Forthcoming books from Headline Publishing

 July 2026

Festival season. The streets are filled to bursting with tourists, and Edinburgh is gripped by a stifling heatwave. Not the best time for one of the most violent murders the city has witnessed in years. The victim of the murder cannot be identified; its brutal nature of the shocking both the public and the police. What could possibly have inflicted such gruesome injuries? Was it a wild animal on the loose, or the beginning of some horrific gang warfare? Another body is found on Musselburgh Beach: naked, comatose . . . but this time still alive. DI Tony McLean can't shake the feeling that there is a connection to the killing - but there are few leads for him and the team to go by. The police are at a loss, and the city is on edge - will the killer strike again? The Violent Hour is by James Oswald.

The Eyewitness is by Naomi Williams. Rachel Cartwright has a terrifying condition. Every 48 hours, her eyes shut tight - and stay that way for two long days. She can't work, can't go out. And, worse, when the world goes dark, she's certain someone is watching her. She can't prove it - but I believe her. And, as her doctor, I owe it to Rachel to help. I may not understand what's happening to her, but I've made it my job to protect her. To keep watch when she can't. But I can't help but feel there's something Rachel's not telling me. A shadow in her past she won't talk about. And now... I'm starting to feel it too. Like someone's watching me.

The Pandora Conspiracy is by Andy McDermott. Pandora's Box has long been thought a myth. But when archaeologist Nina Wilde and her husband, former SAS soldier Eddie Chase, are summoned to the White House for a secret meeting, it appears the legendary artefact is real, with the potential to bring great benefits to humanity - or unimaginable harm. Mistrustful of the motives of those who want to find it, Nina sets out with Eddie on a mission that is the opposite of her usual goal: to ensure the ancient treasure remains undiscovered for ever. But as more groups join the hunt - including one led by her own daughter Macy - Nina finds herself trapped in an ever more deadly race which, if she loses, could destroy the world as we know it - and if she wins will tear her family apart...

A perfect couple. But one of them is a killer. Which one? Patrick Vanderpool, son of a billionaire media mogul, is destined for power. But the affair he's having could ruin everything. Vanessa Vanderpool, married to one of America's most influential men, has her own ambitions. But the affair he's having could ruin everything. When the other woman is found brutally murdered, there are only two suspects... One of them is guilty. But which one? Conman-turned-defence lawyer Eddie Flynn must risk his life to find out... One of Us is Guilty is by Steve Cavanagh.

August 2026

The One Who Walked Away is by Karen Rose. Bounty hunter Elle Randolph is on the hunt for a fugitive in the wilderness of Mendocino County. She's also on the run from her past, and the accident she walked away from - but that killed her abusive husband. When the manager of the inn Elle is staying in is murdered, she and her boss Sara become people of interest to local detective Ronan Clarke. He needs to know exactly what placed these strangers at the scene of the crime. As Ronan questions Elle and Sara, he realises the fugitive they are tracking could be a suspect for the local murder. But to share information there needs to be trust. And, right now, is Ronan in a position to drop the bounty hunters from his enquiries? When another person turns up dead, Ronan sees there could be more to this investigation than he could have imagined. And that Elle Randolph isn't telling him everything . . .

You witnessed a murder. But no one believes you. When Ria moves with her husband to

Silverleaf Heights, a lavish gated community, she tries to settle in and recover from the accident that nearly took her life. On the surface, everything is perfect; the neighbours welcome her with open arms, even though she doesn't feel she belongs, and she is safe and secure with all the security cameras and the locked gate.  Or is she? Late one night, Ria witnesses a woman being murdered in the communal garden. When the police go to investigate, they find the neighbours away and no sign of disturbance. But Ria knows what she saw, and is determined to find out who the woman was - even if no one else believes her.Then an anonymous WhatsApp appears on her phone - a video of another woman being murdered. When she looks closely, she quickly realises the woman is her. The message disappears, as if it never existed, but the meaning is clear: stop looking for the dead woman, or you'll be next. I know What I Saw is by Kathryn Croft.

The Midnight Guests is by Alex Hay. 1926. Diana Gold, owner and impresario, throws open the doors to the most opulent new hotel in London. As the champagne flows and the chandeliers shimmer, millionaires and gamblers rub shoulders with film stars and royalty. Though, things at the Hotel Artemis aren't quite what they seem - including the two guests Diana expects at midnight. Powerful and dangerous, they've dragged her from the gutter and taught her all she knows. Now Diana must take perfect care of them - unless they take care of her first. But when a body is found in the hotel's finest suite, the lavish opening night begins to spiral out of control. And over twenty-four fateful hours, the staff and guests of the Artemis will find out why they are really there.

September 2026

Music to Die For at the Seaview Hotel is by Glenda Young. The A64 are reuniting for the gig of a lifetime at Scarborough's Open Air Theatre, and Helen Dexter is overjoyed when they book into her Seaview Hotel.  However, as old tensions rise within the band, it's clear each musician has something to hide. Why is lead singer Starr running away from her past? Why is Pete the drummer secretive about where he's been for the last forty years? And when guitarist Dave breaks his legs in a freak window-cleaning accident, a new guitarist arrives, causing even more discord for all. Then, as the band rehearse for their comeback gig, a dead body is found. Can Seaview Hotel landlady Helen Dexter and her rescue greyhound Suki hit the right note and solve the crime?

October 2026

When Johnny Raglan is sentenced to life imprisonment, his past catches up with him. Doing time runs in the family, and everyone knows the score. But prison life isn't easy and Johnny's wife Janey and their two young sons are about to learn the hard way what it takes to survive . .. The Stretch is by Martina Cole.

They have your wife and son, what would you do to save them. Luke Jones, his wife Sofia and beloved son Max are hiking in a remote Scottish forest when they stumble across the body of a murdered woman. They're even more terrified when the killers reappear, guns in hand. Managing to flee, they each get separated in the dense woods - with Luke stumbling and knocking himself unconscious. When he wakes, there's no sign of Sofia and Max. But when his phone starts ringing, the nightmare really begins... Luke will do anything to save his wife and son. But, as a pawn in a deadly game which drags up his buried past, can he even save himself? No One is Safe is by Simon Kernick

Perfect Instagram interiors make me feel like a failure every single day, so I set a murder in them.

