Thursday, October 10, 2024

The Petrona Award 2024 - Shortlist

 




Outstanding crime fiction from the Kingdom of Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden shortlisted for the 2024 Petrona Award

Six impressive crime novels from the Kingdom of Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden have been shortlisted for the 2024 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. The shortlist is announced today, Thursday 10 October and is as follows:


Anne Mette Hancock - The Collector tr. Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)

Jørn Lier Horst - Snow Fall tr. Anne Bruce (Norway, Michael Joseph)

Arnaldur Indriðason - The Girl by the Bridge tr. Philip Roughton (Iceland, Harvill Secker)

Jógvan Isaksen - Dead Men Dancing tr. Marita Thomsen (Faroe Islands (Kingdom of Denmark), Norvik Press)

Åsa Larsson - The Sins of our Fathers tr. Frank Perry (Sweden, MacLehose Press)

Yrsa Sigurðardottir - The Prey tr. Victoria Cribb (Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton)


The winning title will be announced on 14 November 2024. 

The Petrona Award is open to crime fiction in translation, either written by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia, and published in the UK in the previous calendar year.

The Petrona team would like to thank our sponsor, David Hicks, for his continued generous support of the Petrona Award. 


The judges’ comments on the shortlist:

There were 31 entries for the 2024 Petrona Award from six countries (Kingdom of Denmark, Finland, France, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden). This year’s shortlist sees both the Kingdom of Denmark and Iceland represented with two novels each and Sweden and Norway with one novel each. The judges selected the shortlist from a strong pool of candidates with the shortlisted authors including Petrona Award winners, Jørn Lier Horst and Yrsa Sigurðardottir.

As ever, we are extremely grateful to the six translators whose expertise and skill have allowed readers to access these outstanding examples of Scandinavian crime fiction, and to the publishers who continue to champion and support translated fiction. 


The judges’ comments on each of the shortlisted titles:


Anne Mette Hancock - THE COLLECTOR translated by Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)

When ten-year-old Lukas disappears from his Copenhagen school, police investigators discover that the boy had a peculiar obsession with pareidolia: a phenomenon that makes him see faces in random things. A photo on his phone, posted just hours before his disappearance, shows an old barn door that resembles a face. Journalist Heloise Kaldan thinks she recognizes the barn - but from where? When Lukas’s blood-flecked jacket is found, DNA evidence points to Thomas Strand, a former soldier suffering from severe PTSD, but then Strand turns up dead in his apartment. 

This is a complex thriller of buried secrets, that beautifully wrong-foots the reader from beginning to end.


Jørn Lier Horst - SNOW FALL, translated by Anne Bruce (Norway, Michael Joseph)

The discovery of an Australian backpacker’s body in Spain prompts a group of amateur true crime detectives into action. They are scattered online around the world, attempting to solve the mystery of her death. Astri, a young Norwegian woman whose intense pursuit takes her closer than anyone else to solving the case, prepares to reveal her findings and then goes offline. When William Wisting reluctantly gets involved in the investigation, he is faced with the unusual, unorthodox investigators of varied skills and intentions, and puzzling connections. 

A slow methodological approach gathers pace and pulls readers into a complex web of low-key international ties. As always Lier Horst delves deep into the psychology and motives of the characters, creating a slow-burning police procedural of empathy and human interest, firmly rooted in Norwegian society.   


Arnaldur Indriðason - THE GIRL BY THE BRIDGE translated by Philip Roughton (Iceland, Harvill Secker)

When a young woman known for drug smuggling goes missing, her elderly grandparents have no choice but to call friend of the family, retired detective Konrád. Still looking for his own father's murderer, Konrád agrees to investigate the case, but digging into the past reveals more than he set out to discover, and a strange connection to a little girl who drowned in the Reykjavík city pond decades ago recaptures everyone's attention.

One of Iceland’s most established authors, Indriðason skilfully interweaves different timelines along with assured characterisation, in this second book to feature Konrád.


Jógvan Isaksen - DEAD MEN DANCING translated by Marita Thomsen (Faroe Islands (Kingdom of Denmark), Norvik Press)

Similar to the story of the ancient god Prometheus, a man has been shackled to rocks and left to drown on the beach. But this time it happens on the Faroe Islands. The discovery of his body throws the local community into an unsettling chaos. As the journalist Hannis Martinsson investigates, he comes across evidence of similar deaths. He realises they are linked to the events in Klaksvik in the 1950s, and a local revolt which tore the community apart. As Martinsson digs into the past, he learns about his country’s history, and the reader has a chance to discover what makes the Faroes intriguing and spellbinding. 

This is only Isaksen’s second novel to be translated into English. The contemporary Faroese crime fiction writer places his characters in the wild, beautiful, and unforgiving environment and allows them to search for truth. Dogged and uncompromising, Martinsson is a superb creation. 


Åsa Larsson - THE SINS OF OUR FATHERS translated by Frank Perry (Sweden, MacLehose Press)

Rebecka Martinsson, disillusioned with her challenging job as a prosecutor, initially has no intention of looking into a fifty-year-old case involving the missing father of Swedish Olympic boxing champion, Börje Ström. Agreeing, however, to the dying wish of her forensic pathologist friend she begins to follow links when a body is found in a freezer at the house of a deceased alcoholic. The grim realities of life in the area years ago, and the current influx of criminals attracted by developments in Kiruna make for a tough investigation and difficult soul-searching, coupled with Rebecka’s own history in a foster family.

Larsson remains a wise, observant, social commentator and creator of a gripping, suspenseful and utterly moving series, with her eye to the past and the future, and emotive style. Delicate and  relevant humour adds hope to the fragile lives of the main characters.


Yrsa Sigurðardottir - THE PREY translated by Victoria Cribb (Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton)

Kolbeinn has been called to his old home as the new owners have uncovered some photos, and a muddied child's shoe bearing the name 'Salvor'. A name Kolbeinn doesn't recognise. Soon after, his mother's carers say that she has been asking for her daughter, Salvor.

Jóhanna is working with the search and rescue team in Höfn to find two couples from Reykjavik. Their phones' last location, the road leading up into the highlands. In a harsh winter, the journey is treacherous, and they soon find the first body.

Hjörvar works at the Stokksnes Radar Station in the highlands. He's alone when the phone connected to the gate rings: the first time it's ever done so. Above the interference he can hear a child's voice asking for her mother. 

How are these events connected?

Sigurðardottir balances these three storylines, each with her trademark creeping sense of unease, in this dark and disturbing standalone.


The judges

Jackie Farrant - creator of RAVEN CRIME READS and a bookseller/Area Commercial Support for a major book chain in the UK.

Ewa Sherman - translator and writer, and blogger at NORDIC LIGHTHOUSE.


Award administrator

Karen Meek – owner of the EURO CRIME blog and website.


Further information can be found on the Petrona Award website: http://www.petronaaward.co.uk.

On social media, please use #PetronaAward24.


Tuesday, September 24, 2024

New Releases - July 2024

I'm so behind I feel that I've missed quite a few this month. As ever, do let me know! 

Here's a snapshot of what I think was published for the first time in July 2024 (and is usually a UK date but occasionally will be a US or Australian date). 64 titles this month (see above).

Please note that, unless specifically mentioned, when a book has differing print and ebook release date, I use the print release date. Translators' names are included where known.

Further to my post about writers of colour and the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, I have identified the writers of colour (that I know of) with a *** (NB. None this month).

