Family values. They’re so important in society, they tell us. They’re important in crime fiction too, for sure. This week we’ve got a mother-daughter investigation, some twins, an uncle-nephew heist duo, a disappeared daughter and even a family pet. Sort of.
Does murder run in the family? Find out below…
Mother of Sorrows by Jurica Pavičić
Croatian writer, scriptwriter, journalist and award-winning crime author Jurica Pavičić returns on 25 June with Mother of Sorrows, translated by Matt Robinson. It’s set in Split, where the season is over and the tourists have gone home. The languid sense of peace is shattered when 17-year-old Viktorija Zeba is found murdered. Suspicion falls on Mario, a withdrawn young man whose mother, Katja, and sister, Ines, grapple with the possibility of his guilt. For Katja, her son can do no wrong – but the more pragmatic Ines is determined to learn the truth. In a nation still healing from its historical wounds, family bonds are everything.
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My Twin the Murderer by Lindsay Kent
There’s double trouble in store when Lindsay Kent’s My Twin the Murderer arrives on 20 June. Neuroscientist Evelyn Malcolm and her twin sister Vivian – a volatile mystery writer and recovering addict – couldn’t be more different. The siblings have been estranged for years, but are thrown back into each other’s orbit when Evelyn’s secret lover is found dead… and she becomes the prime suspect in his murder. The twins’ matching DNA is found at the scene, with no explanation why. Can Evelyn trust her sister and find out what really happened? Or are there forces at work that will shatter their fragile relationship forever?
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What Can’t be Unseen by Mike Crisp
Who better to come up with a medical thriller than an NHS doctor? That’s Michael Crisp, whose debut What Can’t Be Unseen is published on15 June. Dr James Harland is a brilliant NHS physician who’s shaken when he fails to save a young migrant woman in a London emergency department. The alarm bells start to ring when toxicology results reveal an unknown pharmaceutical compound in her blood and Harland is pulled into a world of organised crime, illegal drug testing and political conspiracy. With his career at sake, is Harland prepared to risk everything and reveal what he’s learned?
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The Devil is Waiting by Gregory W Beaubien
Is robbing a gang of robbers ever a good idea? Well… probably not, as Bobby Roper and his Uncle Berg are about to find out. It’s 1985 when the pair succumb to temptation after learning that a cache of Civil War-era $20 gold pieces, worth more than a million dollars, is up for grabs. Vincent Tomasello and his gang have their sights set on the prize – but Berg and Vincent have history and it’s Berg’s chance to take revenge. And could history repeat itself? The Devil is Waiting by Gregory W Beaubien is out now and our review is coming soon.
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Collateral Death by J Kushley
Sit and stay awhile, for we have a tale to tell – of a talking dog detective called Percival Hoover. This well dressed, erudite and sharply observant Pembroke Welsh Corgi is the star of J Kushley’s Collateral Death, out now. Percival is Bellwick’s best private detective, who perceives scents as colours, creating a sensory map that reveals what others overlook. When two teenagers are found dead at the town’s abandoned docks, the police quickly dismiss it as a tragic accident. But Percival isn’t convinced, and soon uncovers a web of secrets that reaches into the heart of Bellwick’s establishment. Can this good boy crack the case? Keep an eye out for an interview with the talking dog detective coming on the site soon.
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The Girl on the Beach by Carol Snow
Sonia and Graham Starr are a golden couple. She is the sleek and intense entrepreneur; he, a boyishly handsome painter – but they make headlines for all the wrong reasons when their four-year-old daughter, Roxie, disappears into the Pacific Ocean. Months later, Colleen, the young woman who was Roxie’s nanny, returns to the beach house where she once worked and glimpses a little girl who looks remarkably like Roxie. The child runs away before Colleen can talk to her, but the sighting sends her thoughts into overdrive. Why would Roxie, who was afraid of the ocean, run into the waves alone? The child’s parents have now split, so it’s up to Colleen to find out if Roxie could still be alive… The Girl on the Beach by Carol Snow is out on 23 June.
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