Forthcoming Books from Harper Collins

January 2023 

No One Saw It Coming is by Susan Lewis. Secrets lie at the heart of every family... When the unthinkable happens... Hanna's world is crumbling. An unimaginable crime has been committed, and everyone's looking for someone to blame. Her loved ones are under suspicion. Now Hanna must work out who is threatening her family - before it's too late. No one could have seen this coming...

February 2023

They tried to cage us. But a Weyward woman belongs to the wild. We cannot be tamed. Kate, 2019 Kate flees London – and her abusive partner – for Cumbria and Weyward Cottage, inherited from her great-aunt. There, a secret lurks in the bones of the house, hidden ever since the witch-hunts of the 17th century. Violet, 1942 Violet is more interested in collecting insects and climbing trees than in becoming a proper young lady. Until a chain of shocking events changes her life forever. Altha, 1619 Altha is on trial for witchcraft, accused of killing a local man. Known for her uncanny connection with nature and animals, she is a threat that must be eliminated… Weyward is by Emilia Hart. 

All The Danagerous Things is by Stacy Willingham. Today is day 364. 364 days since my last night of sleep. 364 days since my son, Mason, was taken from his bed. The police have stopped looking. My husband wants me to move on. But I need to keep his story alive. Someone knows what happened to my son. And I'm going to find them. It's been a year since Isabelle Drake's son, Mason, disappeared from his bedroom. Since then, she hasn't had a full night of sleep. Everyone else has moved on - the detectives, the press, her husband - but she can't rest until she knows the truth. Teaming up with true crime podcaster Waylon Spencer, Isabelle investigates her son's case. But Waylon has motives of his own and as long-forgotten memories of Isabelle's past resurface, doubt begins to cloud her sleepless nights. What happened to Mason Drake? What if the past is better left buried?

March 2023

An all-new collection of spring-themed mysteries from the master of the genre. The days are growing warmer and the nights are growing shorter... It's the perfect time to relax in the garden with this spring-themed collection from legendary mystery writer Agatha Christie. Blossoming flowers and countryside strolls may sound innocent enough, but not when there's murder in the air. Beware of secluded cottages, stolen treasure and fatal revenge schemes. This compendium of short stories, some featuring beloved detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple, is an essential omnibus for Christie fans and the perfect gift for mystery lovers. INCLUDES THE STORIES: The Market Basing Mystery, The Case of the Missing Lady, The Herb of Death, How Does Your Garden Grow?, Swan Song, Miss Marple Tells a Story, Have You Got Everything You Want?, The Jewel Robbery at the Grand Metropolitan, Ingots of Gold, The Soul of the Croupier, The Girl in the Train, Greenshaw's Folly

At first glance, Jellicoe Close seems to be a perfect suburban street - well-kept houses with pristine lawns, neighbours chatting over garden fences, children playing together. But there are dark secrets behind the neat front doors, hidden dangers that include a ruthless criminal who will stop at nothing. It's up to DS Maeve Kerrigan and DI Josh Derwent to uncover the truth. Posing as a couple, they move into the Close, blurring the lines between professional and personal as never before. And while Maeve and Josh try to gather the evidence they need, they have no idea of the danger they face - because someone in Jellicoe Close has murder on their mind. The Close is by Jane Casey.

The Shadows of London is by Andrew Taylor. London 1671. The damage caused by the Great Fire still overshadows the capital. When a man's brutally disfigured body is discovered in the ruins of an ancient almshouse, architect Cat Hakesby is ordered to stop restoration work. It is obvious he has been murdered, and Whitehall secretary James Marwood is ordered to investigate. It's possible the victim could be one of two local men who have vanished - the first, a feckless French tutor connected to the almshouse's owner; the second, a possibly treacherous employee of the Council of Foreign Plantations. The pressure on Marwood mounts as Charles II's most influential courtiers, Lord Arlington and the Duke of Buckingham, show an interest in his activities - and Marwood soon begins to suspect the murder trail may lead right to the heart of government. Meanwhile, a young, impoverished Frenchwoman has caught the eye of the king, a quiet affair that will have monumental consequences..

The Hike is by Lucy Clarke. Wish you were here? Think again … Maggie, Liz, Helena & Joni. Old friends bound by history, adventures, old secrets. And now, bound by murder. They lace up their hiking boots for the adventure of a lifetime in the Norwegian wilderness: a place of towering mountains, glass-like lakes, log cabins and forests stolen from a fairytale. It's the perfect place to lose yourself - until a broken body is found at the bottom of a ravine. Somewhere out there, someone knows exactly why a woman has died. And in this deep, dark wilderness, there's a killer on the trail.

Also in March there is The Boys by Kimberley Chambers

April 2023

Death Under a Little Sky is by Stig Abell. For years, Jake Jackson has been a high-flying detective in London. But then one day he receives a letter from his reclusive uncle - he has left Jake his property in the middle of the countryside. For Jake, it is the perfect opportunity for a fresh start. A rural idyll the stuff of dreams... At first, life in the middle of nowhere is everything Jake could wish for. His new home is beautiful, his surroundings are stunning, and he enjoys getting back to nature. A death that disrupts everything... But then, what starts as a fun village treasure hunt turns deadly, when a young woman's bones are discovered. And Jake is thrust once again into the role of detective, as he tries to unearth a dangerous killer in this most unlikely of settings.

