Close to Home


Cara Hunter - 2018
    Perhaps not consciously. Perhaps not yet. But they know. When eight-year-old Daisy Mason vanishes from her family’s Oxford home during a costume party, Detective Inspector Adam Fawley knows that nine times out of ten, the offender is someone close to home. And Daisy’s family is certainly strange—her mother is obsessed with keeping up appearances, while her father is cold and defensive under questioning. And then there’s Daisy’s little brother, so withdrawn and uncommunicative . . . DI Fawley works against the clock to find any trace of the little girl, but it’s as if she disappeared into thin air—no one saw anything; no one knows anything. But everyone has an opinion, and everyone, it seems, has a secret to conceal.

Black Dog


Stephen Booth - 2000
    And when her body is found in the woods, Cooper's investigation begins with a short list of markedly uncooperative suspects: retired miner Harry Dickinson, whose black Labrador discovered Laura's body, and Laura's wealthy parents. Uneasily teamed with ambitious newcomer Detective Constable Diane Fry, Cooper tests a town's family ties, friendships, and loyaties -- and finds that in order to understand the present, they must unearth the past.

Too Close to Breathe


Olivia Kiernan - 2018
    Professional. Perfect. Dead. Respected scientist Dr Eleanor Costello is found hanging in her immaculate home: the scene the very picture of a suicide.TOO LATE TO HIDEDCS Frankie Sheehan is handed the case, and almost immediately spots foul play. Sheehan, a trained profiler, is seeking a murderer with a talent for death.TOO CLOSE TO BREATHEAs Frankie strives to paint a picture of the killer, and their victim, she starts to sense they are part of a larger, darker canvas, on which the lines between the two blur.Olivia Kiernan's debut is a bold, brilliant thriller that will keep you guessing and leave you breathless.

No Way Out


D.C. Brockwell - 2020
    But what exactly does that mean and what does she want with him?Meanwhile, Detective Constable Nasreen Maqsood gets assigned to Danny’s missing persons case, and not only does she want to crack it so she can prove to her male superiors that she’s right for the job; she also wants to find Danny as they used to be old school friends.Still trapped, Danny realises there are other bees in the bunker, new ones and ones that are coming to the end of their usefulness. What happens to a bee that is taken to C Wing? What happens when your time is up? Nasreen has no idea what she’s up against and for Daniel, the clock is ticking…

Body In The Box


E.R. Fallon - 2016
    EVEN IN A HARD-EDGED TOWN USED TO DEADLY CRIMES, THIS TOUCHES A NERVE. New York Times bestselling author Da Chen has said E.R. Fallon writes the kind of stories that “. . . we stay up all night to finish.” Who dumped the boy’s body in this desolate part of the city and why? And why is he missing his spleen? BODY IN THE BOX is the first book in a gripping new mystery series featuring three very different homicide detectives. Detectives Dino Cooper and Terry Jackson have been partners and friends for years. Now a new detective is drafted in to join them: Rebecca Everhart. They must quickly learn to work together on the biggest case of their careers, the disturbing discovery of the ‘Body in the Box’, as it’s known by the captivated media and the city’s worried citizens. The case takes the three detectives deep inside the lives of Newark’s insular Eastern European immigrant community and the world of unlawful medical practices. It also brings back an eerie childhood memory of Dino’s, where a boy from his neighborhood vanished and was never seen again. What appears to be a straightforward, modern-day murder case has more to do with the past than the present, and the detectives come to a genuinely unnerving — and life-threatening — conclusion. This gripping detective novel following the work and relationship struggles of the detectives will appeal to fans of Gillian Flynn, Paula Hawkins, Dennis Lehane, or Lisa Unger. THE DETECTIVES Detective Rebecca Everhart is a tough and blunt top detective with a family background in law enforcement. She loves the surprised look on a criminal’s face when a woman arrests him. Detective Terry Jackson is a hardworking by-the-book detective, and a family man, but lately his family life has been anything but normal. Just what is that big secret his wife is hiding from him? There’s also the conflict he has with his highbrow father, who never liked cops even though his son became one. Detective Dino Cooper is a streetwise, old-school detective with a dark past and a brother who was murdered by the Irish mob. Dino’s good looks and charm allow him to sometimes bend the rules a little in the name of justice. THE SETTING Newark is the biggest city in the state of New Jersey, a gritty waterfront city with a large port. It’s a place that some call home but also somewhere many workers commute in to from the suburbs. It’s considered a dangerous city by some, but in recent years has been somewhat revitalized. One of the most diverse cities in the world, it’s a place full of life and great stories.

