Friday, March 18, 2022

Published 14-20 March 2022

I've expanded on my monthly listing for March 2022. These are the 15 books published between 14 and 20 March 2022. Blurbs and covers taken from Amazon. 


Allingham, Merryn - Murder at Primrose Cottage #3 Flora Steele, Sussex, 1955

Join Flora Steele - bookshop owner, bicycle rider, daydreamer and amateur detective - in her quest to solve a brand-new murder mystery!


Cornwall, 1956: When Flora Steele sets off for a peaceful vacation with crime writer Jack Carrington in his little red Austin, the last thing she expects to find is a body at their pretty rental cottage!


Shocked by the discovery, inquisitive Flora joins forces with handsome Jack to find out how the poor man came to such an untimely end in the overgrown orchard of Primrose Cottage. They discover Roger Gifford was a man with plenty of friends and the villagers seem devastated by his sudden death...


So why was he murdered? And who has blood on their hands - his estranged wife Beatrice, his wayward younger brother Lionel, or the suspicious newcomer Mercy Dearlove?


The baffling case gets even more complicated when a second man is found dead and a set of puzzling clues lead them to an intriguing wartime mystery connected to Jack's estranged father.


As old secrets emerge and Jack receives an unsettling letter, it seems the crime writer is in danger of a fate befitting his fictional characters. Will Flora be able to crack the case and save Jack? Or will this be one murder too many for Flora Steele?


Buchholz, Simone - River Clyde #5 Chastity Riley tr. Rachel Ward 

Mired in grief after tragic recent events, state prosecutor Chastity Riley escapes to Scotland, lured to the birthplace of her great-great-grandfather by a mysterious letter suggesting she has inherited a house. 


In Glasgow, she meets Tom, the ex-lover of Chastity’s great aunt, who holds the keys to her own family secrets – painful stories of unexpected cruelty and loss that she’s never dared to confront. 

In Hamburg, Stepanovic and Calabretta investigate a major arson attack, while a group of property investors kicks off an explosion of violence that threatens everyone. 

As events in these two countries collide, Chastity prepares to face the inevitable, battling the ghosts of her past and the lost souls that could be her future and, perhaps, finally finding redemption for them all.

Breathtakingly emotive, River Clyde is an electrifying, poignant and powerful story of damage and hope, and one woman’s fight for survival.


Comley, M A - The Kill List (ebook only) #15 DI Sarah Ramsey

There’s a killer on the loose, but how is he choosing his targets?

DI Sara Ramsey is about to enter the toughest week of her life. Forced to put aside a catastrophic personal problem, Sara is determined to hunt down the ruthless killer.

Will a connection between the victims raise moral issues that push her to the limits professionally?And will Sara be scarred for life by the distressing news she receives whilst dealing with the complex case?






Everett, Felicity - Old Friends

Two couples, best friends for half a lifetime, move in together. What could possibly go wrong…?

 
Harriet and Mark have it all: successful careers, a lovely house in a leafy London suburb, twin boys on the cusp of leaving home. Yvette and Gary share a smaller place with their two daughters in a shabbier part of the same borough.
 
But when the stars align for a collective move north, it means a fresh start for them all. For Mark, it’s a chance to escape the rat race; for Harriet, a distraction from her unfulfilled dream of a late third child. Gary has decided to reboot the Madchester band that made him famous, while Yvette hopes it will give her daughters what she never had herself.
 
But as the reality of their new living arrangements slowly sinks in, the four friends face their own mid-life crises, and the dream becomes a nightmare…


Falconer, Colin - Cry Justice #4 Detectives Charlie George and Clare Reeves

Most acts of violence are pretty random. But murdering someone and impaling their head on the railing outside the Royal Courts of Justice... that takes planning.


And when the pathologist finds a page from a book rammed down the dead man's throat, DI Charlie George thinks it's safe to assume that someone, somewhere, wants to send a message.

But people who have the resources to plan a murder like that also have the smarts not to get caught. So Charlie knows he has a problem.

Whoever the killer is, he doesn't think they've finished handing out their version of justice just yet. He just wishes he could summon the enthusiasm to stop them. Because sometimes people really do get what's coming to them.

And Charlie and his team are left wondering which side of the law is justice really on?


Finch, Paul - Never Seen Again

A message no one was supposed to hear.


Jodie Martindale's disappearance remains a mystery, unsolved to this day.

A message that will change everything.

David Kelman covered the story. But he made a huge mistake, which cost someone their life.

A message from the missing.

Now, he has evidence he shouldn't have. It's a message from Jodie - who has been missing for six years - but sent just two weeks ago...


Hall, J M - A Spoonful of Murder #1 Retired schoolteachers Liz, Pat and Thelma

Introducing the three unlikeliest sleuths you'll ever meet…

Every Thursday, three retired school teachers have their ‘coffee o’clock’ sessions at the Thirsk Garden Centre cafĂ©.

But one fateful week, as they are catching up with a slice of cake, they bump into their ex-colleague, Topsy.

By the next Thursday, Topsy’s dead.
 
The last thing Liz, Thelma and Pat imagined was that they would become involved in a murder.
 
But they know there’s more to Topsy’s death than meets the eye – and it’s down to them to prove it…


Jennings, Amanda - The Haven

It was meant to be paradise…

Winterfall Farm, spectacular and remote, stands over Bodmin Moor. Wanting an escape from the constraints of conventional life, Kit and Tara move to the isolated smallholding with their daughter, Skye, and a group of friends. Living off-grid and working the land, they soon begin to enjoy the fruits of their labour amid the breathtaking beauty and freedom of the moor.