City of Dreams is by Don Winslow. A quiet, peaceful existence. But the Feds track him down and want Danny to do them a favor that could make him a fortune or kill him. And when Hollywood starts shooting a film of his former life, Danny demands a piece of the action and begins to rebuild his criminal empire. Then he falls in love. With a beautiful movie star who has a dark past of her own. As their worlds collide in an explosion that could destroy them both, Danny Ryan has to fight for his life in a city where dreams are born. Or where they go to die. From the shores of Rhode Island to the deserts of California where bodies disappear, from the power corridors of Washington where the real criminals operate to the fabled movie studios of Hollywood where the real money is made, City of Dreams is a sweeping saga of family, love, revenge, survival and the fierce reality behind the dream.

Prague, 1588. A city of tolerance, peace… and treachery. The Holy Roman Emperor, Rudolf II, wants to expand the boundaries of human knowledge, and his court is a haven for scientists, astrologers and alchemists. His most abiding passion is the elusive hunt for the philosopher’s stone and thus immortality. The Catholic Church fears he has pushed too far—into the forbidden realm of heresy and magic. Giordano Bruno is sent to his court by Sir Francis Walsingham, Elizabeth’s spymaster, to contact John Dee, a famous English alchemist. But Dee is nowhere to be found, having disappeared after the brutal murder of a rival. Ordered to track Dee down, Bruno’s investigations bring him face to face with an old enemy from the Inquisition and he finds himself once more pitted against the might of the Catholic Church. When another murder takes place, Bruno is forced to re-evaluate everything he thought he knew. And he soon realizes that his own life is at stake. Alchemy is by S J Parris.

May 2023

Twenty victims. A race to zero. The countdown has begun... A shocking crime scene... DCI Adam Bishop has never seen anything like it. Five murder victims - all with numbers written above. And the spray-painted daubs reveal a horrific truth: the killer is counting down... A case that twists and turns... When Dr Romilly Cole learns of the murders, they trigger memories of a traumatic past she has tried hard to forget. But getting involved with the case is a bad idea. She and Bishop have history - and working together could never end well. A race against time to stop a killer... Adam and Romilly soon realise the truth lies in a decades-old case, and only Romilly holds the key. But they must act quickly, because with every passing day, there are more victims. And as the numbers edge toward zero, the murders get closer to home. The Twenty is by Sam Holland.

Outback is by Michael Davies based on an idea by Desmond Bagely. A brand new novel that continues the legacy of 'Master of the Genre' Desmond Bagley by the co-author of Domino Island. Insurance investigator Bill Kemp had never wanted to trek deep into Australia's remote interior. But when his clients Sophie and Adam Church inherit an abandoned opal mine, triggering some explosive long-lost secrets, they - and Kemp - find themselves facing an unknown enemy even more deadly than the vast, forbidding wilderness of the Outback... The Desmond Bagley centenary novel honours the legacy of the bestselling thriller writer with a new adventure featuring Bill Kemp, described by Jeffrey Deaver as 'part James Bond, part Philip Marlowe, and all hero'. Writer Michael Davies, who completed the first Kemp novel Domino Island for publication nearly 40 years after the author's death, now weaves an original tale of danger and death under the blistering Australian sun.

Cult is by Camila Lackberg & Henrik Fexeus.  A kidnapped boy... A young child is snatched in broad daylight outside his nursery. Nobody in charge sees a thing, but the other children say a woman is the culprit … The police find a link … Detective Mina Dabiri calls on her close friend Vincent to untangle the puzzle that surrounds the kidnapped boy. As he finds a link between the boy and other others who have gone missing, it becomes clear that time is running out for everyone involved .... A looming threat... Meanwhile, Mina's estranged daughter gets caught up in the secretive world of Epicura, a shadowy organisation that claims to be a centre for leadership development. Can Mina protect her child-a child who doesn't even know she exists?

Now You See Us is by Balli Kaur Jaswal. We are invisible: we clean your houses, we look after your children, we know your secrets. But now you know one of ours... Rules for being a maid: * No smoking * No boyfriends * No visitors * And most importantly: be invisible... Corazon, Angel and Donita have all come to Singapore to work for a living. The thing that unites them? Their labour must remain unseen. But when a friend is accused of murdering her employer, everything changes. The accused could be any of them; they all know the stories of women who were scapegoated or even executed for crimes they didn't commit. Each woman has secrets to keep, yet they must gather every ounce of bravery, fearlessness and complete audacity to clear the name of one of their own. After all, no-one knows the secrets of Singapore's elite quite like the women who work in their homes...

June 2023

Twenty classic authors from the Golden Age of Detective Fiction are brought together in the latest in the celebrated "Bodies from the Library" anthology series of previously unpublished and uncollected stories of crime and suspense. The end of the First World War saw the rise of an insatiable public appetite for clever and thrilling mystery fiction and a new kind of hero - the modern crime writer. As the genre soared in popularity, so did the inventiveness of its best authors, ushering in a "Golden Age" of detective fiction - two decades of exemplary mystery writing: the era of the whodunit, the impossible crime and the locked-room mystery, with stories that have thrilled and baffled generations of readers. The Golden Age still casts a long shadow, with many of the authors who were published at that time still hugely popular today. Aside from novels, they all wrote short fiction - stories, serials and plays - and although many have been republished in books over the last 100 years, Bodies from the Library collects the ones that are impossible to find: stories that appeared in a newspaper, magazine or an anthology that has long been out of print; ephemeral works such as plays not aired, staged or screened for decades; and unpublished stories that were absorbed into an author's archive when they died . . .Complete with fascinating biographies by Tony Medawar of all the featured authors, this latest volume in the annual Bodies from the Library series once again brings into the daylight the forgotten, the lost and the unknown, and is an indispensable collection for any bookshelf. Bodies from the Library 6: Lost Tales of Mystery and Suspense from the Golden Age of Detection is edited by Tony Medawar

The Imposter is by Susan Allott. London 2008. The house Maxine and Seb have bought is a beautiful wreck, so considering the amount of work they need to do, this is a bad time for Seb to have lost his high-flying City Job in the financial crash. Home alone as a local workman starts the renovations, Seb begins to spiral into dispair and obessession. Yerss before in1992, the previous ownersdied in the house under suspicious circurmstances, castng suspicion on the family lodging with her – Ruth, her gambling addicted husband Lee and their sensitive young son Cookie. And in 1842, Horatio Lloyd the house for his family only for his wife and a servant to die there – he is sure the 'miasma' from the local river Peck is to blame, but others believe he may have a guilty secret. These threads wind together into a portrait of betrayal, guilt and murder across 150 years...