Talking to the Dead


Harry Bingham - 2012
    . . . At first, the murder scene appears sad, but not unusual: a young woman undone by drugs and prostitution, her six-year-old daughter dead alongside her. But then detectives find a strange piece of evidence in the squalid house: the platinum credit card of a very wealthy--and long dead--steel tycoon. What is a heroin-addicted hooker doing with the credit card of a well-known and powerful man who died months ago? This is the question that the most junior member of the investigative team, Detective Constable Fiona Griffiths, is assigned to answer.But D.C. Griffiths is no ordinary cop. She's earned a reputation at police headquarters in Cardiff, Wales, for being odd, for not picking up on social cues, for being a little overintense. And there's that gap in her past, the two-year hiatus that everyone assumes was a breakdown. But Fiona is a crack investigator, quick and intuitive. She is immediately drawn to the crime scene, and to the tragic face of the six-year-old girl, who she is certain has something to tell her . . . something that will break the case wide open.Ignoring orders and protocol, Fiona begins to explore far beyond the rich man's credit card and into the secrets of her seaside city. And when she uncovers another dead prostitute, Fiona knows that she's only begun to scratch the surface of a dark world of crime and murder. But the deeper she digs, the more danger she risks--not just from criminals and killers but from her own past . . . and the abyss that threatens to pull her back at any time.

Tied to Murder


Brian Battison - 1994
    An old-school detective who knows how to handle the law, and himself.Blonde, attractive Stella Carway is found murdered. A blue bow is tied around her broken neck and her near naked body displayed like a bizarre gift.Her stormy marriage immediately points to her evasive husband, Steven, as the killer. But Chief Inspector Jim Ashworth is not so sure...

Dead Gone


Luca Veste - 2013
    She won’t be the last.A tense, unpredictable crime debut that will not only have you gripped, but will chill you to the bone. Perfect for fans of Stuart MacBride and Mark Billingham.A serial killer is stalking the streets of Liverpool, gruesomely murdering victims as part of a series of infamous, unethical and deadly psychological experiments.When it becomes apparent that each victim has ties to the City of Liverpool University, DI David Murphy and DS Laura Rossi realise they're chasing a killer unlike any they've hunted before – one who doesn’t just want his victims’ bodies, but wants their minds too.With a series of psychological twists Dead Gone will keep you guessing until the very end.

The Jigsaw Man


Nadine Matheson - 2020
    When body parts are found on the banks of the River Thames in Deptford, DI Angelica Henley is tasked with finding the killer. Eerie echoes of previous crimes lead Henley to question Peter Olivier, aka The Jigsaw Killer, who is currently serving a life sentence for a series of horrific murders. When a severed head is delivered to Henley's home, she realises that the copycat is taking a personal interest in her and that the victims have not been chosen at random. To catch the killer, Henley must confront her own demons - - and when Olivier escapes from prison, she finds herself up against not one serial killer, but two.

The Girl in the Ice


Robert Bryndza - 2016
    Her lips parted as if to speak. Her dead body frozen in the ice…She is not the only one.When a young boy discovers the body of a woman beneath a thick sheet of ice in a South London park, Detective Erika Foster is called in to lead the murder investigation.The victim, a beautiful young socialite, appeared to have the perfect life. Yet when Erika begins to dig deeper, she starts to connect the dots between the murder and the killings of three prostitutes, all found strangled, hands bound and dumped in water around London.What dark secrets is the girl in the ice hiding?As Erika inches closer to uncovering the truth, the killer is closing in on Erika.The last investigation Erika led went badly wrong… resulting in the death of her husband. With her career hanging by a thread, Erika must now battle her own personal demons as well as a killer more deadly than any she’s faced before. But will she get to him before he strikes again?A #1 international bestseller, The Girl in the Ice is a page-turning thriller packed with suspense. If you like Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott and Karin Slaughter, discover Rob Bryndza’s series today.

