Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival 2024

It doesn’t quite feel like a year since I was at the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, but this weekend found me back at the Old Swan Hotel in Harrogate along with a bunch of like-minded crime writing fans.

Photo of the beer tent from 2023, I didn’t take as many photos this time!

This year I was there for Friday and Saturday again. Cunningly I’d made a bookish t-shirt (get yours here – full transparency: I make a couple of quid for each one), posted it up on Twitter and invited anyone to say hello. More on that later.

they come in lots of colours, not just eye-wateringly bright mango!

I think I’d been there about 2 minutes before bumping into some friends.

The lovely Louise Beech and equally lovely Chris Scotland. Photobomb courtesy of John Marrs

I’ve seen a lot of chatter online over the past day or so about people being worried about talking to people there, or about it feeling cliquey, or not being one of the cool kids and not getting invites to parties or the latest proofs of exciting books. Charlotte Duckworth shared a great blog post: Some honest thoughts about the Harrogate Crime Writing Festival, which lead to a really good discussion on twitter today.

I was a festival newbie last year, and it was great to have a friend to hang out with (thanks Ellen and Fran again!). I can totally see why it might feel overwhelming to be there with so many people, favourite authors all chatting with each other. How do you go up and tell someone you loved their books? Or their blog? The first time I did it I worried about what to say, and that I was going to make a fool of myself.

It takes a lot to go up to an author you like to say hi, and they’re always talking to someone else. Then you worry that if you do get to chat for more than a ‘hi I love your book’ it’s taking up their time or they’re just being polite.

There’s talk of setting up something for next year where anyone new can come along and find someone to show them around. I think it’s a great idea. That, and better name badges/lanyards – I found myself squinting at names (the author names are in quite a small font!) to try and work out who people are. My next bookish t-shirt might have to be something like “Hi, I’m Dave, aka @dakegra from espressococo” in large friendly letters!

I found that once I’d plucked up the courage to talk to someone, it became easier. Friends I’d met last year introduced me to others, and I’d do the same – hi, have you met x? They’ve got a fabulous book/blog etc.

Years ago I’d made myself some Moo Minicards. Until now they’d mostly been used as bookmarks, or added to books I’d sent to people. This year I was handing them out when someone asked if I was a blogger. Can recommend! (here’s my referral code: https://refer.moo.com/s/dakegra)

So, despite worrying about how I might be coming across, or if I was going to say something daft, I just jumped in. Found authors whose books I’d loved and said hi. I’d taken some books to get signed, and can confirm that if you approach an author with their book in your hand and a smile, they will be delighted to see you. William Hussey (author of the shortlisted, fabulous Killing Jericho, go read it now) told me that if you loved an author’s book, please do tell them! I resolved to do that as much as possible over the weekend.

At the end of the day, everyone was really friendly. I had a bunch of nice comments about my t-shirt from quite a few people, and Mark Billingham recognised me from twitter because of the t-shirt as he was signing my book. And twitter friend Caro (@TurnUp4TheBooks) bumped into me outside the tent and said hello (that t-shirt really does work) and we had a brilliant chat about books and libraries and minis. Made my day.

Bumping into Jamie-Lee Nardone from @blackcrow_pr who I’ve known online for years and done a ton of blogging for was a thrill, and she invited me to sit and have a chat with her and her husband Martyn Waites (who I’ve reviewed on the blog before) and friends for a bit, one of whom turned out to be Susi Holliday, who I’d met last year! Great to catch up.

Also sat there was Beth Lewis who I’m an absolute HUGE fan of, and after years of shouting about her books online (you need to read The Wolf Road, like now) got her to sign my proof copy. Also finally tracked down (not a stalker, honest) the fabulous Rob Parker, who I’ve chatted with and talked about his brilliant books for almost as long as Beth’s, but have managed to miss at pretty much every event we’ve both been at. A beer in the bar and a natter about books, blogging, Bond (he has a brilliant podcast, Really 007) and a bunch of other stuff.

I’d met Stuart Turton a few years back at a book event in Derby, and we’ve chatted on twitter about this and that, so it was great to see him and talk about his new book The Last Murder At The End of the World. That ended up with me being introduced to Harry, his agent, Tom Hindle (author of Murder On Lake Garda, which is going straight on the list) and his accountant Chris (@authortax – who I promptly started promoting his new business to a friend whose husband is an author – networking!). Turned out Stu knew Alice Bell, whose first book Grave Expectations I absolutely loved so I was able to fanboy at her too, and get her to sign book 2 for me later.