Anthology - Murder in Harrogate (ed. Vaseem Khan)
Adams, Jane - Murder at the Hotel #10 Rina Martin, Actress
Allingham, Merryn - Murder at Cleve College #9 Flora Steele, Sussex, 1955
Baker, J A - The Guilty Teacher
Baker, J A - The Widower's Lie
Baker, J A - When She Sleeps
Brookmyre, Christopher - The Cracked Mirror
Browne, Sheryl - Keep Me Safe
Burke, Darcy - A Whisper of Death #1 Raven & Wren
Burnell, Sam - A Time To Deceive #3 Myles Devereux, Tudor Era
Cartwright, Jack - No More Blood #13 Wild Fens Murder Mystery
Cole, Karen - What She Did
Comley, M A - Gone... But Where? #24 DI Sara Ramsey
Conway, Andy - Death in Oslo #3 John Blackwood
Delargy, James - Into the Flames
Dempsey, Eoin - The Girl in the Basement
Eldridge, Jim - Murder at Lord's Station #6 Detective Chief Inspector Coburg & Sergeant Lampson
Ewan, C M - One Wrong Turn
Fielding, Liz - Murder in Bloom #3 Abby Finch, Cotswolds
Finnegan, Trish - Baby Blues #3 PC Samantha Barrie
Ford, P F - Death by Takeaway #11 Slater and Norman
Furniss, Jo - Dead Mile
Giles, Stewart - The Painter #28 DS Jason Smith
Godden, Gillian - The Street #1 Silvas
Hagan, Linda - Lasting Influence #8 Detective Chief Inspector Gawn Girvin
Heller, Mandasue - The Family
Hilary, Sarah - Sharp Glass
Hood, D K - Forgotten Girls #4 Detective Beth Katz
Hurst, Daniel - The Nurse's Lie #2 The Perfect Nurse
Irving, Alison - Her Best Friend's Husband
Jones, Carys - The Final Score
Jordan, Adele - Murder at Greenwich Palace #1 Shadow Cutpurses Tudor Thrillers
Klein, Brian - The Last Reich #3 Reich Trilogy
Leitch, Fiona - The Cornish Campsite Murder #7 Jodie 'Nosey' Parker, Chef
Leon, Donna - A Refiner's Fire #33 Commissario Guido Brunetti, Venice
Lewis, David - A Jewel in the Crown #1 The Secret Churchill Files
McCleave, Simon - Last Night at Villa Lucia  
MacKenzie, A J - City of Woe #2 Simon Merrivale
McLean, Rachel & Ravensworth, Millie - Death at Abbey Road (ebook only) #6 Diana Bakewell
Morrison, Lynn & Radcliffe Anne - The Sapphire Intrigue #3 The Crown Jewels Regency Mysteries
North, Lauren - I'm Her Mother
Organ, Emily - Death in Kensington #8 Augusta Peel, 1920s
Pálsdóttir, Sólveig - Shrouded tr. Quentin Bates #4 Guðgeir Fransson 
Penney, Stef - The Long Water
Penny, David - The Beasts of the City #4 Thomas Berrington, Ludlow, Tudor Era
Pitoniak, Anna - The Helsinki Affair
Probyn. Jack - Death's Angel #6 DS Tomek Bowen
Rhodes, GS - Deadly Secrets #4 DS Zoe Sanchez
Ross, L J - Panic #5 Alexander Gregory
Ryder, Jess - The Villa
Schmidt, Joachim B - Kalmann and the Sleeping Mountain tr. Jamie Lee Searle #2 Kalmann 
Silva, Daniel - A Death in Cornwall #24 Gabriel Allon
Slater, K L - Message Deleted
Smith, Sally - A Case of Mice and Murder #1 Gabriel Ward, Barrister, 1901
Steadman, Catherine - Look in the Mirror
Stone, Lisa - The Murder Room
Turner, A K - Dead Fall #4 Cassie Raven, Mortuary Technician
Wallace, Joanna - The Dead Friend Project
Walter, B P - The Garden Party
Ward, Sarah - The Vanishing Act #3 Mallory Dawson, Wales
Watson, Katy - Seven Lively Suspects #3 Dahlia Lively
Whitaker, Chris - All the Colours of the Dark
Whitwell, Tracy - Cross Bones #3 Accidental Medium
Wood, Trevor - The Silent Killer #1 DCI Jack Parker

Thursday, September 12, 2024

The Petrona Award 2024 - Longlist

From the press release which was embargoed until 8.00am today:

Petrona Award 2024 - Longlist 


OUTSTANDING CRIME FICTION FROM DENMARK, ICELAND, NORWAY, AND SWEDEN LONGLISTED FOR THE 2024 PETRONA AWARD 


Ten crime novels from Denmark, Iceland, Norway and Sweden have made the longlist for the 2024 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year. 


They are:

Tove Alsterdal - You Will Never Be Found tr. Alice Menzies (Sweden, Faber & Faber)
Anne Mette Hancock - The Collector tr. Tara F Chace (Denmark, Swift Press)
Jørn Lier Horst - Snow Fall tr. Anne Bruce (Norway, Michael Joseph)
Jørn Lier Horst and Thomas Enger - Stigma tr. Megan E Turney (Norway, Orenda Books) 
Arnaldur Indriðason - The Girl by the Bridge tr. Philip Roughton (Iceland, Harvill Secker) 
Jógvan Isaksen - Dead Men Dancing tr. Marita Thomsen (Faroe Islands (Denmark), Norvik Press)
Åsa Larsson - The Sins of our Fathers tr. Frank Perry (Sweden, MacLehose Press) 
Lilja Sigurðardottir - White as Snow tr. Quentin Bates (Iceland, Orenda Books)
Yrsa Sigurðardottir - The Prey tr. Victoria Cribb (Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton) 
Karin Smirnoff - The Girl in the Eagle's Talons tr. Sarah Death (Sweden, MacLehose Press)

The longlist contains a mix of newer and more established authors including previous Petrona Award winners, Jørn Lier Horst and Yrsa Sigurðardottir. 

Both large and small publishers are represented on the longlist, with Orenda Books and MacLehose Press both having two entries, and the breakdown by country is Iceland (3), Sweden (3), Denmark (2) and Norway (2). 

The shortlist will be announced on 10 October 2024.

The Petrona Award 2024 judging panel comprises Jackie Farrant, the creator of RAVEN CRIME READS and a bookseller/Area Commercial Support for a major book chain in the UK and Ewa Sherman, translator and writer, and blogger at NORDIC LIGHTHOUSE, with additional help from Sarah Ward, author, former Petrona Award judge and current CWA Crime Fiction in Translation Dagger judge.

The Award administrator is Karen Meek, owner of the EURO CRIME blog and website. 

The Petrona team would like to thank both our sponsor, David Hicks, for his continuing support of the Petrona Award and the CWA, in particular Maxim Jakubowski, for allowing Sarah to step in following the very unexpected death of our much missed judge and friend Miriam Owen.

The Petrona Award was established to celebrate the work of Maxine Clarke, one of the first online crime fiction reviewers and bloggers, who died in December 2012. Maxine, whose online persona and blog was called Petrona, was passionate about translated crime fiction but in particular that from the Scandinavian countries.

The award is open to crime fiction in translation, either written by a Scandinavian author or set in Scandinavia and published in the UK in the previous calendar year. More information on the history of the Award and previous winners can be found at the Petrona Award website.

Thursday, August 08, 2024

Award News: Petrona Award Entries 2024

I am pleased to announce that 31 of the 32 titles that were eligible for the 2024 Petrona Award for the Best Scandinavian Crime Novel of the Year have been entered by the publishers.

The winner of the Award will be announced online later this year.

The rules for eligibility are:
  • The submission must be in translation and published in English in the UK during the preceding calendar year ie 1 January – 31 December 2023.
  • The author of the submission must either be born in Scandinavia* or the submission must be set in Scandinavia*.
  • The submission must have been published in its original language after 1999.
(E-books that meet the above criteria may be considered at the judges’ discretion (does not include self-published titles))
*in this instance taken to be Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden.

