Crime and mystery: hard-boiled crime, noir fiction

Book SynopsisFans of Andy McNab, Orphan X and Frederick Forsyth, will love this unputdownable and action-packed debut thriller. ''BREATHLESS, COMPLEX AND SERIOUSLY HARDCORE'' LEE CHILDOfficially Max McLean doesn''t exist. Sniper. Spy. Assassin. His job is top secret, deadly... and often Max is the only thing keeping his country safe. Fortunately, he''s bloody good at it.But Max is growing tired of unquestioned loyalty to his political masters. And when his latest job takes him deep into West African jungle, where a remote village has been quarantined after a sinister virus takes hold, it''s time for answers.As the mission darkens further than he ever thought possible, Max faces a perilous, breath-taking quest for the truth, that will call into question everything that he once believed in, and leave the fate of humanity itself in his hands . . .The Break Line drips with authenticity, menace and fiTrade ReviewA thriller of an unusually classy calibre. Eloquently written, intensively researched ... Brabazon has crafted hugely gripping, thought-provoking yarn, grounding its outlandish elements in solid realism and vivid characterisation * Financial Times *The Break Line delivers a full-throttle exercise in tension * Crimetime *The Break Line is a distillation of a quarter of a century of travel with a camera in one and and a notebook in the other. Set in Sierra Leone, it sees Special Forces veteran Mac McLean on a mission that is non-routine even by his own black ops standards . . . It's so twisty and multilayered it would be easy to imagine it as a computer game. * Mail on Sunday *Echoes of Joseph Conrad & Frederick Forsyth's Dogs of War: not for the faint-hearted, as ferocious a portrait of an assassin as you will find * Daily Mail *Veteran war correspondent Brabazon brings his experience of the world's most dangerous places to this brutally compelling thriller . . . Andy McNab meets Heart of Darkness * Mail on Sunday *A natural-born writer . . . strong, lucid, non-stop suspense -- Ted Bell New York Times Bestselling author of OverkillThe Break Line punches you in the stomach on the first page and then plunges you into the most extraordinary and exciting world of covert operations that I have ever read . I have worked in those places and covered those wars... Brabazon's novel gets it exactly right. With a terrifyingly precise eye and an irresistible prose style, he has creates a world that is almost impossible to leave. I finished the book three days ago and feel like I'm still waiting for the choppers to come take me home... * Sebastian Junger *A taut, razor-edged thriller, packed with granular detail and authenticity * James Swallow, author of Nomad *Beautifully written and extensively researched, The Break Line is a riveting page-turner, a gruesome delight, and a study of what lies in the shadowed corners of the human heart * Gregg Hurwitz, author of Orphan X *Brimming with authenticity, tightly plotted and beautifully written ... The Break Line is a belter of a thriller * Fiona Cummins, author of Rattle *The Break Line is insanely immersive, brilliantly blurring the lines between fiction and reality. I couldn't put it down' * Tom Marcus, No.1 bestselling author of Soldier Spy *Breathless, complex, and seriously hardcore - don't plan to sleep tonight. * Lee Child *Taut, tough and visceral - and, most of all, written with a breath-taking authenticity' * RAYMOND KHOURY, Bestselling author of The Last Templar *A natural-born writer...strong, lucid, non-stop suspense * Ted Bell, New York Times Bestselling Author of Overkill *A wonderfully crafted story of action, history, and secrets that is as imaginative as it is compelling -- Steve BerryA brilliant debut thriller. He knows how to hook a reader and keep them hoovering up pages * Nudge *

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Book SynopsisChicago PI Dek Elstrom is called into action when a man acquitted of his wife''s murder asks Dek to investigate the strange circumstances around her death.A shocking chain of events occur after midnight one night on a quiet suburban street in West Chicago. The first neighbor hears a woman scream. The second sees the lights in the Tripps'' house being switched on, one by one, room after room. The third receives a call from a voice he doesn''t recognize, screaming at him to come over right away. But to where?When the police arrive on the street, Sara Tripp is discovered brutally murdered. Her husband, Martin Tripp, is put on trial for her murder and acquitted. Martin is convinced Sara was scared of something before she died, and he wants private investigator Dek Elstrom to find out what it was. As Dek investigates, he makes a series of disturbing discoveries. Can he get to the truth of what really happened that terrifying night?

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Book Synopsis''...a page turning, high octane novel that''s firing on all cylinders,'' - EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS''...a good old-fashioned murder mystery which keeps you enthralled till the very last page.'' - YORKSHIP EVENING PRESSNYPD homicide detective John Corey has moved to Long Island, restlessly recuperating from wounds received in the line of duty when he''s hired to consult on the murder of Tom and Judy Gordon, biologists who worked on Plum Island, the site of animal disease research for the Department of Agriculture. Were the Gordons murdered because they''d stolen some valuable new vaccine, or even a dreaded virus? They''d obviously outspent their income. Had they been running drugs? Corey doesn''t think so, although an ice-chest missing from their home points to something forbidden. He teams up with Beth Penrose, detective, working her first homicide & their visit to Plum Island reveals only that the FBI & CIA have sTrade ReviewHeavy wisecracking keeps the fun flowing as DeMille cranks up a thrilling, entertaining plot * KIRKUS REVIEWS (Starred REVIEW) *a page turning, high octane novel that's firing on all cylanders, * EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS *a good old-fashioned murder mystery which keeps you enthralled till the very last page. * YORKSHIP EVENING PRESS *Demille..paints a compelling picture...entirely credible. * IRISH EVENING HERALD *

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Book SynopsisThe eighth book in the Tom Thorne series, from bestselling author Mark Billingham.When a dead body is found in a North London flat, it seems like a straightforward domestic murder until a bloodstained sliver of X-ray is found clutched in the dead woman''s fist - and it quickly becomes clear that this case is anything but ordinary. DI Thorne discovers that the victim''s mother had herself been murdered fifteen years before by infamous serial killer Raymond Garvey. The hunt to catch Garvey was one of the biggest in the history of the Met, and ended with seven women dead.When more bodies and more fragments of X-ray are discovered, Thorne has a macabre jigsaw to piece together until the horrifying picture finally emerges. A killer is targeting the children of Raymond Garvey''s victims. Thorne must move quickly to protect those still on the murderer''s list, but nothing and nobody are what they seem. Not when Thorne is dealing with one of the most twisted killers hTrade ReviewAn efficient and fast-paced police procedural, technically superb from its gripping opening to its climax. Billingham, who knows exactly what he's doing with his material, has the recipe just right * Guardian *Another fine addition to Billingham's formidably assured body of work * Daily Mail *The revelations about the killer are totally unexpected - and proof that Mark Billingham is still top of the tree * Express *I found my heart racing as I read the last few chapters. I cannot remember the last time that happened to me while reading crime fiction...Tom Thorne is now definitely one of my favourite modern fictional detectives * The Bookbag.co.uk *