Saturday was drawing to a close when I also got to meet the lovely Jennie Godfrey, author of The List of Suspicious Things (which is utterly fabulous), and bumped into the equally lovely Chris Whitaker, of whose books I have raved about a LOT and you’ve all read them anyway as he’s absolutely everywhere.

I also got to say hi to Jo Callaghan and tell her how much I loved the audiobooks of her books, and say congratulations for In The Blink Of An Eye winning crime novel of the year.

Dan Stubbings (looking very dapper, I must say) and I (slightly more dishevelled by this point) were just getting our now traditional Harrogate selfie when I spotted Lauren Beukes talking to some people by the beer tent.

Now Lauren was one of the first authors I featured on the blog. I’ve been a huge fan since her first book, Zoo City. Her latest novel, Bridge, is brilliant. Again, we’d talked online via twitter for years. I’d even got a tiny cameo in Broken Monsters.

I had to say hello. But she was deep in conversation. The time on my car parking was running out. My social battery was running low.

I asked Dan how long I should give it before going over.

“Just do it mate,” he said.

I did it.

Yes, that’s a skull necklace

A lovely way to round out the festival – the last author I met was one of the first ones I’d had on the blog. After years of shouting about her books to anyone who’d listen, finally getting the chance to say hi and have a chat about books, castles in France (long story) and many other things topped off what had been a brilliant couple of days.

I started this post meaning to talk about being an introvert at a festival. It is still kind of about that, but hopefully as you’ve seen, authors and bloggers and people are generally brilliant. Even if it’s just to say that you loved their book, or their t-shirt, it’s so worth it.

If you find yourself at Harrogate next year and don’t know anyone, come find me. I’ll be the one in the bright t-shirt in the beer tent talking about books. And if I’m talking to someone, take a deep breath, sidle in and say hi. It’ll be fine, and we can all make some new bookish friends.

See you next year?

Killing Jericho – William Hussey

Fresh out of prison, former Detective Constable Scott Jericho is a desperate man.

Disgraced and penniless after his assault on a violent suspect, he is forced to seek refuge with the fairground family he once rejected. Now, troubled by his failure, Jericho’s brilliant mind stagnates.

That is until a series of bizarre murders reawaken his interest. Men and women with no obvious link to each other are being ritualistically slaughtered.

Slaughtered in ways that recall an old legend of the Jericho Travelling Fair.

Now, in a race against time, he must unpick the threads of a baffling mystery. But as his investigation unfolds and the corpses pile up, a shocking truth awaits him. A revelation that will test not only Jericho’s intellect but challenge the very core of his morality…

Another shortlisted book for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year!

This was the last of the six books I read, and picked it up alongside Mark Billingham’s The Last Dance.

I polished both books off in a couple of sittings. I absolutely loved the character of Scott Jericho – the first gay Traveller detective I’ve ever seen (albeit disgraced and therefore former detective by the time we meet him) investigating off-the-books a series of delightfully (can we say that?) gruesome murders which all appear to be leading back in his direction. Superb writing, tense, clever plotting – what more could you ask for?

Having read a lot of crime fiction over the years, it’s always great to see something new and fresh in the crime writing world and I really enjoyed this book.

Very much looking forward to book 2 (the good thing about being slightly behind on books is that it’s already out, hurrah!)

I’ll be keeping a close eye on William Hussey going forward. Top stuff! Very highly recommended.

Killing Jericho by William Hussey is out in paperback now from Bonnier.

The Last Dance – Mark Billingham

Meet Detective Miller: unique, unconventional, and criminally underestimated…

A double murder in a seaside hotel sees grieving Detective Miller return to work to solve what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. Will this eccentric, offbeat sleuth find answers where more traditional police have found only a puzzle?

Reader, I’ve got a confession to make. And for a crime book reader, it’s a biggie.

Ready?

I’ve not read any of Mark Billingham’s Tom Thorne books.

There. I said it.

I have read one of his standalones (Rabbit Hole) and did really enjoy it! But for me it’s one of those things where when it’s a big series, I need to read them all, in order and the tottering TBR pile of books gives me some properly filthy looks when I even broach the subject of starting a series with so many books in it.

But now we have a new series! Perfect chance to jump in. And The Last Dance was shortlisted for the Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year too!

Now, Mark Billingham is no stranger to the Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year shortlist. He won the inaugural award back in 2005 with Lazybones, followed up by a shortlist spot in 2008 with Buried, a second win in 2009 with Death Message, and shortlists in 2010 for In The Dark and 2011 for From The Dead. Taking a year off in 2012 he returned to the shortlist in 2013 with Rush of Blood and 2016 with Time of Death.

