Crime & Thrillers Books

Book SynopsisThe Booker Prize-winning final novel in Pat Barker''s classic ''Regeneration'' trilogy - from the acclaimed author of The Silence of the Girls''An extraordinary tour de force. One of the few real masterpieces of late twentieth-century British fiction'' Jonathan Coe''Powerful, deeply moving... A triumph'' Sunday Times''Harrowing, original, unforgettable'' Independent1918, the closing months of the war. Army psychiatrist William Rivers is increasingly concerned for the men who have been in his care - particularly Billy Prior, who is about to return to combat in France with young poet Wilfred Owen. As Rivers tries to make sense of what, if anything, he has done to help these injured men, Prior and Owen await the final battles in a war that has decimated a generation. The Ghost Road is a vivid and unforgettable account of the devastating final months of the First World War.The Regeneration TrilTrade ReviewAn extraordinary tour de force. I'm convinced that the trilogy will win recognition as one of the few real masterpieces of late 20th-century British fiction Jonathan Coe

Read more less

Book SynopsisFROM THE BOOKER PRIZE-WINNING AUTHOR OF GIRL, WOMAN, OTHER LONGLISTED FOR THE ORANGE PRIZE FOR FICTION 2009 WINNER OF THE ORANGE YOUTH PANEL AWARD 2009 FINALIST FOR THE HURSTON WRIGHT LEGACY AWARD 2010 ''A phenomenal book. It is so ingenious and so novel. Think The Handmaid''s Tale meets Noughts and Crosses with a bit of Jonathan Swift and Lewis Carroll thrown in. This should be thought of as a feminist classic.'' Women''s Prize for Fiction Podcast Welcome to a world turned upside down. One minute, Doris, from England, is playing hide-and-seek with her sisters in the fields behind their cottage. The next, someone puts a bag over her head and she ends up in the hold of a slave-ship sailing to the New World . . . In this fantastically imaginative inversion of the transatlantic slave trade - in which ''whytes'' are enslaved by black people - Bernardine Evaristo has created a thought-provoking satire that is as accessible and readable as it is intelligent and insightful. Blonde Roots brings the shackles and cries of long-ago barbarity uncomfortably close and raises timely questions about the society of today.''A bold and brilliant game of counterfactual history. Evaristo keep[s] her wit and anger at a spicy simmer throughout'' Daily Telegraph ''So human and real. Re-imagines past and present with refreshing humour and intelligence'' Guardian ''A brilliant satire whose flashes of comedy make the underlying tragedy all the more poignant'' Scotland on SundayTrade ReviewA hugely imaginative tale that invites important debates, challenging fundamental perceptions of race, culture and history * Independent on Sunday *This brilliant novel will fulfil [Evaristo's] purpose of making readers view the transatlantic slave trade with fresh eyes * The Times *A phenomenal book. It is so ingenious and so novel. Think The Handmaid's Tale meets Noughts and Crosses with a bit of Jonathan Swift and Lewis Carroll thrown in. This should be thought of as a feminist classic. * Women's Prize for Fiction Podcast *Reimagines past and present with refreshing humour and intelligence . . . human and real * Guardian *[Blonde Roots] is a powerful gesture of fearless thematic ownership by one of the UK's most unusual and challenging writers * Independent *As with a Swiftean satire, Evaristo's novel is powerful not for its fantastical elements but for its ability to bring home the horror of historical events * Financial Times *

Read more less

Book SynopsisJosef Vadassy, a Hungarian refugee and language teacher living in France, is enjoying his first break for years in a small hotel on the Riviera. But when he takes his holiday photographs to be developed at a local chemists, he suddenly finds himself mistaken for a Gestapo agent and a charge of espionage is levelled at him. To prove himself innocent to the French police, he must discover which one of his fellow guests at his pension is the real spy. As he desperately tries to uncover the true culprit''s identity, Vadassy must risk his job, his safety and everything he holds dear.Trade ReviewA genuine classic * The Times *If you want to experience the feel of the Continent in the 1930s, you will find few better guides -- Robert HarrisA sly variation on the traditional English country-house murder mystery * Guardian *An uncommonly good story of international intrigue * Atlantic *Unquestionably our best thriller writer -- Graham GreeneThe source on which we all draw -- John le Carré

Read more less

Book Synopsis''Brilliant, unforgettable ... a masterpiece'' New StatesmanWest Germany in the 1960s is a simmering cauldron of radical protests. Amid the turmoil Leo Harting, a Second Secretary in the British Embassy, has gone missing - along with more than forty Confidential embassy files. Alan Turner of the Foreign Office must travel to Bonn to recover them. As he gets closer to the truth of Harting''s disappearance, he will discover that the face of Cold War Europe - and the attentions of the British Ministry itself - are far uglier that he could possibly have imagined. Le Carré''s searing Cold War novel creates a world where the lines between right and wrong, good and evil, are horribly blurred.''Exciting, compulsively readable and brilliantly plotted'' The New York TimesWith an Introduction by Hari KunzruTrade ReviewExciting, compulsively readable and brilliantly plotted * The New York Times *Brilliant, unforgettable ... a masterpiece * New Statesman *

Read more less

Book Synopsis''A master of fictional espionage'' Daily Mail''In Deighton''s best books - like this one - the narrative glides forward on rollers, and the scenes and characters fit perfectly into place. The result is marvellous'' IndependentMillions of pounds have gone missing, and the Department have sent agent Bernard Samson to Washington to track them down. But this mission is just the start of something far deeper and darker. It will take him from the English suburbs to Berlin, the South of France to Los Angeles and the heart of a maelstrom. In the first part of the Hook, Line and Sinker trilogy, friends become enemies, pursuer becomes victim and no one - not even Bernard himself - is above suspicion.A BERNARD SAMSON NOVELTrade ReviewIn Deighton's best books - like this one - the narrative glides forward on rollers, and the scenes and characters fit perfectly into place. The result is marvellous entertainment. * Independent *Vintage, treble-crossing, East-West intrigue ... written with Deighton's usual punch and economy. * Daily Mail *Len Deighton is the Flaubert of the contemporary thriller writers. -- Michael Howard * Times Literary Supplement *Deighton's outstanding achievement is the nine-volume series chronicling the life and times of Bernard Samson ... Deighton's Samson trilogies are as much about the elusiveness of human interactions as espionage. Spying is not a secret world sealed off from ordinary life but an extension of the world we all live in. -- John Gray * New Statesman *

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe classic Cold War thriller, published as a Penguin Essential for the first time.Alec Leamas is tired. It''s the 1960s, he''s been out in the cold for years, spying in Berlin for his British masters, and has seen too many good agents murdered for their troubles. Now Control wants to bring him in at last - but only after one final assignment. He must travel deep into the heart of Communist Germany and betray his country, a job that he will do with his usual cynical professionalism. But when George Smiley tries to help a young woman Leamas has befriended, Leamas''s mission may prove to be the worst thing he could ever have done. In le Carré''s breakthrough work of 1963, the spy story is reborn as a gritty and terrible tale of men who are caught up in politics beyond their imagining.''Superbly constructed, with an atmosphere of chilly hell'' J.B. Priestley''The best spy story I have ever read'' Graham Greene''The master storyteller ... has lost none of his cunning'' A. N. Wilson''I have re-read The Spy Who Came In From The Cold over and over again since I first encountered it in my teens, just to remind myself how extraordinary a work of fiction can be'' Malcolm Gladwell''One of those very rare novels that changes the way you look at the world. Unflinching, highly sophisticated, superb'' William BoydTrade ReviewPassionate, intense, wonderful -- David NichollsThe best spy story I have ever read -- Graham GreeneA masterpiece, the best espionage novel ever written -- John BanvilleOne of those writers who will be read a century from now -- Robert Harris

Read more less

Book Synopsis''Breathless, terrifying U-boat drama... a masterclass in economical, tight-space storytelling, piling the pressure on both characters and audience''Time OutIt is autumn 1941 and a German U-boat commander and his crew set out on yet another hazardous patrol in the Battle of the Atlantic.Over the coming weeks they must brave the stormy waters of the Atlantic in their mission to seek out and destroy British supply ships. But the tide is beginning to turn against the Germans in the war for the North Atlantic. Their targets now travel in convoys, fiercely guarded by Royal Navy destroyers, and when contact is finally made, the hunters rapidly become the hunted.As the U-boat is forced to hide beneath the surface of the sea, a game of cat-and-mouse begins, where the increasing claustrophobia of the submarine becomes an enemy as frightening as the depth charges that explode around it. Of the 40,000 men who served on German submarines, 30,000 never rTrade ReviewBreathless, terrifying U-boat drama ... a masterclass in economical, tight-space storytelling, piling the pressure on both characters and audience * TIME OUT *

Read more less

Book SynopsisFrom the bestselling Japanese author of The Devotion of Suspect X comes Malice, the most acclaimed novel in Higashino's outstanding Detective Kaga series.Trade ReviewI've discovered that the best "golden age" detective fiction is coming out of Japan and the elegantly written Malice by Keigo Higashino, translated by Alexander O Smith, twists and turns in every possible direction until its highly satisfying conclusion -- Anthony Horowitz * Daily Express *As fiendishly clever as The Devotion of Suspect X...Higashino offers one twist after another, all of which touch on the theme suggested by the book's title. Readers will marvel at the artful way the plot builds to the solution of Hidaka's murder. * Publishers Weekly on Malice *Keigo Higashino again proves his mastery of the diabolical puzzle mystery with Malice, a story with more turns, twists, switchbacks and sudden stops than a Tokyo highway during Golden Week. * New York Times *An exceptional study of the psychology of murder as well as a skilfully plotted narrative. * Independent on Malice *Keigo Higashino combines Dostoyevskian psychological realism with classic detective-story puzzles reminiscent of Agatha Christie and E.C. Bentley. * Wall Street Journal on Malice *Smart and original...a true page turner...Higashino continues to elevate the modern mystery as an intense and inventive literary form. * Library Journal **Starred Review** on Malice *Intricate... At the outset, [Higashino's] approach seems unsettling, but the Edgar nominee knows his business; Malice soon becomes awfully hard to put down. * Booklist *The creator of Detective Galileo returns with another fiendishly clever Chinese - make that Japanese - box of a whydunit....Each time you're convinced Higashino's wrung every possible twist out of his golden-age setup, he comes up with a new one. If you still miss the days of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, you can't do better than this fleet, inventive retro puzzler. * Kirkus Reviews on Malice *A detective story about writers is often particularly satisfying, and this one is no exception...The plot is satisfyingly twisty and gathers pace as the revelations come thicker, faster, and more and more unexpected. * Sydney Morning Herald on Malice *A psychological thriller of the highest order...Each time Higashino makes a revelation, he quickly pulls the carpet from under one's feet, fueling the reader to finish the book as quickly as possible. * Singapore Straits Times on Malice *'A thriller of subtle sorts...written with an extreme sense of ease, flow and sensitivity.' * Asian Age *The story has more twists & turns than the Tokyo metro and proves that Higashino is a master of the form. * Independent on Sunday on MALICE *

