in April 2015.  In Death at La
Fenice, Donna Leon's first novel in the Commissario Brunetti series, readers were introduced to the glamorous and cut-throat world of opera and to one of Italy's finest living sopranos, Flavia Petrelli - then a suspect in the poisoning of a renowned German conductor.  Now, many years after Brunetti cleared her name, Flavia has returned to the illustrious La Fenice to sing the lead in Tosca.  As an opera superstar, Flavia is well acquainted with attention from adoring fans and aspiring singers.  But when one anonymous admirer inundates her with bouquets of yellow roses - on stage, in her dressing room and even inside her locked apartment - it becomes clear that this fan has become a potentially dangerous stalker.  Distraught, Flavia turns to an old friend for help.  Familiar with Flavia's melodramatic temperament, Commissario Brunetti is at first unperturbed by her story, but when another young opera singer is attacked he begins to think Flavia's fears may be justified.  In order to keep his friend out of danger, Brunetti must enter the psyche of an obsessive fan and find the culprit before anyone comes to harm.

A ship carrying a fortune in emeralds is hijacked on the China seas in a brilliant plan masterminded by Ghostwoman Angela.  The plan falls apart when it turns out, unbeknownst to her, that the ship was carrying a second cargo, far more valuable than the gems.  In serious trouble, Angela calls on her former pupil, the Ghostman sometimes known as Jack.  Together, these two experts need to find a way to disappear with both treasures.  Hunting them down is an army of gem smugglers, and, to complicate matters further, an exceptionally dangerous mercenary named Laurence-whose mysterious employer will go to any length to see his secret cargo returned.  Vanishing Games is by Roger Hobbs and is due to be published in July 2015.

February 2014: Police Capitaine Ines Picaut is called out to investigate a blaze in the old town of Orleans.  This is the fourth in a series of increasingly brutal arson attacks, and at the centre of the conflagration lies a body.  An Islamic extremist faction claims responsibility, but Ines and her team cannot trace its whereabouts, or any evidence of its existence.  And a partly melted memory card found in the victim's throat is the only clue to his identity.  September 1429: Joan of Arc is in the process of turning the tide of The Hundred Years' War.  English troops have Orleans under siege, and Tomas Rustbeard, the Duke of Bedford's most accomplished agent, finally has her in his sights.  But he knows that killing 'The Maid' - the apparently illiterate peasant girl who nonetheless has an unmatched sense of military strategy and can ride a warhorse in battle - is not enough.  He must destroy the legend that has already grown around her.  And to do that, he must get close enough to discover who she really is.  More fires rage and the death toll mounts while Ines fights to discover what connects an expert in the analysis of war graves, the unquenchable ambitions of the Family which seeks to hold the city in its absolute power, and the discredited historical theories of her own late and much lamented father.  When Tomas risks everything to infiltrate the hotly defended inner circle of the Saviour of France, he finally discovers a secret that will prove as explosive nearly six hundred years later as it would do if revealed in his own time.  As each thread of Manda Scott's immaculately interwoven narrative unfolds, Ines and Tomas's quests become linked across the centuries.  And in their pursuit of the truth, they find that love is as enduring as myth - but can lead to the greatest and most heart-breaking of sacrifices.  The Girl Who Walked into Fire is by Manda Scott and is due to be published in May 2015.

Isabel left England to escape her past.  For the first time in months, she's beginning to feel safe.  But then a letter shatters her world once more as she learns of her parents' death in a car crash.  Reluctantly she returns home, unable to shake off the feeling she's being watched but determined not to let fear rule her life any more.  DI Lorraine Fisher is in the middle of a big murder case - a serial killer is preying on young women.  And it seems they had all complained of being stalked.  She too is convinced she's being watched.  Are both women victims of their own imagination or is someone out there watching and waiting?  And will one of them be next?  You Belong To Me is by Samantha Hayes and is due to be published in March 2015.

