Binary by Michael Crichton
Switch on TV over the holiday season and you will eventually stumble across a show about celebrities before they were famous. Sit back and watch Hollywood Royalty gurn on an advert or appear in an early episode of ‘Grange Hill’. Working before you hit the limelight does not happen solely to actors; authors often had a life before they put pen to paper (or finger to keyboard). Indeed, the likes of Stephen King, Jack Higgins and many others had a prolific career under a nom de plume. Michael Crichton is another such author and after his untimely death 1998 we will be unlikely to see any new works by him. Thankfully, the publisher Titan Books has gone back to his earlier days under the name John Lange to re-release some of his hardboiled crime fiction. Full review...
Monument to Murder by Mari Hannah
DCI Kate Daniels is working in Northumberland, following the discovery of two bodies buried on a beach, overlooking a beautiful vista. With no knowledge of the local community, Daniels and her loyal team have an overwhelming amount of work to do, as well as a strong sense of justice powering them on. Meanwhile, recently widowed Emily McCann is struggling to cope with a return to her prison work, as well as the added complication of a prisoner who has taken a shine to her. And the two situations are about to collide with one hell of an impact… Full review...
I Love Lucid by Mark Lingane
Lucid is more than a full-immersion role play game; it's THE full-immersion role play game. Its inventor Seth Pascal has ensured that all that needs to be done is to plug in and the player's brain will take them to the virtual world while during sleep, providing perfect lucidity and an alternative life within an avatar. However it's also becoming the game to die for. Yes, literally die for as players are being murdered while they're connected. Detective Evan Waugh is the investigator given the case to prove that he still has what it takes. However there's an added complication for both he and Seth as the investigation continues. Her name is Ellen, the woman for whom Lucid isn't just a way of life, it is her life. Full review...
Morning Frost by James Henry
In 1982 DS Jack Frost - not yet forty years old - is burying his wife, Mary. There's a good turnout for the funeral from the police force and the local Masons, which might be the reason why the local ne'er-do-wells seem to be rather more active than usual. Superintendent Mullett makes a day (and rather a lot of the night) of it, whilst Jack finds himself back at the police station and taking a call about a foot found in a field. ('We're looking for someone with a very bad limp...') Add in a rape at the local comprehensive school (hot on the heels of one near a pub) and a new computer system which seems designed to confuse and it's obvious that Jack isn't going to get much chance to grieve for his wife - not that she was at the top of his list of priorities before she died. Full review...
Saints of the Shadow Bible by Ian Rankin
Charlie Watts said that being in the Rolling Stones for fifty years consisted of a decade drumming and four decades waiting for something to happen. John Rebus - back in CID - is feeling much the same way as business is slow. He's had to come back in as a sergeant, but being back was what was important. He's not even that worried about working for Siobhan Clarke when their positions used to be reversed. On the other hand he's not pleased when Inspector Malcolm Fox from Professional Standards (or whatever they're calling themselves this week) investigates what happened some thirty years before at a station where Rebus was the new sergeant (first time round...). Fox himself isn't in the best of positions though - he's on his way back to CID where he knows that he's going to be loathed by everyone for the job he's been doing. Full review...
Almost Love by Christina James
When you pick up a crime novel and it has the weight of a brick in your hand, your suspicions aren't immediately alerted. Many a gripping tale takes a while in the telling. Full review...
Montalbano's First Case by Andrea Camilleri
Montalbano was just thirty five and he was a deputy Inspector up in the mountains, which he hated to the extent that they could put him off his food. But in the way that such things are known, he knew that he would be promoted before long. What was not known was where he would be promoted to and this worried him. If it was another posting in the mountains he would resign. His girlfriend's uncle told the couple that it was Vigata, which delighted Montalbano and he went to visit, unfortunately witnessing an assault. The wiser traffic cop in the area was otherwise engaged (chatting to a couple of dogs, as it happened...) but Montalbano was quick to correct the car registration which he'd noted down wrongly. Full review...
Closed for Winter by Jorn Lier Horst
On a remote stretch of the southern Norwegian coast sits a selection of holiday cottages – second homes for the moderately wealthy. When a man turns up to close his down securely for the winter he finds he has been burgled. What's more he finds what seems to be the culprit in the neighbouring property – stone cold dead behind his balaclava and black clothing. The explanation may perhaps lie in the fact that the secluded coastline has been often used for a different kind of crime, but even when Inspector Wisting factors drug-runners into the proceedings, his investigation will still not run according to plan… Full review...
