The Return of Martina Cole

After a break in 2018, which was unprecedented for the hard-working Queen of the Gangland Thriller; Martina Cole returned with a bang publishing “No Mercy” last week via her longstanding publishers Headline. She has worked with the same publishing team, the same literary agency and the same PR agency since she debuted with Dangerous Lady.

Martina was one of the guests at the Inaugural Capital Crime, held earlier this month – Click HERE about that extraordinary event from The Crime Readers Association, and HERE from The Rap Sheet.

Below she is on TV’s Loose Women talking about the challenges she and many women face –

So what were our thoughts as to Cole’s return after 2017’s Damaged?

There is a great deal of death in this novel, violent death as little is as it seems. Beneath the surface gloss the veneer is thin, like ice on a thawing lake. Thankfully, Cole’s dark humour and witty one-liners make the reader smirk, even if at times it feels inappropriate. Horror and humour (as emotions) are the yin and the yang that help make this novel flow, until the conclusion is reached and then we think, and we ponder.

No Mercy is an insightful look under the shadow world that lies millimetres from the one we normally perceive. It is a welcome addition to the work of Martina Cole, further cementing her reputation as one the World’s toughest crime writers.

But a warning. 

No Mercy as a title is eponymous, for it reveals that many of the characters contained in the narrative receive no quarter, as family bonds can be shattered, and when they are, there will be plenty of claret flowing.

Read the full review of “NO MERCY” from Shots Magazine HERE

The launch of a Martina Cole novel has become arguably one the most celebrated literary events that celebrates crime writing, as these links indicate –

The Business 2008, and Here, 2014’s The Good Life, 2013’s REVENGE, 2016’s Betrayal, and of course 2017’s Damaged.

To celebrate Martina Cole’s return, the Shots Team of Mike Stotter, Ayo Onatade, Mike Ripley and I joined an eclectic gathering in London, where a colourful party had been organised for the launch of NO MERCY.

We were welcomed by Headline Publishing –

There were far too many guests to name, so we have included an array of photographs which may indicate the amusing nature of the gathering.

And Barry Ryan’s video THE MAKING OF DANGEROUS LADY is an amusing introduction to the work of Martina Cole –

Photos © 2019 A Karim (and T Mearns), cover art © 2019 Headline Publishing.

Don’t forget that Martina Cole will be appearing in November 2019 at Murder One in Dublin, Ireland where she will be in conversation with Steve Cavanagh – More Information HERE

More information about the work of Martina Cole, click HERE