Here’s my pick of this week’s new hardback/paperback fiction titles. In some cases the eBook might already be available. My source is primarily The Bookseller, but I’ve started to include other sources to broaden the selection.
Just a reminder, I don’t have access to a complete list of titles being published, and, as I don’t see any advance copies, my choices are based on the cover, blurb, gut instinct and what takes my fancy at the time.
(NB This post features Affiliate links from which I earn a small commission on qualifying purchases)
Index
Crime, Thriller and Mystery (includes Historical Crime/Mysteries)
Historical (I tend to take this as pre 1960’s ie not in my lifetime!)
Crime, Thriller & Mystery
Gone by Dreda Say Mitchell & Ryan Carter
The deeper into the past she digs, the higher the price she must pay for the truth.
It’s been ten years since Alison’s perfect world fell apart. Ten years since her son Sam disappeared while on a family holiday. Lost at sea, they said, his body never found. And even though her brother and sister were supposedly looking after the kids, Alison will always blame herself.
Caught in a spiralling web of all-consuming grief where the lines between reality and fantasy blur, Alison refuses to let go. So when her ex-husband seeks to have Sam officially pronounced dead, Alison embarks upon a desperate and harrowing quest to discover what really happened that day on the beach.
But is the truth worth losing what is left of her sanity?
Who Will Remember by CS Harris
August 1816. England is in the grip of what will become known as the Year Without a Summer. Facing the twin crises of a harvest-destroying volcanic winter and the economic disruption caused by the end of the Napoleonic Wars, the British monarchy finds itself haunted by the looming threat of bloody riots not seen since the earliest days of the French Revolution. Amidst the turmoil, a dead man is found hanging upside down by one leg in an abandoned chapel, his hands tied behind his back. The pose eerily echoes the image depicted on a tarot card known as Le Pendu, the Hanged Man. The victim—Lord Preston Farnsworth, the younger brother of one of the Regent’s boon companions—was a passionate crusader against what he called the forces of darkness, namely criminality, immorality, and sloth. His brutal murder shocks the Palace and panics the already troubled populace.
Sebastian St. Cyr, Viscount Devlin, learns of the murder from a ragged orphan who leads him to the corpse and then disappears. At first, everyone in the dead man’s orbit paints Lord Preston as a selfless saint. But Sebastian quickly realizes that the man had accumulated more than his fair share of enemies, including Major Hugh Chandler, a close friend of Sebastian’s who once saved his life. Sebastian also discovers that the pious Lord Preston may have been much more dangerous than those he sought to redeem.
As dark clouds press down on the city and the rains fall unceasingly, two more victims are found, one strangled and one shot, with ominous tarot cards placed on their bodies. The killer is sending a gruesome message and Sebastian is running out of time to decipher it before more lives are lost and a fraught post-war London explodes.
The Penfold Manor Murders by Fiona Veitch Smith
It’s open season at Penford Manor! But someone has murder in their sights…
At Penford Manor, the guests are arriving to celebrate the start of the grouse-hunting season: lords and ladies, barons and baronesses, a Member of Parliament – and chemistry graduate turned detective, Miss Clara Vale, an old friend of the family. But Clara is no ordinary guest: she’s secretly investigating a blackmail plot against Lady Penford herself.
Someone in the house is already up to no good, but when the body of a local trade unionist is found in the grounds, Clara’s case gets even more complicated because a clue left by the body links it to the blackmail note.
Who has discovered Lady Penford’s secret? Can Clara and her trusted assistant Bella work together to find the murderer? And what do the cornflowers which keep popping up everywhere mean?
Amidst the glittering dresses and sparkling conversation of society, Clara must find the truth – before the killer acts again!
The Vinyl Detective by Andrew Cartmel
The Vinyl Detective plunges into the world of Italian movie soundtrack music in his eighth adventure that is sure to delight those who love whimsical British cosy crime. Expect laughs, LPs, cats and the return of fan favourites, Nevada, Tinkler, Stinky Stanmer and more.