For eighteen months now there’s been a piece of unpainted, raggedy skirting board behind my bed, lurking there like a dirty secret. When I last decorated the room it needed sanding and filling. I filled it and intended to do a good, seamless job – like those Instagram adverts for easy filler stuff - but it took ages to dry and by the time it was ready for the sanding and painting bit, I was really over the whole thing. Eager to carry on with life like a child begging to be released from the dinner table to play, I popped the bed in front of it telling myself I’d fix it later but (spoiler), I never did. At least it’s hidden so no one aside from me would know it’s there. I’ve only thought about it a few times a day since.

As an Instagram addict (sometimes I just find myself on there with no memory of opening the app in the first place?) I see pictures of other people’s perfect houses a fair bit. Every faultless interior causing the piece of skirting to flash into my brain like a nightmarish apparition, closely followed by the doorhandle I botched in 2021 and my attempt at ‘cutting in’ without using tape. Realistically, I tell myself that the Instagram people must have something similar somewhere in their house, if not masked in the very picture that’s prompted my horrors. 

As well as my Instagram addiction, I’m kind of a cliché. A thirty-something childless woman obsessed with her cat, Selling Sunset and the Real Housewives. So, it made sense for me to set my new novel How to Make a Killing in a luxury estate agency. The women of Harringtons Estates sell expensive houses with the indication that buying them will give the buyers their dream, perfect lifestyle. They’re the equivalent of the perfectly curated Instagram feed, polished on the outside, but the façade’s hiding metres of unfinished skirting. Though in their case, the filler is more outward facing. 

When one of the women is found dead at an open house for a £10 million mansion, the imperfections start to show, and it turns out all of them have a skeleton or two - metaphorical or otherwise - under the floorboards. 

As I’ve got older, I’ve become suspicious of people who have perfectly clean houses. It’s not just bitterness and jealousy; I can’t help but wonder why? Are they hiding something? Maybe people with messy houses are far more trustworthy? Not trying to be something that they aren’t. Not presenting us with a perfectly clean house yet still answering the door all of a fluster with cries of, “So sorry, you’ll have to take us as you find us! We haven’t had chance to clean. We’re a MESS!” If Dexter taught us anything, it’s that it’s easier to clean up mess in a space that’s already spotless, after all. 

Years ago, I bought one of those natural carpets for my hallway because Instagram said it was cool (I’m becoming more aware as I write that I really do have a problem, and when I’ve finished, I’ll be downloading an app to help with it. I’m sure there is one). I’m not being overdramatic (I am) when I say it’s the bane of my life. That carpet is never clean – and even with the best will in the world, it never will be. The cat’s fur sticks to it, small bits of dirt nest in its fibres, vacuum cleaners alone cannot penetrate the straw-like weave. I am here to tell you that you could never get away with committing murder on a jute rug, just in case you were considering it. 

Like (in my opinion) the people who answer their door proclaiming to have not lifted a finger, despite their immaculate houses, the women of How to Make a Killing all have something to hide. Each one of them presents as a confident picture of lifestyle perfection. But under the surface there are cracks, despair, personal torment, secrets and for at least one of them, murder. Much like me shoving a bed in front of the patchy skirting, the women of Harringtons Estates cover secrets with an Instagram filter, a bit of Botox or a peppy smile. So, I guess we’re not so dissimilar, aside from one of them being a murderer. Obviously. 

How To Make A Killing by Kate Weston (Headline) Out Now

Meet the women of Harrington Estates. They're one big happy family. At least, that's what they all say... New arrival Bella is determined to get to the top, and she doesn't mind stepping on some Louboutin-clad toes to get there. No-nonsense Hannah was the rising star, but now Bella's stealing her thunder - and her agent of the year award. Olivia wants it all - the glittering career, the picture-perfect family. But lately it feels like something - or someone - is trying to snatch it away. Then there's poor Claire, who has lost more keys than sold properties - and Bella makes sure the whole office knows it. When Bella is found dead at the open house for a £10-million mansion, everyone's a suspect. They'd all die for that listing, after all. But did one of them kill for it?

More information about the author and her books can me found on her website.

She can also be found on Instagram and on Threads @kateelizabethweston 

The Power of The Outsider

I've always been fascinated by the out-of-place. The marginalised, the unsure, the people faking it 'til they make it, right down to the actual swindlers and imposters and con artists. If writing compelling narrative fiction is about tension, what's more tense than someone being where they believe (or someone else believes, if they knew the truth) that they don't deserve to be?

In my debut novel 'A Reluctant Spy', the protagonist Jamie Tulloch is a perennial fish out of water who turns his unease into a career. At the age of 23, a working class loner adrift at his Cambridge college, he agrees to become a Legend, part of a secret MI6 programme to recruit individuals willing to act as living cover stories. Sign up and you'll get a secret helping hand through life - access, job offers, nudges in the right direction. But at some point, you'll need to step out of your life for a few weeks while a lookalike agent uses your identity as bulletproof cover. Except, of course, something goes wrong and Jamie finds himself on a mission he's not trained, ready or even very willing to take on.

While I don't precisely share Jamie's life history (my upbringing was a whole lot less tough than his, and I very definitely didn't go to Cambridge), we do share a common experience of navigating social contexts, workplaces, relationships and friendships that crossed boundaries and left us feeling out of place. I was in my university's Officer Training Corps for three years and got partway through the process of applying to Sandhurst, which was my first serious brush with people from a dramatically different background. After that, I was lucky enough to get into a graduate scheme and move to London, where I brought a regional accent and a distinct feeling of imposter syndrome to the glossy world of IT consulting. I vividly remember ending up at parties with investment banking trainees and wondering how on earth I'd ended up there.