More details about the award and the history behind it can be found on the Petrona Award website. The winner of the 2023 Award was Femicide by Pascal Engman, translated from the Swedish by Michael Gallagher and published by Legend Press.

The award is sponsored by David Hicks.

Entries 

[15 titles are by Female authors and 12 by Male plus 3 teams of Female and Male authors and 1 team of 2 Male authors. There are 22 translators (11 Female (15 titles), 11 Male (16 titles)) and 6 countries are represented (11 Sweden, 7 Iceland, 7 Norway, 3 Denmark, 2 Finland and 1 France).]

Maria Adolfsson - Cruel Tides tr. Agnes Broomé (F, Sweden, Zaffre)
Tove Alsterdal - You Will Never Be Found tr. Alice Menzies (F, Sweden, Faber & Faber)

Samuel Bjork - The Wolf tr. Charlotte Barslund (M, Norway, Bantam)
Stella Blómkvist - Murder at the Residence tr. Quentin Bates (F, Iceland, Corylus Books)

Kjell Ola Dahl - The Lazarus Solution tr. Don Bartlett (M, Norway, Orenda Books)

M T Edvardsson - The Woman Inside tr. Rachel Willson-Broyles (M, Sweden, Macmillan)
Anki Edvinsson - The Snow Angel tr. Paul Norlen (F, Sweden, Thomas & Mercer) 

Carin Gerhardsen - Black Ice tr. Ian Giles (F, Sweden, Head of Zeus)
Johana Gustawsson - Yule Island tr. David Warriner (F, France, Orenda Books)

Anne Mette Hancock - The Collector tr. Tara F Chace (F, Denmark, Swift Press)
Jørn Lier Horst - Snow Fall tr. Anne Bruce (M, Norway, Michael Joseph)
Jørn Lier Horst & Thomas Enger - Stigma tr. Megan E Turney (M&M, Norway, Orenda Books)

Arnaldur Indridason - The Girl by the Bridge tr. Philip Roughton (M, Iceland, Harvill Secker)
Jógvan Isaksen - Dead Men Dancing tr. Marita Thomsen (M, Denmark, Norvik Press)

Ragnar Jonasson & Katrín Jakobsdottír - Reykjavík tr. Victoria Cribb (M&F, Iceland, Michael Joseph)
Katrín Júlíusdóttir - Dead Sweet tr. Quentin Bates (F, Iceland, Orenda Books)

Lars Kepler - The Spider tr. Alice Menzies (M&F, Sweden, Zaffre)

Camilla Läckberg & Henrik Fexeus - Cult tr. Ian Giles (F&M, Sweden, HarperCollins)
Asa Larsson - The Sins of our Fathers tr. Frank Perry (F, Sweden, MacLehose Press)
Jenny Lund Madsen - Thirty Days of Darkness tr. Megan E Turney (F, Denmark, Orenda Books)

Niklas Natt och Dag - 1795: The Order of the Furies tr. Ian Giles (M, Sweden, Baskerville)
Jo Nesbo - Killing Moon tr. Seán Kinsella (M, Norway, Harvill Secker)
Jo Nesbo - The Night House tr. Neil Smith (M, Norway, Harvill Secker)

Max Seeck - The Last Grudge tr. Kristian London (M, Finland, Welbeck)
Lilja Sigurdardottir - White as Snow tr. Quentin Bates (F, Iceland, Orenda Books)
Yrsa Sigurdardottir - The Prey tr. Victoria Cribb (F, Iceland, Hodder & Stoughton)
Karin Smirnoff - The Girl in the Eagle's Talons tr. Sarah Death (F, Sweden, MacLehose Press)
Gunnar Staalesen - Mirror Image tr. Don Bartlett (M, Norway, Orenda Books)
Viveca Sten - Hidden in Shadows tr. Marlaine Delargy (F, Sweden, AmazonCrossing)

Antti Tuomainen - The Beaver Theory tr. David Hackston (M, Finland, Orenda Books)

Eva Björg Ægisdóttir  - You Can't See Me tr. Victoria Cribb (F, Iceland, Orenda Books)

Not Submitted 

Katrine Engberg - The Island (apa The Sanctuary) tr. Tara Chace (F, Denmark, Hodder & Stoughton)

And a nice graphic courtesy of Goodreads:        

Petrona Award 2024 - Eligibles

Cruel Tides
You Will Never Be Found
The Wolf
Murder at the Residence
The Lazarus Solution
The House Next Door
The Snow Angel
The Sanctuary
Black Ice
Yule Island
The Collector
Snow Fall
Stigma
The Girl by the Bridge
Dead Men Dancing
Reykjavík
Dead Sweet
The Spider
Cult
The Sins of our Fathers

Tuesday, August 06, 2024

New Releases - June 2024

Here's a snapshot of what I think was published for the first time in June 2024 (and is usually a UK date but occasionally will be a US or Australian date). 100 titles this month. If I've missed anything or got the date wrong, do please leave a comment. 

Please note that, unless specifically mentioned, when a book has differing print and ebook release date, I use the print release date. Translators' names are included where known.

Further to my post about writers of colour and the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, I have identified the writers of colour (that I know of) with a ***.

