On the Radar — French crime fiction comes to the fore today as we prepare for the release of the second Pierre Lemaitre thriller to be translated into English. Watch for our review of Irène here on the site soon, as well as a chance to win the book. You’ll also find a reprinted classic, a hardboiled novella, a couple of thrillers, Scandinavian historical crime (wow!), and a new novel taking Professor Moriarty as its main character. Something for everyone!
Pierre Lemaitre was co-winner of the CWA International Dagger Award last year with Alex which was so good it made our Recommended list. In the prequel, Irène, Parisian cop Commandant Camille Verhoeven is full of well being. He is madly in love with a beautiful woman, who is expecting their first child. But that well being is shattered when several brutal murders occur that appear to be based on fictional deaths created by a best-selling American novelist. Do not expect a cosy few hours with Irène. Those who have read Alex will have to endure old torments, and new readers must be prepared for shocks. Out for Kindle on 27 February, and in hardback early in March.
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The author might just be the oldest living crime fiction writer – she will be 98 in April – and is widely respected for bringing a sense of warmth and empathy when writing about her female characters. She wrote three novels featuring the investigator Mrs Norris, and this is the final one. Originally published in 1961, we are reunited with the canny Scottish housekeeper who made her debut in A Gentleman Called (1958). By contrast with Irène, this is a book which will not give you nightmares. As Mrs Norris and the Manhattan District Attourney’s office combine forces to get to the bottom of a murder, you can curl up on the sofa and luxuriate in the lost world of choleric retired generals, family secrets and strict, but doting, family retainers. Available now.
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We stay in the US now, but shoot sideways from 1960s New York to a hellish Arkansas prison. Daniel, aka Saint Homicide, is in the penn following an act of almost unspeakable violence. Is he mad? Is he a prophet? The book delves into the very nature of sanity and the destructiveness of obsessive religion. Hinkson has previously published Hell On Church Street and The Posthumous Man. Saint Homicide is a novella, but has been described as ‘a 77-page knockout blow’. Out now.
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Investigator Jefferson Winter has a very distinctive paragraph in his CV that could never have been worked for at Yale or Quantico. He is the son of an infamous serial killer. After a spell working for The Bureau, Winter now freelances and, as a result of his natural intelligence and unique family background, he finds himself much in demand. James Carol is actually a British author based near London, and so he puts his knowledge of his own backyard to good advantage by bringing Winter to the UK. In a London gripped by a midwinter freeze, the appropriately named investigator must use every ounce of his wit and wisdom to outwit a pyschopath who has a very distinctive way of dealing with his victims. Available now.
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A Go
Author HL Davis lives on Orkney, a remote group of islands of the north east tip of Scotland, but here the action ranges from the high peaks of The Andes to the below-sea-level flatlands of the English Fens. The book’s strapline is ‘A good death is better than a bad conscience’, and here we follow a group of Cambridge students from grim events almost on the roof of the world to explosive recriminations decades later in a far less exotic setting. Expect murder, seduction, vengeance, and friendship tested to its limits. Out now.
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Michael Kurland is not the first – nor will he be the last – to reinvent the work of Arthur Conan-Doyle. Holmes imitators are too many to mention, and MJ Trow wrote many books featuring the unlikely hero Inspector Lestrade. However, Kurland has chosen to feature Holmes’s arch enemy – Professor Moriarty – in a series of novels which began in 1978. Now, with Baker Street’s most distinguished resident overseas on another case, and a royal personage in grave trouble, only one brain can solve the puzzle – that of the evil professor. If you are a fan of turn of the century London, Hansom cabs, wing collars and games afoot, this may well be for you. Published on 1 March.
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Love your Nordic noir? A sucker for historical sleuthing? Maybe your dream team is here. Danish author Martin Jensen combines a loving knowledge of his native land and its history with a novelist’s awareness for plot and character. King Cnut rules a huge but unruly kingdom, as the 11th century dawns. Halfdan and his master, Winston the Illuminator, attempt to solve a brutal murder. If you thrill to wintry landscapes, monasteries, severed hands and primitive justice, then this may be what you have been waiting for. Out on 4 March.
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Just when you thought it was safe to venture out into the cobbled streets of late 19th century London, with the yellow gaslight leaking through the swirling fog – along comes another Victorian detective. Luther Darke investigates crimes that have proved too complex for the professionals at Scotland Yard. There are seven cases here for the enigmatic detective, and we are promised supernatural malice as well as human skulduggery. Available now.
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