Some of the greatest (and grooviest) music ever committed to vinyl has come out of Italy in the form of soundtracks—especially for that variety of lurid thriller known as a giallo. The maestros who composed these masterpieces include Ennio Morricone, Piero Piccioni, Armand Trovajoli… And Loretto Loconsole.
No one disputes that Loconsole was a genius, but was he also a murderer?
When his mistress was brutally killed in 1969, on location in Cool Britannia for a giallo called Murder in London, there wasn’t enough evidence to prosecute him. But Loconsole died in the shadow of disgrace. Now, his granddaughter Chloë has come back to England to hire the Vinyl Detective. She wants him to find an immaculate vinyl copy of Murder in London…
And to clear her grandfather’s name.
Can the Vinyl Detective and the gang—Nevada, Tinkler and Agatha—find out the truth of what happened in Swinging London more than half a century ago? And can they stay alive when there’s someone out there who’d prefer the secrets of the past to remain buried—and is more than willing to kill to keep it that way?
Murder at St Paul’s Cathedral by Jim Eldridge
May, 1941. One of the senior choristers at St Paul’s, Edwin Roberts, is found beaten to death in the crypt of the cathedral and Detective Chief Inspector Coburg and Sergeant Lampson are called in to investigate.
The dead man was far from popular. That, coupled with a small army of staff at work at the famous landmark, including those on the Night Watch striving to protect the cathedral from the worst of the Blitz, means that there is no shortage of suspects. The case is complicated further by links to the top-secret war work being carried out at Bletchley Park and by the black market in rare books and valuable art which casts its shadow over St Paul’s.
When the killer strikes again, St Paul’s is in danger of becoming known as a place of death rather than worship, and Coburg and Lampson are under pressure to get to the bottom of a fiendishly complex investigation.
The Dorset Cream Tea Mystery by Rachel McLean and Millie Ravensworth
When one of the members of The Lyme Regis Women’s Swimming Club takes on a new job cleaning holiday lets, she expects her biggest challenge to be working her way through six cottages before the next guests arrive.
She doesn’t expect a mystery.
Why is a picture in one of six identical cottages very slightly different to the others? Who is the mysterious woman who let herself in and cleaned before Rosamund got there? And what’s that awful smell in cottage number one?
As Dorset Police investigate two murders they suspect of being connected with organised crime, Rosamund’s mysteries may be more serious than she thinks. Will she and her swimming buddies be about to solve a double homicide?
The Final Wife by Jenny Blackhurst
Till death do us part…
Luke Whitney is stabbed to death. His wife Anna confesses after she is found next to his lifeless body. But if she did it, why can’t she confirm any of the details of the crime?
As police dig into the circumstances, they learn that the victim was a liar, a cheat and a narcissist. More than one person had a reason to want him dead; his scorned ex, his neglected mistress and Anna – who knows what happens to Mrs Whitneys when Luke gets bored of them.
Luke Whitney had it coming. But who made sure he got what he deserved?
General/Contemporary Fiction
Lucky Night by Eliza Kennedy
Nick Holloway is forty-six. A successful partner at a law firm, he has a gorgeous wife, a precious daughter, and a big house. If he also has gnawing disappointments, secret yearnings, and a creeping sense of opportunities wasted, well, that’s nobody’s fault but his own.
Jenny Parrish is forty. She has two lovely sons, a devoted if somewhat hapless husband, and recently is hugely successful in her dream vocation. It’s a perfect life! So perfect, she can’t help but wonder sometimes whether it’s all going to come crashing down.
For the past six years, Nick and Jenny have been meeting at least once a month and having sex. Lots of sex. Great sex. They do not discuss their spouses, they never spend the night, and they never ever talk about what their relationship means. Because this thing they have? It’s casual. Uncomplicated.