• Adams, Will - The Beowulf Murders (ebook only) #2 Warne and Elias
• Ægisdóttir, Eva Björg - Boys Who Hurt tr. Victoria Cribb #5 Forbidden Iceland
• Ailes, Kat - Dead Tired #2 Mothers' Murder Club
• Amphlett, Rachel - Hangman's Gap
• Atkinson, Heather - A Savage Betrayal #3 The Savage Sisters
• Baker, J A - Little Boy Gone
• Baker, J A - The Passenger (apa In The Dying Minutes (2020))
• Bannalec, Jean-Luc - Death of a Master Chef tr. Jamie Lee Searle #9 Commissioner Dupin
• Barnes, Kerry - Bitter Enemies #2 Carrie Verne
• Belle, Kimberly - The Paris Widow
• Bettany, Jane - Murder at Maple Grange #3 Violet Brewster
• Billingham, Mark - The Wrong Hands #2 Detective Declan Miller, Blackpool
• Bishop, D V - A Divine Fury #4 Cesare Aldo, Florence, 1536
• Boland, Shalini - The Honeymoon
• Bottini, Oliver - The White Circle tr. Jamie Bulloch #6 The Black Forest Investigations
• Boyd, Damien - From the Ashes #14 DI Nick Dixon
• Bright, Verity - Murder in Mayfair #18 Lady Eleanor Swift, 1920s
• Bussi, Michel - Nothing Can Erase You tr. Sam Taylor
• Carter, Chris - The Death Watcher #13 Homicide Detective Robert Hunter, LA
• Cartmel, Andrew - Ashram Assassin #2 Cordelia, paperback sleuth
• Chase, Eve - The Midnight Hour
• Chaudhuri, A A - Under Her Roof ***
• Coles, Richard - Murder at the Monastery #3 Canon Daniel Clement
• Corry, Jane - I Died on a Tuesday
• Craven, M W - The Mercy Chair #6 Washington Poe
• Cress, Penelope & Higgs, Steve - Death of an Ice Cream Salesman #2 Mike Atwell
• Dalgliesh, J M - The Cuillin Dead #4 DI Duncan McAdam, Isle of Skye
• Dams, Jeanne M - Village Politics Can Be Murder #26 Dorothy Martin
• Dean, Will - The Chamber
• Doherty, Paul - Banners of Hell #24 Hugh Corbett
• Dolby, Hannah - How to Solve Murders Like a Lady #2 Violet Hamilton, Victorian era
• Douglas, Stuart - Death at the Dress Rehearsal #1 Lowe and Le Breton, 1970s
• Ellicott, Jessica - Murder at an English Séance #8 Beryl and Edwina Mystery, 1920s
• Enright, Robert - Don't Say A Word #2 DS Jack Townsend
• Everett, F L - Murder on Stage #3 Edie York, 1940s
• Fitzek, Sebastian - The Eye Hunter tr. John Brownjohn #2 Alexander Zorbach
• Foley, Lucy - The Midnight Feast
• Ford, P F - A Body Under the Bridge #6 West Wales Murder Mysteries
• Frank, Matthew - The Woman Who Fell #4 Ex-soldier police detective Joseph Stark, London
• Freeman, Dianne - An Art Lover's Guide to Paris and Murder #7 Countess of Harleigh, Victorian England
• Gatland, Jack - Crooked Was His Cane #19 DI Declan Walsh
• Gatward, Davd J - Ashes of Betrayal #18 DCI Harry Grimm
• Gerlis, Alex - Every Spy a Traitor #1 Double Agent
• Giles, Stewart - Fire on the Island #13 DI Liam O'Reilly, Guernsey
• Gray, Claudia - The Perils of Lady Catherine de Bourgh #3 Mr Darcy & Miss Tilney
• Greene, Morgan - The Devil in the Dark #11 DI Jamie Johansson
• Greig, Andrew James - Silent Ritual #2 Private Investigator Tearlach Paterson, Scotland
• Griffiths, Elly - The Man in Black and Other Stories
• Harris, Oliver - The Shame Archive #3 Elliot Kane
• Harris, Robert J - Redfalcon #3 Richard Hannay
• Huber, Anna Lee - A Deceptive Composition #12 Lady Darby, Scotland, 1830s
• Hunt, Rosie - Murder at a Boarding School #6 Lady Felicity Quick, 1920s
• James, Alison - Just the Nicest Family
• Jenkins, Victoria - The Open Marriage
• Jordan, G R - A Rock 'n' Roll Murder #33 Highlands and Islands
• Jordan, Jack - Redemption
• Kaya, Kerry - Downfall #1 Carters: Next Generation
• Keogh, Valerie - The Mother
• Leadbeater, David - The Traitor's Gold #5 Joe Mason
• Lee, M J - What the Dead Want #10 DI Ridpath
• Lloyd, Ellery - The Final Act of Juliette Willoughby
• Lussey, Ken - The Eye of Horus #6 Bob Sutherland, WWII
• MacBride, Stuart - In a Place of Darkness
• Mara, Andrea - Someone in the Attic
• Mark, David - When the Bough Breaks #1 Sal Delaney, Traffic police
• Markin, Wes - The Winter Killings #5 DCI Emma Gardner, Yorkshire
• Marris, Gay - A Curtain Twitcher's Book of Murder
• Marston, Edward - Spring Offensive #11 Inspector Harvey Marmion and Sergeant Joe Keedy
• McCleave, Simon - Dead in the Water #5 DCI Laura Hart, Anglesey
• McPherson, Catriona - Deep Beneath Us
• Messina, Lynn - A Vicious Machination #12 Beatrice Hyde-Clare, Regency era
• Mir, Saima - Vengeance #2 Jia Khan ***
• Mitchell, Dreda Say (with Ryan Carter) - Girl, Missing ***
• Moore, Ian - Death in le Jardin #4 Follet Valley Mystery
• Morgan, Anna-Marie - Murder in the Bookkeeper's Attic #3 DI Grant McKenzie
• Morrison, Lynn & Radcliffe, Anne - The Ruby Dagger #2 The Crown Jewels Regency Mysteries
• Noel, Sarah F - An Indomitable Woman #7 Tabitha & Wolf
• North, Ely - Happy Camp: Discipline, Godliness, Fun #7 DCI Finnegan, Yorkshire
• Purcell, M A - Finding Hannah
• Raymond, Andrew - Cold Open #4 DCI Lomond
• Rayne, Sarah - The Murderer Inside the Mirror #2 Theater of Thieves, London 1908
• Rinder, Rob - The Suspect #2 Adam Green
• Robinson, Brooke - The Negotiator
• Robotham, Michael - Storm Child #4 Cyrus Haven
• Sinclair, J R - The Games People Play #4 DI Joseph Stone
• Sinclair, Rob - Rogue Hero
• Smith, Fiona Veitch - The Pyramid Murders #3 Miss Clara Vale, 1929
• Speechley, Ruby - Guilty
• Thomas, Sherry - A Ruse of Shadows #8 Lady Sherlock
• Tobin, Sam - Settle the Score #4 Manchester Underworld
• Vincent, Yvonne - Game of Trust #8 Losers Club, Scotland
• Walker, Martin - A Grave in the Woods #17 Bruno, Chief of Police, France
• Warren, Nancy - Death at Darrington Manor #2 Abigail Dixon, American reporter, 1920s
• Weaver, Ashley - Locked in Pursuit #4 Electra McDonnell
• Wells, Kate - A Body by the Henhouse #3 Jude Gray
• Wilson, Alexandra - The Witness #1 Rosa, Barrister ***
• Winspear, Jacqueline - The Comfort of Ghosts #18 Maisie Dobbs, Psychologist and Investigator, 1930s London
• Woods, Karen - The Trade
• Yokomizo, Seishi - The Little Sparrow Murders tr. Bryan Karetnyk #17 Kosuke Kindaichi, PI
• Zaidi, Malia - A Grave Betrayal #7 Lady Evelyn ***

Friday, July 19, 2024

Blog Tour: Extract from Shrouded by Sólveig Pálsdóttir tr. Quentin Bates

Welcome to the latest stop on the blog tour for Shrouded by Sólveig Pálsdóttir translated by Quentin Bates. 

I am very pleased to be able to share an extract from Shrouded, the fourth to be translated into English, in this Icelandic 'Ice and Crime' series which began with The Fox, and was followed by Silenced and then Harm.

A retired, reclusive woman is found on a bitter winter morning, clubbed to death in Reykjavik's old graveyard.

Detectives Guðgeir and Elsa Guðrún face one of their toughest cases yet, as they try to piece together the details of Arnhildur's austere life in her Red House in the oldest part of the city.

Why was this solitary, private woman attending séances, and why was she determined to keep her severe financial difficulties so secret?

Could the truth be buried deep in her past and a long history of family enmity, or could there be something more?

A stranger keeps a watchful eye on the graveyard and Arnhildur's house. With the detectives running out of leads, could the Medium, blessed and cursed with uncanny abilities, shed any light on Arnhildur’s lonely death?



Extract

She again felt her own rapid heartbeat and her breath came with difficulty. The events of the evening had certainly been distressing enough to upset her and she felt a deep fatigue that settled on her whole body. Every step was an effort and the snow that clung to her boots seemed to be as heavy as lead. After making her way along Suðurgata, she had no choice but to pause and lean against the graveyard wall. She felt faint, could barely breathe and the weight in her chest was increasing. What was wrong with her? Was this a heart attack? Shouldn’t she feel her arm tingling? Or was this a stroke, but wasn’t a terrible headache a warning of what was to come? Arnhildur pulled off a glove and felt in her pocket for her old-fashioned phone. She was frightened but didn’t know who to call. Now she had the feeling that a brick had been placed on her chest. Terrified, she tried to think of anyone she could call for help, but nobody came to mind. She’d have to call an ambulance. She tried to punch in the emergency number but wasn’t sure if she was finding the right buttons. Now she couldn’t see clearly, and tried to feel for the buttons, but arthritis had robbed her fingertips of any sensitivity. Something crunched in the snow behind her. Now someone would undoubtedly come to her aid. She looked over the graveyard wall, peering among the gravestones and the bare branches, but saw nothing there but darkness. She glanced around, but the street was as deserted as before. Once again, she heard the clear crunch of footsteps coming her way. Someone was coming through the graveyard.