The Last Dance marks his eighth(!) appearance on the shortlist, and a new detective, Declan Miller. Can this book make it a hat trick of wins?

I absolutely loved this one. Declan Miller is mourning the death of his wife and possibly back on the job too soon. The book has a delightfully dark humour running through it, an intriguing case and in Declan Miller, a fantastic main character. Ably abetted by his new partner DS Sara Xiu, Miller twirls through this case. Billingham is clearly having a lot of fun with this new character, and it absolutely shines off the page. A pure joy (if you can say that about a book where people get bumped off!)

Roll on book 2 (which is fortunately out now so I don’t need to wait!). Highly recommended.

The Last Dance by Mark Billingham is published by Sphere and is out in paperback now

Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2024 shortlist

It’s that time of the year again. Time for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year shortlist!

And for the first time ever, I’ve actually read ALL SIX books. Considering how much I read in this genre, it always surprises me when it turns out I’ve only read one or two. And until just over a week ago, I’d read half of the shortlist. Then my daughter gave me None Of This Is True for Father’s Day, and I realised I could complete the list. The challenge was on!

I finished William Hussey’s Killing Jericho this morning, so thought it would be a great idea for a roundup of the books and my thoughts.

In no particular order, here are the six shortlisted books

The Last Dance – Mark Billingham

(Sphere, paperback, own copy)

Mark Billingham is no stranger to the Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year shortlist. He won the inaugural award back in 2005 with Lazybones, followed up by a shortlist spot in 2008 with Buried, a second win in 2009 with Death Message, and shortlists in 2010 for In The Dark and 2011 for From The Dead. Taking a year off in 2012 he returned to the shortlist in 2013 with Rush of Blood and 2016 with Time of Death.

The Last Dance marks his eighth(!) appearance on the shortlist, and a new detective, Declan Miller. Can this book make it a hat trick of wins?

I absolutely loved this one. Declan Miller is mourning the death of his wife and possibly back on the job too soon, but has a delightfully dark humour running through it, an intriguing case and some fantastic characters. Roll on book 2 (which is fortunately out now so I don’t need to wait!)

He’s a detective, a dancer, he has no respect for authority – and he’s the best hope Blackpool has for keeping criminals off the streets. Meet Detective Declan Miller. A double murder in a seaside hotel sees a grieving Miller return to work to solve what appears to be a case of mistaken identity. Just why were two completely unconnected men taken out? Despite a somewhat dubious relationship with both reality and his new partner, can the eccentric, offbeat Miller find answers where his colleagues have found only an impossible puzzle?


The Secret Hours – Mick Herron

(Baskerville, ebook ARC, thanks to the publisher for the review copy)

Now I have read a lot of Mick Herron’s books, especially his excellent Slough House series (now on Apple TV and well worth checking out if you haven’t already). The Secret Hours marks his sixth appearance on the shortlist. It’s now almost an annual event since 2017’s Real Tigers, followed by Spook Street in 2018, London Rules in 2019, Joe Country in 2020 and Slough House in 2022.

I’m a huge fan of Mick Herron’s writing, and also loved this book. If you’ve been reading or watching Slow Horses, you know just how good this is. Enough said.

Trying to investigate the Secret Service is like trying to get rid of the stink of dead badger. Hard.  For two years the government’s Monochrome inquiry has produced nothing more than a series of dead ends.  The Service has kept what happened in the newly reunified Berlin under wraps for decades, and intends for it to stay that way.  But then the OTIS file turns up.  What classified secrets does it hold? And what damage will it create?  All Max Janácek knows is that someone is chasing him through the pitch-dark country lanes and they want him gone.

That’s enough of the regulars. It’s great to see a list with mostly first time shortlistees (is that a word?) on there.

In The Blink of an Eye – Jo Callaghan

(Simon & Schuster, audiobook, Audible subscription)

I reviewed In The Blink of an Eye a while back. Very late to the party, this was a book that everyone in the bookblogging world seemed to be talking about. A twist on the standard police procedural and super topical given the inexorable rise of AI in our lives, AIDE Lock is a fascinating character. On the off-chance you’ve not read this book, here’s my review:

Go read it.

Slightly longer version: I really enjoyed it, you should definitely read it. Like, now. Then grab book 2 as somehow it’s even better than book one. And book one is on the Crime Book of the Year shortlist!

In the UK, someone is reported missing every 90 seconds. Just gone. Vanished. In the blink of an eye.  DCS Kat Frank knows all about loss. A widowed single mother, Kat is a cop who trusts her instincts. Picked to lead a pilot programme that has her paired with AIDE (Artificially Intelligent Detective Entity) Lock, Kat’s instincts come up against Lock’s logic. But when the two missing person’s cold cases they are reviewing suddenly become active, Lock is the only one who can help Kat when the case gets personal.  AI versus human experience. Logic versus instinct. With lives on the line can the pair work together before someone else becomes another statistic?