Under A Silent Moon by Elizabeth Haynes
On the morning of the first of November 2012 the police were called to a cottage just outside a small English village. A popular, attractive young woman had been found dead and murder was suspected. Was it a coincidence that there was then a report of an apparent suicide of a woman who lived close by? Her car had rolled down into a quarry. For DCI Louisa Smith this was her first major incident and it was complicated when she found that the DI on her team was Andy Hamilton. She'd been in a relationship with him and it lasted until she discovered that he was married. Hamilton hadn't given up on her though - he was still convinced that she would come back to him. Not that he planned on it breaking up his marriage, of course. Full review...
Butterfly Grave (Murder Notebooks) by Anne Cassidy
Just before Christmas, Josh's uncle Stuart falls from a cliff in an horrific accident. Determined to help, Josh, Rose and friend Skeggsie head up to Newcastle for the festive season. Things are awkward between the three. Josh is becoming increasingly paranoid and is convinced they are being followed. Rose is becoming more and more withdrawn, fixating on the deaths she has witnessed. And Skeggsie is resentful at being forever embroiled in other people's problems when he has challenges of his own. Full review...
Bronze Gods by A A Aguire
One of the many reasons I love fantasy is discovering the new worlds that the authors have created. Where is the world? What kind creatures inhabit it? What are the customs, et cetera, et cetera. Steampunk novels are especially fascinating and steampunk mixed with fantasy is the double hit. Throw in some murder most frighteningly horrid and we have the makings of a really good time. Full review...
The Case of the Love Commandos (Vish Puri Mysteries) by Tarquin Hall
Ram and Tulsi fell in love but their different castes meant that Tulsi's family were completely against their marrying, with Tulsi's father locking her up and saying that he would hunt down Ram. The Love Commandos - a group formed to help mixed-caste couples - came to their aid, but when they liberated Tulsi, Ram was snatched from his hiding place. For Vish Puri, India's 'Most Private Investigator', it was proving to be a difficult month. He'd failed to retrieve some stolen jewels, a pickpocket had removed his wallet (and he had to depend his Mummy-ji to retrieve it) and this case just made everything worse. He could see the problem - but Vish wasn't that convinced about love matches. Then he found that his arch rival, Hari Kumar, was also trying to find Ram - but for whom? Full review...
Dead of Winter by Elizabeth Corley
Inspector Louise Nightingale is investigating a series of sexual attacks which are becoming increasingly violent. The latest victim is in hospital and Nightingale sees something of her younger self in the girl in the bed. Jenni has been sleeping rough. It's not her real name, but she's very insistent about the i. Superintendent Andrew Fenwick is brought in to investigate the disappearance of seventeen-year-old Isabel Mattias, the daughter of an artist and a rock star who died five years ago in a car crash. She disappeared from her exclusive boarding school, but has she run away or been abducted? Her friends seem unwilling to provide much information and even the teachers feel that respecting Issie's privacy is important. Full review...
We'll be Watching You by Eileen Robertson
It wasn't that Christine Brett was exactly nosy, but life hadn't treated her particularly kindly recently. Her marriage had ended in divorce and she'd lost her job. Here she was, middle-aged and back living with her mother. And checking that people were not breaking the law was a duty not a pleasure. Admittedly some of her accusations had been wide of the mark, but she had been a witness when the robbers left the hypermarket and the face of the driver of the getaway car was familiar - if only she could place it. Unfortunately Christine had cried wolf too often and the local police weren't too inclined to give her much credence. Full review...
Who is Killing the Great Capes of Heropa? by Andrez Bergen
In search of entertainment, Jack crosses over from real world Melbourne to Heropa, where he becomes (dah daaah!) Southern Cross. However there's not much time for him to acclimatise to his new lycra-clad role or his super-power. As the new addition to The Equalizers he has work to do. The heroes of Heropa are starting to die in a totally unprecedented manner so Jack joins forces with the quartet starting with an 'e' (but with a symbol looking suspiciously like a 'z) in an attempt to restore law and order and to remain alive. For the rules have changed in this once-virtual world: death in Heropa now means death in real life too. in Heropa now means death in real life too. Full review...
The Garden of Burning Sand by Corban Addison
A little girl named Kuyeya is found in Lusaka, Zambia abused, deeply shocked and badly injured. American lawyer Zoe Fleming is over there when her friend and local police officer Joseph receives the call and so her involvement begins. She's determined to help Joseph track down Kuyeya's attacker but the trail takes some surprising turns through the underbelly of Zambia, alarming Zoe with the extent of the crusade she's taken on. Full review...
Omens by Kelley Armstrong
Olivia Taylor-Jones has a charmed life. Her family is rich, her fiance perfect and though she has some questions about her career, she knows that things will work themselves out. Until she learns that she's adopted - her true parents America's most infamous serial killers. Suddenly on the run from the media, Olivia finds shelter in the small town of Cainsville. It's a strange sort of place - full of oddball characters and gargoyles that seem to only appear at certain times. Full review...
