Have you discovered Quick Reads? It’s a new brand of books that are just £1 each, and are designed to be easy to read. They’re for adults who are a little less confident about their reading skills, and for anyone who wants a quick, accessible book that’s easily pick-up and put-downable. Due for release on 2 February are two Quick Reads releases falling into the crime fiction genre. This sounds like a great idea, so let’s take a first look…

First up is Dead Simple. This is a book of eight short crime stories, edited by Harry Bingham, creator of the Fiona Griffiths series. The writers include Mark Billingham, Clare Mackintosh, James Oswald, Jane Casey, Angela Marsons, Antonia Hodgson, CL Taylor and the editor himself. They’ve all appeared on our site in the past.

The second Quick Reads crime release to check out is One False Move by Dreda Say Mitchell. It’s the second in the author’s Flesh and Blood series, set on The Devil’s Estate, Essex. Coming in at 100 pages, it’s about Hayley, a woman who spends her days looking after her daughter, and her nights collecting money for a loan shark. Trouble is, one night she’s robbed, and some difficult decisions have to be made…

Quick Reads uses a slightly different publishing model. The books are from The Reading Agency, a charity that aims to foster literacy, with the support of The Arts Council England and publishing companies such as Hodder & Stoughton and Orion Books. You’ll notice that these titles have been sponsored by Galaxy chocolate – and it wouldn’t be the first time a chocolate bar has helped a book go down a little better. The series also offers romance, historical stories, self-help books and more.

You can order the books below, as well as take a look at some more close-up pictures of them.