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Book SynopsisBuy Val McDermid''s masterful new thriller, 1989, now!''No-one can plot or tell a story like she can. The hairs on my neck literally stood up'' Daily Express''So gripping it puts your life on hold'' The Times''You should have been a detective. If there''s one thing the last year has proved, it''s how good you are at finding things out. Things that are buried so deep nobody even thinks twice about them. The sort of things that turn people''s lives inside out once they''re exposed.'' Meet Tony Hill''s most twisted adversary - a killer with a shopping list of victims, a killer unmoved by youth and innocence, a killer driven by the most perverted of desires. The murder and mutilation of teenager Jennifer Maidment is horrific enough on its own. But it''s not long before Tony realises it''s just the start of a brutal and ruthless campaign that''s targTrade ReviewSo gripping that it puts your life on hold. * The Times *She is the real mistress of psychological gripping thrillers; no-one can plot or tell a story like she can. The hairs on my neck literally stood up. * Jenni Murray, Daily Express *McDermid remains unrivalled at yoking chilling scenarios to a pulsing narrative; and Hill's torment is palpable in this scary, dark thriller. Brilliant * Observer *Everything a great detective novel should be: pacy, gripping, clever and stylish and, most of all, a fantastic read. * Sunday Express *Another cracker in the Tony Hill and Carol Jordan series from the most imaginative creator of serial killers we have. * Daily Mail *Gripping, well-written, nail-biting stuff * Waterstone’s Books Quarterly *One of our finest crime writers. * The Times *A moving novel, not just a gripping one. * Financial Times *As good a psychological thriller as it is possible to get. * Sunday Express *McDermid's mastery of this genre is evident, particularly in her dialogue, in which there is rarely a false note. * TLS *McDermid's books are getting better and better...an absorbing novel of character. * Literary Review *...reminds us just how finely plotted and intelligently written McDermid's novels are. More please - and soon. * Irish Times *

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Book Synopsis***Discover your next reading obsession with Alex Gray''s bestselling Scottish detective series*** ***Don''t miss the latest from Alex Gray. Book 20 in the Lorimer series, QUESTIONS FOR A DEAD MAN, is out now and Book 21, OUT OF DARKNESS, is available to pre-order.***Whether you''ve read them all or whether this is your first Lorimer novel, SLEEP LIKE THE DEAD is perfect if you love Ian Rankin, Val McDermid and Ann Cleeves WHAT THEY''RE SAYING ABOUT THE LORIMER SERIES:''Warm-hearted, atmospheric'' ANN CLEEVES''Relentless and intriguing'' PETER MAY''Move over Rebus'' DAILY MAIL''Exciting, pacey, authentic'' ANGELA MARSONS''Superior writing'' THE TIMES''Immensely exciting and atmospheric'' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH_______________ No one rests in peace. There''s a hitman in Glasgow: unpaid and angry, he''s decided Trade ReviewGray's best book yet . . . A thoroughly impressive outing from a writer ready to join the top rank of crime authors. * DAILY EXPRESS *

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Book SynopsisIn this ''chilling story that keeps you guessing to the last page'', three couples who befriend each other on holiday may be hiding sinister secrets from each other (Daily Express)Three couples meet around the pool on their Florida holiday and become fast friends. But on their last night, their perfect holiday takes a tragic twist: the teenage daughter of another holidaymaker goes missing, and her body is later found floating in the mangroves.When the shocked couples return home, they remain in contact, and over the course of three increasingly fraught dinner parties they come to know one another better. But they don''t always like what they find: buried beneath these apparently normal exteriors are some dark secrets, hidden kinks, ugly vices...Then, a second girl goes missing.Could it be that one of these six has a secret far darker than anybody can imagine?A brilliantly plotted, utterly gripping thriller about the danger of mak

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Book Synopsis***Discover your next reading obsession with Alex Gray''s bestselling Scottish detective series*** ***Don''t miss the latest from Alex Gray. Book 20 in the Lorimer series, QUESTIONS FOR A DEAD MAN, is out now and Book 21, OUT OF DARKNESS, is available to pre-order.*** Whether you''ve read them all or whether this is your first Lorimer novel, THE BIRD THAT DID NOT SING is perfect if you love Ian Rankin, Val McDermid and Ann Cleeves WHAT THEY''RE SAYING ABOUT THE LORIMER SERIES:''Warm-hearted, atmospheric'' ANN CLEEVES''Relentless and intriguing'' PETER MAY''Move over Rebus'' DAILY MAIL''Exciting, pacey, authentic'' ANGELA MARSONS''Superior writing'' THE TIMES''Immensely exciting and atmospheric'' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH_______________ They stole her voice. Now they want her dead . . . 2014: The CommonweaTrade ReviewCompelling...explosive...once again proves she is one of the most adept practitioners of the crime novel at work today. * Good Book Guide on The Bird That Did Not Sing *

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Book SynopsisThe thirteenth book in the Tom Thorne series, from bestselling author Mark Billingham.THE 2016 SUNDAY TIMES NUMBER ONE BESTSELLERDI Tom Thorne returns in a chilling mystery that will keep readers guessing until the final page.The MissingTwo schoolgirls are abducted in the small, dying Warwickshire town of Polesford, driving a knife into the heart of the community where police officer Helen Weeks grew up and from which she long ago escaped. But this is a place full of secrets, where dangerous truths lie buried.The AccusedWhen it''s splashed all over the press that family man Stephen Bates has been arrested, Helen and her partner Tom Thorne head to the flooded town to support Bates'' wife - an old school friend of Helen''s - who is living under siege with two teenage children and convinced of her husband''s innocence.The DeadAs residents and media bay fTrade ReviewIngenious ... what is most impressive about this novel, however, is the astute observation -- Laura Wilson * The Guardian *The writing displays the virtues that have made Mark Billingham a bestseller: wit, careful plotting, attention to detail and great characterisation... won't disappoint Billingham's legions of fans * The Telegraph *The plot element on which this gruesome mystery turns is certainly one of the cleverest and most satisfying that I've read for ages. * Morning Star *What lingers in the memory is the group portrait of the Polesford locals brutally closing ranks against a man they're certain deserves to die. * Kirkus *

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Book SynopsisUncover the truth or end up six feet underNO ONE KNOWS CRIME LIKE KRAY''A cracking good read!'' Jessie Keane''Martina Cole territory'' Independent''Gripping'' Daily ExpressCut from the same cloth as Kimberley Chambers, Martina Cole and Casey Kelleher. ***DECEIVED is available to pre-order now in hardback and ebook***Eden Chase is head over heels in love with her husband Tom. He''s the sort of man who doesn''t give much away but Eden doesn''t mind that - Tom is worth the effort. So when he''s accused of a years-old robbery and murder, Eden won''t believe it. No, not her Tom - he''s not capable of the things they''re saying he did. With Tom in prison, it''s up to Eden to clear his name. But the closer she gets to the truth, the more she uncovers about herTrade ReviewA cracking good read * Jessie Keane *Well into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Action, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Gripping * Daily Express *

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Book SynopsisThe fourteenth William Lorimer book from bestselling author Alex Gray. Glasgow-set crime at its most thrilling.Trade ReviewFew have matched the sustained high quality of [Alex Gray's] output ...What she delivers is sound characterisation, convincing Glaswegian atmosphere and superior writing * The Times *Alex Gray has been building a reputation as one of the most reliable practitioners of crime fiction at work today * Good Book Guide *