Fifteen years after the events of the Natchez Burning trilogy, Penn Cage is alone. Nearly all his loved ones are dead, his old allies gone. But Penn’s self-imposed exile comes to an abrupt end when a brawl at a Bienville music festival triggers a shooting—one that nearly takes the life of his daughter Annie. Before the stunned populace can process the tragedy, an arsonist begins torching antebellum plantation homes in Bienville. When an unknown Black group claims the fires as acts of justice, panic ensues, driving the Mississippi River town to the brink of war. When Penn’s closest friend in Bienville is shot to death on the street by a county deputy, mass protests ignite, and the community descends into open hostilities. State and county politicos use the mayhem as an excuse to dissolve the city government and seize control, and enraged activists begin converging on the town from far-away states to see their own brand of justice done. Southern Man is by Greg Iles

There will also be a new Will Trent thriller by Karin Slaughter published in June 2023.

Forthcoming books from Oneworld Publications Incl Point Blank Press

March 2023 

Clara & Olivia is by Lucy Ashe. "Surely you would like to be immortalised in art, fixed forever in perfection?" Sadler's Wells, 1933. I would kill to dance like her. Disciplined and dedicated, Olivia is the perfect ballerina. But no matter how hard she works, she can never match identical twin Clara's charm. I would kill to be with her. As rehearsals intensify for the ballet Coppelia, the girls feel increasingly like they are being watched. And, as infatuation turns to obsession, everything begins to unravel.

A book deal to die for. Five attendees are selected for a month-long writing retreat at the remote estate of Roza Vallo, the controversial high priestess of feminist horror. Alex, a struggling writer, is thrilled. Upon arrival, they discover they must complete an entire novel from scratch, and the best one will receive a seven-figure publishing deal. Alex's long-extinguished dream now seems within reach. But then the women begin to die. Trapped, terrified yet still desperately writing, it is clear there is more than a publishing deal at stake at Blackbriar Estate. Alex must confront her own demons - and finish her novel - to save herself. This unhinged, propulsive, claustrophobic closed-door thriller will pull you in and spit you out... The Writing Retreat is by Julia Bartz.

April 2023

Blood and Water (Twin Truths) is by Jacqueline Sutherland. How well do your family really know you? Belle can't wait to finally have her twins all to herself after their first term at university. But when Kit unexpectedly brings back her boyfriend Ivo, Belle has to welcome him into their home. Charming and confident, Ivo soon wins over the family, but Belle can't shake a strange feeling. And when Ivo reveals he knows a lot more about Belle than he first let on, she realises his intrusion into their lives could destroy everything she has built. How far is Belle willing to go to protect her family and herself?

May 2023

In this crackerjack Cold War thriller, MI5 faces a deadly threat, one only Richard Knox can avert. But he only has six days and the clock is ticking fast. How long can you survive in the shadows? Richard Knox, freshly returned to active duty after a year out of the field, is ordered to uncover the invisible enemy that's infiltrated the Service in his absence. His quest takes him to Hong Kong, a city on the brink of chaos, where he discovers the lines between friend and foe have never been more blurred. Who is behind the assault on MI5? How long have they been operating in the shadows? And what is their endgame? A Game of Deceit is by Tim Glister.

June 2023

The Chemical Code is by Fiona Erskine. Jaq Silver is back in Brazil and this time she has a single mission - vengeance. But after several near misses, Jaq isn't sure who to trust. Determined to discover what exactly is in the mysterious box that everyone is after, Jaq becomes increasingly embroiled in a web of far-reaching corruption. It seems like everyone has a hidden agenda but is she chasing the right target? And who is chasing Jaq?

It's not that Alice wants someone to die. It's just that things were a lot more interesting when she and Iris were investigating a murder. Two months after Alice and Iris solved the murder of Brooke Donovan, Steve Anderson has become a semi-celebrity; Iris Adams and Cole Fielding are almost dating; and Alice Ogilvie is bored out of her brain. Reluctantly attending the school dance at Levy Castle, Alice sneaks away from the party to do some snooping while Iris gets close to Cole. But when she pushes open the door to what was once Charles Levy's study, she quite literally falls onto her next case... The Night in Question is by Kathleen Glasgow and Liz Lawson.

What do a priceless painting, a minotaur, a lighthouse and a glass eye have in common? They're all part of a treasure trail set by an eccentric millionaire. For 10-year-old aspiring journalist Rani it couldn't be more perfect. A chance for adventure and also a shot at getting the perfect scoop for a story competition in the local newspaper. Joining forces with her mischievous Nani who is visiting from Mauritius, she sets out to get to the bottom of the mystery. But solving the clues isn't so simple...and neither is outwitting rival wannabe journalist Lexi. Can Rani and Nani crack the code and avoid a dangerous nemesis determined to take the prize at any cost? Rani Reports: The Missing Millions (The Trickster's Treasure) is by Gabrielle & Satish Shewhorak.

Favourite reads of 2022

My reading tastes have always been varied and as one can expect my favourite reads this year have been a mixed bunch. If you listened to the Crime Time Books of the Year which I took part in then you will have an inkling of a few of the books that made my favourite reads of the year list. I also mentioned three of them on DampPebbles #R3COMM3ND2022 where she invites various book bloggers and published authors etc to nominate three must read books each year. 