Killing Jericho – William Hussey

(Zaffre, paperback, own copy)

This was the last of the six books I read, and picked it up alongside Mark Billingham’s The Last Dance. I polished both books off in a couple of sittings. I loved the character of Scott Jericho in this – the first Traveller detective (albeit disgraced by the time we meet him) investigating off-the-books a series of delightfully gruesome murders which all appear to be leading back in his direction. It’s always nice to see something new and fresh in the crime writing world and I really enjoyed this book. Very much looking forward to book 2, and will be keeping a close eye on William Hussey going forward. Top stuff!

The gothic, helter-skelter thriller debut that introduces crime fiction’s first ever Traveller detective, Scott Jericho.  Scott Jericho thought he’d worked his last case. Fresh out of jail, the disgraced former detective is forced to seek refuge with the fairground family he once rejected.  Then a series of bizarre murders comes to light – deaths that echo a century-old fairground legend. The police can’t connect the victims. But Jericho knows how the legend goes; that more murders are certain to follow.  As Jericho unpicks the deadly mystery, a terrifying question haunts him. As a direct descendant of one of the victims in the legend, is Jericho next on the killer’s list?

None of This Is True – Lisa Jewell

(Penguin, paperback, own copy)

I’d heard a lot of good things about this book, and Lisa Jewell’s books in general. Like a LOT. I absolutely raced through this one and had to keep stopping to go OH MY GOD WHAT JUST HAPPENED. It’s utterly brilliant, with more twists than a curly wurly. It kept me up well past my bedtime!

Celebrating her 45th birthday at her local pub, podcaster Alix Summer crosses paths with an unassuming woman called Josie Fair. Josie is also celebrating her 45th birthday. They are, in fact birthday twins.  A few days later, Alix and Josie bump into each other again, this time outside Alix’s children’s school. Josie has been listening to Alix’s podcasts and thinks she might be an interesting subject for Alix’s series. She is, she tells Alix, on the cusp of great changes in her life.  Alix agrees to a trial interview. Josie’s life appears to be strange and complicated, and although Alix finds her unsettling, she can’t quite resist the temptation to keep digging. Slowly Alix starts to realise that Josie has been hiding some very dark secrets, and before she knows it Josie has inveigled her way into Alix’s life – and into her home.  Soon she begins to wonder who is Josie Fair? And what has she done?

Strange Sally Diamond – Liz Nugent

(Simon & Schuster, ebook ARC, thanks to the publisher for the review copy)

Last, but by no means least, and I think the first of the shortlist I read. Sally Diamond is an incredible character and this book will stay with you for a very long time.

Sally Diamond cannot understand why what she did was so strange. She was only doing what her father told her to do, to put him out with the rubbish when he died.  Now Sally is the centre of attention, not only from the hungry media and worried police, but also a sinister voice from a past she has no memory of. As she begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, recluse Sally steps into the world for the first time, making new friends, finding independence, and learning that people don’t always mean what they say.  But when messages start arriving from a stranger who knows far more about her past than she knows herself, Sally’s life will be thrown into chaos once again…

Blimey. Six fantastic books to choose from. But how to choose? A dancing detective, a disgraced Traveller detective or a holographic AI-powered one? A strange girl, or one who you never know whether they’re telling the truth? Or a spy, operating at the murky edges of our world?

Not long left to choose, and you can vote here.

https://harrogatetheakstoncrimeaward.com/vote/

Have you read any of them? Which one will you pick?

Imposter Syndrome by Joseph Knox: A Dark and Twisty Tale of Deception in London

Lynch, a burned out con-artist, arrives, broke, in London, trying not to dwell on the mistakes that got him there. When he bumps into Bobbie, a rehab-bound heiress – and when she briefly mistakes him for her missing brother – Lynch senses the opportunity, as well as the danger…

Bobbie’s brother, Heydon, was a troubled young man. Five years ago, he walked out of the family home and never went back. His car was found parked on a bridge overlooking the Thames, in the early hours of the same morning. Unsettled by Bobbie’s story, and suffering from a rare attack of conscience, Lynch tries to back off.

But when Bobbie leaves for rehab the following day, he finds himself drawn to her luxurious family home, and into a meeting with her mother, the formidable Miranda. Seeing the same resemblance that her daughter did, Miranda proposes she hire Lynch to assume her son’s identity, in a last-ditch effort to try and flush out his killer.

