The Euro Crime Favourite Reads of 2014

I've asked the recent contributors to Euro Crime to choose their favourite European reads of 2014 and a total of 61 titles have been submitted. The following favourites come from the lists submitted by: Mark Bailey, Amanda Gillies, Terry Halligan, Lynn Harvey, Geoff Jones, Michelle Peckham, Norman Price, Laura Root, Sarah Ward, Rich Westwood, Susan White and myself. The breakdown by reviewer, with additional recommendations and any additional comments they have made, can be found here. Quotes are taken from the Euro Crime reviews, unless stated otherwise.

Of the 61 titles, 20% were in translation and 42% were by female authors.

The most mentioned titles are:

3 votes:

Someone Else's Skin by Sarah Hilary

This is a terrific first book, and one of the best first books that I've read. It explores violence, particularly against women, and its consequences with a new take on this type of violence. Marnie is an interesting, immediately likeable character and her interactions with her colleagues and friends, and reflections on her own experiences bring depth to the story. The history and fragility of the women who have experienced violence is nicely explored and with sensitivity. The plot is fast moving, and has plenty of twists and turns to keep the reader guessing, including a shocking twist that transforms the way that we think about one of the key characters. A great start, and hopefully more to come from this author in the future.

2 votes:

White Crocodile by K T Medina

For a debut novel to stand out, it has to offer something special to the reader [] I was completely pulled into the world created by K T Medina. White Crocodile is a story of violence and revenge against the backdrop of mine clearance in a country still recovering from conflict.

White Crocodile is one of the best books I’ve read this year and I can’t recommend it highly enough. [From the Crimepieces review by Sarah Ward.]

The most mentioned authors (irrespective of title) are:

3 votes:

Sarah Hilary

2 votes:

Michael J Malone
K T Medina


The most mentioned translator is:

2 votes:

Laurie Thompson (Asa Larsson, Hakan Nesser)



All the titles mentioned in the best of lists:

Margery Allingham - Hide My Eyes
M H Baylis - The Tottenham Outrage
Francis Beeding - The Norwich Victims
Neil Broadfoot - Falling Fast
Paul Charles - The Lonesome Heart is Angry
Ann Cleeves - The Crow Trap
Lisa Cutts - Remember, Remember
Len Deighton - Mexico Set
P R Ellis - Painted Ladies
Karin Fossum - I Can See in the Dark tr. James Anderson
Gordon Ferris - Pilgrim Soul
Christopher Fowler – Bryant & May and the Bleeding Heart
Phillipe Georget - Autumn All The Cats Return tr. Steve Rendall & Lisa Neal
Jasper Gibson - A Bright Moon for Fools
Robert Goddard - The Corners of the Globe
John Harvey - Darkness, Darkness
Paula Hawkins - The Girl on the Train
Sarah Hilary - Someone Else's Skin
Antonia Hodgson - The Devil In the Marshalsea
Doug Johnstone - The Dead Beat
Camilla Lackberg - Buried Angels tr. Tiina Nunnally
Hans Olav Lahlum - The Human Flies tr. Kari Dickson
Åsa Larsson - The Second Deadly Sin tr. Laurie Thompson
John Lawton - Second Violin
Pierre Lemaitre - Irene tr. Frank Wynne
Anya Lipska - Death Can't Take a Joke
M J McGrath - The Bone Seeker
Adrian McKinty - In The Morning I'll be Gone
Liza Marklund - Borderline tr. Neil Smith
Malcolm Mackay - The Sudden Arrival of Violence
Michael J Malone - Blood Tears
Michael J Malone with Bashir Saoudi - The Guillotine Choice
K T Medina - White Crocodile
Kanae Minato - Confessions tr. Stephen Snyder
Thomas Mogford - Hollow Mountain
Hakan Nesser - The G File tr. Laurie Thompson
Martin O’Brien - Knife Gun Poison Bomb
Kristina Ohlsson - The Disappeared tr. Marlaine Delargy
Ben Pastor - A Dark Song of Blood
Anne Perry - Blood On The Water
Karen Perry - The Boy That Never Was
Leif GW Persson - Free Falling, As If In A Dream  tr. Paul Norlen
Anthony Quinn - Disappeared
Mark Roberts - What She Saw
Sara Sheridan - Brighton Belle
Yrsa Sigurdardottir - The Day is Dark tr. Philip Roughton
Michael Sims (Editor) - The Dead Witness
Cath Staincliffe - Letters to A Murderer
Terry Stiastny - Acts of Omission
David Thomas - Ostland
Ross Thomas - The Highbinders
P D Viner - The Last Winter of Dani Lancing
Jan Costin Wagner - Light in a Dark House tr. Anthea Bell
Tim Weaver - Fall from Grace
Jason Webster - Blood Med
Kerry Wilkinson - Crossing the Line
Andrew Williams - The Suicide Club
Robert Wilson - Capital Punishment