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn a kingdom where flames hold magic and the desert hides secrets, an ancient prophecy comes for an assassin, a princess, and a king. But none are ready to face destiny-and the choices they make could burn the world.If we carry the burdens of our fathers, we''ll never know what it means to be free.For Elena Aadya Ravence, fire is yearning. She longs to feel worthy of her Phoenix god, of her ancestors who transformed the barren dunes of Sayon into a thriving kingdom. But though she knows the ways and wiles of the desert better than she knows her own skin, the secrets of the Eternal Flame elude her. And without them, she''ll never be accepted as queen.For Leo Malhari Ravence, fire is control. He is not ready to give up his crown-there''s still too much work to be done to ensure his legacy remains untarnished, his family protected. But power comes with a price, and he''ll wage war with the heavens themselves to keep from paying it.For Yassen Knight, fire is redemption. He dreams of shedding his past as one of Sayon''s most deadly assassins, of laying to rest the ghosts of those he has lost. If joining the court of flame and serving the royal Ravence family-the very people he once swore to eliminate-will earn him that, he''ll do it no matter what they ask of him.But the Phoenix watches over all and the fire has a will of its own. It will come for all three, will come for Sayon itself....and they must either find a way to withstand the blaze or burn to ash.The first in an action-packed debut epic fantasy trilogy, The Phoenix King is a captivating adventure from a gifted new voice (Peter V. Brett).''The kind of book you sit down with to read one chapter and end up spending the whole day on. Come for the science fantasy worldbuilding and stay for the characters you just can''t get out of your head''Vaishnavi Patel, New York Times bestselling author of Kaikeyi''Vast and fascinating . . . A satisfying slow-burn romance only enhances the political machinations. This exciting fantasy promises good things from the series to come''Publishers Weekly''Verma seamlessly blends fantasy with sci-fi . . . A highly recommended read''Fantasy Hive

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn AD 60, Boudica, war leader of the Eceni, led her people in a final bloody revolt against the occupying armies of Rome. It was the culmination of nearly twenty years of resistance against an occupying force that sought to crush a vibrant, complex civilization and replace it with the laws, taxes and slavery of the Roman Empire. Gloriously imagined, Boudica: Dreaming the Eagle recreates the beginnings of a story so powerful its impact has survived through the ages, recounting the journey to adulthood of Breaca, who at twelve kills her first warrior, and her sensitive, skilful half-brother Bán, who carries with him a vision of the future that haunts his waking hours. In the company of a supreme storyteller, the reader is plunged into the unforgettable world of tribal Britain in the years before the Romans came: a twilight world of Dreamers and the magic of the gods; a world where horses and dogs and the landscape itself become characters in their own right; where warriTrade ReviewManda Scott has created a fictional universe all her own, but close enough to our reality for it both to warm and break our hearts. Breathtakingly good, it reveals the best and worst in all of us -- Val McDermidThe best in the current crop of novels about Rome, its empire and its victims ... never sentimental and always tough-minded -- Roz Kaveney * Independent *Every so often, a book comes along that totally remoulds a historical figure for our own times ... massively impressive -- Jane Jakeman * Scotland on Sunday *A powerful novel, alive with the love, deceit, wisdom and the heroics of humanity -- Jean M. AuelAn extraordinary work ... exciting and intriguing, taking you into a world where unbelievable danger and cruelty sit side by side with magic, spirituality and profound human relationships -- Jenni Murray

Read more less

Book SynopsisGET READY FOR THE MOST EXCITING COUNT-DOWN OF YOUR LIFEHOUR SIXTY-ONE Icy winter in South Dakota. A bus skids and crashes in a gathering storm. On the back seat: Jack Reacher, hitching a ride to nowhere. A life without baggage has many advantages. And disadvantages too, like facing the arctic cold without a coat.HOUR THIRTY-ONEA small town is threatened by sinister forces. One brave woman is standing up for justice.If she''s going to live to testify, she''ll need help from a man like Reacher.Because there''s a killercoming for her.HOUR ZEROHas Reacher finally met his match? He doesn''t want to put the world to rights. He just doesn''t like people who put it to wrongs._________NOW READ THE SEQUEL: Although the Jack Reacher novels can be read in any order, the ending of 61 Hours is directly followed by Worth Dying For.And be sure not to misTrade ReviewChild has somehow forged that magical grail: a new and believable hero. Reacher is strong, tall, principled and a quiet master in unarmed combat. But he's also a wizard at determining likelihoods, at extrapolating miniscule details and thus forming chains of inferred logic... celebrate the achievement of giving us addicts a new and mesmerising fix, when we thought all the heroes had been written -- Euan Ferguson * Observer *It is always a pleasure to read another Jack Reacher novel. A kind of highlight of the year, really. There is only one downside. It's all the other people hanging around your house saying things like, "Oy! Haven't you finished with the Reacher yet? -- Andy Martin * Independent *Reacher is an iconic modern thriller hero: the ultimate loner... won't disappoint the British-born Child's millions of fans... Fast, compelling and with that nugget of poignancy that sets the hero apart * Daily Mail *Explodes into one of the best thrillers I've read for ages. Lee Child is a Brit who has managed to becomes more American than most US authors... 61 Hours is destined to do big things... Superb stuff! * Independent on Sunday *This is the first of Lee Child's popular Jack Reacher novels I've read. I'd assumed they were merely the macho adventures of a boneheaded lone wolf: lots of guns and explosions and little to occupy the mind. Well, I was wrong: there's also an abundance of intelligence and surprise. 61 Hours is a first-class thriller... Child delivers it brilliantly * Mail on Sunday *

Read more less

Book SynopsisBook 4 in the Rivers of London series, from Sunday Times Number One bestselling author Ben Aaronovitch.A mutilated body in Crawley. Another killer on the loose. The prime suspect is one Robert Weil - an associate of the twisted magician known as the Faceless Man? Or just a common garden serial killer? Before PC Peter Grant can get his head round the case, a town planner going under a tube train and a stolen grimoire are adding to his case-load. So far so London. But then Peter gets word of something very odd happening in Elephant and Castle, on an housing estate designed by a nutter, built by charlatans and inhabited by the truly desperate. Is there a connection? And if there is, why oh why did it have to be south of the River?Praise for the Rivers of London novels:''Ben Aaronovitch has created a wonderful world full of mystery, magic and fantastic characters. I love being there more than the real London''Trade ReviewHighly entertaining * Sunday Express *Funny and wildly inventive * Mail on Sunday *Masterfully crafted ... gives the late, great Terry Pratchett a run for his money * The Sun *Ben Aaronovitch has created a wonderful world full of mystery, magic and fantastic characters. I love being there even more than the real London * Nick Frost *Charming, witty, exciting * Independent *An incredibly fast-moving magical joyride for grown-ups * The Times *

Read more less

Book SynopsisFROM THE AUTHOR OF THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD (Now a major Amazon Prime TV show)''Dazzling'' Guardian ''Gloriously entertaining'' Evening Standard ''A rich, wild book'' New York Times ''Ray Carney was only slightly bent when it came to being crooked...''To his customers and neighbors on 125th street, Carney is an upstanding salesman of reasonably-priced furniture, making a life for himself and his family. He and his wife Elizabeth are expecting their second child, and if her parents on Striver''s Row don''t approve of him or their cramped apartment across from the subway tracks, it''s still home.Few people know he descends from a line of uptown hoods and crooks, and that his façade of normalcy has more than a few cracks in it. Cracks that are getting bigger and bigger all the time.See, cash is tight, especially with all those instalment plan sofas, so if his cousin Freddie occasionally drops off the odd ring or necklace at the furniture store, Ray doesn''t see the need to ask where it comes from. He knows a discreet jeweller downtown who also doesn''t ask questions. Then Freddie falls in with a crew who plan to rob the Hotel Theresa - the ''Waldorf of Harlem'' - and volunteers Ray''s services as the fence. The heist doesn''t go as planned; they rarely do, after all. Now Ray has to cater to a new clientele, one made up of shady cops on the take, vicious minions of the local crime lord, and numerous other Harlem lowlifes.Thus begins the internal tussle between Ray the striver and Ray the crook. As Ray navigates this double life, he starts to see the truth about who actually pulls the strings in Harlem. Can Ray avoid getting killed, save his cousin, and grab his share of the big score, all while maintaining his reputation as the go-to source for all your quality home furniture needs?Harlem Shuffle is driven by an ingeniously intricate plot that plays out in a beautifully recreated Harlem of the early 1960s. It''s a family saga masquerading as a crime novel, a hilarious morality play, a social novel about race and power, and ultimately a love letter to Harlem.Trade ReviewColson Whitehead's dazzling new thriller...In Harlem Shuffle, Whitehead flexes his literary muscles further, extending the boundaries and expectations of crime writing. The book is also a social drama interrogating the nature of prejudice and how an environment limits ambition. * Guardian, Book of the Day *Gloriously entertaining...a zingy social drama, that combines flights of high comedy with reflections on the nature of black self-help and black empowerment in America. A more purely enjoyable novel is unlikely to emerge this year * Evening Standard *Whitehead's latest book, Harlem Shuffle, finds its centre of gravity in Harlem, New York,transporting readers to the precipice of the civil rights movement in the late 1950s and early 1960s, a moment when Harlem uprisings were remaking the literal and political landscape.From here he crafts a brilliant crime novel that doubles as a meditation on the nature of black geography...It is Carney's effort to reconcile the straight and the crooked, the desire to strive for a homeon the river, and the pull of the criminal underbelly, that propels the book forward * Financial Times *Wildly entertaining...Whitehead also delivers a devastating, historically grounded indictment of the separate and unequal lives of Blacks and whites in mid-20th century New York. * Daily Mail *The plot he devised for Harlem Shuffle offered a new, high-geared narrative engine to play with, but it also gave him a way to explore ideas about the slippery nature of morality, power (and who holds it), and the social hierarchies of criminal subcultures * New York Times *A sizzling heist novel set in civil rights-era Harlem . . . It's a superlative story, but the most impressive achievement is Whitehead's loving depiction of a Harlem 60 years gone, which lands as detailed and vivid as Joyce's Dublin. Don't be surprised if this one wins Whitehead another major award * Publishers Weekly (starred review) *Whitehead adds another genre to an ever-diversifying portfolio with his first crime novel, and it's a corker... Whitehead delivers a portrait of Harlem in the early '60s, culminating with the Harlem Riot of 1964, that is brushed with lovingly etched detail and features a wonderful panoply of characters who spring to full-bodied life, blending joy, humor, and tragedy. A triumph on every level * Booklist, Starred Review *

Read more less

Book SynopsisAs the Young Pretender and his Jacobite army approach, Coroner Titus Cragg must solve a brutal murder - and prevent himself being executed for the crime.November, 1745. Preston, Lancashire. Rumours abound that Charles Edward Stuart, the Young Pretender, has landed in Scotland, intent on marching south to claim the English throne. Meanwhile Coroner Titus Cragg must investigate a headless body discovered in an icy pond. There is evidence to suggest a connection with the approaching rebel army - unless someone is deliberately using the Highlanders'' invasion as a cover for murder. As simmering tensions, conflicting loyalties and open hostilities engulf the town, Cragg finds himself arrested for murder. In order to clear his name and escape execution by firing squad, Titus must team up with his old friend, Dr Luke Fidelis, to expose the real killer.