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Book Synopsis''Groundbreaking and gripping'' Sunday TimesA BLOODY MESSAGEAs DI Nicola Tanner investigates what appears to be a series of organised killings, her partner Susan is brutally murdered, leaving the detective bereft, and vengeful.A POWERFUL ALLYTaken off the case, Tanner enlists the help of DI Tom Thorne to pursue a pair of ruthless killers and the broker handing out the deadly contracts.A CONSPIRACY OF SILENCEAs the killers target their latest victim, Thorne takes the biggest risk of his career and is drawn into a horrifying and disturbing world in which families will do anything to protect their honour.From number one bestseller Mark Billingham comes a masterful, intense crime novel that pits DI Tom Thorne against an evil beyond comprehension, yet shockingly real.________________''One of the great series of British crime fiction'' The TimesTrade ReviewHis [Billingham's] storylines of murders that go unseen or unrecognised are chilling and moving, and Tom Thorne is on terrific form * The Times *His [Billingham's] storylines of murders that go unseen or unrecognised are chilling and moving, and Tom Thorne is on terrific form * The Times *Groundbreaking ... a gripping, unsensational take on a type of crime that is happening more frequently than many of us realise * Sunday Times *Groundbreaking ... a gripping, unsensational take on a type of crime that is happening more frequently than many of us realise * Sunday Times *[A] sensitive topic delicately handled, with a perfectly executed and thoroughly unnerving twist at the end * The Guardian *[A] sensitive topic delicately handled, with a perfectly executed and thoroughly unnerving twist at the end * The Guardian *Irascible, irritating and indefatigable...Billingham's passionate depiction of the injustice and brutality that flow from these killings spills from every page, making this one of his most powerful crime novels, written with a fury that does both him and Thorne justice * Daily Mail *Irascible, irritating and indefatigable...Billingham's passionate depiction of the injustice and brutality that flow from these killings spills from every page, making this one of his most powerful crime novels, written with a fury that does both him and Thorne justice * Daily Mail *Brilliant and unbearable * Independent *Brilliant and unbearable * Independent *Entertaining, thought provoking and current * West Australian *Entertaining, thought provoking and current * West Australian *The author's rage, combined with his skill as a crime writer, makes this a gripping and genuinely tragic story * Literary Review *The author's rage, combined with his skill as a crime writer, makes this a gripping and genuinely tragic story * Literary Review *Shocking and topical, the 14th book in the Thorne series is an engaging thriller from one of Britain's best crime writers * Daily Express *Shocking and topical, the 14th book in the Thorne series is an engaging thriller from one of Britain's best crime writers * Daily Express *Brave, topical, important and as uncomfortable to read as it is impossible not to * Heat *Brave, topical, important and as uncomfortable to read as it is impossible not to * Heat *Want something to get the heart racing as you laze by the pool?...A thrilling read not for the faint-hearted * Sun *Want something to get the heart racing as you laze by the pool?...A thrilling read not for the faint-hearted * Sun *Mark Billingham has always defied the usual, and his new novel is no exception . . . the plot is red hot * Globe and Mail *Mark Billingham has always defied the usual, and his new novel is no exception . . . the plot is red hot * Globe and Mail *A book that will leave you shaking with rage long after the thrill of the chase has faded. * Chris Brookmyre *A book that will leave you shaking with rage long after the thrill of the chase has faded. * Chris Brookmyre *This is a searing story, excitingly told with several unexpected twists in the tale * Irish Independent *This is a searing story, excitingly told with several unexpected twists in the tale * Irish Independent *Love Like Blood has a rich seam of biting wit, impeccable plotting and realistic police detail. The result is an intelligent and hugely entertaining thriller that treats its subject with sensitivity. It includes gasp-inducing moments of drama and some ingenious twists * The People *Love Like Blood has a rich seam of biting wit, impeccable plotting and realistic police detail. The result is an intelligent and hugely entertaining thriller that treats its subject with sensitivity. It includes gasp-inducing moments of drama and some ingenious twists * The People *

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Book SynopsisShe's been betrayed. She wants revenge.The new gripping gangland crime novel: DECEIVED. No one knows crime like Kray.Trade ReviewA cracking good read * Jessie Keane *A cracking good read -- Jessie KeaneWell into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Well into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Great writing, gripping story, loved it! -- Mandasue HellerAction, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Action, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Gripping * Daily Express *Gripping -- Daily ExpressA compelling mystery -- Heather BurnsideA gripping page-turner -- Kerry BarnesRoberta is an excellent writer, and this tale of a widow hunting for her errant husband in the post-war East End underworld fairly rattles along. * Choice *

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Book SynopsisROBERTA KRAY'S 15th BOOK. NO ONE KNOWS CRIME LIKE KRAY. The new gripping gangland crime novel: STOLEN, the sequel to SURVIVOR.Trade ReviewA cracking good read * Jessie Keane *A cracking good read -- Jessie KeaneWell into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Well into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Great writing, gripping story, loved it! -- Mandasue HellerAction, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Action, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Gripping * Daily Express *Gripping -- Daily ExpressA compelling mystery -- Heather BurnsideA gripping page-turner -- Kerry BarnesRoberta is an excellent writer, and this tale of a widow hunting for her errant husband in the post-war East End underworld fairly rattles along. * Choice *

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Book SynopsisROBERTA KRAY'S 15th BOOK. NO ONE KNOWS CRIME LIKE KRAY.The new gripping gangland crime novel: STOLEN, the sequel to SURVIVOR. Trade ReviewA cracking good read * Jessie Keane *A cracking good read -- Jessie KeaneWell into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Well into Martina Cole territory * Independent *Great writing, gripping story, loved it! -- Mandasue HellerAction, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Action, intrigue and a character-driven plot . . . sure to please any crime fiction fans * Woman *Gripping * Daily Express *Gripping -- Daily ExpressA compelling mystery -- Heather BurnsideA gripping page-turner -- Kerry BarnesRoberta is an excellent writer, and this tale of a widow hunting for her errant husband in the post-war East End underworld fairly rattles along. * Choice *

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Book Synopsis''Immensely exciting and atmospheric'' ALEXANDER MCCALL SMITH''Move over Rebus'' Daily Mail''Exciting, pacy, authentic''ANGELA MARSONS''Convincing Glaswegian atmosphere and superior writing''The Times Don''t miss Alex Gray''s latest novel - WHEN SHADOWS FALL is out now in paperback It doesn''t matter whether you''ve read them all or whether you''re discovering this bestselling series for the first time, this Lorimer mystery is the perfect winter read to cozy up with _________________________A murder on their doorstepA case that''s too close to home . . . The body of a young woman has been discovered in Bellahouston park, the second in a matter of months. It''s clear to Detective Superintendent William Lorimer of Police Scotland that they have a repeat killer on their hands, who is sure to strike again.Lucky for DSI Lorimer tTrade ReviewEerie, psychological and easy to delve into * Woman *

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Book SynopsisThe next sensational psychological thriller from the author of FRIEND REQUEST, the number one ebook bestseller. Perfect for fans of Cara Hunter and MY LOVELY WIFE by Samantha Downing.Trade ReviewA name to watch in the world of twisty, gripping thrillers . . . It rings as true as tomorrow's headlines * Daily Mail *Superb * Sun *An addictive, uncomfortably tense thriller, combined with a well-observed coming-of-age tale - what's not to like! -- Caz FrearI raced through Three Little Lies in a couple of sittings. A compulsive psychological thriller with compelling characters and a twisty plot -- Jenny QuintanaAnother brilliant, compelling novel which drew me in, kept me turning the pages eager to know how it would unfold. I will be recommending it to everyone when it's released! -- Karen HamiltonIf you loved Friend Request, you'll devour Three Little Lies. You won't know who to believe and you won't be able to put it down until you get to the (shocking) truth. Great stuff! -- CJ TudorDon't worry Laura Marshall fans - Three Little Lies is here and it's even better than Friend Request. Tense and full of surprises - Laura Marshall is here to stay! -- Emily ElgarAn addictive, expertly-plotted thriller with a great twist - if you liked Friend Request, you'll love this -- TM Logan