When Nick books a night at a fancy new hotel, the two decide to break one of their rules and spend the whole night together. It’s business as usual-until a fire alarm goes off. At first they think it’s a false alarm. But as the fire closes in, fear strips away their defenses and justifications, forcing Jenny and Nick to be honest, with each other and with themselves, about how they ended up in this room, and what these six years have really meant.
Ordinary Saints by Niamh Ni Mhaoilcoin
Can you imagine it? I’d say to them. Can you imagine me there in the front row in Saint Peter’s Square? The lesbian sister of a literal saint.
Brought up in a devout household in Ireland, Jay is now living in London with her girlfriend, determined to live day to day and not think too much about either the future or the past. But when she learns that her beloved older brother, who died in a terrible accident, may be made into a Catholic saint, she realises she must at last confront her family, her childhood and herself . . .
The Homemade God by Rachel Joyce
Goose and his three sisters gather at the family’s house by Lake Orta in Piedmont, Italy. Their father, a famous artist, has recently remarried a much younger woman and decamped to Italy to finish his masterpiece. Now he is dead and there is no sign of a painting.
Although the siblings have always been close, as they search for answers over that summer, the things they learn – about themselves, their father and their new stepmother – will drive them apart before they can come to any kind of understanding of what their father’s legacy truly is.
Idle Grounds by Krystelle Bamford
As always with these things it started with a birthday party.
On a bright summer day in 1989 New England, Abi, three years old, vanishes from her aunt’s secluded home. Upstairs, her young cousins are looking out of the window. Something is unfolding in the distance at the edge of the forest – something sinister that is watching them back.
The adults don’t seem to notice that the youngest of the group has disappeared. Too busy bickering over politics and reminiscing about the family’s domineering late matriarch, Beezy, they leave the children with no choice but to get Abi back themselves. As the cousins embark on a quest through their grandmother’s sprawling estate, buried family secrets come to light and long-awaited plans are set in motion. Will they lose themselves while trying to find her?
Back in the Day by Oliver Lovrenski
Last night i got woke up by marco ringing, and he was crying, he said, he died ivor, he died, and i didnt need to hear who to know, i just hung up.
Ivor and Marco have been getting high since they were thirteen, started dealing at fourteen, by fifteen they were carrying knives. At sixteen years old, they hurtle from one trip to the next, one fight to the next, always watching their backs. Ivor dreams of getting out – finishing school, becoming a lawyer, marrying the girl he loves from the corner shop – but the path he’s on only leads one way.
In flashes of firecracker prose, shot through with rare empathy, irrepressible wit and gut-punch pathos, Oliver Lovrenski gives voice to young men growing up in a brutal and chaotic world.
Miranda’s Family by Anna Jacobs
When Miranda Westerby’s estranged and unpleasant great-aunt suddenly passes away, it appears that she left a legacy behind: a home in the idyllic village of Fairford Parva, Wiltshire. However, there are strings attached to the inheritance . . .
The move prompts more discoveries about her family history than Miranda bargained for, which leave her confused and hurt. But while she might not have any flesh or blood around, Miranda does have the chance to shape a new circle of people dear to her. And perhaps find love along the way.
Secrets Beneath a Riviera Sky by Jennifer Bohnet
As one door closes, another one opens…
When Agnes Agistini receives a phone call from Theo, her brother-in-law informing her that her estranged, abusive husband Oscar has died in an accident, she feels nothing but relief. But that relief is short-lived as Oscar’s vengeance from an early grave forces Agnes to return to the place she fled from over forty years ago. A place and time she’s not keen to revisit.
At the request of a French notaires dealing with Oscar’s last will, Agnes travels to Cannes in the South of France alongside their daughter Francine and her grand-daughter Jasmine.
Agnes knows that going back will inevitably drag up deep, dark memories which she is yet to reconcile, but what choice does she have?
What she wasn’t prepared for are the family secrets that will come to light, or the cruel way in which Oscar treats her right until the bitter end.
