On the Radar — This week our new books column brings you the latest in David Baldacci’s Amos Decker series, a non-fiction survey of the best historical crime fiction by expert Barry Forshaw, plus a trip to Italy. We’ve also got a good selection of indie books for you to check out.
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The Fallen by David Baldacci
Thriller author David Baldacci is one of US crime fiction’s biggest hitters, and his books have been translated into over 45 languages. On 19 April, you’ll be able to get your hands on his fourth Amos Decker novel, following on from Memory Man, The Last Mile and The Fix. Decker carries two things with him everywhere he goes. The first is the pain he feels due to the murder of his wife and daughter. The second is an uncanny memory that will not let that pain die. The latter also makes him a valued asset of the FBI, and in The Fallen Amos Decker and his partner Alex Jamieson are investigating a double murder in the town of Baronville, Pennsylvania. It turns out this killing could lead to many, many more…
Pre-order now on Amazon
Historical Noir by Barry Forshaw
One of the UK’s leading experts on crime fiction has turned his attentions to a genre that sometimes get lost in the pack. The latest in the Pocket Guide series does a fair bit of time travelling as Forshaw takes a wide-ranging, in depth and hugely informative look at a genre which spans the centuries from the mean streets of ancient Rome to the Cold War era of the 1950s. Fans of film and TV aren’t left out either. Read Barry’s feature picking 10 of the best crime novels from 10 different historical eras here. Out 26 April.
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Ghosts of the Past by Marco Vichi
The latest in the series featuring Inspector Bordelli begins in Florence in 1967, a year after the Arno river flooded, with devastating consequences for the city. Memories are still painful for the inhabitants of Florence, but Bordelli must put them to one side as he is called to investigate the murder of a wealthy industrialist, universally popular and well respected, who is found dead in his grand villa in the Fiesole Hills. There are no clues and no obvious leads in a case that looks destined to test the Inspector to his very limit. Out 19 April
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Monday’s Meal by Les Edgerton
Hardboiled author Les Edgerton serves up a menu packed with trouble in this diverse collection of 21 short stories, out 23 April. You’ll find gore here, but also a fair helping of humour too. Reformed burglar Edgerton has an affinity with the underdog which shines through in subjects that range from gullible tourists on the streets of New Orleans, to the problems of prisoners incarcerated in the Pendleton Reformatory of Indiana and the poverty of the hill people in America’s Deep South.
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Another Mother by Amanda James
The rugged Cornish coast could be purpose designed for heightening tension and emotion and is the backdrop for this psychological drama. When her adoptive mother dies Lu decides it is time to seek out her birth mother. All seems well when she meets her, Mellyn, down in St Ives but their blooming relationship starts to feel uneasy. There is something not quite right about Mellyn and as Lu unpicks the truth within her family the tension rises. We are promised some mysteries to unravel in a psychological drama with a thrilling edge and dark suspense lurking under the surface. Out now.
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Deadly Secrets by Robert Bryndza
The Detective Erika Foster series has been going gangbusters over the past few months since The Girl in the Ice was released at the end of November 2017. We are already on the sixth and Foster is investigating the death of a young woman found dead on her doorstep in South London. She soon links them to similar assaults with one macabre detail: the assailant was dressed in black and wearing a gas mask. She is still reeling from her last painful case and there is a significant threat to those close to her in this thriller that promises another gripping case for Foster. Out 10 April.
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Albatross by Ryan Sayles
There’s an unmistakeable pulp vibe to this cover and the next book in the Richard Dean Buckner series from Down & Out ticks all the hardboiled detective boxes. Buckner is the ex-homicide cop, a relentless and hard-as-nails PI who can mix it up with the toughest. He is is helping his old partner, Graham Clevenger, with enquiries into the brutal murders of two elderly nuns as they left their mission. Unfortunately, Clevenger soon has a very different lead on a startling suspect and Buckner is pitted against his friend to find the killer. Out 16 April.
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