KindlePrintReviews

The Tokyo Zodiac Murders by Soji Shimada

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Translated by Ross and Shika Mackenzie — Author Soji Shimada, whose groundbreaking 1981 novel has recently been translated afresh by Pushkin Press, is considered the godfather of the Shin-honkaku school of crime fiction in Japan. He inspired the New Orthodox group that aimed to return mystery fiction in…
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Book Club

Oblivion

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As titles go, Arnaldur Indridason’s Oblivion is pretty downbeat, but this is an enthralling look at the younger days of the glum Icelandic Detective Erlendur. Fans of the mature Elendur will know that one of his chief fixations is about missing persons, and this is…
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Tennison by Lynda La Plante

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Jane Tennison, a young policewoman fresh out of Hendon Training College, makes the daily journey from her parents’ comfortable flat in Maida Vale to Hackney. It’s a grim place and resolutely working class. Being a woman police constable in 1972 – the gender distinction was…
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Wylding Hall by Elizabeth Hand

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Having received 5-star reviews on CFL for her crime novels featuring rock photographer and noir anti-hero Cass Neary, a new release from US author Elizabeth Hand is always worth investigating. Wylding Hall also features photography as part of its plot, while music is integral to…
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The Forsaken by Ace Atkins

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This crime thriller series featuring Sheriff Quinn Colson of Jericho, Mississippi has been widely praised for raising the standard in Southern crime novels. It’s a puzzling characterisation. Perhaps it’s inevitable, as cultural homogenization and Wal-Mart have taken over this country, but the people didn’t behave,…
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Book Club

Blood on Snow

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Norwegian author Jo Nesbo is well-known for his Harry Hole novels. This is not one of them. Instead, Nesbo is trying something new and here we have a short noir novel with a remarkable plot and a very dark and cold atmosphere. The anti-hero of…
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