Read more less

Book SynopsisAfter a showdown with the notorious Yemeni terrorist known as The Panther, life seems to be getting quieter for maverick Federal Agent John Corey. Professionally sidelined, away from his wife, and partnered up with a young, good-looking rookie named Tess, Corey is saddled with a dead-end job running easy surveillance on a group of Russian U.N. delegates in New York City.But then his subjects slip the net, Tess starts acting suspiciously, and an old, dangerous foe reappears. With Russia resurgent and a clear and present danger in his own back yard, suddenly Corey''s life hits the fast lane once again.Please note: A Quiet End is published in the US under the title Radiant Angel.Trade ReviewBig, compelling and furiously paced, it screams to a terrific climax. * Daily Mail *Perfect summer beach reading, with or without margaritas, full of Glock-and-boat action. * Kirkus *Bestseller DeMille's exciting seventh John Corey adventure * Publishers Weekly *DeMille writes compelling thrillers, and John Corey is a great protagonist. * Washington Times *A hugely enjoyable thriller. * Crime Review *As with all his books the characters are well developed, the plot fast paced, and the story thought provoking. Readers will not want to put it down. * Crime Spree Mag *Perfect summer beach reading, with or without margaritas, full of Glock-and-boat action. * Kirkus *

Read more less

Book SynopsisWhat could connect the noble Reacher to this psychopathic killer?_________Although the Jack Reacher can be read in any order, One Shot is the 9th in the series.And be sure not to miss Reacher's newest adventure, no.26, Better off Dead!Trade ReviewJack Reacher is irresistible * Observer *Hot, indomitable... knockout * New York Times *The thing about Lee Child's books is that you can't put the damn things down * Independent on Sunday *Child's strengths are fast-moving dialogue and gripping action sequences ... The excitement lasts from the first to the final page * Evening Standard *The Jack Reacher series of thrillers...are all hugely exciting, and knowledgeable about weapons and technology. They exude a powerful sense of right and wrong ... We've seen him as a right of wrongs and always as God's gift to women * Literary Review *

Read more less

Book SynopsisConsistently pulse-raising. . .an exhilarating ride. . .Personal wrests back the sheer gusto of the earlier novels; it''s the best Reacher adventure in some considerable time. (Independent) Jack Reacher walks alone. Once a go-to hard man in the US military police, now he''s a drifter of no fixed abode. But the army tracks him down. Because someone has taken a long-range shot at the French president.Only one man could have done it. And Reacher is the one man who can find him.This new heartstopping, nailbiting book in Lee Child''s number-one bestselling series takes Reacher across the Atlantic to Paris - and then to London.The stakes have never been higher - because this time, it''s personal._________Although the Jack Reacher novels can be read in any order, Personal is 19th in the series.Be sure not to miss Reacher''s newest adventure, no.29, In Too Deep! Trade ReviewConsistently pulse-raising...an exhilarating ride...Personal wrests back the sheer gusto of earlier novels; it's the best Reacher adventure in some considerable time. * Independent *This is the 19th Jack Reacher novel. I've read all the others. If you haven't, start now. You can binge-read them all in three weeks. But then you will be sad. Because you'll have to wait for a year for the next one. They are blissfully pedantic whodunnits. And also seriously violent thrillers....[Child] is so good. He makes "literary" writing seem orotund...He generates relentless momentum...Child's dedication to suspense...approaches the Hitchcockian. * Guardian *Packed with arcane and fascinating detail...Child's almost trademarked and seriously addictive clipped prose and dialogue keeps Personal clipping along at breakneck pace with the tension ratcheting up satisfactorily to the inevitably bloody conclusion. * Irish Independent *Told in characteristic Child style - fast prose, smart dialogue, extraordinary detail - and with the hero in full revenge mode,it throbs with energy from the start...a pleasure to welcome him back to [Lee Child's] native land. * Daily Mail *He's a dangerous man to know but every year I am desperate to renew my acquaintance with the one and only Jack Reacher....Child brings it all together brilliantly. And often tersely...It ends in crunching violence - but Reacher readers queueing up for their annual fix expect nothing less. * Sun *

Read more less

Book SynopsisFans of Jo Nesbo, The Killing, and Scandi noir will love this gripping thriller from international bestselling crime-writing sensation A closed case hides a terrible secret . . . _______ Department Q solves the unsolvable. So when a file on the brutal murder of a brother and sister 20 years ago lands on the desk of Detective Carl Mørck, he doesn''t understand why. Because the killer has already been found, and the case is closed. Why has it turned up on Carl''s desk?And more importantly, who put it there?_______ Praise for Jussi Adler-Olsen: ''The new ''it'' boy of Nordic Noir'' The Times ''Gripping story-telling'' Guardian ''Mesmerising . . . As impressive as it is unnerving'' Independent ''Engrossing'' Sunday ExpressTrade ReviewThe new "it" boy of Nordic Noir * The Times *Gripping story-telling * Guardian *This pitch-black novel will have readers hungry for more * Independent *

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE CHILLING FOURTH NOVEL IN THE BESTSELLING DI HELEN GRACE SERIES''Helen Grace is one of the greatest heroes to come along in years'' JEFFERY DEAVER___________In the dead of night, three raging fires light up the city skies. It''s more than a tragic coincidence. For DI Helen Grace the flames announce the arrival of an evil she has never encountered before.Because this is no firestarter seeking sick thrills, but something more chilling: a series of careful, calculating acts of murder.But why were the victims chosen? What''s driving the killer? And who will be next?A powder keg of fear, suspicion and dread has been laid. Now all it needs is a spark to set it off . . .___________PRAISE FOR M.J. ARLIDGE:''The new Jo Nesbo'' JUDY FINNIGAN''Fast paced and nailbitingly tense . . . Gripping'' SUN''DI Helen Grace is a genuinely fresh heroine . . . MJ ArlidgTrade ReviewThis is going to be as big as Jo Nesbo -- Judy FinniganDetective Inspector Helen Grace is one of the greatest heroes to come along in years -- Jeffery DeaverTaut, fast-paced, truly excellent * Sun *DI Helen Grace is a genuinely fresh heroine ... Arlidge weaves together a tapestry that chills to the bone * Daily Mail *M. J. Arlidge has created a genuinely fresh heroine in DI Helen Grace * Daily Mail *Chilling stuff * Fabulist *A chilling read * My Weekly *Page-turningly chilling * The Times *A grisly, gripping thriller * Sunday Mirror *Gruesomely realistic, intriguing and relentless. Arlidge's fledgling army of fans is about to grow * Sunday Sport *Eeny Meeny debuts one of the best new series detectives, Helen Grace. Determined, tough and damaged, she must unravel a terrifying riddle of a killer kidnapping victims in pairs. Mesmerizing! -- Lisa GardnerExpertly pulled off. It has a devious premise. DI Helen Grace is fiendishly awesome. It's scary as all hell. And it has a full cast of realistically drawn, interesting characters that make the thing read like a bullet -- Will LavenderA fast-paced, twisting police procedural and thriller that's sure to become another bestseller * Huffington Post *

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER''ONE OF THE BEST THRILLERS OF THE YEAR'' ASSOCIATED PRESSHOW DO YOU STOP THE MOST POWERFUL MAN ON EARTH?Evan Smoak, code-named Orphan-X, was raised in a secret government programme.He left it behind long ago but now someone has been killing off the orphans - and all evidence of the programme.Only one person would and could do this. The man who created it.He''ll do anything - anything - to save himself.But what can one man - even an Orphan - do alone?Against the President of the United States . . .''THE CHAPTERS SPEED BY LIKE AUTOMATIC GUNFIRE'' PUBLISHERS WEEKLY''WEAPONS-GRADE THRILLER WRITING'' GUARDIAN