At first this new way of life seems too good to be true, but when their charismatic leader, Jeremy, returns from a mysterious trip to the city with Dani, a young runaway, fractures begin to appear. As winter approaches, and with it cold weather and dark nights, Jeremy's behaviour becomes increasingly erratic. Rules are imposed, the outside world is shunned, and when he brings a second girl back to the farm, tensions quickly reach breaking point with devastating consequences…



Logan, TM - The Curfew

I should have known something was wrong. 
I should have sensed it. Felt it in the air, like the build-up of pressure before a thunderstorm, that heavy, loaded calm.

The curfew
Andy and Laura are good parents. They tell their son Connor that he can go out with friends to celebrate completing his exams, but he must be home by midnight.

The lie
When Connor misses his curfew, it sets off a series of events that will change the lives of five families forever.

The truth?
Because five teenagers went into the woods that night, but only four came out. And telling the truth might mean losing everything...

WHAT WOULD YOU DO?


Rimington, Stella - The Devil's Bargain #1 Manon Tyler

One lie put the nation at risk. Another might save it.


The new spy thriller from Stella Rimington, former head of MI5

Harry Bristow: policeman, father, chauffeur, fraud.

In 1988 Harry made one mistake: he took a bribe, letting a man he knew as Igor into Britain - and he's regretted it ever since. So when he recognises Igor many years later as his newly-elected MP, he knows he has to come clean. But the MP recognises him too - and Harry fears what he might do next.

Peter Robinson, MP: salesman, politician, bachelor, spy.

It was easy to get into Britain in 1988 as an illegal, working deep undercover, but the break-up of the Soviet Union cut Robinson off from his homeland. He's inching closer to Britain's levers of power - but now the one man who knows his secret has reappeared. With no way to contact Moscow, he must act fast to preserve his position and reap its rewards - at any cost.

Manon Tyler, CIA analyst, has just boarded a plane to London - with a report on Russian illegals to read.


Ulstein, Silje O - Reptile Memoirs tr. Alison McCullough 

Liv has a lot of secrets. Late one night, in the aftermath of a party in the apartment she shares with two friends in Ă…lesund, she sees a python on a TV nature show and becomes obsessed with the idea of buying a snake as a pet. Soon Nero, a baby Burmese python, becomes the apartment's fourth roommate. As Liv bonds with Nero, she is struck by a desire that surprises her with its intensity. Finally she is safe.

Thirteen years later, in the nearby town of Kristiansund, Mariam Lind goes on a shopping trip with her eleven-year-old daughter, Iben. Following an argument Mariam storms off, expecting her young daughter to make her own way home . . . but she never does. Detective Roe Olsvik, new to the Kristiansund police department, is assigned to the case of Iben's disappearance. As he interrogates Mariam, he instantly suspects her - but there is much more to this case and these characters than their outer appearances would suggest.

A biting and constantly shifting tale of family secrets, rebirth and the legacy of trauma, Reptile Memoirs is a brilliant exploration of the cold-bloodedness of humanity.


Waller, Anita - Mortal Green #3 Connection Trilogy

An author arrives in Eyam and moves into Leaf Cottage for a month-long research break. One morning, she sets off on a long walk around the village, but disappears while on her way back. Presumed to be working in solitude on her novel, she is not missed until her husband tries to contact her with news that their daughter has gone into early labour.


Arriving in Eyam, he contacts the Connection Agency and asks for their help. When Leaf Cottage is found deserted, so begins the hunt for the missing woman. Soon DI Carl Heaton is on the case and bodies start turning up in rapid succession.

Meanwhile, another investigator is working on a heartbreaking missing person case. But before everyone’s work is done, there will be many twists and turns in this riveting detective novel by the author of Blood Red and Code Blue.


Walters, Victoria - Murder at the Summer Fete #2 Dedley End Mystery

Six months after Jane Hunter and her granddaughter Nancy solved the murder of Lucy Roth, things are finally getting back to normal in The Dedley End village.

Having decided to plan a summer fete, they invite guest speaker, Thomas Green, a high-profile crime author back to his home village. But the other villagers aren’t as welcoming as Nancy and Jane...

When a body is discovered at the fete, killed in the exact same manner as the victim in Thomas’ book, the detective duo must band together again to solve the brutal tragedy…






Wojtas, Olga - Miss Blaine's Prefect and the Weird Sisters #3 Miss Blaine's Prefect

Fifty-something librarian Shona is a proud former pupil of the Marcia Blaine School for Girls, but has a deep loathing for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, which she thinks gives her alma mater a bad name. Impeccably educated and an accomplished martial artist, linguist and musician, Shona is selected by Marcia Blaine herself to travel back in time for a crucial mission involving Macbeth, the weird sisters and a black cat.

Unsure which version of history she’s in, Shona tries to figure out who she’s here to save. But between playing the Fool and being turned into a mouse, things don’t always go her way. Shona’s expertise in martial arts is put to the test as family tensions rise and fingers are pointed for murder. Can Shona unravel the mystery in time to complete her mission?

Never underestimate a librarian!



Wyer, Carol - A Life for a Life #3 DI Kate Young, Staffordshire

Nobody can get into the mind of an erratic killer―except an unpredictable detective.

When a young man is found lying on a station platform with a hole in his head, DI Kate Young is called in to investigate the grisly murder. But the killing is no one-off. As bodies start to pile up, she is faced with what might be an impossible task―to hunt down a ruthless killer on a seemingly random rampage.

Meanwhile, Kate has her own demons to battle as she struggles to come to terms with her husband’s death. And she is hell-bent on exposing corruption within the force and bringing Superintendent John Dickson to justice. But with the trail of deception running deeper―and closer to home―than she could ever have imagined, she no longer knows who she can trust.

With her grip on reality slipping, Kate realises that maybe she and the killer are not so different after all. But time is running out and Kate is low on options. Can she catch the killer before she loses everything?


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