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Book Synopsis''An enthralling read'' -- DAILY MAILIn the gripping new novel by the author of The Fourteenth Letter, a lawyer in Victorian London must find a man he got off a murder charge - and who seems to have killed again . . . Victorian London, 1882.Five years ago, crusading lawyer Cage Lackmann successfully defended Moses Pickering against a charge of murder. Now, a body is found bearing all the disturbing hallmarks of that victim - and Pickering is missing. Cage''s reputation is in tatters, and worse, he is implicated in this new murder by the bitter detective who led the first failed case. Left with no other alternative, Cage must find Pickering to prove his innocence. Did Cage free a brutal murderer? Or is there something more sinister at work?PRAISE FOR CLAIRE EVANS''A darkly brilliant romp packed with intrigue and romance . . . curl up and prepare to become immersed''HeatTrade ReviewThis mystery melodrama has a Victorian setting almost Dickensian in its convincing portrayal of the seamier side of fog-wrapped London life . . . An enthralling read * Daily Mail *This is a totally absorbing read from start to finish * Morning Star *A twistingly brilliant tale * Peterborough Evening Telegraph *The Graves of Whitechapel flows eloquently. Evans utilises the art form to add density to the evolving story with one poem above all - 'The Graves of Whitechapel' - cleverly perpetuating the plot's thickening mysteries * The Courier *The Graves of Whitechapel by Claire Evans is worthy of the highest acclaim. This is a novel that will keep you guessing to the very last chapter * The Coffee Pot Book Club (blog) *A wonderfully atmospheric and compelling historical murder mystery * Lynn's Book Blog *This is an excellent story . . . The historical context is admirable and convincing * Historical Novel Society (blog) *A lively historical thriller which has more than enough twists and turns to keep you guessing * Jaffareadstoo (blog) *An atmospheric and pacey murder mystery * The Quick and the Read (blog) *

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Book SynopsisA stunning 20th anniversary paperback edition of the groundbreaking first Tom Thorne novel, a case that changed crime fiction forever . . . Alison Willetts has survived a stroke, deliberately induced by a skilful manipulation of pressure points on the head and neck. She can see, hear and feel but she is completely unable to move or communicate. In leaving Alison Willetts alive, the police believe the killer''s made his first mistake.Then DI Tom Thorne discovers the horrifying truth: it isn''t Alison who is the mistake, it''s the three women already dead.Thorne must find a killer whose agenda is disturbingly unique, and Alison, the one person who holds the key to the killer''s identity, is unable to say anything . . .''One of my favourite authors'' Harlan Coben''A terrifically stylish debut novel'' Independent on Sunday ''The next superstar detective'' Lee ChildTrade ReviewA terrifically stylish debut novel - Independent on SundayExtremely capable and unsettling - Literary ReviewA cunning variation on the serial-murder theme - Sunday TelegraphMark Billingham is one of my favourite new authors. Highly recommended

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Book SynopsisHarlan Coben meets Broadchurch in this dazzling first novel in a page-rippingly suspenseful new series Trade ReviewFast-paced and brimming with superb characters. I couldn't put it down for a single second. Twelve stars! -- LISA JEWELLTwelve Secrets is a smart, satisfying, one-of-a-kind thriller that entertained me from start to finish. It examines the confluence of family loyalties and dark secrets while keeping the plot boiling. -- JAMES PATTERSONUtterly absorbing -- SHARI LAPENAOminous at the beginning, breathless by the end ... this is excellent hardcore suspense -- LEE CHILDA pacey thriller full of twists and turns. You won't be able to put TWELVE SECRETS down until the very end. -- KARIN SLAUGHTERA fine debut * The Sunday Times (Books of the Year) *Twelve Secrets is rather special. So clever, so engrossing, a genuine 'just one more page' kind of book -- M. W. CRAVENWhat a tangled web! Brilliantly weaved and then carefully unravelled for the big revelations at the end. A totally gripping read. -- SUSAN LEWISAbsolutely addictive. An unforgettable and nuanced cast of characters, a claustrophobic setting, and a suspenseful and chilling examination of the dark and destructive power of secrets. You will sleep with your eyes open after reading this one. -- GILLY MACMILLANA tightly-woven thriller that races to a conclusion I didn't see coming -- NELL PATTISONOriginal, unputdownable and a really great read -- KATIE FFORDEI adored TWELVE SECRETS - It was so much twisty-turny fun and I loved the characters and how their secrets unravelled. It's a fast-paced, utterly gripping thriller - a definite twelve out of ten! -- VANESSA SAVAGEA fantastic, plot-twisting debut. Original and addictive. -- CAMERON WARDTwelve Secrets contains cliff-hangers and revelations galore. [It] is all plot, plot, plot - and, boy, what a lot it's got. * THE TIMES *Fast-paced and shocking. * Woman's Weekly *A page-turner with a final revelation that satisfies by being unguessable but retrospectively inevitable * Morning Star *Satisfyingly twisty, straight from Harlan Coben territory and surely Netflix bound * IRISH INDEPENDENT *One very twisty tale * HEAT *

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Book SynopsisGOLD. THEFT. MURDER. A ROAD TRIP TO DIE FOR.''An unrelenting page-turner'' CHRIS WHITAKER, author of WE BEGIN AT THE END ''A triumph'' THE i ''The real star is the desolate Outback'' THE TIMES ''Thrilling . . . It left me breathless'' ALEX MARWOOD, author of THE WICKED GIRLS ''Perfectly paced'' SCOTSMAN ''Razor-sharp wit meets pumping action'' FEMI KAYODE, author of LIGHTSEEKERS ''Beautifully done'' LITERARY REVIEW ''A thrilling cross-country chase through remote Australia'' SUNDAY POST ''A breathless Outback chase'' THE AGE ____________Charlie and Nao are strangers from different sides of the tracks. They should never have met, but one devastating incident binds them together forever.A man is dead and now Trade ReviewBold and badass, No Country For Girls is the kind of searingly stylish, unrelenting page-turner I just adore. I burned through the twisting plot almost as fast as Charlie and Nao light up the Australian outback' -- CHRIS WHITAKER, author of WE BEGIN AT THE ENDStyles's first novel starts with a bang . . . There are decided echoes of films such as Shallow Grave andThelma & Louise in this bumpy road trip . . . The real star is the desolate outback. And, refreshing for a summer read, there isn't a luxury villa in sight * The Times *A thrilling cat-and-mouse pursuit through West Australia's Badlands . . . It left me breathless -- ALEX MARWOOD, author of THE WICKED GIRLSAs the two leave a trail of destruction in their wake, each of their heartbreaking stories unravels as their pasts catch up with them, and they bond over life and death . . . A triumph * The i *An impressive first novel . . . Styles describes the terrifying emptiness of the Outback and the drilling heat with absolute conviction. The ending is beautifully done * Literary Review *Fresh as hell with two strikingly original protagonists who blaze a thrilling trail through the outback. Not just a terrific debut, a terrific book full stop -- TREVOR WOOD, author of THE MAN ON THE STREETNo Country for Girls expertly captures the protagonists' grit and tenacity in a thrilling cross-country chase . . . Introducing two memorable literary heroines. A perfectly paced thriller * Scotsman *Razor-sharp wit meets pumping action, with twists and turns to keep the pages turning! No Country for Girls is the road trip for our time; relevant, powerful and unrelentingly entertaining . . . Welcome Emma Styles. We didn't know how much we needed you until you came -- FEMI KAYODE, author of LIGHTSEEKERSA thrilling cross-country chase through remote Australia and a gipping yarn about two heroines that masterfully interlaces dark humour and tension with poignant familial drama. Wonderful! * Sunday Post *A taut, evocative and utterly absorbing road-trip thriller about two young women on the run for their lives, both caught up in a landscape as full of threat and danger as the people who are after them. Unputdownable -- JACOB ROSS, author of BLACK RAIN FALLINGEmma Styles' thriller perfectly captures the pulse-pounding chaos of life on the run . . . Gripping * Woman's Own *A unique voice, compelling protagonists, and a dizzyingly wild and gripping ride that grabs you by the throat - this is outback Australia like you've never seen it and you will not soon forget it -- PETER PAPATHANASIOU, author of THE STONINGI LOVED THIS BOOK. Thelma & Louise meets The Tourist in this pacey, surprising and relentlessly tense Aussie road trip thriller. With No Country for Girls Emma Styles is not playing around - she's staking her claim as the new queen of Outback Noir -- LIZZIE POOK, author of MOONLIGHT AND THE PEARLER'S DAUGHTERA fast-moving, cinematic debut by a new Australian author . . . Violent, picturesque and a barrel full of twists along the way, this high-octane road movie of a novel delivers on all counts * Crime Time *Every now and then you open a book, and you know immediately that here is something fresh and new and exciting. This novel is all of that, with extra . . . No Country for Girls is both original and brilliant, and it is hard to believe that this first-class novel by Australian-born Emma Styles, now living in the UK, is a debut * Crime Review *An edge-of-your-seat, high-octane, thrilling road trip across the Oz Outback, in the company of three unforgettable women -- LOUISE MORRISH, author of OPERATION MOONLIGHTThe grit and harshness of [Australia] runs in her writer's bloodstream. This is a two-fisted road trip adventure . . . One action twist after another. Terrific fun! 10/10 * Peterborough Telegraph *You'll be gripped from the first page of this perfectly-paced thriller. Styles masterfully interlaces dark humour with tension by the bucketload, and poignant familial drama, introducing two new literary heroines for modern fiction. 10/10 * Breaking News *No Country For Girls lives up to its title and Emma Styles is to be lauded for an exceptional debut crime novel . . . Wonderful * SHOTS *Aussie noir is another on-trend fashion in publishing, and with debuts as flinty and suspenseful as Emma Styles' No Country For Girls, it's easy to see why. This is a breathless outback chase novel sparked by a violent crime . . . Styles takes familiar tropes and energises them with a sense of escalating dread. The book's billed as an outback Thelma & Louise, though it's closer in tone to the Cormac McCarthy referenced in the title * The Age *The vast expanses of Western Australia provide the backdrop for an exciting tale . . . Styles ratchets up the tension as we ride through vivid settings with two strong personalities who don't trust each other . . . An intense, fascinating, female-centred read * NZ Listener *Riveting . . . There's a fabulous rawness to Styles' debut crime tale; strong voices and viewpoints that aren't polite or prettied up. Gritty and gripping, No Country for Girls marks the emergence of a talented new crime voice * Good Reading Magazine *