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe spellbinding SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER and RICHARD AND JUDY BOOKCLUB PICK about old family secrets''A captivating mystery: beautifully written, with a rich sense of place, a cast of memorable characters, and lots of deep, dark secrets'' Kate Morton, bestselling author of The Clockmaker''s Daughter''Absolutely her best yet'' Lisa Jewell, bestselling author of The Family Upstairs''A wonderful, romantic, compelling mystery. Eve Chase has something of the poet in her: her descriptions of a remote manor house nestling in an ancient forest are worth reading for themselves, but the plotline of The Glass House is utterly absorbing in its own right. We loved it'' Richard and Judy Book Club''The Glass House is not really about a murder, or a creepy house, but about families - the ones we''re born into, the ones we make and especially the ones we flee'' New York Times_______Trade ReviewA captivating mystery: beautifully written, with a rich sense of place, a cast of memorable characters, and lots of deep, dark secrets -- Kate MortonEve Chase is a supremo of this genre . . . An intricately woven novel of suspense and secrets * Red *A beautifully written, atmospheric mystery that will captivate you from the first page to the last * Heat *I adored The Glass House by Eve Chase. Sublime writing, secrets, lovable characters I didn't want to leave, and a ripping twisting plot that kept me guessing. An absolute jewel of a book -- Dinah JefferiesA riveting and richly atmospheric mystery - and one of the best thrillers - and well deserving of its status as one of Amazon's bestselling lockdown titles -- Isabelle Broom, Woman & HomeChase's compelling account of dark family secrets - a Richard and Judy Book Club choice - weaves elements of Gothic suspense into a heartwarming modern story of blended families learning to heal the wounds of the past * Daily Mail *I adored this beautifully-written, riveting mystery. Chase is peerless in her ability to stitch together dark secrets and tantalising twists with unforgettable characters and enthralling imagery. I am a die-hard fan! -- Rosie Walsh * author of The Man Who Didn't Call *Eve Chase's novels are about glamorous families with tragic pasts, set in wonderful locations. Her writing is rich and her stories full of dreamy mystery. This gorgeous meditation on motherhood is one of my favourite reads so far this year * Daily Mail *Absolutely her best yet. No one creates families as complex, loveable and utterly believable as Chase and she is the master of the dual time frame narrative -- Lisa JewellI enjoyed this book so much that every time I put it down, I wanted to pick it straight back up! I was totally invested in the tale * Prima, BOOK OF THE MONTH *Dreamy and atmospheric, this wonderful, moving novel time-slips between the Seventies and the present * Daily Mail *The Glass House is not really about a murder, or a creepy house, but about families - the ones we're born into, the ones we make and especially the ones we flee * New York Times *Terrific sense of place; twists aplenty; characters I cared about; an emotive exploration of mother/daughter relationships from birth to death. But it's the writing that lifts this: lush, lyrical, precise, confident. -- Sarah VaughanIf you like your mysteries atmospheric then I highly recommend The Glass House - it's the kind of book that makes you look up in surprise at your present-day surroundings. Long-fused mysteries in the past and present take tantalisingly long time to weave together but the wait is absolutely worth it. Beautiful, transportive writing -- Erin KellyA cleverly constructed puzzle of a plot whose pieces finally snap together in a truly gratifying manner * Washington Post *This exquisitely written tale about secrets, privilege and what it means to be a family is an absolute treat * Sun *I just love Eve Chase's lyrical writing and evocative sense of place. The Glass House is her best yet, a glorious tangle of family secrets, set deep in the woods of Foxcote Manor. A treat. -- Louise CandlishExquisitely written, this emotional and intriguing novel is a little bit special * Woman & Home *An atmospheric and immersive mystery in which the secrets and lies of the past collide with the present. Chase's writing is, as ever, exquisite -- E.C. FremantleAn emotional thriller steeped in family secrets and the desire to belong * Woman *Beautifully written, with a sinister edge * Best Magazine *Dreamy and atmospheric (...) wonderful, moving * Daily Mail *Eve Chase is right up there with Tana French and Sarah Waters as an author who writes page-turning masterpieces that meld a vibrant sense of place with a heartbreaking cast of characters. I devoured her latest, and will be recommending it to everyone I know. Her plot twists floored me, and this haunting story will stay with me for a very long time -- Fiona Davis * bestselling author of The Chelsea Girls *So beautifully and insightfully written, with characters I grew to love populating a compelling, moving story that kept me turning the pages right to the very last. Chase handles the various unexpected ways our earliest experiences shape and define us with huge empathy and sensitivity. It's an evocative and engrossing read -- Katherine Webb * author of The Legacy *Bewitching and beguiling, The Glass House is as dark and tangled as the forest where it is set. A creeping sense of unease builds to a terrific denouement - as suspenseful as the mistress of psychological drama, Daphne Du Maurier. Eve Chase is simply brilliant. -- Veronica HenryA pacy and suspenseful read * Independent *Rich, gripping, intriguing, beautifully written, diving deep into emotional truths, The Glass House is an assured and lovely novel -- Elizabeth Buchan * author of The Museum of Broken Promises *This is an absolute beauty. Darkly atmospheric and spellbinding -- Jane Fallon, author of Queen BeeThis captivating mystery will certainly whisk you away . . . Exquisitely written, this emotional and intriguing novel is rather special * Woman's Weekly *This exquisitely written tale about secrets, privilege and what it means to be a family is an absolute treat * Fabulous, Sun on Sunday *A beautifully written mystery about family secrets. A gripping and imaginative read * Cotswold Life *A delicious mystery full of labyrinthine curves * Kirkus Reviews *Evocative and beautifully written The Glass House sucked me into a mystery as atmospheric and densely packed with secrets as the forest in which it's set -- Tammy Cohen/Rachel Rhys, author of A Dangerous CrossingBeautifully written mystery * People *An emotional thriller steeped in family secrets and the desire to belong * Woman *We all need a book to get really lost in every now and again, and this captivating mystery will certainly whisk you away. Exquisitely written, this emotional and intriguing novel is a little bit special * Woman & Home *A powerful story of family secrets, lies and the need to belong. Stays in your mind long after you've finished reading * Sunday Express *I heartily recommend Eve Chase's evocative The Glass House * Woman & Home *An atmospheric novel about family secrets . . . I love books with a strong sense of place and time * i *Sinister and gripping * The Leopard *Critical Acclaim for Eve Chase * - *An enthralling story of secrets, sisters and an unsolved mystery * bestselling author of The Clockmaker's Daughter *Simply stunning. Every now and then you read a special book and this is one. Spell-binding, heart-stopping . . . I can't tell you how much I loved it * bestselling author of The Missing Sister *Evocative and filled with intrigue * bestselling author of Let Me Lie *Exquisite and evocative - and the pace and suspense are handled expertly * bestselling author of Anatomy of a Scandal *One of the most enthralling novelists of the moment. This is the most beautiful book you will read this year * bestselling author of Watching You *Eve Chase is a name to watch * Daily Mail *Addictive and delivers atmosphere in spades * Good Housekeeping *An enticing, chilling plot, captivating characters and prose beautiful enough to totally lose yourself in * Heat *A mystery of nail-biting suspense * Woman & Home *Absorbed me completely. Fabulous * bestselling author of Tell Me a Secret *An engrossing story of fractured families, secrets, lies and misunderstandings * Sunday Express *Magical * Daily Express *Expertly crafted, dark, beautiful and utterly enthralling * bestselling author of The Summer of Impossible Things *Beautifully written with a gripping plot, I couldn't stop reading this * bestselling author of A Rose Petal Summer *

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE NO. 1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER AND RICHARD & JUDY PICK FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE COUPLE AT NO 9''I loved this twisty novel'' RICHARD OSMAN''Clever. Gripping. Terrifically compelling. Kept me glued to the page'' SARAH PEARSE''An unputdownable thriller. Spine-tingling mystery'' GRAZIA BOOK CLUB''Eerie, spine-tingling. Douglas is a master storyteller. The perfect immersive read'' JANICE HALLETT''Douglas is the queen of the unexpected twist, and this is her best wrongfooting yet'' GILLIAN MCALLISTER''A cleverly plotted dark and twisty thriller that will keep you guessing until the end'' ALICE FEENEY''A chillingly dark plot with a killer twist, I was totally gripped throughout'' HEIDI PERKS_________THREE GIRLS MISSINGTwenty years ago: One rainy night, Olivia Rutherford is driving three friends home when a figure in the roTrade ReviewI loved this twisty novel -- RICHARD OSMANI loved The Girls Who Disappeared! From the atmospheric opening chapters describing the highly creepy 'Devil's Corridor', Claire crafts a gripping mystery that not only kept me glued to the page but gave me goosebumps! Page by page, Claire carefully reveals just enough information to make you want to read on and I quickly became invested in both the plot and the characters. Clever and terrifically compelling, I think The Girls Who Disappeared might be my new favourite Claire Douglas novel! -- SARAH PEARSEDouglas is the queen of the unexpected twist, and this is her best wrongfooting yet * GILLIAN MCALLISTER *Moody, menacing and gothic, The Girls Who Disappeared is a chillingly atmospheric thriller * JP DELANEY *Clever . . . Adventurous . . . Fans of Douglas's bestseller, The Couple at No 9, will enjoy her particularly lively female characters and twisty plot * Daily Mail *An unputdownable thriller. Spine-tingling mystery . . . I could not put this down!' * GRAZIA BOOK CLUB *If, like me , you loved The Couple at No 9 you are in for a treat. A cleverly plotted dark and twisty thriller which will keep you guessing until the end. * ALICE FEENEY *A chillingly dark plot with a killer twist, I was totally gripped throughout * HEIDI PERKS *I was hooked from the first page and turned the last with my head reeling at the fiendishly clever ending. Atmospheric, haunting and endlessly surprising, I loved it * EVE CHASE *From page one I just knew this was going to be a cracking story, and I was right. The Girls Who Disappeared is a fabulously eerie, spine-tingling treat. Its twists and turns unfolded at a breathtaking pace, but Douglas is a master storyteller and I felt in the safest of hands. This haunting thriller is the perfect immersive read. I loved it! * JANICE HALLETT *Spine-chilling . . . A twisty plot and unnerving undertones make this an unforgettable read * Culturefly *A deliciously dark, captivating and twisty mystery from Queen of Gripping Pageturners. With an eerie setting, a brilliant hook and a cast of suspicious characters, The Girls Who Disappeared will keep you guessing and frantically turning the pages from the gripping opening to the very last page -- CALLY TAYLORA darkly menacing sense of place looms throughout Claire Douglas's latest absorbing, atmospheric novel. Douglas weaves dual timelines and smart plotting to serve up another tense, spine-chilling mystery that fans will absolutely love -- GILLY MACMILLANA fabulous book. Brilliantly plotted, heart-wrenchingly emotional, and with a central premise to die for. This delivered by the armful. I loved it! * GYTHA LODGE *Praise for Claire Douglas * - *Spine chilling * The Sunday Times *Claire is a mistress at weaving the reader into a web of domestic deceit * Jane Corry *Twisty, exciting yet so very real * Gillian McAllister *

Read more less

Book SynopsisThe pulse-racing eleventh instalment in Tom Clancy's beloved, internationally bestselling Jack Ryan Jr. seriesTrade ReviewConstantly taps the current world situation for its imminent dangers and spins them into an engrossing tale * New York Times *Exhilarating. No other novelist is giving so full a picture of modern conflict * Sunday Times *A brilliantly constructed thriller that packs a punch * Daily Mail *Heart-stopping action . . . entertaining and eminently topical * Washington Post *

Read more less

Book SynopsisAs seen on TV - DEXTER: NEW BLOOD - major new dramaEveryone''s favourite serial killer is back and deadlier than ever...''Dexter has a way of getting under your skin. Wicked stuff'' GUARDIANA witness. Such a simple concept - and yet for Dexter Morgan, a perfectly well-disguised serial killer, the possibility of a witness is terrifying. As an upstanding blood-spatter analyst for the Miami Police, Dexter has always managed to keep the darker side of his life out of the spotlight. An expert at finding truly bad people - murderers who''ve long escaped justice - Dexter has long been giving them his own special brand of attention. But now someone has seen him in the act. Dexter is being followed, manipulated and mimicked, leading him to realise that no one likes to have a double - especially when his double''s goal is to kill him.Dexter is not one to tolerate such displeasure ... in fact, he has a knack for extricating himself from tro