Unlike Jamie, though, I hadn't made a Faustian pact that dictated my future, so I was free to choose a different path. I returned to Scotland and developed parallel careers in digital design and writing. And as I did, an old fascination returned to me - the world of spies and spying.

When I was studying English Literature at the University of Aberdeen, I wrote my final dissertation on the topic of Paranoia in Modern Spy Fiction, focusing on Graham Greene and John Le Carré. I looked at the isolated, fearful lone spy, without gadgets or guns or even certainty about their mission, conducting morally compromised missions in dangerous, brutal and hostile territories.

That initial fascination with paranoia and fear in spy fiction then spent a couple of decades marinating in a whole slew of different takes on the world of espionage, from the betrayed and amnesiac human weapon of the Bourne books and films to the misfits and misanthropes of the glorious Slough House series by Mick Herron. So when I was in discussions with my agent and editor about my debut novel, I wanted to draw on that continually broadening spy fiction tradition. But what would I bring, personally? The answer seemed obvious - the feeling of being an ordinary person who is pretty sure they're not actually supposed to be where they are.

As I wrote the book, I realised that what I most wanted Jamie to experience was the same thing I had through various jobs, relationships and pursuits - the slowly dawning realisation that I was actually able to take on scary new roles, learn new skills, and that I did deserve to be there. And that far from being the deceitful and sinister infiltration of a Tom Ripley-esque character, the ability to adapt, to learn new social rules and to function in hierarchies and contexts you weren't born into is a serious life skill and advantage.

In the book, Jamie uses his chameleonic abilities to deal with rogue Russian mercenaries, CIA operatives, arms dealers and many more mysterious characters swirling around his target, Arkady Bocharov, while proving to himself that he might just have what it takes to be an effective covert agent. And in writing this book, I got to indulge that crucial question - what would would my price be to become a 'living cover story' like Jamie? And what would I do if I found myself in the same situation, thrown into the middle of an active mission?

My hope is readers will ask themselves the same questions. And I also hope they'll grow to love the often haplessly foolhardy Jamie Tulloch and the other members of the Legends Programme trying desperately to keep him alive.

A Reluctant Spy by David Goodman (Headline) Out Now

Jamie Tulloch is a successful exec at a top tech company, a long way from the tough upbringing that drove him to rise so far and so quickly.  But he has a secret...since the age of 23, he's had a helping hand from the Legend Programme, a secret intelligence effort to prepare impenetrable backstories for undercover agents. Real people, living real lives, willing to hand over their identities for a few weeks in return for a helping hand with plum jobs, influence and access. When his tap on the shoulder finally comes, it's swiftly followed by the thud of a body. Arriving at a French airport ready to hand over his identity, Jamie finds his primary contact dead, the agent who's supposed to step into his life AWOL and his options for escape non-existent. Pitched into a deadly mission on hostile territory, Jamie must contend with a rogue Russian general, arms dealers, elite hackers, CIA tac-ops and the discovery of a brewing plan for war. Dangerously out of his depth, he must convince his sceptical mission handler he can do the job of a trained field agent while using his own life story as convincing cover. Can Jamie play himself well enough to avoid being killed - and to avert a lethal global conflict?

More information about the author and his writing can be found on his website. You can also follow him on X @WordsByGoodman and on Instagram @davidgoodmanauthor

Forthcoming books from Headline Publishing

 July 2024

It's the event of the year - the company summer party. Mel can't wait. Sun, sea, cocktails, her sights set on her work crush, and letting her hair down with her colleagues. One big happy family. What could go wrong? But as the Champagne flows and the sun begins to set, cracks in the team start to appear. Secrets, lies, revenge. No one is as innocent as they seem.  But could someone be guilty of murder? Mel soon realises someone is orchestrating a deadly plan. And she needs to uncover the truth if she's going to get out alive . . . The Summer Party is by Kate Gray.

August 2024

Abel Bac, a police officer, has been suspended from duty for unknown reasons. Haunted by a recurring nightmare, he walks the streets of Paris hoping to lose himself in the city, but somehow, he always finds his way home. Solitary by nature, he retreats from the extroversion of his new neighbour Elsa, and his former colleague Camille who is pained by her unrequited love for him. All that gives Abel comfort are the ninety-four orchids which populate his small apartment.  In museums across Paris something strange is happening. A white horse appears in the library of the Pompidou Centre. In a small museum, stuffed wolves are displayed in fine garments drinking tea. The police are baffled and Abel, who is somehow linked to it all, is becoming more and more unnerved.  Soon, the hidden darkness of his life will rise to the surface and lead him to Mila, the mysterious artist at the heart of this enigma. And it is not long before we discover that nothing about these events is coincidental. Artifice is by Claire Berest.

Ruby Johnson is a nanny and maid to wealthy families in Manhattan's West 74th Street. 
She knows their routines. Their secrets. One night, on her way home, Ruby witnesses a neighbour's murder. She knows the victim. She knows the killer. She makes an anonymous call to the police and names the murderer. But Ruby didn't tell the truth... Because there's something wrong with Ruby Johnson. Eddie Flynn, conman turned trial lawyer, must defend an innocent man accused of this terrible crime. As Ruby's deadly game begins, one thing is certain. It won't be the last murder this witness is involved in. Witness 8 is by Steve Cavanagh. 

Buried too Deep is by Karen Rose. Cora-Jane Winslow's father walked out on her family 23 years ago; his letters to her over the years the only connection she has had to him. When his body is discovered in an abandoned building, she is shocked to discover he has been dead all this time. What happened to him and who would cover up his murder by writing the letters? After his post-traumatic stress disorder forced him to run away from his life, Phin Bishop returns to the Burke Broussard Private Detective Agency, only to stumble upon an armed break-in. Cora-Jane is seen running from the building and his colleague Joy has been shot.  When it appears the shooting is related to Cora-Jane's father, the Agency step in to offer protection while they hunt for the perpetrator. Someone knows what really happened to Cora Jane's father and will stop at nothing to prevent their long-buried secrets being discovered . . .

