January
Detective Galileo, returns in a case where hidden history, and impossible crime, are linked by nearly invisible threads in surprising ways. The body of a young man is found floating in Tokyo Bay. But his death was no accident-Ryota Uetsuji was shot. He'd been reported missing the week before by his live-in girlfriend Sonoka Shimauchi, but when detectives from the Homicide Squad go to interview her, she is nowhere to be found. She's taken time off from work, clothes and effects are missing from the apartment she shared. And when the detectives learn that she was the victim of domestic abuse, they presume that she was the killer. But her alibi is airtight-she was hours away in Kyoto when Ryota disappeared, forcing Detectives Kusanagi and Utsumi to restart their investigation. But if Sonoko didn't kill her abusive lover, then who did? A thin thread of association leads them to their old consultant, brilliant physicist Manabu Yukawa, known in the department as "Detective Galileo." With Sonoko still missing, the detectives investigate other threads of association-an eccentric artist, who was Sonoko's mother figure after her own single mother passed; and an older woman who is the owner of a hostess club. And how is Sonoko continuing to stay one step ahead of the police searching for her? It's up to Galileo to find the nearly hidden threads of history and coincidence that connect the people around the bloody murder- which, surprisingly, connect to his own traumatic past-to unravel not merely the facts of the crime but the helix that ties them all together. Invisible Helix is by Keigo Higashino.
The Bone Fire is by Martina Murphy. A fatal fire in a holiday let on Slievemore, Achill Island, leaves one person dead and another missing. Deemed arson, DS Lucy Golden and her team are tasked with solving the murder and locating the missing woman, Moira Delaney. As the case develops, the pressure builds when it transpires that Moira's father is a gangland figure, a suspect in three unsolved murders. If Lucy doesn't uncover what happened that morning in Slievemore, he will deploy his men to deal out his own sort of justice. Things get even more complicated when a laptop is uncovered that could ruin all that Lucy holds dear. And as the net on the suspect tightens, Lucy faces a hard choice - will she use it to save herself and bring a murderer to justice, or bury it and save her family and her career?
Dead men sometimes do tell tales. When the death of an old friend calls him back to Northern Ireland, Connor Fraser sees it as a way to distract himself from his growing troubles at home in Stirling. He's estranged from his partner, Jen, and can't seem to find a way to bridge the growing gap between them. Meanwhile, his beloved grandmother's health is deteriorating, while all Connor can do is watch on helplessly. But, after spotting three familiar faces at the funeral, faces with ties to Northern Ireland's bloody past, Connor quickly learns that there's a lot more to the death of his old friend than just a random traffic accident. But before he can properly investigate, he's lured into a trap and attacked. Pursued by ruthless professionals who don't care if they bring Connor to their powerful masters alive or dead, he must go off grid and on the run. As he tries to untangle the web of deceit and lies that has ensnared him, Connor is faced with choices and losses that threaten to break him. With his back to the wall, can he unravel a mystery from the past that could shatter the peace of the future, before it's too late? Exit Wounds is by Neil Broadfoot.
February
With his lover imprisoned in a Russian gulag, the Gray Man will stop at nothing to free her in. A winter sunrise over the great plains of Russia is no cause for celebration. The temperature barely rises above zero, and the guards at Penal Colony IK22 are determined to take their misery out on the prisoners - chief among them, one Zoya Zakharova. Once a master spy for Russian foreign intelligence, then the partner and lover of the Gray Man, Zakharova has information the Kremlin wants, and they don't care what they have to do to get it. But if they think a thousand miles of frozen wasteland and the combined power of the Russian police state is enough to protect them, they don't know the Gray Man. He's coming, and no one's safe. Midnight Black is by Mark Greaney.