Read more less

Book SynopsisA dark and sexy thriller from a sensational new voice.Trade ReviewThe writing is stunning. She really knows how to tell a story. Hats off to her for touching on such a sensitive subject and making a compelling story out of it. -- Jodi Ellen Malpas, #1 bestselling author of THIS MAN

Read more less

Book SynopsisSherlock Holmes is dead. Days after Holmes and his arch-enemy Moriarty fall to their doom at the Reichenbach Falls, Pinkerton agent Frederick Chase arrives from New York. The death of Moriarty has created a poisonous vacuum which has been swiftly filled by a fiendish new criminal mastermind. Ably assisted by Inspector Athelney Jones, a devoted student of Holmes's methods of investigation and deduction, Chase must hunt down this shadowy figure, a man much feared but seldom seen, a man determined to engulf London in a tide of murder and menace. The game is afoot . . .Trade ReviewThrilling and compelling, with a stunning twist, this is written as if Conan Doyle were at Horowitz's shoulder, and is - in my view - the finest crime novel of the year. * DAILY MAIL *Is there nothing Anthony Horowitz touches that doesn't turn to gold? ...He captures Conan Doyle's narrative technique to perfection. Gory murders, honest thieves, brilliant disguises, breathless chases and red herrings abound * DAILY EXPRESS *A relentlessly fast-paced and entertaining read * SUNDAY TIMES *An unpredictable and twist-filled mystery from start to finish. But what do you expect from the man penning the next James Bond novel? * SHORTLIST *I hope it won't be the last of Horowitz' Holmes novels: should he publish another, I will be at the front of the queue. * SPECTATOR *Though Horowitz dishes up the gore and violence with relish, he also offers all the tropes one might expect from a Holmes yarn, including baffling coded messages, impossible murders and clever red herrings... plotting is just as brilliantly gnarly [as THE HOUSE OF SILK] but its tone more self-aware and laced with in-jokes. * FINANCIAL TIMES *"His new novel, Moriarty, begins with a bravura dissection of Doyle's story "The Final Problem" in which he points out all the discrepancies, loose ends and improbabilities of behaviour. The remainder of the book is partly an ingenious exercise in explaining them away. ...An often excruciatingly exciting pursuit, and there is much casual slaughter, with hints of torture; nothing gratuitous but, as in The House of Silk, Horowitz's Victorian London is a much darker place than Doyle's." * DAILY TELEGRAPH *"In this skilfully executed follow on, Horowitz takes up the Conan Doyle baton and creates a suitably stylish and twisty detective story." * SUNDAY MIRROR *THE HOUSE OF SILK, was very popular and a solid piece of work - well constructed, skilfully executed and persuasively tinged with that alluring sooty flavour of 1890s London. His second, MORIARTY, is much the same, but bolder in its ambitions * GUARDIAN *"The plot is gripping and the writing most readable. In fact I must make a confession: I would rather read Horowitz than his model, Arthur Conan Doyle." * LITERARY REVIEW *A no-nonsense writer Horowitz proceeds briskly and ladles out spills and thrills with aplomb. Yet, the novel is terribly serious too - the author evokes a sombre atmosphere early on and thereafter cannot seem to shake it. This is a worthy addition to the store of Holmes fan-fic - but not be quite the romp you expected. * IRISH INDEPENDENT *"Ultimately, Moriarty has its cake by playfully re-creating the Sherlock Holmes persona and eats it by poking gentle fun at his methodology - and, by extension, his enduring appeal...Anthony Horowitz may not be the most reverential of the many writers who have attempted to breathe new life into the legacy of Sherlock Holmes, but Moriarty proves that he is certainly one of the most entertaining". * IRISH TIMES *An exhilarating page-turner * SUNDAY POST *"Horowitz weaves this mystery together perfectly and his plot twists are unpredictable until the last." * NEWCASTLE JOURNAL *"A page-turner that is exhilarating and infuriating in equal measure." * EDINBURGH EVENING NEWS *"Fans of Arthur Conan Doyle's London will surely adore this fine addition to the literature, being fast-paced but at this same time fully stocked with proper 'fair-play' clues." * MORNING STAR *"Horowitz weaves a relentlessly thrilling tale which teases and delights by the turn of each page." * WESTERN MAIL *"[It's] like Holmes under the influence of Ripper Street and Peaky Blinders... Holmes fans will love the theorising and super-smart twists in this deft and showy work of fandom." * GLASGOW HERALD *"It's a seamless blend of old friends and new characters. Classic Holmes with a contemporary gloss." * SAGA *"A cunningly contrived story that takes readers through many twists and turns." * BBC HISTORY *

Read more less

Book SynopsisAN ENTHRALLING AND PROPULSIVE NEW THRILLER FROM THE ACCLAIMED AND BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF SCRUBLANDS''Compelling, original and brilliantly executed - an excellent thriller from a new master of Australian noir'' CHARLES CUMMING''Dark, twisty and atmospheric, with writing so real you can almost feel the blistering heat of the Australian summer'' LISA HALL*A HOMECOMING MARRED BY BLOODJournalist Martin Scarsden returns to Port Silver to make a fresh start with his partner Mandy. But he arrives to find his childhood friend murdered - and Mandy is the prime suspect. Desperate to clear her name, Martin goes searching for the truth.A TERRIBLE CRIMEThe media descends on Port Silver, compelled by a story that has it all: sex, drugs, celebrity, and religion. Martin is chasing the biggest scoop of his career, and the most personal.A PAST HE CAN''T ESCAPEAs Martin drawsTrade ReviewShimmers ... A tortured tale of blood and loss -- Val McDermid on 'Scrublands'Stunning ... Scrublands is that rare combination, a page-turner that stays long in the memory -- Sunday Times on 'Scrublands'Compelling, original and brilliantly executed - an excellent thriller from a new master of Australian noir * Charles Cumming, author of A Foreign Country *Silver is the perfect sequel to Scrublands - dark, twisty and atmospheric, with writing so real you can almost feel the blistering heat of the Australian summer. I savoured every page, I didn't want it to end * Lisa Hall, author of Between You and Me *

Read more less

Book Synopsis''A compelling, atmospheric page-turner'' Steve Cavanagh''Gripping and compelling . . . balances immersive historical scene-setting with masterful plotting'' Dan Jones''A seriously gripping story - an outsider hero in jeopardy, a world of brooding danger, and an entirely, terrifyingly believable denouement'' Owen MatthewsBERLIN, JANUARY 1940Germany has conquered Poland. The world is praying for peace. At home, the Nazi Party''s hold on power is absolute. One freezing night, an SS doctor and his wife return home from an evening out. By sunrise, the doctor will be lifeless in a pool of blood. There is pressure to record the incident as a suicide, but the first evidence uncovered by Criminal Inspector Horst Schenke points to a chillingly staged murder. The investigation is swiftly blocked by Schenke''s superiors, but he can''t let it go. When he uncovers links to the mysterious death of a child, a terriTrade ReviewA compelling, atmospheric page-turner * Steve Cavanagh *Gripping and compelling . . . balances immersive historical scene-setting with masterful plotting * Dan Jones *A superb thriller with all the elements that make for a seriously gripping story - an outsider hero in jeopardy, a world of brooding danger, and an entirely, terrifyingly believable denouement * Owen Matthews *A chilling and accomplished historical thriller * Vaseem Khan *An absolute stone-cold page-turner * S. G. MacLean *'Scarrow's second World War Two thriller is a tense and fast-paced tale rich in period atmosphere' -- Bill Todd * The Sun *The moral ambiguity gives it a very especial edge. It is a tense, fast-moving story with plenty of action, culminating in a vividly described shoot-out -- Edward James * Historical Novel Review *Scarrow has alighted on an aspect of Nazi policy that certainly deserves to be better known -- James Owen * The Times *

Read more less

Book SynopsisFrom the author of Station Eleven, Emily St. John Mandel, The Glass Hotel is the story of the lives caught up in two very different tragedies: a woman disappearing from a container ship, and a massive Ponzi scheme imploding in New York.'Terrific' – Sunday Times'Elegant, haunting' – The Times'A damn fine novel . . . evocative and immersive' – George R. R. MartinVincent is the beautiful bartender at the exclusive Hotel Caiette. When New York financier Jonathan Alkaitis walks into the hotel and hands her his card, it is the beginning of their life together.That same night, a hooded figure scrawls a note on the windowed wall of the hotel: ‘Why don’t you swallow broken glass.’ Leon Prevant, a shipping executive, sees the note from the hotel bar and is shaken to his core.When Alkaitis's investment fund is revealed to be a Ponzi scheme, Leon loses his retirement savings in the fallout, but Vincent seemingly walks away unscathed. Until, a decade later, she disappears from the deck of one of Leon's ships . . .Trade ReviewNo one can create beautiful, enmeshed, startlingly clever worlds the way Mandel does -- Daisy Johnson, author of Everything UnderElegant, haunting . . . a unique rumination on guilt, grief and regret * The Times *Elegant . . . beguiling . . . the joys of The Glass Hotel are participatory: piecing together the connections . . . a treasure map ripped to pieces * Guardian *Beautifully written and compelling, it will find its way straight to your heart. -- RedA perfect post-lockdown read . . . Mandel is a terrific storyteller * Sunday Times *A damn fine novel . . . she keeps me turning pages . . . haunting and evocative and immersive . . . I guess you can say I am a big Emily St. John Mandel fanboy. I look forward to whatever she writes next. -- George R R MartinA fascinating and affecting read -- StylistA beguiling tale about skewed morals, reckless lives and necessary means of escape. -- The EconomistI've waited five long years for this - and it was absolutely worth it.In this stunning and meandering story full of beautiful prose ... Set in Vancouver Island's dazzling surroundings, this is an extraordinary read. -- Prima, Book of the MonthThe bestselling author of Station Eleven returns with this tale about the relationship between a New York financier, his waiter lover, a threatening note and a mysterious disappearance -- Times, Best books of 2020Deeply imagined, philosophically profound . . . The Glass Hotel moves forward propulsively, its characters continually on the run . . . Richly satisfying . . . as immersive a reading experience as its predecessor [Station Eleven] . . . Revolutionary * The Atlantic *The perfect novel for your survival bunker . . . Mandel is a consummate, almost profligate world builder. One superbly developed setting gives way to the next, as her attention winds from character to character . . . That Mandel manages to cover so much, so deeply is the abiding mystery of this book * Washington Post *The Glass Hotel is as tightly constructed as a detective fiction, with its mysteries, apparently discrete events leading to revelations, dire consequences . . . a superb performance * Sydney Morning Herald *Lyrical, hypnotic images . . . suspend us in a kind of hallucinatory present where every detail is sharply defined yet queasily unreliable. -- Anna Mundow, Wall Street JournalLike all Mandel’s novels, The Glass Hotel is flawlessly constructed... The Glass Hotel declares the world to be as bleak as it is beautiful, just like this novel. -- Rebecca Steinitz, The Boston GlobeA mysterious and delicate book . . . The Glass Hotel beautifully depicts the many lives impacted by the collapse of an ambitious Ponzi scheme * Elle Magazine (USA) *Another tale of wanderers whose fates are interconnected . . . nail-biting tension . . . Mandel weaves an intricate spider web of a story . . . A gorgeously rendered tragedy. * Booklist, starred *Long-anticipated . . . At its heart, this is a ghost story in which every boundary is blurred, from the moral to the physical . . . In luminous prose, Mandel shows how easy it is to become caught in a web of unintended consequences and how disastrous it can be when such fragile bonds shatter under pressure. A strange, subtle, and haunting novel. * Kirkus Reviews, starred *Mandel’s wonderful novel (after Station Eleven) follows a brother and sister as they navigate heartache, loneliness, wealth, corruption, drugs, ghosts, and guilt . . . This ingenious, enthralling novel probes the tenuous yet unbreakable bonds between people and the lasting effects of momentary carelessness -- Publishers Weekly (starred review)