Hello? Anyone there?’ she called out as loudly as she could. There was no response and she couldn’t be sure that her voice was audible. ‘Will you help me? Hello? Help, please.’ Her voice was faint but she hoped it would carry through the winter silence.

There was no response, but she could hear and sense more clearly that someone was approaching.

I need help…’ She hesitated at the sound of something breaking, a tree branch broken off. What was going on? She pressed herself against the graveyard wall, knowing that she had to support herself while the world spun around her. The sound of panting breaths drew closer, and then there was a voice that said something she was unable to make out clearly.

Who’s there?’ The weight in her chest was increasing. ‘Hello!’

There was nothing to be seen across the street, not even the pavement, just the dim glow of lights from houses and along the street by the lake.

Who are you?’ Arnhildur whispered, her voice feeble. She was faint and she heard a sound, almost like the howl of a dog, but couldn’t be sure if it came from her or someone else. Was she suffering an attack that distorted her senses? She summoned the last of her energy to ask again for assistance.

Could you help me? I can’t see the buttons…’

Before she could say any more, she felt a heavy blow to her head and shards of pain flashed through her nerves. She dropped to her knees. Heavy breaths and gasps could be heard, someone swearing.

This was a voice she’d heard before and she tried to see who was speaking, but saw nothing even though she felt that her eyes were open. Now she sensed that hands were grasping her under the arms and she was being dragged. There was an indistinct scraping sound, panting and her body bumped across the uneven ground, but she no longer felt anything. Then there was another blow, and the ice-cold snow settled to cover ​her​.


***

Many thanks to Ewa, Sólveig, Quentin and Corylus Books for this extract and the opportunity to be involved.

Now check out the rest of the Tour!



Friday, June 14, 2024

New Releases - May 2024

Here's a snapshot of what I think was published for the first time in May 2024 (and is usually a UK date but occasionally will be a US or Australian date). 113 titles this month. If I've missed anything or got the date wrong, do please leave a comment. 

Please note that, unless specifically mentioned, when a book has differing print and ebook release date, I use the print release date. Translators' names are included where known.

Further to my post about writers of colour and the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, I have identified the writers of colour (that I know of) with a ***.


Allan, Claire - The Affair
Arlidge, M J & Julia Crouch - The Wrong Child
Baldwin, Jackie - Murder at Whiteadder House #3 Detective Grace McKenna, Edinburgh
Bell, Alice - Displeasure Island #2 Claire Hendricks
Belshaw, T A - Murder on the Medway #4 Amy Rowlings, 1939
Blómkvist, Stella - Murder Under the Midnight Sun tr. Quentin Bates #8 Stella Blómkvist, Lawyer
Bond, Martha - Murder in the Bay #4 Lottie Sprigg Country House
Brody, Frances - Six Motives for Murder #2 Nell Lewis, Prison Governor, Yorkshire, 1960s
Brook, Lee - The Stalker's Twisted Game #16 West Yorkshire Crime
Buckley, Fiona - To Seize a Queen #23 Ursula Blanchard, an Elizabethan lady
Burrowes, Grace - A Gentleman in Search of a Wife #5 The Lord Julian Mysteries
Calvey, Linda - Faith
Campbell, AJ - Did I Kill My Husband?
Cartwright, Jack - A Secret To Die For #2 DCI Cook, Lincolnshire
Christer, Sam - Jasmine, Rose Petals and Murder (ebook only)
Connolly, John - The Instruments of Darkness #21 Charlie Parker, PI, Maine
Cooksley, Jody - The Small Museum
Creed, Ben - Man of Bones #3 Revol Rossel
Cress, Penelope & Higgs, Steve - Death by Dickens #1 Mike Atwell
Dawson, Mark - Dead of Winter (ebook only) #4 Charlie Cooper
Dixon Helena Murder on the French Riviera 16 Miss Underhay
Ellis, Emmy - Grabbed #4 DI Tracy Collier
Ellis, Emmy - Sunk #5 DI Tracy Collier
Ellis, Emmy - Rhombus #28 Cardigan Estate
Field, David - Unhallowed Ground #1 DCI Mike Saxby
Field, David - The Slaughtered Widow #3 Bailiff Mountsorrel Tudor Mysteries
Flatland, Helga - Toxic tr. Matt Bagguley
Ford, P F - Death in a Skip #8 Slater and Norman
Ford, P F - Death of a Pensioner #9 Slater and Norman
Fraine, A L - An Ill Wind #6 Detective Loxley, Nottinghamshire
Galloway, K T - Vanishing Act #9 O'Malley & Swift
Gardner, Ashley - A Darkness in Seven Dials #17 Captain Lacey, Regency Era
Gardner, Frank - Invasion #4 Luke Carlton, Ex-Special Boat Service commando
Gatland, Jack - Broad Sword #6 Tom Marlowe
Grant, Tracy - The O'Roarke Affair #29 Rannoch Fraser
Greene, Morgan - The Trade
Greenwood, Ross - Death in Bacton Wood #3 DS Ashley Knight, Norfolk
Harris, Theo - Born to Kill #7 DC Kendra March
Harrow, Ruth - The Guilty Girl
Hawkswood, Sarah - Litany of Lies #12 Bradecote and Catchpoll, Worcestershire, C12
Hayder, Mo - Bonehead
Hedgecock, Liz & Harmon, Paula - Murder at Work #5 Booker & Fitch
Holland, Sam - The Puppet Master #3 Major Crimes
Hood, D K - Eyes Tight Shut #22 Detectives Kane and Alton
Hunter, Alice - Bad Apple
Hunter, Evie - The Takedown
Hurst, Daniel - The Family Trip
James, P C - Ramsay and the Smuggling Ring #2 One Man and His Dog, 1960s
James, Peter - They Thought I Was Dead: Sandy's Story #20 Detective Superintendent Roy Grace, Brighton
Jordan, G R - The Esoteric Tear #32 Highlands and Islands
Kabler, Jackie - The Life Sentence
Kinsey, T E - An Assassination on the Agenda #11 Lady Emily Hardcastle, 1908
Kovach, Carla - Her Last Goodbye #15 Detective Gina Harte
Lackberg, Camilla - The Cuckoo tr. Ian Giles #11 Patrik Hedstrom and Erica Falck, Fjallbacka
Lane, Anna Sayburn - Death at Chelsea #3 Marjorie, 1920s
Louth, Nick - The Two Deaths of Ruth Lyle #1 DI Jan Talantire, Devon
Lynch, Rachel - Shared Remains #12 DI Kelly Porter, Lake District
McCleave, Simon - The Llangollen Killings #19 DI Ruth Hunter
McGowan, Claire - Truth Truth Lie
MacIntyre, Colin - When the Needle Drops #1 Mull Mysteries
McLean, Rachel (with Joel Hames) - The Cairn #3 Cumbria Crime
McLean, Rachel (with Millie Ravensworth) - Death at St Paul's Cathedral #5 Diana Bakewell
MacNeal, Susan Elia - The Last Hope #11 Maggie Hope
McPherson, Catriona - The Witching Hour #16 Dandy Gilver, Society Sleuth, 1920s Scotland
McPhillips, Fiona - When We Were Silent
Mackenzie, M R - The Reckoning #5 Anna Scavolini
Madeley, Richard - Father's Day
Manning, Nina - Her Last Summer
Mariani, Scott - The Golden Library #29 Ben Hope, Ex-SAS
Markin, Wes - The Secret Diary of Lacey Ray #8 DCI Yorke
Marsons, Angela - Guilty Mothers #20 DI Kim Stone
Martin, Faith - Murder On the Train #21 DI Hillary Greene, Oxfordshire
Maslen, Andy - The Unseen Sister #2 Detective Kat Ballantyne
Mason, Kelly - A Mystery at Moor House #3 Lady Ellen Investigates, 1920s
Masters, S R - How to Kill with Kindness
Matheson, Nadine -The Kill List #3 DI Henley, London ***
Menuhin, Karen Baugh - The Twelve Saints of Christmas #12 Heathcliff Lennox Investigates
Meyrick, Denzil - The Estate
Mistry, Liz - The Blood Promise #1 Solanki and McQueen, Scotland
Morgan, Phoebe - The Trip
Morrison, Lynn & Radcliffe, Anne - The Missing Diamond #1 The Crown Jewels Regency Mysteries
Morton, Mandy - The Suspicions of Mr Whisker #13 The No. 2 Feline Detective Agency
Mukherjee, Abir - Hunted ***
Myers, Amy - Murder at Tanton Towers #1 Cara Shelly, café owner
Nadel, Barbara - The Darkest Night #26 Cetin Ikmen, Policeman, Istanbul
Nagendra, Harini - A Nest of Vipers #3 The Bangalore Detectives Club, 1920s ***
Nixon, Keith - A Deadly Truth #10 Solomon Gray
Norek, Olivier - Between Two Worlds tr. Nick Caistor
O'Sullivan, Darren - The Night They Stole My Baby
Pastor, Ben - The Venus of Salo #8 Wehrmacht Captain Martin Bora, 1939
Penrose, Andrea - The Thunder of Stones #8 Lady Arianna Hadley, Regency England
Phifer, Helen - The Girls on Floor 13 #3 Detective Maria Miller
Reynolds, Amanda - Her Husband's Lie
Rhodes, Tyler - A Comedy of Terrors #7 Max's Campervan Case Files
Robards, Karen - Some Murders in Berlin
Ross, L J - Death Rocks #21 DCI Ryan
Rowson, Pauline - Death on Board #5 Inspector Alun Ryga, Dorset
Ryan, Chris - Traitor
Shaw, William - The Wild Swimmers #5 DS Alexandra Cupidi
Siciliano, Sam - The Gentleman Burglar #9 Further Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
Smith, Nikki - The Guests
Spencer, Tom - The Mystery of the Crooked Man
Staincliffe, Cath - The Fells #1 Detectives Donovan & Young
Stratmann, Linda - Sherlock Holmes and the Mycroft Incident #7 Early Casebook of Sherlock Holmes
Tay, Tania - The Other Woman ***
Taylor, Marsali - Death at a Shetland Festival #12 Shetland Sailing Mysteries
Torrance, Gaynor - The Boy in the Reeds #7 DI Jemima Huxley, Cardiff
Walker, Fiona - The Village Detectives and the Art of Murder #1 Village Detectives
Walker, Rosie - My Husband's Ex
Wassmer, Julie - Murder at the Allotment #10 Pearl Nolan, Whitstable
Watson, Sue - You, Me, Her
Weston, Kate - You May Now Kill the Bride
Williams, T A - Murder on the Italian Riviera #7 Armstrong and Oscar