Would you keep a secret for a stranger, if it meant the blood was on your hands? Celia, Juliette and Nadia are complete strangers with one thing in common: they have all been wronged by Ellis Cobain. A wealthy philanthropist on course for a knighthood, Ellis' public persona is bulletproof - but lurking beneath this veneer is a sinister side that only the women closest to him have seen. When they meet at a boutique hotel on the Cornish coast, brought together by the blind arrogance of their tormentor, they realise what connects them and form a pact: to blackmail him and free themselves from his grasp. But when he is discovered the next morning, murdered in cold blood, they are left scrambling. None of them knows who did it, and now they must desperately cover their tracks. Will they keep each other's secrets, now they are all implicated in his death? Will one turn on the others, when any of them could be next? The Last Time I saw Him is by Rachel Abbott.

September 2024

Going to the Dogs is by Pierre Lemaitre. With Mathilde, there is never a stray bullet, her work is clean and neat. Tonight was an exception. A little whim. Obviously, she could have taken the shot from a distance, done less damage; obviously she could have made the hit with a single bullet. What can I say? I don't know what came over me. This is what she will say if anyone asks. And anyway, who cares? All that matters is that the guy is dead, right?  1985. Paris. Sixty-three-year-old Mathilde Perrin is on another mission. A widow, mother and decorated hero of the Resistance, she is also a ruthless and skilled contract killer, and the most unlikely suspect. But tonight, something has changed. Mathilde is agitated, forgetful and impulsive - so much so that even Ludo, her loyal and long-suffering Dalmatian, has noticed a dangerous shift in her mood.  For Mathilde, retirement is not an option. And no superior, nor police detective nor meddling neighbour will stand in her way. But as Mathilde's mind unravels and the bodies pile up, how long will it take before the killer herself becomes the target?

It's a prize anyone would kill to win. Ten celebrities have arrived to take part in the most gruelling - and lucrative - reality survival show ever devised: two weeks completely alone on a remote Scottish island, in the depths of winter.  With a production team that seems incapable of keeping them safe, a gathering storm and the unrelenting gaze of hidden cameras, the contestants are stretched to the limit as they try and outshine their fellow competitors and hide their darkest secrets. But when a contestant winds up dead, it soon becomes clear that the players are not just fighting for the prize, but for their lives. Isolation Island is by Louise Minchin.

Twelve year old Phoebe's world is falling apart. It's the summer of 1985 and she has just buried her parents, a fire at their family home claiming both in a freak accident. Her life is uprooted in an instant, and she takes little solace in the fact that her uncle Louis and aunt Maude have generously offered to take her in at their home in the Welsh woods. Under the summer sun, though, Phoebe falls into the rhythm of life with her eccentric guardians in their curious idyllic home, the hum of her aunt Maude's beehives filling the air. While exploring the surrounding woods, she strikes up a friendship with a strange girl, Gwyneth, but when she mentions this to her aunt she tells Phoebe that there are no children by that name in the village. Over the course of the summer the two girls strike up a strong bond, though nobody else seems to believe that Gwyneth exists. Soon, Phoebe begins to see the woods for what they truly are - a strange place where the line between life and death is blurred, where spirits roam and secrets fester. But has she learned this truth too late to escape it? Broken Ghosts is by J D Oswald.

October 2024

A Reluctant Spy is by David Goodman. Jamie Tulloch is a successful exec at a top tech company, a long way from the tough upbringing that drove him to rise so far and so quickly. But he has a secret...since the age of 23, he's had a helping hand from the Legend Programme, a secret intelligence effort to prepare impenetrable backstories for undercover agents. Real people, living real lives, willing to hand over their identities for a few weeks in return for a helping hand with plum jobs, influence and access. When his tap on the shoulder finally comes, it's swiftly followed by the thud of a body. Arriving at a French airport ready to hand over his identity, Jamie finds his primary contact dead, the agent who's supposed to step into his life AWOL and his options for escape non-existent. Pitched into a deadly mission on hostile territory, Jamie must contend with a rogue Russian general, arms dealers, elite hackers, CIA tac-ops and the discovery of a brewing plan for war. Dangerously out of his depth, he must convince his sceptical mission handler he can do the job of a trained field agent while using his own life story as convincing cover. Can Jamie play himself well enough to avoid being killed - and to avert a lethal global conflict?

Guilty by Martina Cole and Jacqui Rose is due to be published in October.

November 2024

Thirty-one On The Run . . . Stephanie Plum, New Jersey's hardest working, most under-appreciated bounty hunter, returns with a bang in her latest adventure. While Stephanie's personal life is hanging by a thread, a killer case lands on her doorstep that changes everything. 

One of Us is Guilty is by Simon Kernick will be published in November.

It's 1952, and London is victorious but broken, a cityof war ruins and rationing, run by gangsters and black-market spivs. An elaborate midnight heist, the biggest robbery in British history, sends newspapers into afrenzy. Politicians are furious, the police red-faced. They have suspicions but no lead. For two families, it is more than just a sensational headline, as their fathers fail to return home on the day of the robbery. Young Addie Rowe, daughter of a missing Jamaican postman and drunk ex-club hostess mother, struggles to care for her little ssister ina dilapitaed Briston rooming house. Claire Martin increasingly rsentfu of roads not taken, strives to maake the rent and to keep her teenage son Ray from falling under unsavoury influences in Noting Dale. She finds herself caught between the interests of dangerous men who may the truth behind her husband's disappearance: Dave Lander, whose reserved nature she fnds difficult to reconcile with his reputation as a violent gang enforcer, and Teddy 'Mother' Nunn, sociopathic, evangelising outlaw and top lieutenant in Billy Hill's underworld. Drawn together through the years in the city's invisible web of crime and poverty, the fates of the broken families and violent men collide in 1958, as the West Indian community of Notting Hill's slums come under attack from thugs and Teddy Boys. For Addie, Claire, Dave and Mother, old scores will be settled and new dreams chased in the crucible of London's violent summer. White City is by Dominic Nolan.

