On the Radar — It must be a dream come true for Christine Mangan. Not only has her debut come up top of our list in this week’s On the Radar news column, but she’s also sold the rights to Hollywood and it seems that the author with a PhD in 18th century gothic literature has plenty to look forward to. And there’s more for you to look forward to as well, with six further books to tantalise your serial-killing-pulp-noir-tastebuds…
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This debut, out 22 March, has already been snapped up for a film starring Scarlett Johansson and produced by George Clooney. It’s set in Morocco in the 1950s, where newlywed Alice Shipley is shocked when a face from her past suddenly appears. She and Lucy Mason were bosom buddies until a year ago when things turned sour between them. Now Lucy is here, in Tangiers, wanting to make things right. But the decision to let Lucy back into her life is destined to drive Alice to the edge of sanity in this thriller that is being compared to the work of Patricia Highsmith and Daphne du Maurier.
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Let’s get one thing out of the way. Jodie Foster isn’t in this book. But like her famous movie it does have a panic room. That panic room is in a house on a Cornish clifftop. But house sitter Blake doesn’t know the panic room is there. Steel-lined and impregnable, it will soon be the setting for a high-tension thriller. Why? Because the house is about to be invaded by people looking for the lost millions of Jack Harness, the now missing owner of the house… Out 22 March.
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A new Det Supt William Lorimer novel set on the mean streets of Glasgow is always cause for celebration among fans of Scottish crime fiction. When Dorothy Guildford is stabbed to death at home, all the signs point to her husband, Peter, as the culprit. The forensic psychologist isn’t so sure and DC Kirsty Wilson must dig deeper to find evidence to convict Peter. Instead, things get complicated as she uncovers links to a huge people trafficking case which is being headed up by Lorimer. Then their chief suspect is brutally attacked and the case gets even more tricky when a police officer is kidnapped. Out 22 March.
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An evocative cover for this psychological thriller, the third in the series featuring clinical psychologist Dr Jessie Flynn, out 22 March. Two years ago, the body of a little girl was found on a beach, a doll beside her. Now another child is found dead in the dunes, along with another doll. Jessie Flynn is called in to help with the investigation. But she’s being sidetracked by a deeply disturbed new patient called Laura who seems determined to befriend Jessie. Then links emerge between Laura and the two dead girls and Jessie’s worst nightmare becomes reality…
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You might want to grab this release if you’ve read everything by Louise Penny and need more Quebecois noir to feed your crime-loving tendencies. We Were the Salt of the Sea is set on Quebec’s Gaspé Peninsula and features interloper Montreal cop DS Joaquin Morales. The dark, moody and dangerous waters of the Gulf of St Lawrence have a heavy role to play here as the body of the beautiful and enigmatic Marie Garant is dredged up in a fisherman’s nets. Turns out Morales is in at the deep end. Out now for Kindle.
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Rugged coastlines, misty mornings, miserable rain showers that never end – what’s not to love about the Celtic fringe setting of Anglesey in North Wales? In Doll Face, the Welsh detective DI Tudor Manx returns to hunt a killer who is terrorising the island. Victim one was 18 weeks pregnant and – bizarrely – a religious message has been found in her liver. Victim two? Well you’ll have to grab a copy and find out. We reviewed Anglesey Blue, first in the series, here.
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Matt Johnson’s conspiracy thrillers Wicked Game and Deadly Game are followed by End Game, as hero Robert Finlay’s friend Kevin Jones is arrested for the murder of Jones’ girlfriend. When Jones escapes custody, Finlay is blamed and suspended from the police. The former SAS man teams up with an MI5 agent and soon discovers that the whole thing might be a set-up.
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