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE NO. 1 SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLERDavid and Cheryl Burroughs are living the dream - married, a beautiful house in the suburbs, a three year old son named Matthew - when tragedy strikes one night in the worst possible way.David awakes to find himself covered in blood, but not his own - his son's. And while he knows he did not murder his son, the overwhelming evidence against him puts him behind bars indefinitely.Five years into his imprisonment, Cheryl's sister arrives - and drops a bombshell.She's come with a photograph that a friend took on vacation at a theme park. The boy in the background seems familiar - and even though David realizes it can't be, he knows it is.It's Matthew, and he's still alive.David plans a harrowing escape from prison, determined to do what seems impossible - save his son, clear his own name, and discover the real story of what happened that devastating night.______________Readers are loving I Will Find You . . .'A thrilling roller-coaster ride''Harlan at his absolute best!''Couldn't put is down''Bravo on another fab story''Such an amazing writer'_______________Praise for Harlan Coben . . .'Unbelievably brilliant' RICHARD OSMAN'A GREAT writer' JOHN GRISHAM'Never lets you down' LEE CHILD'Simply one of the all-time greats' GILLIAN FLYNN'The modern master of the hook and twist' DAN BROWN'One of the world's finest thriller writers' PETER JAMESI Will Find You was a Sunday Times no. 1 bestseller 14/01/2024Trade ReviewA master of the intricately plotted thriller, I Will Find You bristles with the irresistible storytelling nous that is Coben’s purview * Financial Times *Rightly admired for his plotting, Coben pulls off some trademark twists and scores with the screwball exchanges of two FBI agents * Sunday Times *Riveting * The Times *Typically clever * Sun *I Will Find You takes the heart-pounding action to another level, leaving the reader on tenterhooks until an explosive finale. Coben is a writer at the top of his game and this thriller is one of his best yet * Sunday Express *

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE NEW YORK TIMES AND TIMES BESTSELLER_______________________'A gripping historical adventure that feels sharp, fresh and modern' STYLIST'So beautiful, so daring, so complete' TAYLOR JENKINS REID'A masterpiece' NIGELLA LAWSON'Extraordinary' NEW YORK TIMES'Wonderful' GOOD HOUSEKEEPING MAGAZINE_______________________A soaring, breathtakingly ambitious novel that weaves together the astonishing lives of a 1950s vanished female aviator and the modern-day Hollywood actress who plays her on screen.Marian Graves is driven by a need for freedom and danger. From her days as a wild child in prohibition America to the blitz and glitz of wartime London, she is determined to live an independent life.But it is an obsession with flight that consumes her most.Having become one of the most fearless pilots in her time, she sets out to do what no one has done before: to circumnavigate the globe from pole to pole.But shortly before completing the journey, her plane disappears, lost to history.Over half a century later, troubled film star Hadley Baxter is offered to play Marian in the comeback role of a lifetime. From the first pages of the script, Hadley is drawn inexorably to the female pilot.It is a role that will lead her to an unexpected discovery, throwing fresh and spellbinding light on the story of the unknowable Marian Graves._______________________WATERSTONES FICTION BOOK OF THE MONTH JUNE 2022SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION 2022SHORTLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE 2021A ROYAL READING ROOM PICK 2023SHORTLISTED FOR THE HWA GOLD CROWN 2022TIME MAGAZINE BOOK OF THE YEAR 2021NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER MAY 2021TIMES BESTSELLER JUNE 2022_______________________'Full of adventure, passion and tragedy' THE TIMES'Soars from the very first page' SUNDAY EXPRESS'Luminous, masterful. Glides seamlessly through the 20th century' TELEGRAPH, Best Fiction of 2021'Breathtaking' OBSERVER'Truly exceptional storytelling, combining a sweeping arc of history with writing that, at sentence level, is near-flawless.' THE BOOKSELLER'A tour-de-force' DAILY EXPRESS'Impressive and gripping' SUNDAY TIMES'Surprising and moving at every turn' GUARDIAN'Audacious and Immersive' DAILY MAIL'Accomplished and ambitious' FINANCIAL TIMESReaders love GREAT CIRCLE:***** What a read! Immense story with beautifully created characters***** The story is so well researched and planned; historical fiction standing side by side with history itself***** This is a stunning achievement, my perspective feels fundamentally transformed through reading it***** A wonderful saga, covering a large chunk of the twentieth centuryTrade ReviewLuminous, masterful ... glides seamlessly through the 20th century immersing the reader. Tremendously well-written * TELEGRAPH, 'Best Fiction of 2021' *A gripping historical adventure that feels sharp, fresh and modern * STYLIST MAGAZINE *Shipstead turns phrases and observes people beautifully. Full of adventure, passion and tragedy... a glorious tribute to women who push the boundaries of their one, brief life, breaking the bonds of their place in history and their female bodies, to soar higher and faster than others; and the price they pay to live so fast * THE TIMES, 'Best Fiction of 2021' *Impressive and gripping * SUNDAY TIMES *What's so impressive is how deeply we care about each of these people, and how the shape and texture of each of their stories collide to build a story all its own. GREAT CIRCLE grasps for and ultimately reaches something extraordinary * NEW YORK TIMES *The Marian portions rove from Montana to Manhattan to Scotland and Antarctica, and read like a carnival of early-20th-century American history, packed with bootleggers, treacherous boxcar rides, and tragic shipwrecks. The Hadley chapters offer a delectable dissection of life as a celebrity, serving up an intelligent skewering of the Hollywood machine and allowing the book to take flight * VOGUE *GREAT CIRCLE is a novel of our insatiable need to stare down the terrible, magnificent vastness of it all: love, war, desire, fear ... A sweeping, swashbuckling book, full of oversaturated colour and grand destiny. The joy of this dynamic, soaring novel is not a welcome extra but its very engine * TIMES LITERARY SUPPLEMENT *Encompasses flight, travel adventure, identity, sexuality, family, the celebrity age - and in such beautiful writing. A masterpiece. * NIGELLA LAWSON *Rocked by the cool cadences of Shipstead's prose, readers will embark on a journey through time and space. Across 600 pages, they'll link arms with its characters as they stroll along the decks of early-1900s ocean liners, then board private jets to eavesdrop on the poolside parties of 21st-century Hollywood. They'll spot eagles arcing over the wild frontiers of Prohibition-era America then feel the lonely, existential chill of the white expanses of Antarctica - in between city breaks in Europe and Australia * INDEPENDENT *This wonderful novel weaves together the story of two women: a female aviator who goes missing in the1950s and the Hollywood star playing her in a film in the present day. A commitment that rewards with memorable characters and vivid storytelling * GOOD HOUSEKEEPING, 'Best Fiction of 2021' *From near-death experience in childhood, to marriage to a bootlegger, Marian rockets off the page in this gripping novel. A staggering story * SUNDAY TELEGRAPH MAGAZINE *Accomplished and ambitious... Most novelists have their limits and cut their cloth accordingly. Shipstead is a writer who can vividly summon whatever she chooses, taking the reader deep inside the world she creates. * FINANCIAL TIMES *A clever, poignant story about ambition, love and sacrifice that'll completely draw you in * COSMOPOLITAN MAGAZINE *This ambitious, wide-ranging and psychologically insightful novel is a tour-de-force * DAILY EXPRESS *It is rare to read a novel that is as beautifully built as it is elegantly written. Moving and surprising at every turn * GUARDIAN *A gorgeous soaring story that takes flight from the very first page * SUNDAY EXPRESS *Vast and entrancing * BA HIGH LIFE *A riveting novel with powerful characters that will excite, shock and enthral * PSYCHOLOGIES MAGAZINE *Nothing short of brilliant * OPRAH DAILY *A work of epic proportions and rich, cinematic detail * FINANCIAL TIMES, BEST OF SUMMER BOOKS *Grand, audacious and completely engrossing * DAILY MIRROR *This epic novel tops 600 pages but you'll still want more. Ambitious, cannily constructed and entertaining * MAIL ON SUNDAY *Beautifully written and endlessly readable, this rapturous novel soars * GUARDIAN *Ambitious, intricately detailed, rich and considered * INDEPENDENT *A WOMAN'S WEEKLY BOOK CLUB READ * MY WEEKLY *Daringly ambitious... a novel that invites the reader to immerse themselves in the sweep of history, the rich and detailed research... breathtaking * OBSERVER *Great Circle is an epic trip-through Prohibition and World War II, from Montana to London to present-day Hollywood-and you'll relish every minute * PEOPLE MAGAZINE *Glitz and guts square off in Great Circle: a tale of two women set apart by a century, fighting to retain control of their own lives in a society that demands subservience. Shipstead is adept at writing so vividly, the reader can feel the thrill and pain of her characters. Cunningly crafted. . . richly layered, a joy to read . . . riveting * THE SPOKESMAN REVIEW *Mesmerizing * TATLER *An enthralling epic about aviation and adventure. A big, baggy blast of a book bulging with sex and drugs, taking in Prohibition-era Montana, wartime London, present-day Hollywood, painting and physics. I loved it * REBECCA JONES, BBC ARTS CORRESPONDENT *A generous, escapist treat * i-PAPER, 30 BEST BOOKS FOR SUMMER *A soaring epic of female adventure and wanderlust * GUARDIAN *Bestselling novelist Maggie Shipstead was struggling to depict a female adventurer. So she became one. The stakes of GREAT CIRCLE are high-for its heroine, literally life or death. Though Shipstead never learned to fly herself, she aligned with her main character Marian Graves in more important ways . . . She is interested in testing her limits * L A TIMES *Relentlessly exciting . . . My top recommendation for this summer. Shipstead's sweeping new female-centered epic intertwines the story of Marian, an aviator who wants to circumnavigate the globe with that of actor Hadley Baxter, cast a century later to play Marian in a film. What can Marian's life tell Hadley about her own? * WASHINGTON POST *Dazzling prose in the service of an expansive story that covers more than a century and seems to encapsulate the whole wide world. With detailed brilliance, she lavishes heart and empathy on every character. She never wavers, pulls out a twist or two that feel fully earned, and then sticks the landing * BOSTON GLOBE *Swinging from one century to the next, from the moneyed splendor of cities to the shifting Antarctic ice, Shipstead's prose overflows with meticulous detail * MINNEAPOLIS STAR TRIBUNE *Enthralling. Moving and surprising at every turn * GUARDIAN *Sweepingly panoramic and immersive. An audacious epic * DAILY MAIL, 'Best Fiction of 2021' *In a moment when our quarantined worlds have become so small, GREAT CIRCLE offers more than just wanderlust; it feels like a liberation. * ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY *Maggie Shipstead combines cinematic scope with a poet's eye for detail * THE TIMES *The beginning of Maggie Shipstead's astounding novel, a Booker finalist, includes a series of endings: two plane crashes, a sunken ship and several people dead. The bad luck continues when one of the ship's young survivors, Marian, grows up to become a pilot-only to disappear on the job. Shipstead unravels parallel narratives, Marian's and that of another woman whose life is changed by Marian's story, in glorious detail. Every character, whether mentioned once or 50 times, has a specific, necessary presence. It's a narrative made to be devoured, one that is both timeless and satisfying. * TIME, BOOK OF THE YEAR *Absolutely dazzling * NEWSWEEK *Thrilling * DAILY MAIL *GREAT CIRCLE flew us to a different world. A book to devour * TELEGRAPH, BOOK OF THE YEAR *A sweeping saga that alternates between the life of a tenacious female aviator in the 1930s and that of a millennial film star cast to play her in a biopic. In death, 'each of us destroys the world,' the author observes - but her engrossing novel is a moving reflection on the will to survive * THE ECONOMIST *Artfully constructed and exhuberantly entertaining * THE MAIL, BOOK OF THE YEAR *Shipstead soars in this expansive, beautiful novel about women and flight * THE STRAITS TIMES *Engrossing, ambitious, beautifully written * DAILY EXPESS, Summer Reading *Completely engrossing from the very first page. You won't be able to put this down * HELLO MAGAZINE *A brilliant saga of a book. It will absolutely captivate you * JANE GARVEY, Fortunately Podcast *