In alphabetical order my favourite reads of the year are as follows -

A History of Treason: The Bloody History of Britain through the Stories of its most Notorious Traitors by Chris Day, Daniel Gosling, Neil Johnson and Euan Roger (John Blake Publishing).

A History of Treason details British history from 1352 to 1946, covering major historical moments in a fascinating and innovative way, using the history of high treason and deception as its theme. Appealing to a range of audiences, it covers more than 650 years of momentous history through the use of both famous and lesser known events which shaped Britain. Using original documents and detailed research undertaken by The National Archives' record specialists, it will cover moments in history which led to fundamental changes in eras. It will also include unique discoveries from these archives, uncovering mysteries and stories of how dealing with treason have brought about the changes which have influenced and shaped Britain throughout the centuries. Among these are: the trial and execution of Anne Boleyn on the orders of her husband, Henry VIII several major acts of sedition, including the Gunpowder Plot and the revolution plotted in the Cato Street conspiracy the evidence brought against Sir Roger Casement, executed at Pentonville and his remains later exhumed and given a state funeral in Ireland the trial and execution of the William Joyce who, as 'Lord Haw-Haw', broadcast Nazi propaganda from Berlin during the Second World War. The book covers many stories that explore the nature of treason and how the crown and state reacted to it - from the introduction of the Treason Act in 1352 right through to the twentieth century. Written by experts from among the historians at the National Archives, the book is copiously illustrated with images from the unrivalled collections of The National Archives.

Last year one of my favourite reads was Murder: The Biography by Kate Morgan. This year it is a History of Treason. Like The Life of Crime by Martin Edwards (see below) it appeals to my interest in history and anything that tangentially deals with crime. You don't have to have an interest in the Treason Act to enjoy dipping in and out of this book. It is incredibly fascinating, full of interesting historical information and starts with the 1932 Treason Act which surprisingly is still inforce. If you want to know more about such luminaries as Anne Boleyn, uy Fawkes and Lord Haw-Haw (amongst others) all of whom were accused of treason then this is the book to read. 

The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and Their Creators. by Martin Edwards. (Harper Collins Publishers)

In the first major history of crime fiction in fifty years, The Life of Crime: Detecting the History of Mysteries and their Creators traces the evolution of the genre from the eighteenth century to the present, offering brand-new perspective on the world's most popular form of fiction. With crime fiction being read more widely than ever around the world, and with individual authors increasingly the subject of extensive academic study, his expert distillation of more than two centuries of extraordinary books and authors from the tales of E.T.A. Hoffmann to the novels of Patricia Cornwell - into one coherent history is an extraordinary feat and makes for compelling reading.

This book pandered to the nerd in me and my love of crime fiction criticism and the history of crime fiction. Anything that can be used for crime fiction research and reference is a book that will always pique my interest. It is certainly a book that can be read by anyone, but will no doubt be appreciated a lo more by lovers of the genre. Look at it as a sequel to Julian Symons seminal book Bloody Murder. It is the type of reference book that will be around for a long time and will no doubt become a classic in due course. And so it should. 

Bad Actors by Mick Herron (John Murray Press)

Intelligence has a new home. A governmental think-tank, whose remit is to curb the independence of the intelligence service, has lost one of its key members, and Claude Whelan-one-time head of MI5's Regent's Park-is tasked with tracking her down. But the trail leads straight back to the Park itself, with Diana Taverner as chief suspect. Has Diana overplayed her hand at last? What's her counterpart, Moscow's First Desk, doing in London? And does Jackson Lamb know more than he's telling? Over at Slough House, with Shirley Dander in rehab, Roddy Ho in dress rehearsal, and new recruit Ashley Khan turning up the heat, the slow horses are doing what they do best, and adding a little bit of chaos to an already unstable situation... There are bad actors everywhere, and they usually get their comeuppance before the credits roll. But politics is a dirty business, and in a world where lying, cheating and backstabbing are the norm, sometimes the good guys can find themselves outgunned.

What more can be said about Mick Herron's excellent Slough House series? Satire at its best along with him being one of the best spy thriller writers around at the moment. They are in the current light of day pitch perfect, fantastically written and I'm dying to know how he constantly manages to be spot on in writing about the situations that arise. Those in politics must dread reading each book that is published but for fans of the series Mick Herron can do no wrong. Bad Actors is a welcome addition to the series and the odious, unpleasant genius that is Jackson Lamb is a character that one can never forget or ignore. 

The Devil Takes You Home by Gabino Iglesias (Headline Publishers)

It was never just a job. Becoming a hitman was the only way Mario could cover his young daughter's medical expenses. But before long his family is left in pieces, and he's barely even put a dent in the stack of bills. Then he's presented with an offer: one last score that will either pull him out of poverty forever or put a bullet in the back of his skull. A man named Juanca needs help stealing $2 million dollars from a drug cartel. Together, they begin a journey to an underworld where unspeakable horrors happen every day. He's a man with nothing to lose, but the Devil is waiting for him.

For someone who is not horror fan this mixture of horror and crime was brilliant and not a book that I initially expected to enjoy as much a I did. Neo Noir and a fascinating story of a hitman who is trying to stay on top of things and will do anything to do so. In some ways a nightmare of a read but also a dark disturbing and a hell of a read. Brutal bloody and also full of rage and sorrow. Don't let the Spanish put you off from devouring this fascinating book as it is a gripping thriller to be sure but it is also a powerful reckoning with fait, and with the evils of this world in its many forms.  The Devil Takes You Home is a visceral, gritty, horrific but downright beautiful reading experience. 