As Lynch begins to impersonate him, dark forces are lured out of the shadows, and he realises too late that Heydon wasn’t paranoid at all. Someone was watching his every move, and they’ll kill to keep it a secret.

This is the first book by Joseph Knox that I’ve read (though I must confess to a couple lurking on my TBR shelves) and I loved it. The writing is compelling, the characters dark and often unpleasant, and it’s had me reading way past my bedtime to find out what happened. Strong echoes of Highsmith’s Ripley (no bad thing) and more twists and turns than a seaside ride. Who is Lynch? Why did he leave Paris with nothing more than the clothes on his back? Who are the mysteriously weird Pierce family and what are they trying to hide?

It’s a splendidly dark tale of lies and deception where you have no idea who to trust. Fantastic, compelling read, and hugely recommended.

And now I need to go and find the other books by Joseph Knox on my shelves, as he’s now an author I will very much be looking out to see what he does next.

Imposter Syndrome by Joseph Knox is published by Transworld in June 2024. Many thanks to the publisher for an advance copy to review via Netgalley.

April bookish roundup

Hello lovely reader!

April done then? That’s a third of 2024 gone! Blimey.

Before too much more of the year disappears, let’s have a look at the bookish goings-on, shall we?

Books read: 3

  • Raw Spirit, by Iain Banks (own copy, hbk)
  • Abroad In Japan, by Chris Broad (Audible subscription, audiobook)
  • A Spy Like Me, by Kim Sherwood (Hemlock Press, ebook ARC)

Three books? That’s the lowest monthly total so far, AND there was a long weekend at Easter, AND I was on holiday for over a week up in Scotland. I took lots of books, including three ARCs I wanted to get read, bought two and read one. Ooops.

I first read Raw Spirit: In Search of the Perfect Dram when it first came out, being as I am, a huge fan of Iain (M) Banks. I’d somehow lost that copy so imagine my delight to find a hardback copy in superb condition in a charity shop in Oban. Scotland, whisky, it was fate. And only three quid. And the only book I managed to read on holiday.

Bit of a month for re-reads, as we listened to Abroad In Japan, by Chris Broad on the drive up from Yorkshire to Oban. I’d already listened to it back in February, but we wanted something gently amusing to help pass the miles and apparently the audiobook of Dune wasn’t quite cutting it with the passenger.

I really enjoyed Kim Sherwood’s first Double O book, Double Or Nothing, so jumped at the chance to read a Netgalley copy of A Spy Like Me. Great stuff, review below!

Books reviewed: 1

I reviewed a book! Look!

Books purchased: 7

  • Raw Spirit, by Iain Banks (hbk)
  • Heaven, My Home, by Attica Locke (pbk)
  • Gods of the Wyrdwood, by RJ Barker (kindle)
  • Wrong Place, Wrong Time, by Gillian McAllister (kindle)
  • City Under One Roof, by Iris Yamashita (kindle)
  • Leave No Trace, by Jo Callaghan (Audible subscription, audiobook)
  • Hell Bent, by Leigh Bardugo (kindle)

Heaven, My Home was also discovered in the same Oban charity shop as Raw Spirit, so I picked that one up for some holiday reading.

Bit of a kindle bargains month – I’ve got a hefty paperback ARC of RJ Barker’s Gods of the Wyrdwood loitering around somewhere, but it’s much lighter on kindle.

I’ve also listened to the audiobook of Gillian McAllister’s excellent Wrong Place, Wrong Time but really want to read it again. It’s a fantastic story of a murder and the events leading up to it. The main character keeps jumping back to the previous days and weeks leading up to the murder and it’s absolutely fascinating seeing how things unravel. Or ravel. It’s really really good.

Someone recommended Iris Yamashita’s City Under One Roof (sorry, can’t remember who) so I snapped that one up.

Leave No Trace is the followup to Jo Callaghan’s fabulous In The Blink of an Eye, which I loved. Went for the audiobook this time and it’s helping me get out to do my daily physio-mandated walk. Favourite quote so far is “This is Nuneaton, not Netflix” which made me laugh out loud just as I was passing some dogwalkers. Thanks Jo.

Last but by no means least, Hell Bent by Leigh Bardugo is the sequel to Ninth House which I read ages ago.

Books received:4

  • The Sword Unbound, by Gareth Hanrahan (Orbit Books, ARC, May 2024)

I adored Gareth Hanrahan’s The Sword Unbound, so was delighted to find a copy of the second book land on my doormat with a healthy thud. At nigh-on 600 pages it’s a hefty boi, but I couldn’t wait and jumped right in.

