Crime Review Update---New Issue

In our new edition of Crime Review (www.crimereview.co.uk) this week we
have 16 reviews, together with Sharon Bolton in the Countdown interview hot
seat:
We’re on Twitter at:
Crime Review: @CrimeReviewUK
Linda Wilson: @CrimeReviewer
Sharon Wheeler: @lartonmedia

This week’s reviews are:
FRIENDS OF THE DUSK by Phil Rickman, reviewed by Linda Wilson
A severe storm uncovers an unusual burial near the cathedral in Hereford
and brings problems for Frannie Bliss, while Merrily Watkins has to contend
with a modernising bishop.

THE HOUSE ON COLD HILL by Peter James, reviewed by Sharon Wheeler
Ollie and Caro Harcourt buy a dilapidated mansion in the Sussex
countryside. But it soon becomes apparent that the house has a sinister
history and somebody or something doesn’t want them there

THE LAST CONFESSION OF THOMAS HAWKINS by Antonia Hodgson, reviewed by John
Cleal
Gambler and rake Tom Hawkins has survived Marshalsea prison only to be
convicted of a murder he did not commit. He’s mixed up in the affairs of
two ‘courts’, that of George II and the criminal overlord of London’s grim
St Giles. Can any of his friends or patrons save him?

THE SILENT ONES by Ali Knight, reviewed by Madeleine Marsh
Ten years after Olivia Duvall confessed to the murder of five girls, the
brother of one of her victims fakes his identity and gets a job at the
secure hospital where Olivia is serving her life sentence, determined to
get answers.

LIVES LOST by Britta Bolt, reviewed by Chris Roberts
When a young man is found dead from a blow to the head, the woman who gave
him shelter is arrested for his murder. But Pieter Posthumus uncovers a few
details which tell a different story.

DEATH OF AN AIRMAN by Christopher St John Sprigg, reviewed by John Cleal
An Australian bishop, on leave in England, decides he must learn to fly to
get around his huge bush diocese. When an instructor crashes and is killed
he suspects there is more to it than accident and with the help of a local
policeman and a Scotland Yard detective, uncovers an international drugs
ring.

THE LYING DOWN ROOM by Anna Jaquiery, reviewed by Arnold Taylor
Commandant Morel is called to investigate the case of an old woman found
dead in her bed. It doesn’t take him too long to come to the conclusion
that she did not die a natural death.

ONE UNDER by Cynthia Harrod-Eagles, reviewed by Sharon Wheeler
The death of a London teenager on a country road looks like an accident.
But DCI Bill Slider isn’t so sure – and puts his career on the line as he
investigates

THE STARLINGS AND OTHER STORIES edited by Ann Cleeves, reviewed by Linda
Wilson
Twelve short stories inspired by the stark, evocative black and white
photography of David Wilson.

THE SECRET LIFE AND CURIOUS DEATH OF MISS JEAN MILNE by Andrew Nicoll,
reviewed by John Cleal
The torture and brutal killing of a wealthy spinster in a quiet Scottish
seaside town baffles police.

THE WAYS OF THE DEAD by Neely Tucker, reviewed by Chris Roberts
The daughter of a judge is found with her throat cut. Is it a random crime,
a revenge attack on her father, or the work of a serial killer?

TOM ADAMS UNCOVERED: THE ART OF AGATHA CHRISTIE AND BEYOND by Tom Adams and
John Curran, reviewed by Linda Wilson
The story of artist Tom Adams is told through his Agatha Christie paperback
covers from the 1960s and 1970s, as well as a variety of other art and
illustrations.

THE FLEMISH HOUSE by Georges Simenon, reviewed by Chris Roberts
During a windswept January, Maigret makes an unofficial trip to the Belgian
border to investigate the disappearance of a young woman.

THE BLOODING by James McGee, reviewed by John Cleal
Matthew Hawkwood, former soldier, Bow Street Runner and spy, attempts to
escape America, with which Britain is at war, but uncovers a plot to invade
Canada.

THE FEW by Nadia Dalbuono, reviewed by Sylvia Maughan
Detective Scarmarcio of the Rome police force is given a job secretly by
his boss and told to deal with it without telling anyone else. Then a young
man is found dead and a young girl goes missing on Elba.

HIGH STAKES (audiobook) by Meg Cabot, reviewed by Linda Wilson
When a hysterical ghost appears in her bedroom in the middle of the night,
Suze Simon isn’t terribly pleased, especially when the woman wants a job
doing, but doesn’t provide much in the way of helpful information.

Best wishes

Sharon