The Collector
Written by Fiona Cummins — In January 2017 I was lucky enough to be given a debut novel to review. It stayed with me through thick and thin and ended up being one of my favourite crime fiction books of the year. That book was…
The Wanted
Written by Robert Crais — The Wanted is the 17th novel in the best-selling series about Los Angeles private detective Elvis Cole and his strong-arm sidekick Joe Pike. It also marks the 30th anniversary of their debut in The Monkey’s Raincoat. That novel collected the…
Top 10 Nordic noir novels of 2017
They’ve been saying it wouldn’t last for a while now. And that tells you everything you need to know about Nordic noir. Although this year’s crop of books doesn’t have quite the same level of electric spark as last year – when we featured the…
The Other Mother by JA Baker
Three women who share one secret create myriad possibilities in this thriller from North East-based author JA Baker, published by independent favourite Bloodhound Books. Lissy lives with her teenage daughter Rosie in a small, remote village in Yorkshire. Their home is comfortable and Lissy spends…
Philip Rafferty: Top five books of 2017
My top five this year focuses on a series of detectives, investigators and people searching their way out of investigations who are pulled back in. Martin MacInnes’ unnamed investigator is retired but takes one more case that becomes an infinite house of mirrors. Fred Vargas’…
Know Me Now
Written by CJ Carver — This is the third crime thriller featuring former MI5 operative Dan Forrester and Yorkshire-area Detective Constable Lucy Davies, who team up with their old friend, general practitioner Grace Reavey. This time out, they are in the Scottish highlands, where Grace and…
We want The Wanted
On the Radar — You know when you see something and all you can say is: “WANT!”? Well, that’s what it’s going to be like for many readers of detective fiction when they see The Wanted by Robert Crais. The title aptly suggests the reader’s…
Purity Brown: Top five books of 2017
If the difficulty of choosing a top five for 2017 is anything to go by then it’s been a bumper year for crime readers and reviewers alike. As a relative newcomer to Crime Fiction Lover, my top five also includes some books reviewed by other…