On the Radar – We’re feeling decidedly festive here at CFL. Santa Claus has left us a rather fine selection of crime fiction in our stocking this year. Our final new books report of 2012 gives you a sneaky peak at some of the books that you might want to grab with those Amazon vouchers you received for Christmas. It looks like 2013 is going to be a vintage year on the crime bookselves… Oh yes!
Here’s one for lovers of historical crime fiction. It’s January 1665, the opulence of Charles II’s court and the corruption of his officials is beginning to prove contentious. When a gunpowder-filled cart explodes outside the General Letter Office (GLO), Gregory’s gentleman sleuth Chaloner cannot understand why he has not been assigned the investigation, and is instead diverted onto a case involving the poisoning of birds in the King’s aviary at St James’s Park. When he discovers that his witnesses may have links to the business of the GLO, he becomes suspicious of his employer’s motives, and when they start dying, he knows he must start his own investigation. It’s out 17 January.
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The Night of Triumph by Peter Bradshaw
This too is historical crime fiction, with a dash of humour and speculation thrown in. On VE Night in 1945, the young princesses decide to don civvies and celebrate the end of the War in Europe among the masses. However, when our now queen Princess Elizabeth accidentally wanders into London’s criminal underworld, she must use all her wit and courage to escape what could be a very messy situation. If you’re into cosy crime, this one looks like it will be fun. You’ll have to wait until 31 January for this one.
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Dick Wolf was one of the creators of the TV series Law & Order, and here he presents the first in a series of thrillers focusing on the NY Intelligence Division. Special Agent Jeremy Fisk discovers a fragment of a coded message taken when Osama bin Laden was killed, which hints at a planned attack intended to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. Fisk and his partner Kristen Gersten find themselves on a man hunt to catch a group of jihadists who are determined to complete their mission. The Intercept is out on Kindle and in hardback on 1 January.
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The Killing II by David Hewson
Fans of the Danish crime drama should highlight 3 January in their diaries as David Hewson’s second book from this highly successful trilogy is due for release. Two years have passed since the Nanna Birk Larsen case and Lund is now based in the wilds of northern Denmark, having left Copenhagen in disgrace. When a female lawyer is found brutally murdered in a military graveyard, Lennart Brix recognises elements to the killing that hark back to occupied wartime Denmark. As the body count increases, he realises that Lund is the only person he can trust to solve a case that involves the Danish military and their mission in Afghanistan.
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