Hidden is by Emma Kavanagh and is due to be published in April 2015.  A gunman is stalking the wards of a local hospital.  He's unidentified and dangerous, and has to be located.  Urgently.  Police Firearms Officer Aden McCarthy is tasked with tracking him down.  Still troubled by the shooting of a schoolboy, Aden is determined to make amends by finding the gunman - before it's too late.  SHE'S WAITING - To psychologist Imogen, hospital should be a place of healing and safety - both for her, and her young niece who's been recently admitted.  She's heard about the gunman, but he has little to do with her.  Or has he?  As time ticks down, no one knows who the gunman's next target will be.  But he's there.  Hiding in plain sight.  Far closer than anyone thinks ...As time ticks down, no one knows who the gunman's next target will be.  But he's there.  Hiding in plain sight.  Far closer than anyone thinks...

I’m Travelling Alone is by Samuel Bjork and is due to be published in June 2015.  A six year old girl is found hanging from a tree.  Around her neck is an airline tag, which says 'I'm travelling alone'.  A special homicide unit in Oslo is re-opened with veteran police investigator Holger Munch at the helm.  He must convince his erstwhile partner, Mia Kruger, an extremely talented but eccentric investigator, to leave the solitary island to which she has retreated in order to take her own life.  When scrutinising the murder files, Mia spots the number One carved into the dead girl's fingernail.  She returns to duty to prevent more little girls falling victim to a terrifying, revenge-driven serial killer...

Businessman Hunter Alden, Jr thinks he has it all: a beautiful wife, a wonderful teenage son, and billions in the bank.  However his life is turned upside-down one night when he finds the severed head of his chauffeur, stuffed into a bag painted with his son's initials, in blood.  But the price to get him back might be too high - even for one of the world's richest men.  NYPD Red 3 is by James Patterson and Marshall Karp and is due to be published in April 2015.

Slaughter the Victims - In Boston, Detective Jane Rizzoli, and Forensic Pathologist
Maura Isles are investigating a bizarre murder.  A man has been found gutted and hanging in his home.  When the remains of another victim are found, it is clear that this murderer has been at work for years, and not just in Boston.  The Killer - Six years ago, a group of travellers set off on an African safari.  None of them are seen again - apart from one woman who stumbled out of the bush weeks later, barely alive.  The only woman to have seen the killer's face.  The Survivor - Has the 'safari killer' resurfaced in Boston?  Jane is sent to Africa to find the one link between the two cases - the only survivor - and convince her to face death once again.  Die Again is by Tess Gerritsten and is due to be published in January 2015.

Second Life is by S J Watson and is due to be published in February 2015.  .  She loves her husband.  She's obsessed by a stranger. She's a devoted mother.  She's prepared to lose everything.  She knows what she's doing.  She's out of control.  She's innocent.  She's guilty as sin.  She's living two lives.  She might lose both.

'If you start feeling anything for a client - and it does happen - count the money.  That always brings you back down to earth.’  Stella is an escort, immersed in a world of desire, betrayal, and secrets.  It's exactly where she wants to be.  Stella used to be someone else: respectable, loved, safe.  But one mistake changed all that.  When a fellow call girl is murdered, Stella has a choice: forget what she's seen, or risk everything to get justice for her friend.  In her line of work, she's never far from the edge, but pursuing the truth could take her past the point of no return.  Nothing is off limits.  Not for her - and not for them.  But no one is truly untouchable.  Untouchable is by Ava Marsh and is due to be published in June 2015.

What if you realised the book you were reading was all about you?  "DISCLAIMER stealthily steals your attention and by the end holds you prisoner - a searing story that resonates long after the final page.  When an intriguing novel appears on Catherine's bedside table, she curls up in bed and begins to read.  But as she turns the pages she is sickened to realize the story will reveal her darkest secret.  A secret she thought no one else knew.  Disclaimer is a debut novel by Renée Knight and is due to be published in April 2015.

The Burning Man is by Christopher Fowler and is due to be published in March 2015.  London is under siege.  A banking scandal has filled the city with violent protests, and as the anger in the streets detonates, a young homeless man burns to death after being caught in the crossfire between rioters and the police.  But all is not as it seems; an opportunistic killer is using the chaos to exact revenge, but his intended victims are so mysteriously chosen that the Peculiar Crimes Unit is called in to find a way of stopping him.  Using their network of eccentric contacts, elderly detectives Arthur Bryant and John May hunt down a murderer who adopts incendiary methods of execution.  But they soon find their investigation taking an apocalyptic turn as the case comes to involve the history of mob rule, corruption, rebellion, punishment and the legend of Guy Fawkes.  At the same time, several members of the PCU team reach dramatic turning points in their lives - but the most personal tragedy is yet to come, for as the race to bring down a cunning killer reaches its climax, Arthur Bryant faces his own devastating day of reckoning.  'I always said we'd go out with a hell of a bang,' warns Bryant.