Wednesday, June 05, 2024

New Releases - April 2024

Here's a snapshot of what I think was published for the first time in April 2024 (and is usually a UK date but occasionally will be a US or Australian date). 120 titles this month. If I've missed anything or got the date wrong, do please leave a comment. 

Please note that, unless specifically mentioned, when a book has differing print and ebook release date, I use the print release date. Translators' names are included where known.

Further to my post about writers of colour and the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, I have identified the writers of colour (that I know of) with a ***.

Abell, Stig - Death in a Lonely Place #2 Jake Jackson
Adams, Jane A - The Nail #5 DI Mike Croft
Alexander, Magda - Murder at a Funeral #9 Kitty Worthington
Amsinck, Heidi - Back From the Dead #3 Jensen
Aubrey, Daniel - Dark Island #1 Freya Sinclair, Reporter, Orkney
Bagshawe, Tilly - The Secret Keepers
Bailey, Murray - Singapore Rain (ebook only) #1 Ash Carter Novella
Black, Ricky - Street Deeds #5 Dunn Family
Bowen, Rhys (with Clare Broyles) - In Sunshine or in Shadow #20 Molly Murphy, PI, 1900s New York
Bradley, Rebecca - Shattered Silence (ebook only) #10 DI Hannah Robbins
Brolly, Matt - The Alliance
Brook, Lee - Beneath the Surface #15 West Yorkshire Crime
Brown, Benedict - The Puzzle of Parham House #13 Lord Edgington Investigates
Buchholz, Simone - The Kitchen tr. Rachel Ward #2 Chastity Riley reloaded
Bugler, Sheila - Dark Road Home
Cambridge, Colleen - A Murder Most French #2 An American In Paris Mystery
Campbell, AJ - My Perfect Marriage
Campling, Michael - Lawful Duty #1 Detective Constable Spiller, 1990s
Carroll, B M - One of Us is Missing (ebook only)
Cartwright, Jack - Into Death's Arms #12 Wild Fens Murder Mystery
Chapman, Julia - Date with Justice #9 The Dales Detective Series
Chase, Clare - Mystery on Meadowsweet Grove #12 Eve Mallow, Saxford St Peter
Chester, Fliss - Death in the Crypt #5 Cressida Fawcett, 1920s
Chowdhury, Ajay - The Spy #4 Kamil Rahman ***
Coombs, Alex - Death in Nonna's Kitchen #2 Old Forge Cafe Mystery
Dahl, Alex - Girl Friends
Davis, Lindsey - Death on the Tiber #12 Flavia Albia, the adopted daughter of Marcus Didius Falco
Dawson, Mark - Bloodlands #23 John Milton
Dean, John - To Catch a Lie #11 Detective Chief Inspector Jack Harris
Dranfield, Wendy - Grave Mountain #7 Detective Madison Harper, Colorado
Dylan, Rhys - A Matter of Evidence #12 DCI Evan Warlow
Edwards, Mark - The Darkest Water
Ellis, Emmy - Crushed #2 DI Tracy Collier
Ellis, Emmy - Skinned #3 DI Tracy Collier
Ellis, J R - The Canal Murders #10 Detective Chief Inspector Oldroyd, Yorkshire
Fields, Helen - Profile K
Ford, P F - Death in Wild Boar Woods #6 Slater and Norman
Ford, P F - Death in the River #7 Slater and Norman
Frear, Caz - Five Bad Deeds
Freud, Emily - Her Last Summer
Gallagher, Charlie - The Girls Upstairs #9 Detective Maddie Ives
Gauntlett, A E - The Stranger at the Wedding
Giles, Stewart - The Loner #27 DS Jason Smith
Golden, Kelly - The Perfect Teacher
Golding, Julia - The Persephone Code
Grace, Fiona - A Mystery in Bloom: Murder in the Marigolds #1 Alice Bloom
Grace, Fiona - An Impossible Heist #5 The Maid and the Mansion
Hall, J M - A Clock Stopped Dead #3 Retired schoolteachers Liz, Pat and Thelma
Halsall, Rona - Bride and Groom
Hamdy, Adam (with James Patterson) - Private Monaco #19 Private series
Harris, C S - What Cannot Be Said #19 Sebastian St. Cyr, Regency England
Harte, Stephanie - Double Trouble #1 The Kennedy Twins
Heald, Ruth - My Husband's Affair
Hedges, Carol - Pride & Pestilence #11 Victorian Detectives
Hewitt, J M - The Perfect Village
Hollingdrake, Malcolm - Edge of the Land #3 Merseyside Crime Series
Horowitz, Anthony - Close to Death #5 Detective Daniel Hawthorne
Hurst, Daniel - The Doctor's Child #4 The Doctor's Wife
Hurst, Mark - My Partner's Friend
James, Ed - With Soul So Dead (ebook only) #5 DI Rob Marshall
January, Ava - The Mayfair Dagger
Jensen, Louise - The Intruders
Kara, Lesley - The Other Tenant
Kasasian, M R C - The Montford Maniac #2 Violet Thorn
Keel, Ellie - The Four
Kelly, Erin - The House of Mirrors
Kirk, JD - Where the Pieces Lie #19 DCI Logan
Lancaster, Mary - Petteril's Wife #5 Lord Petteril
Lee, M J - The Coffin in the Wall #1 DI Emma Christie
Leigh, Judy - Bloodshed on the Boards #2 Morwenna Mutton, Librarian, Cornwall
Lewis, Susan - A Sicilian Affair
Lindsay, Douglas - The Last Great Detective #6 DI Buchan
Lowe, Andrew - Tender is the North #9 DI Jake Sawyer
McDine, A J - The Baby
Mackay, N J - The Sweetheart Killer #2 DI Sebastian Locke
Maitland, K J - A Plague of Serpents #4 Daniel Pursglove
Mitchell, Caroline - The Last Guest House
Morgan, Anna-Marie - The Powys Murders #22 DI Yvonne Giles
Morrison, Lynn - The Cryptic Cold Case #7 Dora and Rex, 1920s
Mosse, Greg - The Coming Storm #2 Alexandre Lamarque
Mosse, Greg - Murder at the Theatre #3 Maisie Cooper
Murray, Andrew Hunter - A Beginner's Guide to Breaking and Entering
Nadal, Jay - Stakes Are High #11 DI Karen Heath
Negus, Trevor - The First Cut #12 DI Danny Flint
New, Jacqueline - Hand of the Wolf #3 DCI McNeill, Edinburgh
Noel, Sarah F - A Discerning Woman #6 Tabitha & Wolf
Nore, Aslak - The Sea Cemetery tr. Deborah Dawkin
North, L C - Clickbait
Organ, Emily - The Baker Street Murders #7 Augusta Peel, 1920s
Parker, Kate - Deadly Gamble #11 Olivia Denis, 1930s London