Read more less

Book SynopsisTHE 12 MILLION COPY BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF THE ENZO FILES AND THE CHINA THRILLERSAWARD WINNING AUTHOR OF THE CWA DAGGER IN THE LIBRARY 2021'One of the best regarded crime series of recent years.' Independent'No one can create a more eloquently written suspense novel than Peter May.' New York Journal of BooksA MAN WITH NO NAMEAn unidentified corpse is recovered from a Lewis peat bog; the only clue to its identity being a DNA sibling match to a local farmer.A MAN WITH NO MEMORYBut this islander, Tormod Macdonald - now an elderly man suffering from dementia - has always claimed to be an only child.A MAN WITH NO CHOICEWhen Tormod's family approach Fin Macleod for help, Fin feels duty-bound to solve the mystery.LOVED THE LEWIS MAN? Read book 3 in the Lewis trilogy, THE CHESSMENLOVE PETER MAY? Buy his latest frontlist thriller, THE NIGHT GATETrade ReviewA rip-roaring thriller . . . thoroughly enjoyable * Mail on Sunday *A wonderfully complex book * Peter James, on Entry Island *The Lewis Man shone like a bright star out of this year's book lists. Lyrical, empathetic and movingHe is a terrific writer doing something differentFrom the first page I knew I was in safe hands. I knew I could trust this writerWonderfully compellingWestern France - now May's own stamping ground - is as much a character in the book as the Hebrides were in his formidable Isle of Lewis sequence * Guardian *Peter May is a writer I'd follow to the ends of the earth * New York Times *Instantly struck by the beauty of the descriptions of the wild island terrain as well as by the roundedness and complexity of the characterisations * The Times *One of the best regarded crime series of recent years * Independent *May's novels are strong on place and the wounds left by old relationships * Sunday Times *Will have the reader relishing every tendency of description and characterization * Independent *Dark, exciting and atmospheric * Scotland on Sunday *Powerful and authentic * Glasgow Sunday Herald *Fast, exciting ... an entertaining read that will also give food for thought * Irish Times *A tense and atmospheric thriller with a heart-stopping ending * Tangled Web *Truly the best of May's series so far, this is not to be missed * The Good Book Guide *

Read more less

Book Synopsis"Claire McGowan at her very best." ―Peter James From the bestselling author of What You Did comes the story of a young couple who are about to discover that in a house full of secrets there’s nowhere to hide… For Helen and George, the remote fixer-upper in Cornwall was supposed to be a dream home, and a way to leave behind the problems they’re both running from. But something about the place feels wrong from day one. And why does Helen have a creeping feeling she’s seen this house before? Her unease only deepens after renovations begin, when the builders find sinister dolls hidden in the walls. As Helen digs into the house’s past, she discovers that the previous owner was not only rumoured to be a witch; she was also imprisoned for a brutal triple murder thirty years earlier. When a horrific accident almost ends in tragedy, Helen worries that the house’s secrets are to blame, and as events spiral out of control she discovers George has been lying to her. As the past returns to haunt them, the couple realise they are in terrible danger, and they can’t trust anyone—not even each other. Because Helen hasn’t been entirely honest with him either…Trade Review“A knotty, twisty tale…unfolds at a cracking pace.” —The Irish Times “An engaging, compelling and twisty story—Claire McGowan at her very best.” —Peter James “Creepy, twisty and atmospheric.” —Susi Holliday, author of The Hike “An outstanding psychological thriller, as clever as it is creepy.” —Chris Merritt, author of The New Home

Read more less

Book SynopsisShe was a temptation he couldn't resist...I saw her being stuffed in a trunk: Yelena Yenina, only daughter of the most vicious Bratva boss in Chicago.The Bratva hate my family. They burned my uncle alive. I should have left Yelena to her fate...But she fought like a Valkyrie. Gorgeous, ferocious, and unbreakable.I saved her so I could make her mine.She says she'll never submit to a man. I guess we'll see...I'll push her to the limit. And far beyond.Heavy Crown is the mind-blowing conclusion to the bestselling Brutal Birthright series. It's a stand-alone dark mafia romance with HEA and no cliffhanger. Contains extra-steamy scenes guaranteed to make your night!

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

THE NO. 1 INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLING AUTHOR27 MILLION BOOKS SOLDWINNER OF THE GLASS KEY AWARDJussi Adler-Olsen returns with the newest book in his acclaimed Department Q series. In the middle of a hard-won morning nap in the basement of police headquarters, Carl Mørck, head of Department Q, receives a call from a colleague working on the Danish island of Bornholm. Carl is dismissive at first, but then he receives some shocking news. Carl then has no choice but to lead Department Q into the tragic cold case of a vivacious seventeen-year-old girl who vanished from school, only to be found dead hanging high up in a tree. The investigation will take them from the remote island of Bornholm to a hidden cult, where Carl and his assistants must stop a string of new murders by a skilled manipulator who refuses to let anything-or anyone-get in the way.For fans of Tim Weaver, Mick Herron and Jo Nesbo.

Read more less

Book Synopsis'A thoroughly enjoyable book and the introduction to a great series' 5* READER REVIEWCrime fiction fans worldwide are talking about the Dordogne Mysteries. In the first book in this beloved series, read and discover why, and what dark secrets are lurking in the idyllic French town of St Denis.When an old man, head of an immigrant North African family, is found murdered, suspicion falls on the son of the local doctor, discovered playing sex games surrounded by Nazi paraphernalia.But policeman Bruno isn't convinced, and suspects the crime has its roots in that most tortured period of French history - World War 2, a time of terror and betrayal that set brother against brother. Now it's up to him to find the killer - but will the people of St Denis allow him to go digging through a past they long to forget in order to do so?'An auspicious beginning and can be recommended unreservedly' 5* READER REVIEW'The descriptions of people, the area, food and wine give a great insight to this part in France' 5* READER REVIEW'I could almost see the countryside, taste the food, appreciate the characters' 5* READER REVIEW'The book is wonderful and I have purchased the next four' 5* READER REVIEW'Whether you fancy a trip through the sleepy Dordogne or a fascinating crime story then this book is for you' 5* READER REVIEWTrade ReviewHugely enjoyable and absolutely gripping... the Maigret of the Dordogne -- Antony BeevorA satisfyingly intriguing, wish-you-were-there read * Guardian *Hugely enjoyable and absolutely gripping. Martin Walker has got off to a flying start in what promises to be a great series. Bruno will be the Maigret of the Dordogne -- Antony BeevorIt's beguiling, evocative and utterly wonderful. it also made me very hungry . . . the Alexander McCall Smith of La France Profonde -- Francis WheenThe selling point of this delightful book is its setting in the legendary France profonde . . . Walker brings to life both a complete community and the chief of police who is its protector, teacher and friend. This book's ingredients are combined as carefully as Bruno's good meals * Literary Review *Has many of the characteristics of Golden Age novels, above all the apparently remote setting which reveals its involvement in wider events. Martin Walker's Dordogne is worth a visit * Times Literary Supplement *The pleasures of life in the Dordogne, some distinctive well-rounded characters and an intriguing mystery are a winning combination . . . one of the most enjoyable books I've read in a long time * Telegraph *[Death on the Dordogne] may be a gentle book but it does not pull its punches. It is well-written, introducing a charming, likeable main character: a satisfying detective story; and conveying a strong love and understanding of the Dordogne region of France * Eurocrime *Deftly dark, mesmerizing, and totally engaging * French Embassy *