Setting as Character By Ashley Tate

 Although I am a writer (and a soon to be published author!), I consider myself a reader first and foremost; starting as a child when I’d read from sunup to sundown, and whenever I can squeeze a book in now. And as an avid reader and lover of storytelling, I want to be pulled into a book from the outset; I want to become so immersed in the pages that everything else slips away. Reading is my absolute favourite thing to do—imagine! You can fall in love, be horrified, be inspired all from the comfort of your couch or bed—but it also serves as a great escape from reality. Nothing pulls me out of the stresses and anxieties of the real world (of which there are many, especially in the last handful of years) like getting lost in a good book. And I think that one of the best ways to ensure that a reader is hooked (whether that’s me reading or someone reading my book) is with setting. So, it’s probably no surprise then, that creating and crafting setting is my favourite part of the entire writing process.

I treat setting as though it’s just as important as the plot and characters and structure—this is how I ensure my sense of place and world building leaps directly off the page to pull my reader all the way in. In this way setting can become a character in its own right. A city or town or planet or dystopian hell-scape on a far-away star that can live and breathe and be its own multi-dimensional character.

Some authors prefer to write about places and locations that exist in the world, but I prefer fictionalizing them, so that my reader can picture themselves being dropped right there without any preconceived idea of what the place is really like. My debut thriller, Twenty-Seven Minutes, takes place in fictional West Wilmer, a small rural town that could be found anywhere in North America. The kind of town that everyone knows; surrounded by a patchwork of razed fields, a long dusty highway, and rusting water tower. A town where there’s one Main Street and one local bar, in the case of my debut this bar is Flo’s, and where everyone knows everyone else and has for generations; where no one really leaves, where the secrets linger within the town’s borders and gossip can take on an insidious life of its own.

When crafting my setting, I want the reader to feel it and smell it and live in it for the duration of the story. To that end, setting is one of the first parts of my writing process—where do I want this story to take place? When? How? Further: How can this small fictional town of West Wilmer help tell the story of its characters? And as a thriller writer, how can it help add tension for the reader?

Twenty-Seven Minutes is a thriller about the transformative nature of grief and what happens when long-standing secrets become impossible to keep buried. The decision to set this in a small town meant that I could draw on the aspects of one—how close-knit communities can sometimes feel claustrophobic (adding tension to the story), how everyone knows everyone’s business (making it hard to hide from your past) and how those hard-to-hide secrets can weigh so heavily on someone that they begin to unravel (adding more tension and a propulsive sense of a ticking clock) for the reader.

The irony here is that I grew up in the middle of a very large, very busy city. But I spent many childhood summers on the farm where my mother grew up, in a rural town on the East coast of Canada. During those idyllic summers, I learned to swim in the Ocean, hang laundry on a clothes’ line, eat vegetables pulled directly from the garden, borrow books from the Book-Mobile that would rumble by the old farmhouse, and hear nothing at night but crickets, and nothing in the morning but crows. I learned the art of “visiting” neighbours, and the smell of barns and old churches and the joy of pulling into the parking lot of an ice-cream bar on the side of the highway (trust me, nothing tastes as good as when it comes from a bored teenager behind a splintered wooden counter).

As writers, we must be keenly observant and attuned to noticing even the tiniest of details—this is how we add layers of reality to our stories, how our characters come alive, and in terms of setting, how readers can really feel themselves in that place—and it was that incredibly stark contrast of those quiet rural summers spent on the farm, to my loud and busy and boisterous city life, that made such an impression on me during those formative and impressionable years as a wide-eyed young girl, that I fell in love with setting, and especially small towns.

 

Twenty-Seven Minutes by Ashley Tate (Headline, £20)

THE QUESTION- For the last ten years, the small town of West Wilmer has been struggling to answer one question: on the night of the crash that killed his sister, why did it take Grant Dean twenty-seven minutes to call for help? If he'd called sooner, Phoebe might still be alive. THE SECRET - As the anniversary of Phoebe's death approaches, Grant is consumed by his memories and the secret that's been suffocating him for years. But he and Phoebe weren't the only ones in the car that night. Becca was there too - she's the only other person who knows what really happened. Or is she? THE TRUTH - Everyone remembers Phoebe, but local girl June also lost someone that night. Her brother Wyatt has been missing for ten years and, now that her mother is dead, June has no one left - no family, no friends. Until someone appears at her door. Someone who knows what really happened that night. And they are ready to tell the truth?

Ashley Tate can be found on X @tate_ab and on Instagram @ashleytateauthor

Committed:- A New Take on Terrorism By Chris Merritt

When we think of terrorism, what probably comes to mind is the deadliest attacks of the new millennium: 9/11, Madrid, London, Mumbai, Paris. We think of groups like ISIS, Al-Shabaab, and Boko Haram. For most of the 21^st Century, Islamist extremism has grabbed the headlines. Not so today.

In 2021, for the first time since 9/11, the FBI classified far-right extremism as a bigger threat inside the US than that posed by Islamic terror groups. In fact, since 9/11, racially-motivated extremists have killed more people in the US than Islamists. Violent far-right groups like Atomwaffen Division and Hammerskins have significant followings in Europe, North America, and Australasia. 

Membership of these fringe groups has grown along with the popularity of mainstream far-right political parties, standing for election on anti-immigration, nationalist platforms. However, Western governments have done little to tackle their spread, hate speech, or the violent threat they pose. 

In some cases, politicians have even supported the actions of far-right organisations, for example, Trump telling the Proud Boys – who were among the leaders of the US Capitol riots – to ‘stand by’ on national TV. Troublingly, serving law enforcement and military personnel are often among those identified as members of such groups.

While far-right terrorism might seem a world away from Islamic extremism, the two share more in common than you might think. Central to participation in each is the process of radicalisation: the development of an extreme ideology based on hatred of those who believe something different.

As a psychologist and former diplomat who has worked in conflict zones where people killed each other over their beliefs, I was fascinated by the psychological link between these two types of extremism. In my new book, Committed, I explore the parallels between them in the conversion of ordinary people to terrorist ideologies. But how does this conversion happen?

