My Review (4 stars out of 5) Offered a job as an engineer at a boat yard, Danny realises he’s being asked to spy on the workers by the firm’s wealthy business partner, Conrad Szekely. But things get off to a bad start and Danny finds himself an unpopular and unwanted addition to a failing…
‘In Ice’ by Dave Sivers
My Review (5 stars out of 5) DI Nathan Quarrel and his team uncover a horrific scene in an apparently empty house in a Hertfordshire village. Finding three chest freezers in the basement, they discover the bodies of five naked women. As the investigation gets under way, the team realise they have a serial killer…
‘The Fear Index’ by Robert Harris
My Review (4 stars out of 5) Alex Hoffmann doesn’t care about money, but he has the means to make lots. Having developed an algorithm to generate millions on the financial markets, his method works by targeting fear. When an intruder cracks Hoffman’s elaborate security system, the millionaire is thrown into a world of violence…
‘Playing Under the Piano’ by Hugh Bonneville
My Review (5 stars out of 5) British actor Hugh Bonneville is a familiar face to audiences all over the word for his roles in Notting Hill, the Paddington films and Downton Abbey. Charting his rise to stardom from nativity play to the heights of Hollywood, he recounts the highs, lows and day-to-day life of…
‘Looking for Trouble’ by Cath Staincliffe
My Review (5 stars out of 5) Single parent and private eye Sal Kilkenny, takes on what appears to be a straightforward case when Mrs Hobbs asks her to hunt down her missing son. Initially, the search doesn’t turn up much, but as she becomes more involved, Sal realises the story she’s been told isn’t…
‘Cruel and Unusual’ by Patricia Cornwell
My Review (5 stars out of 5) When convicted murderer Ronnie Joe Waddell dies in the electric chair, Dr Kay Scarpetta doesn’t expect his fingerprints to turn up at a time scene. And why does that particular crime scene – the death of a young lad – seem to mirror Waddell’s modus operandi? Together with…
‘Longstone’ by LJ Ross
My Review (4 stars out of 5) Local historian Doctor Anna Taylor is called in to help with cataloguing after the discovery of Viking treasure off the northeast coast, but when the body of a diver is washed up, it’s time for Anna’s detective husband to step in. DCI Ryan has his work cut out…
‘The Haunting of Borley Rectory’ by Sean O’Connor
My Review (5 stars out of 5) Moving into Borley Rectory in 1928, Eric and Mabel Smith discovered a human skull in a cupboard. Subsequent events suggested the house might be haunted. Within a year, the family had moved out. Reverend Lionel Foyster and his young wife then moved in and became aware of what…
‘Black Tide’ by Peter Temple
My Review (4 stars out of 5) Having lent his son a ton of money, Des Connors is troubled when his offspring, Gary, goes missing. Asked to investigate, Jack Irish wonders if Gary has deliberately absented himself, and if so, might the reasons be the result of mixing with the wrong sort of people? The…
‘Just One Damned Thing After Another’ by Jodi Taylor
My Review (3 stars out of 5) Recruited to the mysterious St Mary’s Institute of Historical Research, Dr Madeleine Maxwell finds that some historians don’t just sit on their thumbs and read about history, but actually go there. But History has rules and trying to outdo it can incur a serious risk to health and…
Colin Garrow 