Read more less

Book Synopsis*Watch out for KILLING MOON, the new Harry Hole thriller, available for pre-order now!*__________________________________________'The king of all crime writers' Sunday Express There's a new killer on the streets A woman is found murdered after an internet date. The marks left on her body show the police that they are dealing with a particularly vicious killer. And he's out for blood Under pressure from the media to solve the crime, the force know there's only one man for the job. But Harry Hole is reluctant to return to the place that almost took everything from him. Until he starts to suspect a connection between this killing and his one failed case...*JO NESBO HAS SOLD OVER 55 MILLION BOOKS WORLDWIDE**Watch out for KILLING MOON, the new Jo Nesbo book, out now*Jo Nesbo was a Sunday Times number one bestseller with Macbeth on 20/09/2018Trade ReviewExpertly plotted with vividly drawn characters, frenetic police chases and philosophising villains [...] Expect to be thoroughly entertained * Crime Fiction Lover *Fast-moving...stunning * Sunday Times *[The Thirst is] a breath-taking reading experience... Nesbo is the master when it comes to building a long and increasingly steep dramatic curve... The pace in The Thirst is somewhat calmer than in the previous Harry Hole books, more of a waltz than a rock and roll, until we're a bit more than halfway through. But from there on, it's full on action with blood gushing and splattering until the last page is turned * Verdens Gang, Norway *The Thirst like its stablemates is a bulky but zippy 500-pager which never loiters in one place for long. Nesbø keeps you guessing with his usual bag of tricks, making everyone seem a little suspect (or almost everyone). His cynicism about bent coppers and unscrupulous journalists is an inexhaustible and entertaining sideshow...if you liked the other ten, you'll greedily sink your teeth into this * Arts Desk *Jo Nesbo is on top form... [The Thirst is] a spell-binding story about brutal crimes and ambitions gone astray * Dagbladet, Norway *

Read more less

Book SynopsisHe''s known as the class clown - the kid with a lot of nerve. And some believe thirteen-year-old Jack Mathias is too confident for his own good. His audacious practical jokes and impulsiveness frequently land him in hot water and growing up seems a world away. However, a sudden wild adventure with his unlikely companions, Gene (the nerd) and Edgar (the shy outcast), thrusts Jack towards maturity with more of a shove than normal life would ever have managed. Will he meet the challenge?The trio''s illicit and desperate quest to find long-hidden treasure leads them into great danger, challenging their collective wits and testing the limits of their physical and mental endurance. Will Jack, the natural, fearless leader, discover the ancient jewels and a different version of himself in the process? Or will he avoid personal responsibility for the rest of his life?

Read more less

Book Synopsis'The best kind of psychological thriller – compelling, accomplished and atmospheric.' M.W. CravenSIX FRIENDS.In a luxury villa set high in the hills above the glamorous town of Sorrento, southern Italy, three couples gather for the perfect 40th birthday celebration. ONE BODY.Before the week is out, one of them is dead.COUNTLESS LIES.Their perfect reunion quickly becomes the holiday from hell when one of the group starts receiving anonymous messages, threatening to expose a dark secret from their university days. As old friendships are tested to the limit, it’s clear that what happens in the dark past won’t stay buried…A heart-racing psychological thriller that will hook you from the very first page, with twist after twist that will make your jaw drop. Fans of B.A. Paris, My Husband's Killer and Lucy Foley won’t be able to put this down. If you were hooked by The White Lotus or The Watcher, you'll love this. Praise for The Final Party:'A hugely addictive, pacy and consuming thriller...kept me guessing (and turning pages) right up to the incredible conclusion.' Gytha Lodge'Thrilling twists, terrific characters and a setting to die for. The Final Party is a thoroughly gripping ride!' B P Walter'A compelling page turner with a gasp around every corner. If you’re looking for a holiday read this May, then this is the perfect unravelling of a friendship built on secrets and lies' Lauren North'Do not miss your invitation to The Final Party! Dark deeds, gorgeous Italian scenery and secrets aplenty... I was totally gripped!' Louise Mumford'One of the best writers of crime fiction around.' Howard Linskey‘A gripping, intricately plotted thriller about the dark side of friendship, packed with secrets and lies that will keep you hooked until the very last page.’ Lucy Martin‘Draws you into a dark web of secrets and lies that unravel with exquisite timing in a beautiful setting.’ Sarah Clarke'Stylish and twisty, with secrets and lies galore' Emily Freud'The Secret History meets The Holiday, only darker, sexier and absolutely crammed full of twists and suspense. It’s a big, fat 5 stars from me.’ Lisa Hall'A dark and twisty read full of secrets, set against a stunning Amalfi Coast background where everyone has secrets and no one can be trusted.' Catherine Cooper'Glossy, gripping, and full of gruesome discoveries. A perfect holiday read.' Derek Farrell'The most well plotted and expertly told thriller I've read in years...a masterpiece of deception, betrayal and murder that will astound you till the very last page.' Graham Bartlett'The reveals kept coming at super speed, taking my breath away as I eagerly turned the pages.' Christie J Newport‘A tense read that kept me guessing all the way to the end.’ Tariq Ashkanani'A dark, captivating and sumptuous read.' Julie-Ann Corrigan'A dark and addictive thriller set amidst a gorgeous Italian backdrop, it's well deserving of 5 sparkling stars. I loved it!' Jane Isaac'A slick and twisty thriller' Jacqueline Sutherland'A tortuous web of secrets and lies – I could not put it down’ Marion Todd'A taut, dark thriller that is fabulously alluring and atmospheric. Utterly captivating writing!' Victoria Dowd

Read more less

Book Synopsis**WINNER OF THE WALES BOOK OF THE YEAR 2023****WATERSTONES WELSH BOOK OF THE YEAR 2022**'Truly beautiful and haunting, and an incredible feat of storytelling' DONAL RYAN'A tender, unusual and gorgeously wrought love story' RACHEL JOYCE'In times of war, Lewis finds resilience, redemption and hope...DRIFT feels perfectly judged' OBSERVER THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE DEBUT FROM THREE-TIME WINNER OF WALES BOOK OF THE YEAR CARYL LEWIS: A STORY OF LOVE, MAGIC AND THE IRRESISTIBLE LURE OF THE SEA.Nefyn has always been an enigma, even to her brother Joseph with whom she lives in a small cottage above a blustery cove.Hamza is a Syrian mapmaker, incarcerated in a military base a few miles up the coast.A violent storm will bring these two lost souls together - but other forces will soon try to tear them apart...Moving between the wild Welsh coast and war-torn Syria, Drift is a love story with a difference, a hypnotic tale of lost identity, the quest for home and the wondrous resilience of the human spirit.'A truly magical and transformative novel. I loved it.' KIRSTY CAPES, author of CARELESS Trade ReviewA truly beautiful and haunting novel, and an incredible feat of storytelling * DONAL RYAN *A tender, unusual and gorgeously wrought love story that weaves the magic of folk lore, the wonder of the sea, and the depths of human cruelty. It moves between the worlds it inhabits like the finest piece of driftwood. * RACHEL JOYCE *In times of war, Lewis finds resilience, redemption and hope...DRIFT feels perfectly judged * OBSERVER *Captivating from the off * Huw Stephens, BBC Front Row *A truly magical and transformative novel. I loved it. * Kirsty Capes *

Read more less

Book SynopsisIn the new Republic of Texas, guns are compulsory and nothing is forgiven. Blue Running is a gripping coming-of-age thriller set in post-secessionist Texas. For fans of Station Eleven and Thelma and Louise. Fourteen-year-old Bluebonnet Andrews is on the run across the Republic of Texas. An accident with a gun killed her best friend but everyone in the town of Blessing thinks it was murder. Even her father - the town's drunken deputy - believes she did it. Now, she has no choice but to run. In Texas, murder is punishable by death. There's no one to help her. Her father is incapable and her mother left the state on the last flight to America before the secession. Blue doesn't know where she is but she's determined to track her down. First she has to get across the lawless Republic and over the wall that keeps everyone in. On the road she meets Jet, a pregnant young woman of Latin American heritage. Jet is secretive about her past but she's just as determined as Blue to get out of Texas before she's caught and arrested. Together, the two form an unlikely kinship as they make their way past marauding motorcycle gangs, the ever watchful Texas Rangers, and armed strangers intent on abducting them - or worse. When Blue and Jet finally reach the wall, will they be able to cross the border, or will they be shot down in cold blood like the thousands who have gone before them? Some things are worth dying for.

Read more less

Book Synopsis

Read more less

Book SynopsisMalta, in 1813, is ostensibly a safe harbour, yet the island is a nest of French spies, and even those in authority are not to be trusted.As Captain Jack Aubrey cools his heels in a Maltese harbour, awaiting repairs to his ship, war rages on. Fearing that hostilities will end before he has any further opportunities for fame and fortune, Aubrey accepts several secret missions, but all is not as it seems.Will a double agent be the undoing of both Jack Aubrey and his friend, ship's surgeon Stephen Maturin?This is O'Brian at his brilliant entertaining best. When he is on this form the rest of us who write of the Napoleonic conflict might as well give up and try a new career.'BERNARD CORNWELLCaptain Aubrey and his surgeon, Stephen Maturin, compose one of those complex and fascinating pairs of characters which have inspired thrilling stories of all kinds since the Iliad.'IRIS MURDOCH & JOHN BAYLEYTrade Review‘If O’Brian’s novels have become a cult, this is because they are truly addictive. . . They are, quite magnificently, adventure yarns whose superb authenticity never distracts from the sheer thrill of the action.’Caroline Moore, Sunday Telegraph ‘The Aubrey–Maturin novels, by Patrick O’Brian, are so addictive that after I finish one I have to hide the next from myself for a little while in order to do anything else but read.’Louise Erdrich ‘In Aubrey and Maturin, Patrick O’Brian has created two of the most enjoyable characters in twentieth-century fiction. Their relationship sustains an absorbing and thrilling sequence of naval stories, unrivalled in their complexity, full of impeccable detail and psychological insight. O’Brian switches from the intimate to the epic with equal assurance. One of the greatest authors to sail with.’Michael Palin ‘My hero is Patrick O’Brian. It’s basically impossible to write that well.’David Mamet ‘One of the most compelling and brilliant novelists of his time . . . Beyond his superbly elegant writing, wit and originality, Patrick O’Brian showed an understanding of the nature of a floating world at the mercy of the wind and the sea which has never been surpassed.’Max Hastings, Evening Standard ‘I devoured Patrick O’Brian’s twenty-volume masterpiece as if it had been so many tots of Jamaica grog.’Christopher Hitchens ‘Written with most engaging enthusiasm that can’t fail to give pleasure to anybody who enjoys historical adventure flavoured with more than a dash of realism.’The Sunday Times ‘One of the most brilliantly sustained pieces of historical fictional writing this century.’James Teacher, Spectator ‘Patrick O’Brian brings depth to his sea-stories with outstanding dialogue, characterisation, humour and a golden thread of romance. You don’t have to love books about naval battles to become entranced.’Katie Fforde

Read more less