Humans are more susceptible to messages when they come from an authority figure or group to which we feel aligned. We consider ourselves part of the ‘in-group’, and we begin to feel negatively towards any ‘out-groups’. Extremists create this sense of affinity by tapping into racial, economic, social, political, and religious divisions, over-simplifying and exploiting them by manipulating their adherents to hate the ‘out-group’ that supposedly hates them. With this justification, violence is just a short step away.

My main character, Ellen McGinley, was a CIA undercover operative during a deadly Islamist terror attack in Paris, five years ago, which she blames herself for not preventing. In the present day, she is trying to confront a domestic terror threat in the US which no one else believes is real, and she won’t stop – even if it costs her everything.

In occasional chapters narrated by one of the domestic terror group, Peter, we see from the other side how someone might come to be drawn into a radical group. Poverty, hatred, a sense of being betrayed by those in power, personal failure, social rejection, and frustration are all factors that contribute to the characters’ susceptibility to join an extreme group and engage in violence.

Though Committed is a work of fiction, the issues at its heart are very real. And as society, we ignore them at our peril.

If you’d like to read more, you can purchase Committed here: https://t.co/C4kmTAIFIk

Committed by Chris Merritt (Headline)

Former CIA undercover operative Ellen McGinley is battling to overcome PTSD when she stumbles upon a domestic terror plot. The deadly attack is due to take place in six days and will strike at the very heart of her homeland. For Ellen, it's a chance to find redemption for her greatest mistake - one she will never allow herself to forget. But no sooner than she alerts the authorities, she finds herself diagnosed as delusional and locked in a psychiatric ward. No one believes her story. She's the only one who thinks the danger is real, which means she's the only one who can stop it. Ellen must draw on all her old skills to escape, stay alive, protect her family, and find those responsible - before all hell breaks loose.

Chris Merritt is a clinical psychologist and former diplomat. As a member of the British foreign service, he completed postings in Jerusalem and Iraq. He has also lived and worked in the US. Committed is his eighth novel.

More information about the author can be found on his website. You can also follow him on Twitter @DrCJMerritt on Instagram @cjmerritt81 and on Facebook.

Alex Hay on heist plots

 Heist novels are having a moment. 

Take PJ Ellis’s Love and Other Scams, a glorious debut romcom telling the story of two con-artists plotting a diamond robbery at London’s ritziest wedding. 

Or Sophie Wan’s Women of Good Fortune, coming in March 2024, a fast and fabulous story about bride-to-be Lulu, grudgingly marrying an eligible Shanghai bachelor while her friends plot to steal her wedding gifts. 

Or – if I may be so bold – my own historical heist, The Housekeepers, which publishes in July 2023. Set in London in 1905, it tells the story of sharp-witted Mrs King, dismissed from one of Mayfair’s grandest mansions, and about to launch the most audacious robbery high society has ever seen in order to get her revenge. 

What makes a heist a joy to read – and write? 

Well, from this author’s perspective, it’s all about structure. For heists have rules. We need a glorious prize, a thousand obstacles, a set of fearsome opponents guarding their treasures. And the prize at the heart of the novel can be metaphorical as well as literal. So it goes in The Housekeepers. For Mrs King, leading a gang of former servants and criminal associates, is certainly seeking a fortune – but she’s also after something more subtle and slippery altogether: the truth. Answers to questions that have nagged at her all her life…

Mrs King’s path has clear milestones, ordained by the archetypes of the heist plot: gathering her team, unveiling her plan, running side-jobs here, overseeing double-crossings there. We get surprises, scandals, subterfuge, secrets. And, perhaps most important of all – friendship. Loyalty. The coming-together of a merry band wreaking revenge upon their world – or delivering justice, however you look at it. For of course the heist must operate to its own unique moral code – and that’s all part of the delight. 

The Housekeepers has been described as Upstairs Downstairs meets Ocean’s Eleven which is possibly THE GREATEST COMPLIMENT that could ever be bestowed upon it. The iconic Danny Ocean is of course the perfect example of a heist protagonist. Cool-headed, charismatic, secretive; he drives his team, and his story, with verve and ambition, and we are gripped as well. It was the remote, sardonic qualities of the heist leader that I was channelling when creating my very own Mrs King. Because it takes more than gumption to rob a Las Vegas casino – or a glorious Park Lane mansion. You need a chip of ice in the heart, a certain audacious self-belief, too.

Perhaps this is what lured me into writing a heist most of all. Haven’t we all wished, at times, to right the wrongs around us? Haven’t we all felt squashed, put-down, bypassed, jaded? I started writing The Housekeepers in the summer of 2020, as we emerged from the first grim lockdown at the start of the Coronavirus pandemic. Work was stressful. Life was scary. And writing Mrs King was my escape. I entered her world – licked with all the delicious textures and tones of the past – but I entered her mindset, too. And this was the real treat. I gave her the traits I deeply admire: resilience, ambition, capability, compassion. And those I don’t (but must admit I share): envy, impatience, irritability. But through Mrs King I could raze my enemies to the ground, lift my friends to the skies – and earn myself a splendid fortune (and a glorious 1905 model Rolls Royce) along the way. 

Wish-fulfilment? Absolutely. 

A joy to write? Unendingly. 

In chapter one of The Housekeepers, Mrs King is dismissed from her post, thrown out of the opulent mansion she’s served for over twenty years. As she marches through the back gate, she plucks a wildflower from the ground. Her first theft. Or rather, her first correction. “It wasn’t simply stealing, not at all,” she thinks. And at the end of the day, this is why I love heist plots. They aren’t just about crimes. They’re not simply tales of cops and robbers. They’re about possession and self-possession, about determination. They’re about belonging. In other words: the stuff of life. 

And novels.

The Housekeepers by Alex Hay (Headline)

Upstairs, Madam is planing the party of the season. Downstairs, the servants are plotting the heist of the century. When Mrs King, housekeeper to the most illustrious home in Mayfair, is suddenly dismissed after years of loyal service, she knows just who to recruit to help her take revenge. A black-market queen out to settle her scores. An actress desperate for a magnificent part. A seamstress dreaming of a better life. And Mrs King's predecessor, who has been keeping the dark secrets of Park Lane far too long. Mrs King has an audacious plan in mind, one that will reunite her women in the depths of the house on the night of a magnificent ball - and play out right under the noses of her former employers...  They come from nothing, but they'll leave with everything.