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Book SynopsisGOLD. THEFT. MURDER. A ROAD TRIP TO DIE FOR.Winner of the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing PrizeShortlisted for the CWA New Blood Dagger AwardShortlisted for the Davitt Award for Best Adult Crime NovelShortlisted for the ACWA Ned Kelly Award for Best Debut Crime FictionLonglisted for the Authors'' Club Best First Novel Award Longlisted for the Polari First Book Prize''An unrelenting page-turner'' CHRIS WHITAKER, author of WE BEGIN AT THE END''A triumph'' THE i''The real star is the desolate Outback'' THE TIMES''Thrilling . . . It left me breathless'' ALEX MARWOOD, author of THE WICKED GIRLS''Perfectly paced'' SCOTSMAN''Razor-sharp wit meets pumping action'' FEMI KAYODE, author of LIGHTSEEKERS''Beautifully done'' LITERARY REVIEWTrade ReviewBold and badass, No Country For Girls is the kind of searingly stylish, unrelenting page-turner I just adore. I burned through the twisting plot almost as fast as Charlie and Nao light up the Australian outback' -- CHRIS WHITAKER, author of WE BEGIN AT THE ENDStyles's first novel starts with a bang . . . There are decided echoes of films such as Shallow Grave andThelma & Louise in this bumpy road trip . . . The real star is the desolate outback. And, refreshing for a summer read, there isn't a luxury villa in sight * The Times *A thrilling cat-and-mouse pursuit through West Australia's Badlands . . . It left me breathless -- ALEX MARWOOD, author of THE WICKED GIRLSAs the two leave a trail of destruction in their wake, each of their heartbreaking stories unravels as their pasts catch up with them, and they bond over life and death . . . A triumph * The i *An impressive first novel . . . Styles describes the terrifying emptiness of the Outback and the drilling heat with absolute conviction. The ending is beautifully done * Literary Review *Fresh as hell with two strikingly original protagonists who blaze a thrilling trail through the outback. Not just a terrific debut, a terrific book full stop -- TREVOR WOOD, author of THE MAN ON THE STREETNo Country for Girls expertly captures the protagonists' grit and tenacity in a thrilling cross-country chase . . . Introducing two memorable literary heroines. A perfectly paced thriller * Scotsman *Razor-sharp wit meets pumping action, with twists and turns to keep the pages turning! No Country for Girls is the road trip for our time; relevant, powerful and unrelentingly entertaining . . . Welcome Emma Styles. We didn't know how much we needed you until you came -- FEMI KAYODE, author of LIGHTSEEKERSA thrilling cross-country chase through remote Australia and a gipping yarn about two heroines that masterfully interlaces dark humour and tension with poignant familial drama. Wonderful! * Sunday Post *A taut, evocative and utterly absorbing road-trip thriller about two young women on the run for their lives, both caught up in a landscape as full of threat and danger as the people who are after them. Unputdownable -- JACOB ROSS, author of BLACK RAIN FALLINGEmma Styles' thriller perfectly captures the pulse-pounding chaos of life on the run . . . Gripping * Woman's Own *A unique voice, compelling protagonists, and a dizzyingly wild and gripping ride that grabs you by the throat - this is outback Australia like you've never seen it and you will not soon forget it -- PETER PAPATHANASIOU, author of THE STONINGI LOVED THIS BOOK. Thelma & Louise meets The Tourist in this pacey, surprising and relentlessly tense Aussie road trip thriller. With No Country for Girls Emma Styles is not playing around - she's staking her claim as the new queen of Outback Noir -- LIZZIE POOK, author of MOONLIGHT AND THE PEARLER'S DAUGHTERA fast-moving, cinematic debut by a new Australian author . . . Violent, picturesque and a barrel full of twists along the way, this high-octane road movie of a novel delivers on all counts * Crime Time *Every now and then you open a book, and you know immediately that here is something fresh and new and exciting. This novel is all of that, with extra . . . No Country for Girls is both original and brilliant, and it is hard to believe that this first-class novel by Australian-born Emma Styles, now living in the UK, is a debut * Crime Review *An edge-of-your-seat, high-octane, thrilling road trip across the Oz Outback, in the company of three unforgettable women -- LOUISE MORRISH, author of OPERATION MOONLIGHTThe grit and harshness of [Australia] runs in her writer's bloodstream. This is a two-fisted road trip adventure . . . One action twist after another. Terrific fun! 10/10 * Peterborough Telegraph *You'll be gripped from the first page of this perfectly-paced thriller. Styles masterfully interlaces dark humour with tension by the bucketload, and poignant familial drama, introducing two new literary heroines for modern fiction. 10/10 * Breaking News *No Country For Girls lives up to its title and Emma Styles is to be lauded for an exceptional debut crime novel . . . Wonderful * SHOTS *Aussie noir is another on-trend fashion in publishing, and with debuts as flinty and suspenseful as Emma Styles' No Country For Girls, it's easy to see why. This is a breathless outback chase novel sparked by a violent crime . . . Styles takes familiar tropes and energises them with a sense of escalating dread. The book's billed as an outback Thelma & Louise, though it's closer in tone to the Cormac McCarthy referenced in the title * The Age *The vast expanses of Western Australia provide the backdrop for an exciting tale . . . Styles ratchets up the tension as we ride through vivid settings with two strong personalities who don't trust each other . . . An intense, fascinating, female-centred read * NZ Listener *Riveting . . . There's a fabulous rawness to Styles' debut crime tale; strong voices and viewpoints that aren't polite or prettied up. Gritty and gripping, No Country for Girls marks the emergence of a talented new crime voice * Good Reading Magazine *