Virtual bookpost (Netgalley/email): 3

  • Service Model, by Adrian Tchaikovsky (Tor, June 2024)
  • Seeker, by Samuel Griffin (Panthe Press, May 2024)
  • Deadly Animals, by Marie Tierney (Henry Holt & Co, Nov 2024)

Currently reading:3

  • Profile K – Helen Fields (Avon Books, April 2024)
  • The Sword Unbound, by Gareth Hanrahan (Orbit Books, pbk ARC, May 2024)
  • Leave No Trace, by Jo Callaghan (Audible subscription)

As ever, any books in there which take your fancy? Any you’ve read and loved? Any that you’ve read and not loved?

See you next month!

Dx

A Spy Like Me – Kim Sherwood

A Spy Like Me is the second in Kim Sherwood’s new Double O series, set in the world of Ian Fleming’s superspy James Bond, and follows hot on the heels of Double Or Nothing.

I love a good Bond story, so it’s been interesting to see what Kim Sherwood has done in this series. Can a Bond book work without James Bond? The answer is yes. Well, mostly.

Sherwood’s Double O series sees a bunch of Double O agents criss-crossing the world (secret missions, check) on the hunt for a global terrorist network (check again) with lots of dangerous action, gadgets and glamorous parties (check, check and you’ve guessed it, check). The only minor quibble I have, and I accept that this is entirely a me thing, is that there’s a *lot* going on and sometimes I lose track of my OO agents.

That sort of thing would never happen to M. Or Moneypenny, who is now in charge of the Double O section, and somewhat confusingly OOO, who I keep wanting to call Double O Zero rather than his official designation of Triple O. Conrad Harthrop-Vane, a triple name to go with his three Os?

Harwood has captured the feel of Fleming’s Bond world rather well. There are a lot of nods to the earlier stories, with some extended cameos from characters from On Her Majesty’s Secret Service, You Only Live Twice and others. Q is now a quantum computer so there’s no ‘Now pay attention, 007’, but then again there’s no Bond. Yet.

I enjoyed A Spy Like Me a lot, as with Double or Nothing, and am very intrigued to see where Kim Sherwood takes our dashing Double O agents next.

A Spy Like Me by Kim Sherwood is published by HarperCollins and is out now. Many thanks to the publisher for an advance copy of the book to review.

James Bond is alive.

Or at least, he was when he left a clue at the black site where the insidious private military company Rattenfänger held him captive. MI6 cannot spare any more lives attempting to track down one missing agent—no exceptions, even for Bond. But Johanna Harwood, 003, has her own agenda. Sidelined by her superiors while she grieves the loss of a loved one, Harwood goes on an unsanctioned mission: to find 007. Meanwhile, MI6 has another problem…

A bomb has been detonated in London.

Double O agents on the trail of the terrorists responsible acted quickly to prevent mass destruction and save lives. But MI6 failed to neutralize the nation’s enemies before they could strike, and one of their own was seriously injured in the blast.

They won’t fail again.

Assigned to root out the source of the terrorists’ funding, Joseph Dryden, 004, and Conrad Harthrop-Vane, 000, enter the field. Tracing clues from Sotheby’s auction house to Crete to Venice, they uncover a money laundering scheme involving diamonds, black market antiquities, and human trafficking. Once a major sale is made, a six-day countdown to the next terror attack begins. As the Double O’s follow the twisting trail, they find themselves unexpectedly inching closer to Bond…

March bookish roundup

Hello lovely reader!

March has marched on, the clocks have sprung forward an hour, I’m full of easter eggs, and without further ado, let’s have a look and see what happened with books.

Books read: 9

  • The Red Hollow, by Natalie Marlow (pbk ARC, Baskerville, March 2024)
  • West of Wheeling, by Jeffrey Tanenhaus (Houndstooth Press, kindle)
  • The War Widow, by Tara Moss (pbk ARC, Verve, March 2024)
  • Voyage of the Damned, by Frances White (NetGalley ARC, Michael Joseph, January 2024)
  • The Darkest Sin, by DV Bishop (pbk, own copy, Pan Macmillan)
  • The Chamber, by Will Dean (NetGalley ARC, Hodder & Stoughton, June 2024)
  • Hunted, by Abir Mukherjee (NetGalley ARC, Vintage, May 2024)
  • The Hungry Dark, by Jen Williams (NetGalley ARC, HarperCollins, 11th April 2024)
  • The Cracked Mirror, by Chris Brookmyre (NetGalley ARC, Abacus, July 2024)

Nine books! That’s pretty good going. Probably helped by coming down with lurgy and spending a couple of days on the sofa feeling very sorry for myself.