Alex Hay’s debut novel, The Housekeepers is published by Headline on July 6th.

In The Lyme Crime Spotlight :- Barbara Nadel

 Name:- Barbara Nadel

Job:- Author

Twitter:- @BarbaraNadel

Introduction:

Barbara Nadel is the author of three different series. The Inspector Çetin Ikmen books which are police procedurals set in Istanbul, Turkey. The Francis Hancock Series featuring a crime-solving undertaker and the Mumtaz Hakim and Lee Arnold Series who have a small detective agency. Deadly Web the seventh book in the Inspector Ikmen series won the CWA Silver Dagger in 2005. In 2006 Last Rites was the winner of the Swedish Jury magazine's Flintyxan ("Flint Axe") award for Best Historical Crime Novel. In 2008 Ashes to Ashes won the London Borough of Redbridge Big Book of the Year Award and in 2010 Sure and Certain Death won the London Borough of Redbridge Crime Fiction Book of the Year Award.

Current book: 

This is called 'Bride Price' and is an Inspector Ikmen mystery.

Favourite Book: 

'The Alexandria Quartet' by Lawrence Durrell.

How do you relax? 

I don't. I appear to be incapable.

Which book do you wish you had written and why:

'Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem' by Peter Ackroyd. To me this is the epitome of a mysterious London book. And because London is my home and I was brought up with tales of its music halls, magicians and seers, I wish I'd written this.

What would you say to your younger self if you were starting out as an author?

Have confidence in your talent and don't be put off by those who tell you you're bound to fail.

Why do you prefer to write two different series as opposed to a standalone novel and would you consider writing a standalone novel? 

I think I have to have my psychologist's hat on here. In series, I like to see how characters develop over time and how they respond to different scenarios and challenges across the courses of their lives. I have many ideas for standalone books and would love to write one or more in the future. Plans are afoot, but not yet come to fruition.

What are you looking forward to at Lyme Crime? 

So much! Seeing so many friends is the big one for me. Also going somewhere I've never been before and, of course, Derek Farrell's 'Noir at the Bar'.

Bride Price by Barbara Nadel (Headline) Out Now

When jeweller Fahrettin Muftugolu is found dead in his apartment in the Istanbul district of Vefa, it looks like suicide. Searching the jeweller's home, Inspector Mehmet Suleyman and his team come across a hoard of extraordinary artefacts including solid gold religious relics and a mummified human head. But are they real and, if so, who owns these priceless possessions? As his colleagues begin their investigation, Suleyman is distracted by troubles of his own. His wedding to Gonca Serekoglu is days away, but when Gonca receives her bridal bedcover from a Roma haberdasher and discovers that it is covered in blood, she sees this as a curse on their marriage. Suleyman asks his old friend Cetin Ikmen to help him uncover the truth, but the task is not that simple... Meanwhile, as the stories swirling around Muftugolu become increasingly sinister, the dead man's wife appears, laying claim to his valuables, and Suleyman is drawn into a dark and dangerous world of smuggling and savagery . . .

Tickets can be bought here :- https://www.lymecrime.co.uk/tickets--contact.html

The inspiration behind Shiver / Mind Games and Bodies in the Ice By Allie Reynolds

 

A hand protruding from the ice. That’s the gruesome image that provided the first spark of inspiration for my thriller Shiver. 

Many years ago, I was a freestyle snowboarder, once in the top ten UK. I spent five winters living and training in the high mountains of France, Switzerland, Austria and Canada. I was obsessed with the icy white world at the top of a mountain. Even back then, I was a keen writer. I kept a journal where I tried to capture this incredible environment on paper, knowing that one day I wanted to write a novel set there. 

The high mountains are full of natural dangerous like cliffs, avalanches and changeable weather conditions. Glaciers can be riddled with crevasses – sometimes hidden by a thin layer of snow or ‘snow bridge’ so if you take just one step in the wrong direction, you could literally fall to your death. Snowstorms can blow in at short notice, cutting off roads and stranding people. All in all, it seemed perfect setting for a thriller but it took me years to hit upon the idea for Shiver.

Years later, while living in sunny Queensland, Australia, a news article caught my eye about some climbers out hiking in the French Alps that summer, who spotted a hand and two shoes protruding from the ice. They’d called in rescue teams who had uncovered the body of a man who’d gone missing thirty years earlier. The article went on to explain that with climate change causing glaciers to retreat, many more bodies are expected to emerge. I couldn’t get the creepy idea of bodies in the ice from my head. 

I did some further research and was shocked to learn that Mont Blanc area, where I’d spent my first winter season, was currently believed to hold 161 bodies of alpinists who’d gone missing over the years. I knew the high mountains were dangerous but I never realised they were quite so deadly. 

It struck me then that if someone goes missing in such terrain, we might not learn for years if their death is an accident or something more sinister – or perhaps they aren’t really there at all. The mountains provide a perfect place to disappear. When I asked myself who might wish to do away with someone in the mountains, the answer seemed obvious: a sporting rival.

As a former athlete, I love reading sports memoirs and sports psychology books. In particular, I’m interested in the mental aspect of sports. It’s been said that winning in a sport is as much as 90% a game of the mind – that two athletes might be equally naturally talented but the one who plays a better mental game will win every time. 

In a YouTube video I was fascinated to hear one athlete say this about his rival: he’s one of the most competitive people on earth. He plays real mind games. What exactly did he mean by ‘mind games’? Further research revealed countless tales of the sorts of games athletes play, in sports such as basketball, golf, boxing, soccer and rugby, where big money is on offer for the top players. Tactics included intimidation, trash talking (for example saying terrible things about another player’s wife or daughter), and generally trying to get under their opponent’s skin to rile them and make them crack. 