Hamish Macbeth:Death of a Smuggler is by M C Beaton with R W Green. All Hamish Macbeth ever really wants is a quiet life in the peaceful surroundings of his home in the Highland village of Lochdubh. Unfortunately for him, the time he would normally find most relaxing, after the tourists have gone and before the winter sets in, turns out to be far from peaceful. The new love in his life, Claire, is keen for them to take a holiday and Hamish is mulling over the idea when his newly-assigned constable arrives, presenting Hamish with both a surprise and a secret. Getting to the bottom of the secret becomes the least of Hamish's problems when, at the opening of the revamped village pub, he meets a family who have a score to settle with a sinister man who has mysteriously gone missing. Discovering a murdered woman's body puts further pressure on Hamish, especially when it becomes clear that the murdered woman and the missing man were linked, although their true identities become yet another mystery. To Hamish's horror, he then finds himself working on the murder case with the despicable Detective Chief Inspector Blair, his sworn enemy, who has been drafted in under curious circumstances. With a growing list of suspects, ever more bewildering circumstances and Blair hindering him at every turn, Hamish must find the murderer before anyone else falls victim.
Lt. Eve Dallas is back with a murder case with its roots in loyalty, treachery, espionage and the long shadow of war... gHis passport reads Giovanni Rossi, retired businessman. But decades ago, during the Urban Wars, he was part of a small, secret organization called The Twelve. Responding to an urgent summons from an old compatriot, he returns to New York. To his death... Bonded in Death is by J D Robb
March
The Mouthless Dead is by Anthony Quinn. A powerful and gripping crime novel based on the Wallace Murder, a national cause célèbre of the 1930s and still unsolved today. One night in 1931 William Wallace was handed a phone message at his chess club from a Mr Qualtrough, asking him to meet at an address to discuss some work. Wallace caught a tram from the home he shared with his wife, Julia, to the address which turned out, after Wallace had consulted passers-by and even a policeman, to not exist. On returning home two hours later he found his wife beaten to death in the parlour. The elaborate nature of his alibi pointed to Wallace as the culprit. He was arrested and tried, found guilty of murder and sentenced to hang, but the next month the Court of Criminal Appeal sensationally overturned the verdict and he walked free. The killer was never found. Fifteen years on, the inspector who worked the case is considering it once more. Speculation continues to be rife over the true killer's identity. James Agate in his diary called it 'the perfect murder', Raymond Chandler said 'The case is unbeatable. It will always be unbeatable'. And on a cruise in 1947, new information is about to come to light.
Lazarus Man is by Richard Price. In Lazarus Man, Richard Price, one of the greatest
chroniclers of life in urban America, creates intertwining portraits of a group of compelling and singular characters whose lives are permanently impacted by the disaster. East Harlem, 2008. In an instant, a five-story tenement collapses into a fuming hill of rubble, pancaking the cars parked in front and coating the street with a thick layer of ash. As the city's rescue services and media outlets respond, the surrounding neighborhood descends into chaos. At day's end, six bodies are recovered, but many of the other tenants are missing. Anthony Carter--whose miraculous survival, after being buried for days beneath tons of brick and stone, transforms him into a man with a message and a passionate sense of mission. Felix Pearl--a young transplant to the city, whose photography and film work that day provokes in this previously unformed soul a sharp sense of personal destiny. Royal Davis--owner of a failing Harlem funeral home, whose desperate trolling of the scene for potential "customers" triggers a quest to find another path in life. And Mary Roe--a veteran city detective who, driven in part by her own family's brutal history, becomes obsessed with finding Christopher Diaz, one of the building's missing.
Acts of Malice is by Alex Gray. DSI William Lorimer first meets Meredith St Claire when he is giving a careers talk at his goddaughter's school. The popular and glamorous drama teacher is distraught, begging him to investigate her fiancé's recent disappearance, but with a report already made to the relevant authorities, there's nothing more Lorimer can do. But then a body is discovered on the outskirts of Glasgow. Guy Richmond was a wealthy and charismatic actor, adored by everyone. Or so it first seems. But as Lorimer and his team are drawn deeper into the peculiar world of professional theatre, they find themselves caught in a web of confidences and rivalry, thwarted dreams and ruthless ambition. For it seems the finest actors of all are those with the darkest secrets to hide.
Even on the most desirable street, there's a dark side . . .The Hill is the kind of place everyone wants to live: luxurious, exclusive and safe. But now someone is breaking and entering these Cheshire homes one by one, and DS Leo Brady suspects the burglar is looking for something, or someone, in particular. Over the border in Wales, DC Ffion Morgan recovers the body of an estate agent from the lake. There's no love lost between Ffion and estate agents, but who hated this one enough to want her dead - and why? As their cases collide, Ffion and Leo discover people will pay a high price to keep their secrets behind closed doors . . . Other People's Houses is by Clare Mackintosh.