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Book SynopsisThe second in the Fearless Jones series from the author of the Easy Rawlins crime thrillers.''Will not disappoint fans of the Easy Rawlins series. The prose is taut and sinewy and Mosley effortlessly creates a classic noir setting'' Douglas Field, Big IssueParis Minton is a man who would rather walk away from trouble, but in 1950s'' Los Angeles, it just comes and finds you. Fearless Jones turns up on Paris''s doorstep one night asking him to help an attractive woman find her husband. One night later a stranger shows up looking for the same man. It isn''t long before Paris is running for his life, and it looks like even his friend Fearless might not be able to save him.Trade ReviewMosley is at the top of his form weaving another tale of fifties noir. * THE HERALD (25.9.04) *In Mosley's world, a pretty woman with a missing husband is shorthand for trouble, and the ensuing imbroglio involving a black millionairess, vanished jewels, bigoted policemen and a rising body count is executed with the author's signature mix of high-velocity action and effortless style. * SUNDAY TIMES (24.10.04) *This is taut, tense thriller-writing at its best. * TELEGRAPH & ARGUS (Bradford - 22.1.05) *

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Book SynopsisOrdell Robbie and Louis Gara have lots in common - time in the same gaol, convictions for auto theft, and a grand plan. They''re going to snatch the wife of a Detroit developer and collect some easy ransom money. At least that''s what they think...What they haven''t figured on is the fact that the husband has a secret mistress and has absolutely no desire to get his wife back. So now it''s time for Plan B. With the help of one seriously ticked-off housewife they are going to take the scumbag for everything he''s got...THE SWITCH has been adapted for the big screen as LIFE OF CRIME, starring Jennifer Aniston, Tim Robbins and Isla Fisher.

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Book SynopsisEvery man has his dark side... Spero Lucas confronts his own in an explosive thriller from the writer of the award-winning THE WIRE.Spero Lucas is a young Iraq war vet now working as a PI in Washington DC. He''s hired by a young woman to find a painting she lost after being scammed by a super-smooth con-artist. Spero tracks the painting down, but the con-artist is part of a team of ruthless thugs, and the woman who hired Spero is brutally attacked as a warning to stay away.The warning doesn''t work. Spero is angry and he goes on the offensive, taking out the gang one by one. But where do Spero''s remorseless killings sit on the morality scale? Is he defending an innocent woman? Or have his experiences of war turned him into a ruthless killer, no better than the crooks he''s up against?Trade ReviewPowerful - SHORTLISTGripping ... intensely moving - EVENING STANDARDLean, stirring, knife-edged - NEW YORK TIMESPelecanos displays a ferocious understanding of street reality and an empathy for America's downtrodden - GUARDIANGeorge Pelecanos is a stunningly good chronicler of the mean streets of Washington DC ... For anyone who has somehow missed out on Pelecanos, he is up there with Elmore Leonard and even Chandler for street dialogue and inner city settings, and there is always a pleasing moral undertow to his work - DAILY MAIL

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Book SynopsisOz Blackstone didn''t go looking for fame: it jumped out of an alleyway and mugged him with a fist full of high denomination notes. Movie stardom, wealth, a successful marriage - Oz is standing on the brink of the Seriously Big Time and life just seems to keep lining up the cherries... He should have known it couldn''t stay that good for that long - don''t the juiciest fruit always go sour? The first sign of trouble appears when Oz finds his ex-wife Primavera Phillips, drenched in her own tears - her life in ruins, cheated out of her fortune and robbed of her baby boy, Tom, by his lying con-man father. What could Oz do but help? Maybe he should have called for help himself, or stuck to the game plan of looking after number one. Instead he set out on a voyage of dark intrigue and wild discovery that would turn his life upside down - again.

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Book SynopsisIt''s summertime in Monaco and Oz Blackstone is sitting on the verandah of his opulent mansion - one of three homes - idly gazing at Roman Abramovich''s luxury yacht as it gently cruises into the harbour. Life doesn''t get much better than this. But somebody knows where he lives. A struggling author sweet talks him into buying the movie rights to his latest novel for $50,000, and a shocking trap is laid. The demons of the past begin to creep up on Oz''s sunny life: blackmail and murder are lurking in the shadows. Oz travels all the way to Singapore to track down the owner of some incriminating photographs but he''s in grave danger of over-exposure. And when organised crime muscles in on the picture, Oz is getting perilously close to losing a lot more than his wealth and reputation...

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Book SynopsisIn this life, you fight dirty to survive. THE BUSINESS by the ''undisputed queen of crime writing'' (Guardian) and Sunday Times No.1 bestseller Martina Cole is an unflinching novel that exposes a world that many would rather ignore...Imelda Dooley has made a big mistake. Pregnant, alone and scared, she starts down a trail of lies and destruction that will wreck the lives of all who try to love her.As Imelda brings her daughter Jordanna into the world, followed by her son Kenny, she takes them with her into the dark underworld of drugs, prostitution and violence.But all actions have consequences. The only question is, who will face them?For more novels that will take you deep into the dark and dangerous criminal underworld, check out Martina Cole''s THE GRAFT, THE LIFE and REVENGETrade Review'Cole is brilliant at portraying the good among the bad, and vice versa, so until the very end we never quite know who to trust. This is the very stuff that makes her so compelling' Daily Mirror No one writes about East End women and their vagaries like Martina Cole Maxim Jakubowski, Murder One 'A powerful novel that pulls no punches... Cole has an ear for the vernacular of the East End, as well as an ability to portray the viciousness of life at the edge' the Guide Guide 'Right from the start [Cole] has enjoyed unqualified approval for her distinctive and powerfully written fiction' The Times Intensely readable Guardian 'Martina Cole explores the shady criminal underworld, a setting she is fast making her own' Sunday Express 'Utterly compelling' Mirror 'The story will grip you from the first pages' Best 'Gritty novel from an author who knows intimately the world she writes about' Express

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Book SynopsisOnce you''re in the family, you''re in it for life... Devastatingly powerful, THE FAMILY by the ''undisputed queen of crime writing'' (Guardian) and Sunday Times No.1 bestseller Martina Cole reaches the darkest corners of family life. Philip Murphy expects loyalty from their nearest and dearest - for better or for worse... Family is everything for the Murphy clan. Philip runs his business empire with the help of his brother, and dotes on his two sons who will, one day, take over.His wife Christine is his perfect match. She''d always dreamed of a big happy family and, when she married into the Murphys, she thought she''d found one. But when that illusion is shattered, she''s already in too deep.The Murphys are dangerous and Christine can''t unsee the horrors she has now been forced to open her eyes to. But nor can she escape them.For more stories centred on family life, check out FACES, THE FAITHLESS and BETRAYAL.Trade Review'Right from the start [Cole] has enjoyed unqualified approval for her distinctive and powerfully written fiction' The Times Intensely readable Guardian 'Martina Cole explores the shady criminal underworld, a setting she is fast making her own' Sunday Express 'Utterly compelling' Mirror 'The story will grip you from the first pages' Best 'Gritty novel from an author who knows intimately the world she writes about' Express 'Cole is brilliant at portraying the good among the bad, and vice versa, so until the very end we never quite know who to trust. This is the very stuff that makes her so compelling' Daily Mirror