Thankfully I didn’t find any examples of such tactics being played in extreme sports like freestyle snowboarding, but my imagination went to work. In a dangerous sport and a dangerous environment, mind games could have deadly consequences, which made them perfect material for a psychological thriller. 

Athletes make great thriller characters, too, in my opinion. Focussed, driven… and quite possibly ruthless. I’m always surprised we don’t see more of them in crime and thriller novels. A storyline began to form in my head about a close-knit group of snowboarders vying to be the best. If they’re equally matched in terms of physical ability, they may have to resort to other measures to get ahead. How far might someone go to win? 

I’m happy to say that I didn’t play or experience any ‘mind games’ while I was snowboarding. If I had, I might not be here to tell the tale. But if you read Shiver, I hope you enjoy the mind games the characters play with each other and the reader – from the safety of your armchair.

Shiver by Allie Reynolds is out 28th October in paperback, priced £7.99 (Headline).

They don't know what I did. And I intend to keep it that way. When Milla is invited to a reunion in the French Alps resort that saw the peak of her snowboarding career, she drops everything to go. While she would rather forget the events of that winter, the invitation comes from Curtis, the one person she can't seem to let go. The five friends haven't seen each other for ten years, since the disappearance of the beautiful and enigmatic Saskia. But when an icebreaker game turns menacing, they realise they don't know who has really gathered them there and how far they will go to find the truth. In a deserted lodge high up a mountain, the secrets of the past are about to come to light.

On becoming a real author by Alan Johnson

 

Alan Johnson is a former MP for Kingston Upon Hull West and Hessle. His memoirs have won the Royal Society of Literature Ondaatje Prize and the Specsavers National Book Awards "Autobiography of the Year”. The titles of his four memoirs all come from the titles of songs that the Beatles have either written or performed.

When I once told a book festival audience that I wanted to write fiction some wag responded by suggesting I write my Party’s next election manifesto. I was still an MP and thick-skinned enough to withstand the gentle humour of someone who’d paid good money to hear me talk about my four volumes of memoir.

The desire I’d expressed was genuine. Apart from the fact that I’d practically exhausted all the available material, I was sick of writing about myself. My memoirs had done well but I didn’t feel entitled to consider myself a proper author until I’d done the really difficult bit; developing plot and character.

I was already enamoured with the actual process of writing. Politics doesn’t involve much in the way of creativity and it’s practitioners rarely have the luxury of seeing an idea through to fruition. Former Prime Minister Harold Macmillan, when asked by a journalist to identify the greatest threat to his administration, famously answered “events dear boy, events”.

I was always buffeted by events as a politician and to an even greater extent as a trade union leader before that, which is why I so valued the almost complete control that writing gave me. I say “almost complete” because, although I was solely responsible for the way I told my story, the story itself was preordained. I could describe the characters but not invent them; follow the plot but not create it. Writing fiction is much harder but infinitely more satisfying. Suddenly I was the dictator I’d so often wished I was in my previous life (although I’d have been a benign one - obviously).

So, I wanted to write fiction but why crime fiction? I’ve devoured a lot of mysteries, particularly in my formative years. It began with a battered paperback copy of a Georgette Heyer detective story that somehow found its way into my bedroom. It wasn’t very good. Heyer’s forte was, of course, the Regency novel but the book was good enough to encourage me to further explore the genre.

Before long I was taking my precious collection of ‘Charles Buchan’s Football Monthly’ magazines to the Popular Book Shop in Shepherds Bush to swap them for a bagful of paperbacks by inter-alia Agatha Christie, Raymond Chandler, Ngaio Marsh, Leslie Charteris and Margery Allingham.

By the time the Beatles released their twelfth single in June 1966 I really did “wanna be a Paperback Writer” (but only if I failed in my bid to be a rock star). I was a sixteen years old shelf stacker at Tesco having left school the year before. In a way school stayed with me because my brilliant English teacher, Mr Carlen had given all his pupils a list of 40 books they should read. The actual list hasn’t survived but I remember Bleak House (with the wonderful Inspector Bucket) being on it along with Rogue Male and The Moonstone. Dickens, Geoffrey Household and Wilkie Collins wrote thrillers that seemed to escape narrow categorisation. They were just good books.

It wasn’t until about five years ago that I read my first Maigret, ‘Inquest on Bouvet’, a slim, green Penguin Crime paperback which could easily have been in that Popular Book Shop selection. Published in 1963 with the price (2’6 in old money) printed on the cover, I picked it up in another second hand bookshop whilst on holiday. Like almost all Maigret books it’s more novella than novel running to just 152 pages. I read it on the beach in one day and I’ve read about five Maigret’s a year since. All 75 are newly available, reprinted and retranslated, in a wonderful initiative by Penguin/Random House. It is Georges Simenon’s creation, rather than Conan-Doyle’s that I consider to be the greatest of all fictional detectives.

I hope ‘The Late Train to Gipsy Hill’ carries at least a modicum of what I learnt from so many great crime novels (although I also hope it’s not derivative of any). I’m not hoping for the Nobel Prize that Simenon so bitterly resented failing to win. I just wanted to write a book that is as pleasurable for it’s purchasers to read as it was for me to write.’

The Late Train to Gipsy Hill by Alan Johnson is published in hardback by Wildfire Books on 2nd September 2021 

Gary Nelson has a routine for the commute to his rather dull job in the city. Each day, he watches transfixed as a beautiful woman on the train applies her make up in a ritual he now knows by heart. He's never dared to strike up a conversation . . . but maybe one day. Then one evening, on the late train to Gipsy Hill, the woman who has beguiled him for so long, invites him to take the empty seat beside her. Fiddling with her mascara, she holds up her mirror and Gary reads the words 'HELP ME' scrawled in sticky black letters on the glass. From that moment, Gary's life is turned on its head. He finds himself on the run from the Russian mafia, the FSB and even the Metropolitan Police - all because of what because this mysterious young woman may have witnessed. In the race to find out the truth, Gary discovers that there is a lot more to her than meets the eye...