As always Theo remains by her side, helping to navigate the myriad of bombshells Oscar leaves in his wake. But as wonderful memories begin to resurface Agnes begins to wonder if she can finally make peace with the past and find an everlasting happiness?
An wonderful tale of hidden se
The Best Days of Our Lives by Helen Rolfe
When Mallory receives life-shattering news, she decides to use this summer to make sure her family and friends are prepared for whatever might come.
But Mallory has a challenge when it comes to her mother, Gigi. Following the loss of her husband, Gigi is lonely. So when Mallory makes a shocking discovery that shows a new side to Gigi’s relationship with her estranged sister Rose, she decides to intervene and make a last attempt to reunite them.
Returning to her mother’s quiet hometown, Mallory and her cousin Penny try to get to the bottom of a dispute that has lasted more than sixty years, involving a lost wedding dress and a heartbreaking secret. But with Rose and Gigi determined to ignore their daughters’ efforts, will Mallory be able to put her affairs in order before it’s too late?
Historical
Days of Light by Megan Hunter
Easter Sunday, 1938. Ivy is nineteen and ready for her life to finally begin. In the idyllic Sussex countryside, her sprawling, bohemian family and their friends gather for lunch, awaiting the arrival of a longed-for guest.
It is a single, enchanted afternoon that ends in tragedy.
Days later, at a funeral, Ivy is kissed by the man she will marry, and grieves with the woman who will become the love of her life. And this is only the beginning . . .
The Savage Isle by Michael Arnold
The old ways are dying, and a mighty empire is reaching out across the sea.
Britannia, 42AD. The wild island at the fringe of the known world is in chaos.
Cunobelin, High King of the Britons, is dead. His heirs, warrior princes Togodubnos and Caratacos, have spurned the careful alliances that kept the irresistible might of the Roman Empire from Britannia’s shores for so long.
In this land of warriors, druids and kings, riven by conflict, orphan boy Cullen must fight for survival within a tribe he despises. Captured by the Catuvellauni after a brutal raid on his own Atrebates tribe, he must find his purpose swiftly if he is to avoid the murderous attentions of the chief druid.
As the Britons turn inward, jostling for dominion, avaricious eyes look on from across the Narrow Sea. The mighty legions gather…
Murray Hall by Milo Allan
He kept his secret for a lifetime. Now the truth will rock New York.
It is 1901, and Dr Gallagher has just pronounced Murray Hall dead. New York politico, gambler, womaniser – Hall is all these things, but when the newspapers break the news of his death to the world, they reveal a side to his identity he never wanted known, a secret no one could have guessed.
Sam Clellan, an ambitious young journalist, is determined to uncover the truth of Hall’s past, but his search leads him down winding alleys of fact and fiction. From humble beginnings in Glasgow’s tenements to a life spent rubbing up against New York’s political elite, Murray Hall is the definition of a self-made man. But the higher his status rises, the higher the stakes become.
Inspired by a true story of one Scot’s rise to prominence, Murray Hall unearths a queer past erased by history, finally bringing all the puzzle pieces together to discover the secret of this extraordinary, ordinary man, which shocked New York, America and the world.
The Cornish Witch by Elena Collins
A haunting cliffside inn. A centuries-old secret waiting to be uncovered…
Now: When Megan’s father gets a letter containing a secret from the past, he asks her to go to the Cornish village of St Mawgen Cove to get to the bottom of the mystery. Megan is happy to take a holiday after a challenging year but as soon as she checks into The Ship Inn something feels amiss. There are noises in the room above, the locals tell tales of smugglers and shipwrecks and she can’t escape the story of the witch who waits and watches from the top of the cliff.
1625: Susanna and her daughter Katel live a contented life, but without the protection of a husband and father, Susanna fears for Katel’s future as she blossoms into womanhood. The fishing community of St Mawgen Cove is close knit but when misfortune arrives in the cove, it’s not long before villagers are looking for someone to blame. And when talk turns to witches, Susanna knows she and Katel are no longer safe.