Full reviews to come (eventually), but it’s been a great month for books too. The Red Hollow is a fantastic follow-up to the brilliant Needless Alley – it’s very different, and spooky and I enjoyed it enormously.

West of Wheeling is about a guy who takes a Citibike from New York and (illegally) rides it across the US to California. I love a good bike travel book and this one is fascinating. Highly recommended if you like that sort of thing.

The War Widow is a cracking Australian Noir set just post WWII. Lots of detective action going on, compelling stuff.

I’ve had Voyage of the Damned on my kindle to read for a while. I started it ages ago then got promptly distracted by shiny things. Jumped back in and romped through it. A friend described it as ‘disaster queers murder on a boat’ which is a pretty good summary. Fantasy epic powers and a locked room boat mystery. Superb.

Also superb is The Darkest Sin, which I picked up in Northumberland on holiday last year thinking it was the first of DV Bishop’s Cesare Aldo books. It’s not, but very much can be read as such, and Mr Bishop himself said that he’d designed it so that if you read book 2 then book 1, you get a very different take on what happens. I shall be reading book 1 soon!

The Chamber. Well now. I’m a huge fan of Will Dean’s books, especially his Tuva Moodyson series. He’s also doing rather well with the standalones. This one is another locked room mystery with six deep sea divers locked in a hyperbaric chamber. Then one of them dies. An actual locked room. Incredibly claustrophobic, incredibly tense. Not for the faint-hearted!

Abir Mukherjee is better known for his Sam Wyndham crime novels set in Raj-era India, but he’s turned his hand to a high-tension thriller with Hunted. And jolly good it is too.

Jen Williams is no stranger to spooky and creepy, and The Hungry Dark is that and more. Gruesome at times and hugely atmospheric, this is one to read with ALL the lights on.

Finally I read Chris Brookmyre’s The Cracked Mirror, which takes an Agatha Christie-esque little old Scottish lady detective and a Michael Connell hard-boiled thrown off the force, balls to the rules detective and mashes them together into something entirely unique and very clever.

Books reviewed: 4

I reviewed some books! Look!

Books purchased: 5

  • The Last Murder At The End Of The World, by Stuart Turton (Raven Books, Waterstones special edition)
  • Smart Running, by Jen and Sim Benson (Vertebrate Publishing, April 2024)
  • All The Sinners Bleed, by S.A. Cosby (Headline, kindle ebook)
  • West of Wheeling: How I Quit My Job, Broke the Law & Biked to a Better Life by Jeffrey Tanenhaus (Houndstooth Press, kindle)
  • Everybody Knows, by Jordan Harper (Faber & Faber, kindle)

The Last Murder At The End Of The World has been on pre-order since last August, so does it really count? That said, the money came out of my account this month, so yes. It’s the signed special edition from Waterstones and looks GORGEOUS. I regret nothing. It’s got sprayed edges and a map!

Smart Running is a pre-order from the lovely folks at Vertebrate Books.

All The Sinners Bleed I bought at Harrogate last year in hardback, but this was on kindle so it’s easier to carry around. And Everybody Knows, by Jordan Harper has been recommended to me by various people so when I saw it on sale for kindle, snapped it up.

Books received:5

  • Long Live Evil – Sarah Rees Brennan (Orbit Books, ARC, August 2024)

Virtual bookpost (Netgalley/email):

  • Profile K – Helen Fields (Avon Books, April 2024)
  • The Chamber – Will Dean (Hodder & Stoughton, June 2024)
  • The Cracked Mirror – Chris Brookmyre (Abacus, July 2024)
  • How to Become the Dark Lord and Die Trying – Django Wexler (Orbit Books, May 2024)

Currently reading:

I’m between books at the moment – let me know if you’ve read anything fabulous lately!

As ever, any books in there which take your fancy? Any you’ve read and loved? Any that you’ve read and not loved?

See you next month!

Dx

The Last Murder at the End of the World – Stuart Turton

Outside the island there is the world destroyed by a fog that swept the planet, killing anyone it touched. On the island it is idyllic. 122 villagers and 3 scientists, living in peaceful harmony. The villagers are content to fish, farm and feast, to obey their nightly curfew, to do what they’re told by the scientists.

Until, to the horror of the islanders, one of their beloved scientists is found brutally stabbed to death. And they learn the murder has triggered a lowering of the security system around the island, the only thing that was keeping the fog at bay.

If the murder isn’t solved within 92 hours, the fog will smother the island – and everyone on it.