Three Assassins by Kotaro Isaka (Vintage Publishing) Trans: Sam Malissa

Their mission is murder. His is revenge. Suzuki is just an ordinary man until his wife is murdered. When he discovers the criminal gang responsible he leaves behind his life as a maths teacher and joins them, looking for a chance to take his revenge. What he doesn't realise is that he's about to get drawn into a web of unusual professional assassins, each with their own agenda.The Whale convinces his victims to take their own lives using just his words. The Cicada is a talkative and deadly knife expert. The elusive Pusher dispatches his targets in deadly traffic accidents. Suzuki must take each of them on, in order to try to find justice and keep his innocence in a world of killers.

If you read Bullet Train then you will already have some idea of the way in which this will proceed. In this case it explores the murky and immoral world of the Japanese criminal underworld. Three Assassins is a mesmerising story about how life itself is not only cheap and precious but also the way in which the past can catch up with all of us with dreaded repercussions. Again set in the world of assassins it is replete with a sense of black humour, colourful characters that are both varied and morally despicable. This is quite a quirky book that is contrasted by the somewhat pretty stark and somewhat gritter parts of the story. There is no doubt that this is a violent book but it is a violent book with a dark sense of humour which is as dark as the subject matter the author is writing about. The warped sense of thinking throughout is one of the endearing features of his book and one of the reasons why as a reader I continued to turn the pages. Translated Japanese crime fiction just keeps on getting better and better.

The Skeleton Key by Erin Kelly (Hodder & Stoughton)

The reunion will tear a family apart... Summer, 2021. Nell has come home at her family's insistence to celebrate an anniversary. Fifty years ago, her father wrote The Golden Bones. Part picture book, part treasure hunt, Sir Frank Churcher created a fairy story about Elinore, a murdered woman whose skeleton was scattered all over England. Clues and puzzles in the pages of The Golden Bones led readers to seven sites where jewels were buried - gold and precious stones, each a different part of a skeleton. One by one, the tiny golden bones were dug up until only Elinore's pelvis remained hidden. The book was a sensation. A community of treasure hunters called the Bonehunters formed, in frenzied competition, obsessed to a dangerous degree. People sold their homes to travel to England and search for Elinore. Marriages broke down as the quest consumed people. A man died. The book made Frank a rich man. Stalked by fans who could not tell fantasy from reality, his daughter, Nell, became a recluse. But now the Churchers must be reunited. The book is being reissued along with a new treasure hunt and a documentary crew are charting everything that follows. Nell is appalled, and terrified. During the filming, Frank finally reveals the whereabouts of the missing golden bone. And then all hell breaks loose.

The Skeleton Key surprised me. I am not a keen reader of psychological thrillers but quite easily made an exception in this case. A mystery within a mystery and full of an undulating tension alongside characters that are not always likeable (and why should they be?) or forgiving, The Skeleton Key draws you in from the start and makes you appreciate a well-written tale that has an inherent toxicity thread throughout the story and which also gives you a great sense of foreboding.

Confidence by Denise Mina (Vintage Publishing)

Deception. Theft. Murder. All you need is confidence. When amateur film-maker Lisa Lee vanishes from a Scottish seaside town, journalists Anna and Fin find themselves at the centre of an internet frenzy to find her. But she may not be the hapless victim everyone thinks she is. The last film she made showed her breaking into an abandoned French chateau and stumbling across a priceless Roman silver casket. The day after Lisa vanishes the casket is listed for auction in Paris, reserve price fifty million euros, with a catalogue entry that challenges the beliefs of a major world religion. On a thrilling chase across Europe to discover what happened to Lisa, Anna and Fin are caught up in a world of international art smuggling, billionaire con artists and religious zealotry. But someone doesn't want them to find the missing girl... and will do anything to stop them.

Whether she is writing a series or a standalone one of the things that stands out with Denise Mina is her great sense of place, how atmospheric her writing is and the immediacy of what she is writing about. In this case it is podcasts and blogs.  Confidence is an intricate story following a tale of intrigue and betrayal that is played out across Scotland, Italy and France against a backdrop of immense wealth, fine art, private planes and swanky hotels. There is black humour, wit and various delightful turns of phrases that fans of Denise Mina will relish.

Blue Water by Leonora Nattrass (Profile Books)

This is the secret report of Laurence Jago. Ex-clerk. Unwilling spy. Reluctant sailor. Accidental detective. New Year 1795, and Laurence Jago is aboard the Tankerville mail ship, en route to Philadelphia. Ostensibly travelling as assistant to the irrepressible journalist William Philpott, Laurence's real mission is to aid the civil servant carrying a vital treaty to Congress. A treaty that will prevent the Americans from joining with the French in the war against Britain. However, when the civil servant meets an unfortunate - and supposedly accidental - end and the treaty disappears, Laurence realises only he can now prevent war with the US. Trapped on the ship with travellers including two penniless French aristocrats, an Irish actress and a dancing bear, Laurence must hunt down both the lost treaty and the murderer, before he has a tragic 'accident' himself.

This is the second book in the series and unsurprisingly Back Drop the first book in the series (and at the time her debut novel) also made my favourite reads list. We are once again drawn to the superbly written characters, the great sense of place and atmosphere. Think Agatha Christie and Patrick O'Brien all rolled into one. Blue Water will satisfy not only those who enjoy reading about adventures but also those who love historical fiction and classic mysteries. 

