Do you love off-kilter crime thrillers? Do you love cosy crime fiction? Do you love detective procedurals? Do you love espionage? Do you love psychological thrillers?
If you answered yes to one or more of the above, then read on – because our weekly news column is full of fascinating new reads for crime fiction lovers. We start things off with Strange Sally Diamond, a book that has already generated plenty of buzz and we’re only going to add to it!
Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent
Meet Sally Diamond, a woman you’re not likely to forget and the latest creation of queen of the dark and twisted psychological thriller, Liz Nugent. Sally lives an unassuming life, until she takes her father’s dying wishes at face value and puts his body out with the rubbish. Suddenly, she is the focus of press and police attention – and also a sinister voice from a past she cannot remember. As Sally begins to discover the horrors of her childhood, she learns that people don’t always mean what they say. But who is the man keeping an eye Sally from the other side of the world? And why does her neighbour seem to be obsessed with her? Sally’s trust issues are about to be put to the test. Strange Sally Diamond is out on 2 March
Order now on Amazon or Bookshop.org
The Case of the Cursed Cottage by Cathy Ace
The women of the WISE Enquiries Agency are back in The Case of the Cursed Cottage, a new cosy caper from the pen of Cathy Ace, out now. After some decidedly spooky goings-on, Christine and Annie move into an historic cottage in a picturesque Welsh seaside hamlet. Sounds like a cushy number, as does Carol’s undercover assignment to investigate a day spa with some dangerous treatments. Meanwhile, Mavis is staking out a man who might be incapacitated because of a work-related accident. Will this brickie turn belligerent if he spots her on the job? As Henry, 18th Duke of Chellingworth, tackles the riddle of some missing silver mugs, there’s plenty of intrigue in this seventh book of the series.
Order now on Amazon
Philanthropists by Rozlan Mohd Noor
A killer is on the loose as the COVID-19 pandemic bites in Philanthropists by Malaysian author Rozlan Mohd Noor, out on 7 March. It’s the fifth in the series featuring Inspector Mislan Latif, and eight months after an assassination attempt that nearly killed him, Mislan and his assistant DS Johan Kamaruddin are investigating a double murder in a house in the Sentul suburb of Kuala Lumpur. The two victims, shot execution-style, were surrounded by a quantity of drugs but left with nothing to identify them. It’s an area awash with drugs and foreign nationals, legal and illegal and no one admits to having heard the shots. A tough enough case to crack, without the restrictions of a nationwide Movement Control Order.
Order now on Amazon
White Fox by Owen Matthews
Fans of the Cold War thriller rejoice – Owen Matthews and his creation Alexander Vasin return on 9 March. As White Fox opens the year is 1963 and Lieutenant Colonel Vasin is settling into a new post as director of a gulag camp in the middle of a frozen tundra. It’s far from a promotion, more a place where disgraced agents like Vasin are sent to disappear and die quietly. But when tensions in the camp mount and a violent revolt breaks out, Vasin finds himself on the run with a mysterious prisoner holding the most dangerous secret in the world: who ordered the murder of President Kennedy. With the deadliest spy and police organisations in the world on his tail, can Vasin keep the most wanted man in Russia alive?
Order now on Amazon or Bookshop.org
The Family Bones by Elle Marr
That old conundrum of nature versus nurture is given a fresh twist in Elle Marr’s psychological thriller The Family Bones, published on 7 March. Psychology student Olivia Eriksen’s family is notorious among true-crime buffs. Faced with a legacy of psychopathy that spans generations, Olivia has spent much of her academic life trying to untangle the reasons behind their twisted story. Then she reluctantly agrees to attend a weekend reunion with her husband to be and all manner of skeletons tumble out of assorted closets. Add in the uninvited arrival of a true crime podcaster and suddenly, it appears that Olivia is about to get all of her questions answered… in spades.
Order now on Amazon or Bookshop.org