But the security system has also wiped everyone’s memories of exactly what happened the night before, which means that someone on the island is a murderer – and they don’t even know it…

Regular readers will know how much I bloody love Stuart Turton’s books. First we had the intricately plotted, fabulously mind-twistingly clever and utterly brilliant The Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle. Then we found ourselves in 1634 on the the good ship Saardam with the world’s greatest detective (albeit locked up below decks) and a growing pile of bodies in The Devil and the Dark Water.

And now, Stuart Turton, master of the impossible murder (in book form, thank goodness), is back again with his third book, The Last Murder at the End of the World.

One hundred and seven hours until humanity’s extinction. Though most of humanity is already gone, wiped out by a mysterious fog and leaving us fully in a dystopian future where a mere 122 villagers survive on a small Greek island along with three scientists. Oh, but the island is surrounded by the same strange fog that killed everyone else. Yikes.

Then one of the scientists is killed, and the defences holding the fog at bay break down. Double yikes. The book starts with ninety two hours to solve an impossible murder and save the world.

Pfft. Easy.

Turton has taken the locked room mystery and turned it into a locked island – there’s no way on or off (and nowhere to go other than that deadly fog if you did escape). And there’s Abi, the voice inside the villagers’ heads which tells them what to do and how to behave. And a strange curfew each evening where everyone falls asleep at the same time, no matter where they are or what they’re doing. And the curfew wiped everyone’s memory from the night of the murder, so whilst everyone is technically a suspect, no-one really has the knowledge or ability to do kill anyone. They’re not even really sure what murder is, and even the murder wouldn’t remember doing it.

Look, it’s hard to talk too much about this without spoiling things. It’s brilliant, it’s twisty, it plays with your perceptions and makes you question what it is to be human. It’s a shorter book than the first two, but packs so much into it. Turton was already one of my favourite authors and this book merely strengthens that.

And can we talk about that title? I was listening to a podcast earlier today (the excellent Quick Book Reviews by Philippa Hall) in which he said that in a world of one-word titles, he wanted something which jumps out and grabs the readers attention. The last murder? I’m in. At the end of the world?? I’m so in I can’t even see the way out. Genius.

I was lucky enough to get my grubby bookblogger hands on an ebook advance copy of this book to review, but I’ve had my order in for a signed special edition since last August. It should be here tomorrow, and I can’t wait to read it again.

And I hardly ever read books again, given the state of my TBR pile.

THAT’S how good it is. Go buy a copy. Buy two, one for you and one for a friend.

The Last Murder at the End of the World by Stuart Turton is published by Raven Books. Many thanks to the publisher for the advance copy ebook to review.

City on Fire – Graham Bartlett

After losing her sister to a drug overdose, Chief Superintendent Jo Howe is desperate to tackle the world of drugs that consumes the shadowy backstreets of Brighton. Operation Eradicate is her response, deploying undercover tactics to collapse drug circles while also providing treatment services to victims of drug abuse. But not everyone sees this as a positive development .The man behind Respite pharmaceuticals, billionaire Sir Ben Campbell, views Operation Eradicate as a threat to his business. His colossal empire relies on burgeoning numbers of addicts who survive on their substitute drugs. With connections in the highest levels of government, media and organised crime, Sir Ben unleashes a brutal counterattack on Jo. The question is, how will she survive this fierce onslaught?

I went to an event last summer as part of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival hosted by Graham Bartlett in which various members of the audience were set the challenge of interviewing a suspect in a murder. It was great fun and fascinating to watch what happened. I’d not read any of Graham’s books at that point, but added him to my list to check out.

And so earlier this year I was asked by the lovely folk at Allison & Busby if I’d like to read a copy of his latest book, City on Fire. It’s the third in his DS Jo Howe series, but can be read as a standalone (I’ll be going back to read the earlier books now!).

Chief Superintendent Howe is a driven policewoman, determined to eradicate the drug gangs that run the streets of Brighton. Her treatment scheme appears to be working, getting help to the addicts. But of course this riles up the drug dealers, and a certain local billionaire pharma lord is taking it quite personally.

The action pretty fast, and you have to hold onto the edge of your seat as Howe tackles both the drug gangs and the shady Big Pharma characters pulling strings at the highest levels. Chaos quickly ensues as Sir Ben’s machinations result in police shortages across the county and the drying up on the supply of the synthetic drug substitute that Howe’s drug treatment program relies on. It’s not just Jo’s work life that’s under attack, as her husband is facing issues of his own.

A taut police procedural, City on Fire is a cracking read.

City on Fire by Graham Bartlett is published by Allison & Busby in March 2024. Many thanks to the publisher for the advance copy of the book to review.