Hanging Hill


Mo Hayder - 2010
    Married to a successful business man, she’s always been a bit of a dreamer. Until now.Her sister Zoe is her polar opposite. A detective inspector working out of Bath Central, she loves her job, and oozes self-confidence. No one would guess that she hides a crippling secret that dates back twenty years, and which – if exposed – may destroy her.Then Sally’s daughter gets into difficulties, and Sally finds she needs cash – lots of it – fast. With no one to help her, she is forced into a criminal world of extreme pornography and illegal drugs; a world in which teenage girls can go missing.Two sisters intent on survival. Until one does something so terrifying that there’s no way back …

Before He Kills Again


Margaret Murphy - 2020
    Seven victims so far. And he’s already got his next victim.The police can’t catch him. He leaves no trace of himself, and no one has been able to provide a reliable description of him.Detective Cassie Rowan is working undercover and on his trail. But now he has Cassie in his sights.DISCOVER A BRAND-NEW SERIES FROM ONE OF THE MOST THRILLING WRITERS OF CRIME FICTION!This brand-new, unputdownable crime thriller series from Murder Squad founder Margaret Murphy is one of the must-reads of 2020!MEET DETECTIVE CASSIE ROWANDC CASSIE ROWAN is a young policewoman who has been the main carer for her little brother NEIL since their parents died. She has to balance this role with her demanding job. She is working undercover on the streets of Liverpool trying to find the ‘Furman’, a man who has been brutally assaulting sex workers. Cassie blames herself and another detective, Wicks, for not catching him sooner. Forensic scientist Dr Ian Chan is on her side, but her boss Detective Chief Inspector Pat Warman thinks she is uncooperative and needs to work as part of a team.ALSO BY MARGARET MURPHYCLARA PASCAL SERIESBook 1: DARKNESS FALLSBook 2: WEAVING SHADOWSDETECTIVE JEFF RICKMAN SERIESBook 1: SEE HER BURNBook 2: SEE HER DIE

The Zig Zag Girl


Elly Griffiths - 2014
    They served together in the war as part of a shadowy unit called the Magic Men.Max is still on the circuit, touring seaside towns in the company of ventriloquists, sword-swallowers and dancing girls. Changing times mean that variety is not what it once was, yet Max is reluctant to leave this world to help Edgar investigate. But when the dead girl turns out to be known to him, Max changes his mind.Another death, another magic trick: Edgar and Max become convinced that the answer to the murders lies in their army days. When Edgar receives a letter warning of another ‘trick’, the Wolf Trap, he knows that they are all in danger…

The Crow Trap


Ann Cleeves - 1999
    Three women who, in some way or another, know the meaning of betrayal...For team leader Rachael Lambert the project is the perfect opportunity to rebuild her confidence after a double-betrayal by her lover and boss, Peter Kemp. Botanist Anne Preece, on the other hand, sees it as a chance to indulge in a little deception of her own. And then there is Grace Fulwell, a strange, uncommunicative young woman with plenty of her own secrets to hide...When Rachael arrives at the cottage, however, she is horrified to discover the body of her friend Bella Furness. Bella, it appears, has committed suicide - a verdict Rachael finds impossible to accept.Only when the next death occurs does a fourth woman enter the picture - the unconventional Detective Inspector Vera Stanhope, who must piece together the truth from these women's tangled lives...

The Toybreaker


Roy Chester - 2008
    They leave a sinister calling card behind: a broken handmade puppet on the child’s pillow. The press nickname the kidnapper the Toybreaker. In a desperate move, Superintendent David Mallory calls in criminal profiler Dr Hannah Nightingale to help with an investigation that is going nowhere. More children disappear and the city of Garton is on the edge of panic. A very dark mind is at work, but why does the Toybreaker suddenly change his method, adding a lock of hair to the crime scene. When a prime suspect escapes, the police appear to have reached another dead end. Will the Toybreaker be stopped before more families are destroyed? This is a fast-paced thriller that will have you turning the pages till the action-packed ending. THE DETECTIVES: David Mallory is an old-school policeman who has made some powerful enemies within his own department. DCI Gary Falcon is an ambitious young man on the rise, but his father’s legal work for the city’s criminals does not play well with his fellow officers. THE PROFILER: Dr Hannah Nightingale is an up-and-coming forensic psychiatrist who is employed as a consultant profiler by the Toybreaker team. The Nightingale family are prominent in the Garton social scene and Hannah has to fight hard to be accepted by a sceptical police force. THE SETTING: Garton is a fictional port city in the north of England. It’s faced years of industrial decline, but a strong community spirit and sense of humour give hope for revival. But there are still pockets of rundown inner-city criminality. THE TOYBREAKER is the first in a new series of crime thrillers. Great for fans of Sarah Flint, Paul Finch. Kathy Reichs, Angela Marsons, and Patricia Cornwell. OUT NOW the next book in the series: ANGER MAN. Can the team stop a killer full of rage and guilt? PRAISE FOR ROY CHESTER “Intriguing, compelling, and thoroughly entertaining” Chorley Guardian