The price of fame ...is DEATH.  When Jenny is spotted by a high-profile modelling agency, she goes from ordinary schoolgirl to celebrity overnight.  Suddenly her life is a whirlwind of parties and glamour.  Agnes used to be a model too - but now she lies in a hospital bed, slowly being destroyed by an eating disorder.  Her father sits by her day after day, praying that his only remaining daughter survives.  An attempted murder during a lavish photo-shoot means that Jenny's and Agnes' lives will soon intersect in the most terrifying of ways ...Because someone is watching them.  Someone with a plan.  Can Detective Anders Knutas figure out who it is in time to stop a terrible justice being served?  The Dangerous Game is by Mari Jungstedt and is due to be published in February 2015.

Three confessions.  Two liars.  One killer.  Three friends have had their lives ripped apart.  Their pasts haunt them.  They are consumed by guilt.  And they don't trust anyone.  Not even themselves.  But in their small, isolated, island community, trust is the only way to survive.  Now a child has gone missing.  And no one knows who to believe...  Little Black Lies is by Sharon Bolton and is due to be published in April 2015.

A family torn apart.  Another trying to find a way to be as one.  Ingemar Lerberg had it all: successful businessman, politician, husband, and father.  Until he is found, brutally beaten and left for dead, in his mansion in a fashionable district of Stockholm.  His wife, Nora, is missing.  With no alternative, his children are taken into care.  In one night, a family has been ripped apart.  Journalist Annika Bengtzon is assigned to the case.  As she delves into the horrifying details of this family's fate, she grapples too with the change in her own.  With her new boyfriend she must patch together a family from their respective children and stepchildren, and find a way for them all to live harmoniously.  Family matters above all else, but all is never as it seems.  Behind the scenes, darkness lies.  Without a Trace is by Liza Marklund and is due to be published in June 2015.

You don’t know her but she knows you.  Rachel catches the same commuter train every
morning.  She knows it will wait at the same signal each time, overlooking a row of back gardens.  She's even started to feel like she knows the people who live in one of the houses.  'Jess and Jason', she calls them.  Their life - as she sees it - is perfect.  If only Rachel could be that happy.  And then she sees something shocking.  It's only a minute until the train moves on, but it's enough.  Now everything's changed.  Now Rachel has a chance to become a part of the lives she's only watched from afar.  Now they'll see; she's much more than just the girl on the train...  The Girl on the Train is by Paula Hawkins and is due to be published in January 2015.

The Shut Eye is by Belinda Bauer and is due to be published in March 2015.  Five footprints are the only sign that Daniel Buck was ever here.  And now they are all his mother has left.  Every day, Anna Buck guards the little prints in the cement.  Polishing them to a shine.  Keeping them safe.  Spiralling towards insanity.  When a psychic offers hope, Anna grasps it.  Who wouldn't?  Maybe he can tell her what happened to her son...But is this man what he claims to be?  Is he a visionary?  A shut eye?  Or a cruel fake, preying on the vulnerable?  Or is he something far, far worse?

Jasper Dent can't escape his family.  Wherever he goes, whatever he does, his father's reputation hangs over him.  Because Billy Dent's not like other dads.  He's a serial killer.  And now he's got Jasper's girlfriend in his clutches.  Billy must be stopped, against all the odds.  Jasper knows he's the only one who can do it, the only one smart enough and quick enough to find him.  After all, it's in his blood.  Blood of my Blood is by Barry Lyga and is due to be published in May 2015


A mum from North London sets up a self-help group for families who have experience of murder in their family.  She calls the group Megan's Angels, after her own daughter was found murdered on Hampstead Heath.  Told from key points of view - the mum of a victim, the brother of a victim, a police detective, and the sly journalist sent to cover the story, Tammy Cohen's new chiller The Murder Club is a page turner with a punch-in stomach ending you just can't see coming.  It is due to be published in June 2015.

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