The Shadow Collector by Kate Ellis
A convicted murderess and alleged witch returns to Devil’s Tree Cottage, after eighteen years in jail for butchering two teenage girls. When bodies start falling in West Fretham just days after her release, dispatched by Wiccan ceremonial blades, she is the obvious suspect. But, for DI Wesley Peterson, something strange is going on in the village that casts doubt on the identity of the killer and on the validity of Lilith Benley’s original conviction. Full review...
The Doll's House by Tania Carver
There can be no confusion in the name of the latest Tania Carver novel. The Dolls House well and truly sums it up, which is made clear as the book opens in a very pink, very well laid out lounge with a living doll, also dressed in pink, arranging the room until it is spotless. Aside from the slightly ominous undertones and the repetition that everything must be perfect; the reader could almost be forgiven for initially thinking they haven’t picked up a crime novel at all. It soon becomes obvious that this isn’t the case though as we follow DI Phil Brennan back into that same room with the doll sat straight-backed at the precisely laid out dinner table. This time though, the doll is dead. Full review...
The Treasure Hunt by Andrea Camilleri
Life for Montalbano and his team was slow: it seemed that even the criminals were taking life easy and there was almost a sense of relief when an elderly man and his sister began firing into the street below their Vigata apartment. There wasn't a lot of news either - which was why Montalbano found himself the reluctant hero of the news programmes as he climbed up the outside of the building. What he didn't realise was that a life-sized rubber doll (you know exactly what I mean) found in the apartment would dominate his life, particularly when 'her' twin was found in a rubbish bin. I mean, where do you keep such things? In a cupboard? Under the bed? Montalbano could tell you the drawbacks of both those locations. Full review...
The Last Winter of Dani Lancing by P D Viner
There’s no good way to deal with the death of a child. When Dani Lancing is killed her parents react in different ways, but neither way is particularly helpful or healthy. And of course neither way will bring their daughter back. It’s now 20 years later and the mystery of whodunnit is still looming over Jim and Patty’s heads, though they’re no longer together. The murder of a child will do that to a marriage. Full review...
Bad Little Falls by Paul Doiron
Bad Little Falls, set in the wilds of rural Maine in midwinter, shows the unravelling mystery of a man stumbling out of a blizzard to the front door of an unsuspecting elderly couple. The man is frozen half to death and soon begins raving about a friend lost in the storm, which quickly causes a frenzied rescue mission. Soon Mike Bowditch, a game warden and Doiron’s protagonist, uncovers the missing man under a snow drift, turning the hunt into a murder investigation. Whilst this initially powerful mystery becomes gradually overshadowed by Doiron’s portrayal of Bowditch’s love interest, and at least one too many descriptions of her anatomy, it is still an interesting and baffling mystery to be unravelled. Full review...
Desert Heart: 2 (Ellen Martin Disasters) by Mark Lingane
Ten years have passed since Chasing Heart and that moment that Ellen Martin met and fell in love with Alex Heart while he was attempting to extricate her from South American impending doom. We now catch up with them to discover that Ellen has ditched Alex, has become a partner in her law firm and is about to fly out to the Middle East for important business negotiations on behalf of a client. Ellen isn't known for staying out of trouble and the Middle East isn't known for its tolerance of the mischievously danger-prone. Therefore it's not long before Ellen needs a rescuer again and, yes, it's reunion time. Full review...
Broken Angels by Graham Masterton
Despite the odd reservation, the first book in his Katie Maguire series, was good enough to have me eagerly reaching for the second, Broken Angels. Whilst Masterton may have dipped into some of the female detective clichés with his debut crime thriller, he also dipped into his past as a great horror writer and the combination worked well. Full review...
A Naked Singularity by Sergio De La Pava
You probably know that when you start a review of a book by quoting someone else that you are not really going to have anything original to say about it. Sometimes that's because it's already been lauded to the skies and you agree with every published word.
Sometimes it isn't.
Casi's voice is astonishing is one of the blurb quotes. I agree. It's just that you can still get tired of hearing it.
And I did. Full review...
Never Go Back by Lee Child
Jack Reacher is calling on a lady friend. He's never actually met her, they've just spoken on the phone, and he likes her voice. For a drifter like Reacher with nothing better to do, that's a good enough reason to head to Virginia and maybe buy her a coffee. Except when he arrives at his old unit's headquarters, the lady he wants to meet - new commanding officer Major Susan Turner - isn't there. Instead, he finds himself accused of homicide, and brought back into the army. Someone is going to be very sorry about this.
And does anyone really think it'll be Jack? Full review...