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Book SynopsisA searing collection of true stories from “one of Mexico’s most exciting new voices” (The Guardian)Trade Review"Melchor evokes the stories of Flannery O’Connor, or, more recently, Marlon James’s A Brief History of Seven Killings. Impressive." -- Julian Lucas - The New York Times"While her writing turns an unsparing eye on the dysfunction and violence of her native Veracruz, Melchor makes clear that it is neither her job nor her intention to explain her homeland. Her novels are less portraits of Mexico than they are literary MRIs, probing unseen corners of the human heart and finding that many of its darker shades are universal." -- Benjamin P. Russell - The New York Times"Fernanda Melchor has a powerful voice, and by powerful I mean unsparing, devastating, the voice of someone who writes with rage and has the skill to pull it off." -- Samanta Schweblin"Melchor draws empathetic portraits of deeply unsympathetic figures, forcing her readers to understand the mindsets of monstrous characters." -- The Millions"Some of the most wrenching prose to come around in years. Skillfully translated by Hughes, this is a book that’s as gorgeous as it is dark, and it proves that Melchor is one of the finest writers working today." -- Kirkus Reviews"Melchor writes unjudgementally and with great respect for her interlocutors. Even when her narratives are fragmentary or end abruptly, she teases out the diversity of life in Veracruz—from the mysterious, and the ordinary, to the gruesome. In the introduction she writes that “a city cannot tell its own story.” Luckily, for that we have Melchor. " -- Daniel Rey - Americas Quarterly"Many of the stories in this collection by an author hailed as the next big thing in Latin American literature are written in a genre known as cronica, a blend of reportage and interpretation that has no obvious equivalent in English. Set in and around Veracruz, Fernanda Melchor’s hometown, each is spare and grippingly devastating in its own way, as with the tale of a glitzy carnival queen who, in 1989, murdered her two young boys and buried their remains in planter pots on her balcony." -- Emily Donaldson - The Globe and Mail"Melchor aims to understand the world out of which violence transpires: the airlessness of poverty, the frustrations of thwarted ambition, the desire for power and freedom. … Melchor writes a new kind of folklore that allows us to hear the ferocious reality of contemporary violence." -- Jess Cotton - Jacobin"Faced with tragedy, Melchor holds a steady gaze, focused tightly on the individual; rather than give a bird’s-eye view, her instinct is to always get closer." -- Laura Adamczyk - The Nation"Over the course of This Is Not Miami, a picture emerges of the Zetas’ takeover of Veracruz. Melchor moves through this world, compelled by macabre and mysterious stories, while always standing a little outside of them. This wider perspective implies that the current violence, the shadowy machinations in high places, will pass or change." -- Philip Luke Johnson - Los Angeles Review of Books

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Book SynopsisT. F. Powys is a forgotten genius like no other—and Unclay is his masterpieceTrade Review"Delightful." -- Kirkus (starred)"Very few 20th-century authors have the knack of writing convincingly of first and last things. T.F. Powys is one of them. " -- John Gray - New Statesman"Powys’s quaint village brims with eccentrics and sinners, and gentle humor exists alongside a brutal frankness about power and sex. It is hard not to succumb to the strange, animating energy in Powys’s allegorical tale about Death’s redeeming qualities." -- Publishers Weekly"An esoteric genius: his books are puzzling, engaging, and illuminating, glowing with a gentle, a half eerie light, humane, ironic and wise. Powys gives pleasure and delight, unique and surprising music." -- The New York Times"Grimly brilliant." -- John Carey - The Sunday Times"One of the most original of all English storytellers. T.F. Powys’s novels and the powerful Unclay ‘stand up like oaks.’" -- TLS""Unclay is such an odd and unlikely book that it seems scarcely more real than the fictional books Borges delighted in. Behold visions that owe a debt to Blake and the novel’s theological concerns and earthy humor harken back to Swift, but Powys’s ambivalence seems hyper-contemporary: I loved this book."" -- Matthew Keeley - Tor.com"His masterpiece." -- Washington Post"Heretical, scandalous, and mocking, but essentially parables." -- Jorge Luis Borges"Mr. Powys is not a writer for everybody, but I am sure that he is a writer for posterity: indeed, of living authors I consider him the most notable, both as a thinker and a stylist." -- Sylvia Townsend Werner

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Book SynopsisA joyful ode—in a single soaring, crazy sentence—to the interconnectedness of great (and mad) mindsTrade Review"Krasznahorkai establishes his own rules and rides a wave of exhilarating energy. Apocalyptic, visionary, and mad, it flies off the page and stays lodged intractably wherever it lands." -- Publishers Weekly"One of the most important—and eccentric—writers working today." -- Hari Kunzru - The Spectator"A single eighty-page-long sentence, scrawled in the journal of a “gray little librarian” who is named “herman melvill,” and who is losing his mind. By choosing this difficult form and this metafictional name, Krasznahorkai comes dangerously close to replicating the brainy but predictable tropes of deconstructionist archive fiction. Yet Spadework for a Palace also attempts to diagnose a fresh variant of archive fever—a kind of repulsion, native to an age of incomprehensible databases and sublime technology, that drives its sufferer to give up the task of archival interpretation altogether." -- Tadhg Larabee - Boston Review"Breathtaking and hypnotic, this unorthodox novella boldly merges fiction, travelogue and literary criticism into one 96-page sentence." -- Thuy Dinh - National Public Radio"If Spadework has a moral, as storybooks are supposed to, it is that ‘There is no duality in existence.’ We have one life to live, this storybook tells us, and it is not ours." -- J.W. McCormack - The New Left Review

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Book SynopsisNow in paperback, two novellas from the Hungarian master László Krasznahorkai—“one of the most mysterious artists now at work” (Colm Toíbín) Trade Review"Gateway drugs to Krasznahorkai’s work: As the very best fiction always does, they bring another world—an alien world, let’s say—into our own." -- Christine Smallwood - Harper’s"Krasznahorkai, poet of the Apocalypse, stands alone relentlessly, if gleefully, offering wonders." -- The Economist"Together, ‘The Last Wolf’ and ‘Herman’ raise a set of spiritual questions that affirms their author as one of the most important — and eccentric — writers working today." -- Hari Kunzru - The Spectator

