New Issue of Crime Review

We feature new 20 reviews in each issue of Crime Review (
www.crimereview.co.uk), together with a top industry interview. This time
it’s author Tim Baker in the Countdown hot seat.

We’re on Twitter at:
Crime Review: @CrimeReviewUK
Linda Wilson: @CrimeReviewer
Sharon Wheeler: @lartonmedia

This week’s reviews are:

AFTER THE FIRE by Henning Mankell, reviewed by Kati Barr-Taylor

 Fredrik Welin was lucky to escape the fire in his home alive, but now he
must rebuild his life, and find out who wanted him dead.

SLEEP NO MORE by PD James, reviewed by John Cleal
Six inventive, occasionally witty and convincing scenarios involving
murder, its motives and the course of natural justice from one of crime
fiction’s greatest writers.

THE THIRST by Jo Nesbø, reviewed by Ewa Sherman

A woman is found dead after a Tinder date, and marks left on her body
indicate that the killer used iron teeth to kill her, and then drink her
blood. Oslo’s ex-detective Harry Hole reluctantly gets involved in a search
for a vampirist.

STATE SECRETS by Quintin Jardine, reviewed by Linda Wilson 

Former Chief Constable Bob Skinner has been asked to the Palace of
Westminster to talk about the possibility of him accepting a peerage, which
puts him in the right place at the right time to investigate a crime that
will shock the nation.

DARK PINES by Will Dean, reviewed by John Cleal 

Tuva Moodyson, a deaf local paper reporter, dreams of a story that could
make her career. Two bodies, their eyes cut out, copies of three unsolved
murders 20 years before, give her the chance – and plunge her into secrets
and fear in the dark forests.

THE RELUCTANT CONTACT by Stephen Burke, reviewed by Arnold Taylor
It is 1977 and Yuri is returning from attending his brother’s funeral in
Moscow to Pyramiden in the Svalbard Archipelago north of Norway. He is
about to discover that the quiet life of which he is so fond is about to
come to an end.

SIRACUSA by Delia Ephron, reviewed by Sylvia Maughan
Two American couples go on holiday together. Their friendship begins to
disintegrate almost immediately and death is the result.

THE BLACK SHEEP by Sophie McKenzie, reviewed by Kati Barr-Taylor
Francesca believes her husband’s death was a senseless attack, but then a
stranger’s words shakes her belief to the core. 

THE HIT by Anna Smith, reviewed by John Cleal
Reporter Rosie Gilmour, investigating the disappearance of an accountant
and the killing of his wife’s lover, becomes involved in an international
crime ring which steals and sells babies as well as trafficking people.

MAIGRET AND THE MAN ON THE BENCH by Georges Simenon, reviewed by Arnold
Taylor 

Maigret receives a call from Inspector Neveu of the Troisième
Arrondissement saying that a man has been stabbed to death on the Boulevard
Saint-Martin, that the murder seems out of the ordinary and that he would
be grateful for his help.

THE ABSENCE OF GUILT by Mark Gimenez, reviewed by Chris Roberts
District Judge Scott Fenney is asked to rule on the detention of suspected
terrorists, and becomes involved with a plot to bring down the Dallas
Cowboys’ stadium.

THE PAINTED QUEEN by Elizabeth Peters and Joan Hess, reviewed by John Cleal
Amelia Peabody and her archaeologist husband Radcliffe Emerson are again in
danger as they search for a priceless, stolen bust of legendary Queen
Nefertiti.

FROM THE SHADOWS by Neil White, reviewed by Linda Wilson
Robert Carter is accused of the murder of a 24-year-old woman. His defence
is flimsy and he seems determined not to help himself. But young solicitor
Dan Grant is determined to uncover the truth.

ROOTED IN EVIL by Ann Granger, reviewed by John Cleal
When a man’s body is found in a Cotswold wood, it looks like suicide, but
DI Jess Campbell and Superintendent Ian Carter soon discover looks can be
deceptive.

LIGHTNING MEN by Thomas Mullen, reviewed by Chris Roberts
In post-war Atlanta, police on both sides of the racial divide struggle to
contain criminals exploiting the tension, especially when family and
friends are involved.

THE CHILD FINDER by Rene Denfield, reviewed by Linda Wilson
Naomi is a private investigator who specialises in finding missing
children. Her latest case is that of five-year-old Madison Culver, who went
missing three years ago.

THE DEAD by Mark Oldfield, reviewed by Chris Roberts
Investigator Ana Maria Galindez seeks Leopoldo Guzman, who recently
reappeared in Madrid after years of dirty work in a shadowy squad created
by Franco – even now reluctant to surrender its powers.

MODESTY BLAISE: THE KILLING GAME by Peter O’Donnell (illustrated by Enric
Badia Romero), reviewed by Linda Wilson
Modesty and Willie go up against another set of villains in three more
iconic comic strip adventures.

NEMESIS by Brendan Reichs, reviewed by Linda Wilson
Every other year since Min turned eight, she’s been hunted and killed by a
sinister man in black. Every time, she wakes up, alive and unhurt, but
knowing the nightmare was real, and it isn’t ending any time soon.

BEYOND THE WALL by Tanya Landman, reviewed by John Barnbrook
Cassia is the slave of a wealthy Roman living in Roman Britain. She escapes
the attention of her master and runs to Roman London and then on up beyond
Hadrian’s Wall, saving her brother and meeting Marcus, who she is not sure
she can trust.

Best wishes

Sharon