Piazza, Jo - The Sicilian Inheritance
Probyn, Jack - Death's Taste #5 DS Tomek Bowen
Puleston, Stephen - Looking Good Dead #12 Inspector Drake
Reich, Christopher - Matterhorn #1 Mac Dekker
Rutherford, Robert - Seven Days
Samuel, Peter - A Love to Remember #1 Inspector Rupert
Sargeant, Rachel - Her Deadly Friend #1 DI Steph Lewis, Gloucestershire
Sellers, Daniel - Murder on the Clyde #3 Detective Lola Harris, Glasgow
Shenjé, Kuchenga - The Library Thief ***
Sherwood, Kim - A Spy Like Me #2 Double O Trilogy (world of James Bond)
Silva, Jo - Death Comes to St Ives #3 The Edge of the World Detective Agency
Simms, Chris - Midnight Rambler
Smith, Alex - Truly Madly Deadly #15 DCI Robert Kett, Norfolk
Smith, Miranda - The Writer
Spain, Jo - The Trial
Stacey, L H - Buried Secrets
Stewart, Laura - Death at the Hunting Lodge #3 Amelia Adams, Scotland
Stockham, Alison - The New Girl
Stone, Dan - Hidden Enemy #3 Jack Kane
Sutton, Paula - The Potting Shed Murder #1 Hill House Vintage Murder Mysteries ***
Thomas, Russ - Sleeping Dogs #4 Detective Sergeant Adam Tyler, South Yorkshire
Thomas, Scarlett - The Sleepwalkers
Tyce, Harriet - A Lesson in Cruelty
Waller, Anita - The Girls Next Door
Walsh, Bridget - The Innocents #2 Variety Palace Mysteries
Whitehouse, Lucie - Last Witness #3 Ex-DI Robin Osborne, Birmingham
Whitelaw, Jonathan - The Concert Hall Killer #3 Bingo Hall Detectives
Wilkinson, Kerry - The Call
Williams, Jen - The Hungry Dark
Wingate, Marty - A Body at the Dance Hall #3 London Ladies' Murder Club

Tuesday, June 04, 2024

What I'm Reading...

 

I'm currently reading Petrona entry You Will Never Be Found by Tove Alsterdal translated by Alice Menzies. This is the second in the High Coast series set in Sweden, three titles are available so far.

I would strongly recommend reading the first, first (!) - We Know You Remember - as there are significant spoilers for it in You Will Never Be Found

I am enjoying this series with its somewhat remote rural setting and a lead character who is at home with it and knows all the local information. She also has a mother with early onset Alzheimer's which she has to manage and a brother who has gone off the rails.

 

Friday, May 17, 2024

Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Longlist - Authors of Colour

When the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Longlist was announced there was some backlash, most noticeably about the "entirely white longlist" [The Guardian]. Since then there has been further clarification on the judging process and an invitation for underrepresented parts of society to get in touch:

"We are always interested to hear from potential members within the industries listed above to join the Awards Academy. We are particularly keen to hear from those who feel they would bring a different perspective to our existing Academy and who can help us achieve our aim of being truly representative of all sections of society – including those who may be underrepresented in the UK crime writing scene – this includes, but is not limited to, individuals of colour, those with disabilities, individuals from the LGBT+ communities or from working class backgrounds. Please contact info@harrogate-festival.org.uk for further information."

The following information on the judging process is excerpted from their FAQ (the underlining is mine):

Submissions for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year are open to all publishers, who are invited to submit up to three titles per imprint. Novels written by UK and Irish passport holders are eligible and titles must be published in paperback for the first time from 1 May 2023 to 30 April 2024.  There is no fee at point of entry. The longlist of 18 titles is selected by the Awards Academy.

The Awards Academy is made up of over 30 journalists, reviewers, booksellers, bloggers & podcasters and representatives from within the industry. It includes members from a number of minority communities. The Festival Programming Committee and representatives from all Awards sponsors and partners are also included in the Academy. From 2025, Awards Academy members will be offered a fee for their contribution on the Academy.

All titles are available digitally to all members of the Academy. The Awards Academy members are all avid readers of crime fiction, so we expect they will already have read a significant number of the books that are submitted for longlisting over the course of the previous year. The longlist provides a snapshot in time of the genre, and with the Academy being large and reflecting a range of tastes and viewpoints, we do not expect every member to have read every book that is submitted.

For the Crime Novel of the Year Award, the Awards Academy chooses a longlist of 18 titles from the titles submitted by the publishers. Each individual member of the Academy is asked to rank their top 18 books and the titles with the highest overall scores go though.


What's not mentioned is that though the Award is free to enter, I understand that there is a significant fee to pay should you be longlisted and again if shortlisted. I've also heard that there is a very short judging period.

Here are some authors of colour who might have been eligible for the 2024 Award. These books have been published in the UK in paperback, in the time-frame (May 23-Apr 24), however I do not know the authors' passport status!