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Book SynopsisAuthor of the acclaimed novel Hurricane Season, Fernanda Melchor leads us into a different kind of hell: paradiseTrade Review"Fernanda Melchor explores violence and inequity in this brutal novel. She does it with dazzling technical prowess, a perfect pitch for orality, and a neurosurgeon’s precision for cruelty. Paradise is a short inexorable descent into Hell." -- Mariana Enríquez"Melchor evokes the stories of Flannery O’Connor, or, more recently, Marlon James’s A Brief History of Seven Killings. Impressive" -- Julian Lucas - The New York Times"Fernanda Melchor has a powerful voice, and by powerful I mean unsparing, devastating, the voice of someone who writes with rage, and has the skill to pull it off." -- Samanta Schweblin"Like Hurricane Season, this novel is told in long sentences and paragraphs, lending it a fever-dream quality that is, at its most intense, almost sickening… [H]orrifying but never gratuitous; Melchor uses shock to lay bare issues of classism, misogyny, and the ravages of child abuse. Her prose, ably translated by Hughes, is dizzying but effective; it’s as if she’s holding the reader’s head and daring them to look away from the social problems she brings to light." -- Kirkus, (Starred Review)"Coming off her last novel, Hurricane Season, Melchor has proven to be one of Mexico’s most tantalizing writers, and Paradais continues her examination into the metaphysical assault embedded in patriarchy and classism. Her appetite for cutting descriptions of sex and actual violence make this short, subversive novel terrifying and hard to put down." -- Jessica Jacolbe - Vulture"With a nimble command of the novel’s technical resources and an uncanny grasp of the irrational forces at work in society, the books navigate a reality riven by violence, race, class, and sex…In Melchor’s world, there’s no resisting the violence, much less hating it. All a novelist can do, she seems to suggest, is take a long, unsparing look at the hell that we’ve made. " -- Juan Gabriel Vásquez - The New Yorker"While her writing turns an unsparing eye on the dysfunction and violence of her native Veracruz, Melchor makes clear that it is neither her job nor her intention to explain her homeland. Her novels are less portraits of Mexico than they are literary MRIs, probing unseen corners of the human heart and finding that many of its darker shades are universal." -- Benjamin P. Russell - The New York Times"Melchor is an incredibly gifted writer." -- Justin Torres - The New York Times Book Review"Through the alchemy of translation, Sophie Hughes has reinterpreted the local slang of Melchor’s Mexican Spanish. The result is a linguistic marvel: a hybrid English that jumps between British and American dialects; a bastard tongue situated somewhere between LA pulp and something out of James Kelman. It’s a risky choice with an immense payoff." -- Henry Hietala - Cleveland Review of Books"Without moralizing, the Mexican writer Fernanda Melchor’s novels look unflinchingly at cruelty and poverty. Her work is a model for how to think about the ambiguity of human relations." -- Holly Connelly - Jacobin Magazine"Paradais is as engrossing as it is discomfiting. Sophie Hughes’ translation gives Melchor’s candid, lurid run-on sentences a galloping pace; nothing is softened or made more graceful, but the prose is insistent and propulsive while the story accrues guns and rapes and murder." -- Mark Athitakis - On the Seawall"Set in the Gulf Coast state of Veracruz….Melchor’s latest novel, Paradais, is more tightly focused—employing not a chorus of narrators but a duet." -- Lucas Iberico Lozada - The Nation"[Melchor's] honest and fearless resolve to capture the rawness of contemporary Mexican society is nothing but inspiring." -- Frieze"Paradais stars a luxury housing complex's beleaguered gardener, who's driven by one of its residents to follow his worst impulses. Melchor's prose is singular, with its fair share of page-long sentences that travel from the deepest psychic corners of her characters to the broadest panoramas of Mexican life." -- NPR"Paradais stars a luxury housing complex's beleaguered gardener, who's driven by one of its residents to follow his worst impulses. Melchor's prose is singular, with its fair share of page-long sentences that travel from the deepest psychic corners of her characters to the broadest panoramas of Mexican life." -- Leland Cheuk - NPR"Melchor offers a study of the pathologies of both the bourgeoisie and the proletariat—and does so in prose laced with both high diction and the vernacular." -- Nicolas Medina Mora - The Nation"Melchor makes evident how violence and misogyny touch all corners of society, even the communities thought to be protected by physical gates, security guards, and money. Of course, it happens even in Paradise." -- Harvard Review Online"Fernanda Melchor’s prose is like no one else’s: it’s a torrent of words and feelings, violent at times, and it’s impossible to look away." -- Electric Literature

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Book SynopsisNow in paperback,"Paradais continues Melchor’s examination into the metaphysical assault embedded in patriarchy and classism” (Jessica Jacolbe, Vulture)Trade Review"With a nimble command of the novel’s technical resources and an uncanny grasp of the irrational forces at work in society, the books navigate a reality riven by violence, race, class, and sex… In Melchor’s world, there’s no resisting the violence, much less hating it. All a novelist can do, she seems to suggest, is take a long, unsparing look at the hell that we’ve made." -- Juan Gabriel Vásquez - The New Yorker"Fernanda Melchor explores violence and inequity in this brutal novel. She does it with dazzling technical prowess, a perfect pitch for orality, and a neurosurgeon’s precision for cruelty. Paradais is a short inexorable descent into Hell." -- Mariana Enriquez"Paradais is beautiful and terrible." -- Marcus McGee - LARB"Melchor’s prose is singular, with its fair share of page-long sentences that travel from the deepest psychic corners of her characters to the broadest panoramas of Mexican life." -- Leland Cheuk - National Public Radio"Melchor’s brilliant, sinewy, streetwise second novel turns on a couple of young men in a Mexican town whose lusts take a violent turn...Melchor’s telling is psychologically revealing, finding ever deeper reservoirs of rage and dread in its characters." -- Mark Athitakis - The Los Angeles Times"Fernanda Melchor’s Paradais is brutal poetry, distilled." -- Literary Hub"Paradais warns against considering any luxurious abode as “safe” when the mere existence of such enclaves intensifies the inequalities that will eventually lead to their own demise. " -- CrimeReads

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Book SynopsisIn her latest thrilling adventure, PI Sunny Randall takes on two serpentine cases that converge into one deadly mystery....Trade ReviewLupica makes smart-mouthed Sunny as fully realized as Parker's better-known gumshoe, Spenser. Readers are sure to look forward to her next outing * Publishers Weekly *Lupica powers his way through the plot in fast-talking Parker style, reveling in the banter and the nicely delineated relationships between Sunny and various other Parker players... It's all smart-alecky good fun in the hard-boiled tradition * Booklist *A quick and satisfying read... Some guest appearances from Parkerâ??s cast of Boston inhabitants on both sides of the law are most welcome * Book Reporter *

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Book SynopsisBoston PI Spenser takes on a new case in this next installment in Robert B. Parker's iconic New York Times bestselling series....Trade ReviewAtkins continues his very successful stewardship of the late Robert B. Parker's beloved Spenser series... This fast-moving and suspenseful thriller is also laced with clever banter... Spenser lives and lives well! * Booklist *A crime yarn laced with tension and wit * Kirkus *Bye Bye Baby is classic Spenser... Atkins captures the essence of the Spenser novels, complete with beloved characters * Crime Fiction Critic *

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Book SynopsisA girl has been found dead, seemingly strangled, in the hotel room of movie star Jumbo Nelson. Jumbo''s lawyers want Spenser to find out whether Jumbo did it - not because they care either way, but because the knowledge will help them work out how to block his conviction. Jumbo is a sufficiently repulsive individual that Spenser finds it hard to contain his distaste. And then there is his bodyguard, Zebulon Sixkill, a Cree Indian who squandered his pro-football career thanks to an inability to control his temper, and turned his attentions to alcohol instead. Also involved in Jumbo''s case for reasons that remain unclear is a cold-blooded assassin who just might be the most dangerous enemy Spenser has faced yet. But if he can persuade Sixkill to turn his life around, Spenser might just have the ally he needs...

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Book SynopsisTrade ReviewIt is tremendously comforting to be in the hands of Child and his hero - a good man who we know will save the day in the end before moving on, toothbrush in pocket, "just the clothes on his back. No particular place to go, and all the time in the world to get there." * Observer *Lee Child is the absolute master of the story of a lone stranger arriving in town to save the innocent, and this is one of the best of his series...as always, the violence is ferocious and fast-moving. Anyone feeling hard done by or facing insuperable odds will be comforted by this novel, which is also the best advertisement for the NHS I have ever seen. * Literary Review *Forget Marvel - we all know Jack Reacher is the only avenger that matters...Child has found his mojo again. * Sun *There's only one Jack Reacher. Accept no substitutes.Jack Reacher, the 21st-century knight errant who over 23 books has proved himself the most reliable excellent basher of bad guys since [James]Bond...And good work, Lee Child. If you're at all partial to his revenge fantasies, this is one of the best for a while...your hands keep turning those pages, drawn in by storytelling that knows fancy words count for less than clarity and rhythm...It's nonsense. Yet it's compelling nonsense, a vicarious clearing away of life's obstacles via a hero who has no moral qualms, no physical or emotional vulnerability and no interest in what shampoo he uses. * The Times *

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