Death on the Adriatic is by Georgina Stewart. In the picturesque Slovenian seaside resort of Koper, on the Adriatic shore, a body is found in a lonely, rocky spot on a coastal path. When it is identified as that of a police inspector, Ivan Furlan, his brother is arrested without further investigation, since it is well known that the brothers had fallen out over inherited property. Then a whistle-blower sends an anonymous message to headquarters in the capital, Ljubljana, asking for urgent assistance to prevent a miscarriage of justice, and Petra Vidmar, the youngest serving female police inspector in the Slovenian police, is despatched to sort things out.
April 2025
The Margaret Code is by Richard Hooton. 89-year-old Margaret has lived on Garnon Crescent all her life, except for those few years she never talks about. She knows all the neighbours; their hopes, their heartbreaks. Only recently, Margaret's memory isn't what it used to be. She is sure Barbara, her best friend and neighbour, told her something important. Something she was supposed to remember. When Barbara is found dead, Margaret determines to recover her missing memory. She and her grandson James begin to investigate, but soon strange incidents occur in her home. Margaret's daughter thinks her memory is getting worse, but Margaret knows somebody wants her out of the way. Because Margaret holds the key to solving this crime. If only she could remember where she put it.
Secrets only survive in the dark. When journalist Ben Harper is asked to help re-examine an unsolved murder case from thirty years ago, he immediately agrees. It's not just that the victim was also a journalist, murdered after she'd published a series of shocking interviews with victims of domestic abuse. It's also that he understands all too well the need of victim's daughter, Doctor Uma Jha, for answers. But it's not long before their investigation leads to threats being made on Uma's life. Ben needs to unravel this crime before it's too late, but instead he finds himself tangled in a web of lies and deception. After all, a crime like murder has implications for many people. People who have been keeping secrets for thirty years, and will do whatever it takes to protect them. Nine Hidden Lives is by Robert Gold.
Major Bricket and Circus Corpse is by Simon Brett. Introducing a new but not-so-amateur sleuth from another peaceful English village with an alarmingly high death rate! Meet Major Bricket, an infrequent resident of Highfield House in Stunston Peveril, Suffolk. In the past the Major's work assignments, frequently in foreign countries, have prevented him from spending much time there and a result, there is an air of mystery around him while everyone in the village speculates on the nature of his occupation. But now the Major has retired and has come home for good in his open-topped little red sports car... and what a homecoming it is, for lying spreadeagled on his lawn in the summer sunshine is the corpse of a clown. Coincidence that the circus has come to Stunston Peveril for the annual four-day village fair? Yet none of their quota of clowns is missing - or at least, nobody is saying. Or is the body that of an unfortunate early guest at the village's highlight of the social calendar, the Fincham Abbey Costume Ball? Fortunately Major Bricket's past clandestine career means that he is now very well placed to solve the mystery of the dead clown on his camomile lawn...
The Dead City is by Michael Russell. In this dead city, the vultures are circling... Berlin 1944. The beginning of the end for Nazi Germany. And the beginning of a dark journey for Garda detective Stefan Gillespie as he makes his way through war-ravaged Europe to the German capital. He carries secret instructions for the Irish ambassador, who is clinging on in the growing chaos - even though it's time to get out. Bombs fall and bodies fill the streets. People starve. The true horrors of Nazi terror are everywhere now... and the Russians are coming. As Stefan searches for an Irishman trapped in Berlin who has betrayed his country and his friends, who cares if people are murdered along the way? And Stefan has to ask himself if saving one life matters in this devastation. And if it does, is it worth him risking his own?
May 2025
Pam, Nancy and Shalisa once imagined retirement would mean setting aside their worries, picking up their margaritas, and lying back in a hot tub. Right up until their husbands lost their life savings in a reckless investment. Now, with the men on their last nerve, the life insurance policies are starting to sound more appealing than growing old together. But enlisting the help of the local barber/hitman isn't just the most daring thing Pam, Nancy and Shalisa have done in years - it's also where the trouble really begins. Because the friends don't realise their husbands have a plan of their own. And there's no turning back now . . . From the first laugh to the final twist, The Retirement Plan is full of characters who will steal your heart while plotting their dark deeds. The Retirement Plan is by Sue Hincenbergs.