Can Megan bring peace to St Mawgen and to two women who have been broken-hearted for centuries?
Romance
Wild and Wrangled by Lyla Sage
She’s the one that got away. He’s the one that never let go.
Single mother Camille Ashwood loves a plan. But when her latest backfires, she finds herself abandoned at the altar with nowhere to live. That is, until she discovers her dream house in her hometown is available. There’s just one problem . . . the neighbour.
Dusty Tucker has spent nearly all of his adult life running from his feelings for Cam. But since returning home, the girl who was his first, well, everything has become a woman seemingly determined to keep him at arm’s length . . .
But despite Cam’s best efforts to stay away, she finds herself increasingly drawn to Dusty. And as past wounds open and feelings – both old and new – wreak havoc, Cam and Dusty begin to wonder if their first love was meant to be their last. And this time, will it be forever?
Catch a Falling Star by Laura Carter
When fate crashes the wedding…
Tropes: 💓 Second chance romance 💒 Wedding setting 🔥 Forced proximity 💼 Workplace romance 💘 Will-they-won’t-they
📸 Wedding photographer Lyra Clarkson has built a career capturing other people’s perfect moments. She loves her job – despite her family’s disapproval – but she’s never quite found her own path.
🎸 Wedding singer Guy Walker, former rock star, has hit a new low. Desperately needing cash, he’s agreed to take any gig his manager can get him, even if this new form of entertainment isn’t just singing.
As Lyra and Guy’s paths cross – in the most bizarre way possible – an unexpected kiss will change everything. But was it simply a chance encounter or is fate bringing them back together?
Now forced into each other’s lives for the entire wedding season, the unlikely pair may just figure out together how to realise both their dreams…
Bridesmaid by Chance by Meghan Quinn
When a chance at being a bridesmaid turns into a chance at being the bride . . . how could she possibly refuse?
Hudson Hopper is in some trouble. After doing his business partner a favour by hiring his younger sister, Sloane, as his assistant, Hudson very quickly finds out that she is a massive distraction.
But when Sloane is asked to fill in as a bridesmaid for another of Hudson’s business partners, she comes up with an equal trade. She’ll be a part of the regency-themed wedding – corset and all – if Hudson marries her. Sloane knows the value of the trade: he needs her, and she needs his wedding ring to get her into a high-society club and further her career.
It’s an instant no from Hudson at first, but when she convinces him that no one will find out – including her brother – and that he will certainly benefit from the marriage too . . . well, Hudson suddenly finds himself saying ‘I do.’
Pick Your Spot by Jemi Fraser
Inheriting an apple farm wasn’t on Knox’s Bingo card.
This military veteran hasn’t found his place in civilian life. Running an orchard intrigues him, as does uncovering the family secrets behind the inheritance.
When he meets the woman behind recent improvements on the farm, he knows he’s all in. But someone wants to upset the apple cart and if Knox can’t figure it out, he might lose it all
***
Love Blooms at Hollyhock Farm by Georgina Troy
Spring has sprung—and so have sparks at Hollyhock Farm!
After an amazing year looking after Hollyhock Farm, on the beautiful island of Jersey, pregnant Lettie needs to step back from farming. The problem is, with her family overseas, there’s no one to take over.
But then help comes from two places at once. Handsome fire-fighter Joe needs to escape his small home since his mother and her new husband came to stay; he offers to help run the farm in exchange for board in one of the spare rooms. Then, adventurous newcomer Skye takes the other room, excited to try her hand at farming in such an amazing place.
But managing the farm together may be more than either of them bargained for, especially as each of them drives the other crazy, in more ways than one. Will the tension get too much for Joe and Skye, or could love bloom with the Jersey flowers this spring?
So that’s all for this week.
Happy Reading!
