Crime and thrillers of the month – review
Agatha Christie meets Saw in rural Essex, dark secrets of the wellbeing industry uncovered and a gripping tale of revenge on the privileged
The Drowned by John Banville review – death and drizzle in 50s Ireland
Tight-lipped humour thrums through the latest in the Booker winner’s Strafford and Quirke crime series, which centres on a university professor and his missing wife
Foul play at the fish farm: ‘Nordic blue’, the hit new genre mixing noir and knitting
Satu Rämö has caused a publishing sensation across Europe – thanks to her novels about Hildur, a mindful cop who solves murders with her needle-clacking sidekick, then soothes her trauma with exercise. We meet the author for rhubarb cordials at her Iceland cottage
Attica Locke on the US election: ‘It’s white Americans that have to fix this’
The Highway 59 author discusses the influence of politics on her crime novels, how Beyoncé caused a backlash, and why Trump’s re-election is not as likely as it seems
Crime and thrillers of the month – review
A black girl goes missing in Attica Locke’s latest, brutal murder is all the rage across the US – and Londoners aren’t welcome in rural Wales
The Mystery of Little Angel Theatre review – Robin Stevens brings juicy intrigue in dynamic whodunnit
As you would expect from the queen of kids’ crime fiction, there’s a grisly murder to solve and a lineup of dubious suspects that leaves the audience abuzz with theories
The best recent crime and thrillers – review roundup
We Solve Murders by Richard Osman; Guide Me Home by Attica Locke; Five By Five by Claire Wilson; The Night of Baba Yaga by Akira Otani; I Died at Fallow Hall by Bonnie Burke-Patel
‘I wanted to write a suburban Reacher’: Richard Osman talks to Lee Child about class, success and the secret to great crime writing
The two hugely successful authors who both started in TV discuss writing as a second career, natural justice – and what they really think of literary fiction
My passionate love affair with Scotland’s largest island
On the surface, little appears to have changed in the 30 years that bestselling author Peter May has been visiting the Isle of Lewis. But tourism has had a big impact – from Sunday opening hours to a deep water port for cruise ships
We Solve Murders by Richard Osman review – his new crime-fighting team is another winner
A private security officer and the famous novelist in her charge are pursued around the world by a killer in the delightful first book in Osman’s new series
Crime and thrillers of the month – review
Bella Mackie assembles a gloriously repugnant dysfunctional family, a murderous nurse hides in a library, and a female vigilante hunts down sexual predators in a skilful debut
The Hotel Avocado by Bob Mortimer review – a not so smashing follow-up
The comedian’s flights of fancy are again to the fore in this sequel to his award-winning crime caper, but sadly, momentum and intrigue are a little lacking
The best recent crime and thrillers – review roundup
Death at the Sign of the Rook by Kate Atkinson; Guilty By Definition by Susie Dent; Sanctuary by Garry Disher; The Examiner by Janice Hallett; Sounds Like a Plan by Pamela Samuels Young and Dwayne Alexander Smith
Novelist Kate Atkinson: ‘I do feel a need to prove myself’
As her latest Jackson Brodie thriller comes out, the award-winning author discusses cosy crime, sniffy critics, and how she investigated her own family’s secrets
Crime and thrillers of the month – review
In a month full of big hitters, Kate Atkinson’s Jackson Brodie makes a welcome return, Mick Herron’s reissued debut doesn’t disappoint – and Janice Hallett is as ingenious as ever