Breaking Point by Olivier Norek (Quercus Publishing) Trans: Nick Caistor

When a routine kidnapping case goes badly wrong, Capitaine Vincent Coste breaks his golden rule: he starts to take things personally. And with his career hanging by a thread - his resignation letter parked in his superior's desk draw - he is plunged into his most testing ordeal yet. A raid on the vault at the Bobigny law courts. Five vital pieces of evidence swiped. Four men who can no longer be held: an armed robber, a foreign legionnaire, a kidnapper and a paedophile. But what is the connection between them? With Coste and his team at a loss, it's the moral outrage of another criminal that will throw up a lead: one they'll follow to their breaking point - and beyond.

This is the final book in the The Banlieues Trilogy and what a rush. It is a testament to how great I think this author is that The Lost and The Damned (2020) and Turf Wars (2021) the first two books in the trilogy also made my favourite reads of the year lists as well. Fans of Spiral the French Police Procedural will recognise the name as he was a script writer on the French TV series. This is more than just a police procedural. It shows the life of a police man that is not only dark and nasty but one that is forever teetering on the edge. This isn't beautiful France that you see in so many novels. It is very realistic, grimy and at times soul destroying and packs a punch. Written with very intimate knowledge of the French police system one is left with the view that this is not only one of the best police procedurals currently around but also one of the gloomiest. You read Breaking Point and take a deep breath. The audacity of what happens and the sense of betrayal leaves the reader wanting more. What next for Mr Norek? Enquiring minds wish to know.

Secret Identity by Alex Segura (Flatiron Books)

It's 1975 and the comic book industry is struggling, but Carmen Valdez doesn't care. She's an assistant at Triumph Comics, which doesn't have the creative zeal of Marvel nor the buttoned-up efficiency of DC, but it doesn't matter. Carmen is tantalizingly close to fulfilling her dream of writing a superhero book. That dream is nearly a reality when one of the Triumph writers enlists her help to create a new character, which they call "The Lethal Lynx," Triumph's first female hero. But her colleague is acting strangely and asking to keep her involvement a secret. And then he's found dead, with all of their scripts turned into the publisher without her name. Carmen is desperate to piece together what happened to him, to hang on to her piece of the Lynx, which turns out to be a runaway hit. But that's complicated by a surprise visitor from her home in Miami, a tenacious cop who is piecing everything together too quickly for Carmen, and the tangled web of secrets and resentments among the passionate eccentrics who write comics for a living.

An utter shame that this has not got a UK publisher. This is a clever reinvention of 1970s private eye fiction set in the world of comics. It is also a playful literary mystery. It is clear that the author has a love of not only noir fiction but also comics and mysteries as the love of all three shines throughout. It is not easy to create such a one of a kind novel that is on the one hand hard edged but also on the other gritty, absorbing and dangerous. If you are looking for a love letter to not only comics but also noir fiction then Secret Identity fits the bill.

The Spirit Engineer by A J West (Duckworth Books)

Belfast, 1914. Two years after the sinking of the Titanic, high society has become obsessed with spiritualism, attending séances in the hope they might reach their departed loved ones. William Jackson Crawford is a man of science and a sceptic, but one night with everyone sitting around the circle, voices come to him – seemingly from beyond the veil – placing doubt in his heart and a seed of obsession in his mind. Could the spirits truly be communicating with him or is this one of Kathleen’s parlour tricks gone too far? Based on the true story of Professor William Jackson Crawford and famed medium Kathleen Goligher, and with a cast of characters including Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Harry Houdini, The Spirit Engineer conjures a haunted, twisted tale of power, paranoia and one ultimate, inescapable truth...

I have never been of the view that you have to like the major protagonist in any book and in the case of William Crawford in The Spirit Engineer you will either love him or loathe him. Whichever side you fall down on it should not stop you from enjoying what is a cleverly told story. It is a story of the afterlife, death and how life after death is perceived by people. Not only is it dark, macabre and shows the spooky side of Edwardian gothic fiction but the reader is left not knowing what is real and what is not. Ingeniously written and a delight.

City on Fire by Don Winslow (Harper Collins Publishers)

Providence, RI, 1986.Twenty-nine-year-old Danny Ryan is a hard-working longshoreman, loving husband, loyal friend, and occasional "muscle" for the Irish crime syndicate that oversees much of the city. He yearns for something more and dreams of starting over fresh, someplace far away. But when a modern-day Helen of Troy triggers a war between rival mob factions, Danny is embroiled in a conflict he can't escape. Now it is up to him to step into the breach to protect his family, the friends who are closer to him than brothers, and the only home he's ever known.

This is in my opinion a gritty, moody immersive and humane tale of fate, free will, loyalty and betrayal. Think also of greed, lust and violent retribution. It reminds me of Mario Puzo's The Godfather and The Sopranos and whilst I was not a big fan of The Sopranos (oh no you say!) I can appreciate the connection. Incredibly well written and the family and crime themes whilst obvious it is the realism and the immediacy that draws you in. He has incorporated in the events of the novel modern reflections from the classic accounts of the Trojan War. I'm looking forward to reading the last two books in the trilogy especially since Don Winslow has already announced that he will no longer be writing. 

Honourable mentions also go to Desert Storm by Michael Connelly, The Furies by John Connolly, Like a Sister by Kellye Garrett, Shifty's Boys by Chris Offutt, A World of Curiosities by Louise Penny and A Heart Full of Headstones by Ian Rankin.

30th St Hilda's Crime Fiction Weekend

 

Booking for the 30^th St Hilda's Crime Fiction Weekend is now open! Join us on 11-13 August 2023 for this extra-special anniversary event, where we can guarantee a weekend of fun and fascination for crime fiction fans around the world.

To mark the 30th anniversary, this year's theme is Celebrations: innocent parties, guilty pleasures.

From the ‘Wedding Killer’ in Val McDermid’s Insidious Intent to Agatha Christie’s Sparkling Cyanide where death stalks the guests at a fancy dinner in the West End, celebrated crime writers have made innocent parties the focus of dark deeds.