The One You Least Suspect is by Brian McGilloway. Katie lives a quiet life. She likes her small Derry neighbourhood. She likes her job as a barmaid at O'Reillys. And she loves her daughter, Hope. But everything changes when she is approached by two detectives. They want Katie to tell them the things she hears at work. To become their informant. In this city, Katie knows the dangers of talking to the police. Yet with Hope's safety at risk should she refuse, she is trapped between two impossible choices. Crossing the O'Reilly brothers could cost her everything. Her only chance of survival is if she can remain the one that they least suspect . . . A gripping, heart-wrenching thriller that explores the fine line between right and wrong, justice and revenge, and how you choose your side when everyone is guilty . . .
Hidden Nature by Nora Roberts is a new novel about an injured cop fighting to bring down a pair of twisted killers. When a woman mysteriously vanishes, leaving her car behind in a supermarket parking lot, injured police officer, Sloan Cooper, determines to keep herself busy looking for any similar cases. She finds them, spread across three states. Men and women, old and young―the missing seem to have nothing in common. But the abductions keep on coming. It will take every ounce of Sloan's endurance to get to the dark heart of this bizarre case―and she's willing to risk her life again if that's what it takes...
June 2025
Death of a Diplomat is by Eliza Reid A remote Icelandic island. A diplomatic dinner party. And a murderer in the midst. The stakes at dinner couldn't be higher. The Canadian embassy are visiting a remote Icelandic island and the great and the good have gathered to welcome them. But beneath the glamour, tensions are bubbling. When the deputy Canadian ambassador is poisoned at dinner, suspicion falls on everyone present, but particularly on the ambassador himself. Jane, the ambassador's wife, knows that she has to solve the murder if she is to save her husband and her marriage. But Jane knows better than anyone that, when it comes to protecting scandalous secrets, there are no lengths to which people won't go. So soon the question becomes: can she track down the killer before they strike again?
What the Night Knows is by Mark Billingham. "Three dead coppers, Tom, maybe four by lunchtime." The targeted murder of four officers is only the first in a series of attacks that leaves police scared, angry and, most disturbingly of all, vengeful. As Tom Thorne and Nicola Tanner dig into the reasons for the violence, a deeper darkness begins to emerge: the possibility that these murders are payback. The price paid for an unspeakable betrayal. To uncover the truth, Thorne will be forced to question everything he stands for. He can trust nobody, and the shocking secrets revealed by one terrible night will fracture his entire world.
Four strangers on a train. An unlikely introduction: 'Actually I'm a Murderer.'Set in the north-east of England in the seventies, the lives of an actor, tech pioneer and political advisor are thrown into turmoil when sharing a carriage with an unremarkable little man with round glasses, on the night train back to Newcastle. By the end of the following day, one of them will be dead, one will turn blackmailer and another forced to commit a crime. And all of them will be under the astute and watchful observation of Aline, the local police officer with her own agenda to fulfil... And then the body count begins to rise which begs the question - just how many actual murderers are out there... and who will be the next victim? Actually I'm a Murderer is by Terry Deary.
Closer Than She Thinks is by Zoe Lea. Louise never thought she'd be the sort of woman to have an affair. She's a good wife, a good mother and a good daughter - even if she is far from happy. But everything changes when Louise crosses paths with Oscar, a man fifteen years her junior. She knows what they're doing is wrong, but she just can't stop... When odd messages begin to arrive, it seems clear that someone has been watching Louise, and that they know her secret. They don't just want Louise to stop her affair with Oscar though - they want much more. And they will stop at nothing to get it.
As the daughter of a London crime boss, PC Philomena McCarthy walks a thin blue line keeping the two sides of her complicated life apart. On patrol one night she discovers a child in pyjamas, wandering alone. Taking Daisy home, Phil uncovers the aftermath of a deadly home invasion, as three miles away a prominent jeweller is found strapped to an explosive in his ransacked store. The crimes are linked, and all the evidence points to Phil's father as the mastermind. Phil's two worlds are colliding, trapping her in the middle of a vicious gang war that will threaten her career and everyone she loves. Who can she trust - the badge or her own blood? The White Crow is by Michael Robotham.
Also to be published in June is The Third Light by M W Craven.