Kia Abdullah - Those People Next Door (b. England) HQ
Amen Alonge - A Good Night to Kill (b. Nigeria) Quercus
A A Chaudhuri - The Final Party (b. England) Canelo Hera
Ajay Chowdhury - The Detective (b. India) Vintage
Louise Hare - Harlem After Midnight (b. England) HQ
Alex Khan - Until Death (b. England) Canelo Hera
Alex Khan - The Scorned (b. England) Canelo Hera
Vaseem Khan - Death of a Lesser God (b. England) Hodder Paperbacks
Sujata Massey - The Mistress of Bhatia House (b. England) Soho Crime
Christie J Newport - The Ordinary Man (b. England) Joffe Books
RV Raman - The Last Resort (b. India) Pushkin Vertigo
Nilanjana Roy - Black River (b. India) Pushkin Vertigo
Meeti Shroff-Shah - A Matrimonial Murder (b. India) Joffe Books
Sunny Singh - Hotel Arcadia (b. India) Magpie 

NB. A number of these authors are appearing at this year's Festival.

The 2024 Award submissions period is gone but is there anything to be done about 2025?  It appears that with this current system it all starts with the publishers:

If they don't publish authors of colour then they're not going to get on the longlist.
If they don't submit books by authors of colour then they're not going to get on the longlist. If the books are submitted but don't get sent to the Academy members during the preceding months then they're less likely to get on the longlist given the time constraints.

What can we readers do? Read and review the eligible books, blog about them, ask your library to buy them, tell the publishers how great they are so that when they come to choose their 3 titles per imprint they'll remember these books. Maybe apply to be an Academy member?

Here are some possible entries for the 2025 Award, using the same criteria as above:

A A Chaudhuri -  Under Her Roof (b. England) Canelo Hera
Ajay Chowdhury - The Spy (b. India) Vintage
Dorothy Koomson - Every Smile You Fake (b. England) Headline Review
Nadine Matheson - The Kill List (b. England) HQ
Dreda Say Mitchell & Ryan Carter - Girl, Missing (b. England) Thomas & Mercer
Abir Mukherjee - Hunted (b. England) Vintage
Harini Nagendra - A Nest of Vipers (b. India) Constable
Suk Pannu - Mrs Sidhu's Dead and Scone (b.?) Hemlock Press
Kuchenga Shenjé - The Library Thief (b.?) Sphere
Paula Sutton - The Potting Shed Murder (b. England) Renegade Books 
Tania Tay - The Other Woman (b?) Headline Accent
Nicola Williams - Until Proven Innocent (b. England) Penguin

My database though extensive is not comprehensive so please do leave comments about authors I may have missed, and of course any errors. 

Thursday, May 16, 2024

A couple of Scandi Kindle bargains

At the time of writing, Stigma by Thomas Enger and Jørn Lier Horst translated by Megan Turney is  99p on UK Kindle, as is The Wolf by by Samuel Bjørk translated by Charlotte Barslund.




Wednesday, May 15, 2024

Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2024 - Longlist

Apologies for the delay in posting this. I will have a follow-up post shortly regarding the #theakstonssowhite controversy.

In the meantime, please find below the official press release announcing the longlist for the Theakston (Harrogate) Crime Novel of the Year. Eighteen authors have been listed (9 Female, 9 Male).

Until the 16 May you can vote for your favourite book on the longlist here.


Harrogate International Festivals announced ...the 18 titles longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2024, the UK and Ireland’s most prestigious crime fiction award now in its twentieth year.

The longlist, voted for by an academy of crime writing authors, agents, editors, reviewers and members of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival Programming Committee, features stories that transport readers from the burning heat of the Chihuahuan Desert to the chill of nineties Berlin, from down-at-heel Blackpool to the splendour of Georgian London. Crime fiction fans are now invited to vote for their favourite novels to reach the shortlist, with the winner of the coveted Award announced on the opening night of the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, Thursday 18 July.

Six former winners are vying for top honours, including 2023 champion MW Craven, who is longlisted for his high-octane US-set thriller Fearless, alongside Queen of Crime Val McDermid for cold case mystery Past Lying, and Mick Herron, the author behind Apple TV’s smash-hit series ‘Slow Horses,’ for his elegant stand-alone spy novel The Secret Hours. Also nominated are Chris Brookmyre’s edgy thriller about a murderous hen party on a remote Scottish island, The Cliff House, two times winner Mark Billingham’s The Last Dance, the first novel in his captivating new Blackpool-set detective series and Clare Mackintosh’s reality TV set thriller A Game of Lies. Ann Cleeves, who was awarded the Theakston Old Peculier Outstanding Contribution to Crime Fiction Award in 2023 adds to this illustrious list, nominated for her atmospheric detective novel The Raging Storm.

Among the five hugely talented rising stars longlisted for the first time are Jo Callaghan, nominated for her stunningly original debut In the Blink of An Eye, which introduces intriguing detective duo DCS Kat Frank and her AI colleague Lock, and William Hussey for serial-killer thriller Killing Jericho featuring crime fiction’s first Traveller detective. They are up against Jack Jordan’s addictive legal thriller Conviction, missing persons investigation The Last Goodbye by Tim Weaver, and Oxford-set detective novel The Broken Afternoon by Simon Mason.

Showcasing the range of crime fiction subgenres, Laura Shepherd-Robinson’s atmospheric Georgian-set historical crime novel The Square of Sevens, Lisa Jewell’s tantalising domestic noir None of This is True, propulsive thriller You Can Run by New Blood 2020 alumni Trevor Wood and The Last Remains, Elly Griffiths’ final Dr Ruth Gallow mystery, join the 2024 longlist.

Completing the line-up are two phenomenally talented Irish crime writers: Jane Casey for her gripping DS Maeve Kerrigan novel The Close and four-times Irish Book Award winner Liz Nugent for her unnerving thriller Strange Sally Diamond.


The full Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2024 longlist (in alphabetical order by surname) is:

  • The Last Dance by Mark Billingham (Sphere; Little, Brown Book Group)

  • The Cliff House by Chris Brookmyre (Abacus; Little, Brown Book Group)

  • In the Blink of an Eye by Jo Callaghan (Simon & Schuster UK)

  • The Close by Jane Casey (Harper Fiction; Harper Collins)

  • The Raging Storm by Ann Cleeves (Pan Macmillan)

  • Fearless by M W Craven (Constable; Little, Brown Book Group)

  • The Last Remains by Elly Griffiths (Quercus)

  • The Secret Hours by Mick Herron (Baskerville; John Murray Press)

  • Killing Jericho by William Hussey (Zaffre, Bonnier)

  • None of This is True by Lisa Jewell (Century; Cornerstone)

  • Conviction by Jack Jordan (Simon & Schuster)

  • A Game of Lies by Clare Mackintosh (Sphere; Little, Brown Book Group)

  • The Broken Afternoon by Simon Mason (riverrun; Quercus)

  • Past Lying by Val McDermid (Sphere; Little, Brown Book Group)

  • Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent (Sandycove; Penguin Ireland)

  • The Square of Sevens by Laura Shepherd-Robinson (Pan Macmillan)

  • The Last Goodbye by Tim Weaver (Michael Joseph; Penguin Random House)

  • You Can Run by Trevor Wood (Quercus)


Simon Theakston, Chairman of T&R Theakston, said

We are delighted to announce the 2024 longlist for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year, which truly showcases the depth and breadth of the UK and Ireland’s best crime fiction novels from the past year. The Award is an exciting part of the Festival, and with so many talented writers nominated – both new and established - we’re excited to find out who the public vote for this year.”

The Award is presented by Harrogate International Festivals and sponsored by T&R Theakston Ltd, in partnership with Waterstones and Daily Express, and is open to full-length crime novels published in paperback between 1 May 2023 to 30 April 2024. The public are invited to vote to help create a shortlist of six titles from 8am on Thursday 25 April at www.harrogatetheakstoncrimeaward.com