Come and spend the weekend with our award-winning group of crime writers from Robert Goddard to Richard Osman, Val McDermid to Nadifa Mohamed. They will explore the works and psychological insights of their favourite writers to find out just why it can all go so wrong, when we are bent on enjoying ourselves. We promise there won't be any nasty surprises at our own celebration! Or will there...?

Our Guest of Honour is the fantastic Robert Goddard, winner of the coveted CWA Diamond Dagger award (2018) and one of Britain’s most highly-respected crafters of intelligent, elegant crime novels.

He will be joined by a truly spectacular line-up of speakers, including: Chris Brookmyre, Jane Casey, Fiona Cummins, A A Dhand, Philip Gooden, Vaseem Khan, Winnie M Li, Val McDermid, Nadifa Mohamed, Richard Osman, Imogen Robertson, and Alex Wheatle. Not to be missed!

The event will take place both in person and online, so you can join us from anywhere in the world. Our early bird discount runs until the end of March, so don't delay! Book your conference ticket here.

Follow @HildasCrime for all the latest news.

Lindisfarne Prize 2023

 

Now going into its fifth year, the Lindisfarne Prize for Crime Fiction is a literary award for new, emerging and established writers who are from, or whose work celebrates the North East of England. Full Ts&Cs can be found on L J Ross's website under ‘Philanthropy & Prizes’, and entries open again in JANUARY, so get writing! To enter, you only need a short story of up to 10,000 words in the genre of crime or thriller fiction, or the first two chapters and a synopsis of a longer work in progress, so long as neither work has been published anywhere before.

Specsavers Back UK’s Largest Crime Fiction Convention

 

Specsavers has renewed its title sponsorship of CrimeFest in Bristol through 2025.

The convention has grown to be one of the biggest crime fiction conventions in Europe, with a loyal and dedicated fan base.

The CrimeFest brand and website is undergoing a refresh as 2023 marks its 15^th anniversary since it was founded.

Adrian Muller, co-founder and organiser, said: “CrimeFest is going from strength-to-strength. We pride ourselves as being the UK’s friendliest and most accessible crime writing events. There’s an inclusive energy at CrimeFest. Bristol is known for its vibrant, creative and independent spirit, and CrimeFest offers an exciting opportunity for writers and readers alike to meet and mingle.”

CrimeFest is known for its egalitarian and inclusive approach, as it is one of the few events in the UK that is open to all commercially published authors.

Last year after two fallow years with Covid, it welcomed more than 400 delegates to 50 author panel events across four days.

Bristol-born Dame Mary Perkins DBE co-founded Specsavers and is an avid reader. Dame Mary, who attended in 2022, praised CrimeFest for its sense of ‘family’. The brand supports new writers with the CrimeFest Specsavers Debut Crime Novel Award, with a £1,000 prize. The annual CrimeFest awards honour the best crime books released in the UK that year.

2023 also sees the return of the CrimeFest bursary for a crime fiction author of colour. The bursary will cover the cost of a full Weekend Pass to the convention and a night’s accommodation at the Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel, and a guaranteed panel appearance. The winning author is chosen by a panel including author Vaseem Khan, crime blogger and critic Ayo Onatade, and CrimeFest organisers. 2022’s winner was Saima Mir for her debut novel, The Khan.

CrimeFest also organises outreach events for children and young adults in local schools, and
offer discounts for librarians, students, and delegates who are on benefits or disabled.

CrimeFest was created following the hugely successful one-off visit to Bristol in 2006 of the American Left Coast Crime convention. It was established in 2008. It follows the egalitarian format of most US conventions, making it open to all commercially published authors and readers alike.

Hosted at the Mercure Bristol Grand Hotel from 11-14 May 2023, headline authors will be announced in the New Year.

“Not Proven” Inspiration for a book by Neil Lancaster

I’ve been wanting to write a piece for some time about this subject. One of the first questions an author gets asked when a new book is released is, “Where did the inspiration for the book come from?”

It really got me thinking. “Where do you get your ideas from?” is up there with “this is more of a comment than a question” when appearing at panels, except it’s a little less annoying.

So where do we get our ideas from, then?

I’m not the most organised of writers, in fact it’s probably fair to say I am one of the least organised writers. I have no big list of subjects for future books, nor am I someone endlessly scribbling notes in a book when out and about or watching TV. When I’m writing, all I’m thinking about is that book, not a future one. I generally have no idea what my next book is going to be about until I sit down, with a deadline set, and think, “what’s this about, then?” Then cue the nervous head scratching waiting for an idea to arrive, fortunately so far, they always have.

My latest book, The Night Watch came almost out of nowhere. The only vague theme I wanted to think about was that of a serial killer book because I had worked on a number of high-profile cases concerning series murders. But that’s all I had. Writing a serial killer novel is hardly unique, is it? The shelves of bookshops are groaning with them.

Whilst frantically perusing the internet I happened upon a news report about a case in Scotland where the jury returned a “not proven” verdict, which had caused a certain amount of disquiet. Something about the case made me read on. I felt that familiar tingle of an idea arriving.

A “not proven” verdict is a strange anomaly peculiar to Scottish criminal trials. In England and Wales, a jury only has two options for a verdict: “guilty,” or “not guilty.” In Scotland they have a third. “Not proven” sits somewhere between guilty and not guilty and is a rather strange thing. There is no definition of a not proven verdict, and no fundamental difference between it and a not guilty verdict. It is still an acquittal, and the defendant is innocent in the eyes of the law. But it is different, isn’t it?’ Declaring a defendant’s case as “not proven” is almost saying, “we still think you did it mate, but the crown has not proved it quite enough”. 

