2026
JANUARY
- Mike Hollow - The Bloomsbury Murder. Crime Fiction. ( Published 2025) 9th in The Blitz Detective series. DI John Jago is called to a terraced house in Bloomsbury, where a woman has been attacked and left to die. She seems to have been a wonderful kind lady who had opened her home to strangers displaced due to the bombing and to refugees. Which of them would have wanted to murder such a lovely lady.
- Anne Perry- A Christmas Return. Crime Fiction Novella. (Published 2017)One of her Christmas stories featuring people from her other series. I've now read them all.
- William Shaw - The Red Shore. Crime Fiction (Published 2025) The first of a new series set in Teignmouth area of Devon - and features Detective Sergeant Eden Driscoll, a Met detective who suddenly finds his estranged sister, Apple, is missing and he has a young nephew he knew nothing about. Upon arrival at his sisters home in Teignmouth he begins to suspect that his sister wasn't just washed overboard from her yacht - she would never have gone to sea at night or locked the boy - Finn- in a cabin. When he starts to investigate it brings back memories of his and Apple's own strange childhood and puts him and Finn in real danger.
- E.C.R.Lorac -Still Waters. Crime Fiction (BLCC reprint 2025 . Originally Published 1949). Featuring the Hoggetts and their friend Chief Inspector MacDonald in the Lunesdale on the edge of the Lake District. Another well written story by this author about smuggling and murder.
- Val McDermid - Winter the Story of a Season. Non Fiction (Published 2025). Val McDermid writes short pieces about her different memories of winter, from childhood through to recent times.
- Candace Robb- A Lion's Ransom. Crime Fiction. (Published 2025) The 16th book in the Owen Archer series set in York during the C14. A costly gold lion created by the goldsmiths as a gift for the new King Richard, is stolen. At the same time Owen - the King's man in the North - is hunting spies who are attacking ships and then a body is found in the river and Owen has to work out the connection between all these things.
- Sally Smith - A Case of Life and Limb. Crime Fiction. (Published 2025) Second book in a new series about Sir Gabriel Ward KC, set in 1901 in London's Inner Temple law courts. Topsy Tillotson, a young music hall star is suing a daily paper for damage to her reputation taking Gabriel right out of his comfort zone. At the same time body parts turn up at the doors of various Temple Employees including one that has fatal consequences.
- Val McDermid- Past Lying. Crime Fiction. (Published 2023) Set during the Covid lockdown of 2020 this book is the 7th in the Karen Pirie Historic Cases Unit. In this story a manuscript of a book, left to the Library, after an authors death seems to tell the story of a murder. There is a girl who has been missing for a year - is this the answer?
- S.J.Bennett- The Queen Who Came in From the Cold. Crime Fiction (Published 2025).In 1961 on the Royal train heading north an unreliable witness says she has seen a murder from her window. The Queen is in the middle of planning a state visit to Italy on the royal yacht Britannia. The Queen and her assistant private secretary get to work on the investigation which travels to Italy in a story of Russian spies during the Cold War.
7 Recently Written Crime Fiction (1 Novella)
1 Older Crime Fiction
1 Non Fiction
9 Books Read in January.
FEBRUARY
- Alan Parks - Gunner. Crime Fiction. (Published 2025) In 1941 Glasgow Police Detective Joseph Gunner is back after being badly injured in Dunkirk. The first person he sees is his old boss who asks for help with examining a body found in the wreckage as the Luftwaffe begin regular bombing of the city. As he begins to hunt for the truth it becomes obvious that no one he meets is actually who or what they say they are. Quite a violent story - this is the first of a new series by this author.
- Val McDermid - Christmas is Murder. Crime Fiction Short Stories.(Published 2020) A collection of chilling short stories
2 Recently Written Crime Fiction (1 Short Stories)
I introduced my sisters to William Shaw's books with The Birdwatcher, and I think later books in the series were hard to find at the library so they were disappointed. I will check if this new series is available here.
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