Scottish law is significantly different than English law, and one notable difference is the requirement for corroboration of evidence. If the only evidence of a crime was one witness seeing the defendant committing the crime, then that would not be sufficient, and would inevitably lead to a “not proven” verdict. 

Whilst researching the not proven history, I came up with the wonderful description ascribed to not proven verdicts. Sir Walter Scott, the famous Scottish novelist, poet, playwright and historian and sheriff of the court of Selkirk described it as a “bastard verdict,” which it remains colloquially now to this day. 

That was the spark for The Night Watch. That one phrase kicked my mind into gear, and I knew from that moment that I had the story for my book. 

It made me realise how unsatisfactory this verdict is, and whilst many bang-to-rights defendants may celebrate it, what about those on the other side. The cops, the victims, and concerned members of the public. What would their reactions be?

What if the cops in a long running, complex murder case were so outraged that they would not let a not proven verdict get in the way of what they truly considered justice? 

Imagine if a cop was so affronted when they perceived that justice had not been done, that they decided to take matters into their own hands? 

How can you catch a serial killer, when the murderer is on the investigation team? 

The Night Watch was born.

Nb… possibly wisely, not proven verdicts are being abolished, but not in time for me to have written my book! 

The Night Watch by Neil Lancaster (HarperCollins) Out Now

He'll watch you. A lawyer is found dead at sunrise on a lonely clifftop at Dunnet Head on the northernmost tip of Scotland. It was supposed to be his honeymoon, but now his wife will never see him again. He'll hunt you. The case is linked to several mysterious deaths, including the murder of the lawyer's last client - Scotland's most notorious criminal... who had just walked free. DS Max Craigie knows this can only mean one thing: they have a vigilante serial killer on their hands. He'll leave you to die. But this time the killer isn't on the run; he's on the investigation team. And the rules are different when the murderer is this close to home. He knows their weaknesses, knows how to stay hidden, and he thinks he's above the law..

Petrona 2022 Winner Announced

 

The winner of the 2022 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year is: 

FATAL ISLES by Mariá Adolfsson, translated from the Swedish by Agnes Broomé and published by Zaffre.

Maria Adolfsson will receive a trophy, and both the author and translator will receive a cash prize.

The judges’ statement on FATAL ISLES:

This captivating winning novel is the first in a proposed trilogy featuring the beautifully flawed protagonist Detective Inspector Karen Eiken Hornby, whose take on life and work make for a strong down-to-earth and modern heroine in the relicts of a man’s world.

Set in the fictional yet completely credible location of Doggerland, this three-islands archipelago in the North Sea, reflects Scandinavian, North European and British heritages. Doggerland is shaped and influenced by its geographical position; the atmospheric setting, akin to the wind- and history-swept Faroe and Shetland Islands, and Nordic climes, enhances the suspenseful and intriguing plot of a police procedural that combines detailed observations and thoughts on the human condition. A brutal murder sets in motion an investigation into layers of hidden secrets and of societal attitudes, and the interaction between the superbly portrayed characters creates a thrilling tension and believable environment. 

Comments from the winning author, translator and publisher:

Mariá Adolfsson (author):

I feel so honoured and want to send my warmest thanks to the Petrona Award jury. This appreciation for my work means a lot to me!

For me it is especially exciting that the British readers enjoy exploring Doggerland together with me. I’ve always been interested in what unites people in Scandinavia and the British Isles, how we are culturally linked, and what sets us apart. To me, Doggerland is - or at least might have been - the link between us. Or to quote Herman Melville: “It’s not down on any map; true places never are.”

Agnes Broomé (translator):

I am deeply honoured to receive the Petrona Award 2022. With such an impressive shortlist it is truly humbling to be chosen. I am grateful to the jury for their unswerving commitment to bringing Scandinavian crime literature to an English-speaking readership. My warmest thanks to everyone at Zaffre for their support along this journey and, above all, to Maria Adolfsson for introducing me to Detective Inspector Karen Eiken Hornby. 

Zaffre (Publisher):

Many thanks to the jury for choosing Fatal Isles as the worthy winner of this year’s Petrona Award. It’s wonderful to see Maria’s brilliantly imaginative crime debut, expertly realised in English by Agnes Broomé, recognised for its excellence. DI Karen Eiken Hornby is a universally relatable character and Adolfsson’s vividly drawn island nation, Doggerland, is a perfectly picturesque place for the darkest deeds to occur. It is such a pleasure to publish this internationally bestselling series. 

The Petrona team would like to thank the following: firstly, David Hicks, for his generous sponsorship of the Petrona Award; secondly the co-creators and original judges of the Award: Barry Forshaw, Dr. Kat Hall and Sarah Ward and thirdly, Adrian Muller for his support via the CrimeFest platform.

Fatal Isles by Mariá Adolfsson (Published by Zaffre) Out Now

A remote island. A brutal murder. A secret hidden in the past . . . In the middle of the North Sea, between the UK and Denmark, lies the beautiful and rugged island nation of Doggerland. Detective Inspector Karen Eiken Hornby has returned to the main island, Heimoe, after many years in London and has worked hard to become one of the few female police officers in Doggerland. So, when she wakes up in a hotel room next to her boss, Jounas Smeed, she knows she's made a big mistake. But things are about to get worse: later that day, Jounas's ex-wife is found brutally murdered. And Karen is the only one who can give him an alibi. The news sends shockwaves through the tight-knit island community, and with no leads and no obvious motive for the murder, Karen struggles to find the killer in a race against time. Soon she starts to suspect that the truth might lie in Doggerland's history. And the deeper she digs, the clearer it becomes that even small islands can hide deadly secrets . . .