New Reviews: Cain, Cleeves, Cregan, Eriksson, Lewis, Morris, Pearson, Roslund-Hellstrom, Zouroudi

The final set of reviews for 2011 will be uploaded next weekend. There are 9 new reviews this week (to make up for missing last week). Look out for some forthcoming blog posts from the Euro Crime review team on their new discoveries this year.

Here are this week's new reviews:

Terry Halligan reviews the fifth (and best so far he thinks) in Tom Cain's Carver series - Carver;

Lynn Harvey reviews her first but the fourth "Vera" book in Ann Cleeves's (now televised) series - Silent Voices which is now out in paperback;

Laura Root reviews the second of Sean Cregan's Newport set series, The Razor Gate which is an example of "futurist noir writing";

I review the latest title that has been made available in English in Kjell Eriksson's Ann Lindell series, The Hand That Trembles, tr. Ebba Segerberg;

Susan White reviews the second in Jonathan Lewis's DCI Bale and dog-handler Kate Baker series, Into Dust;

Geoff Jones reviews the fourth (and last I believe) of R N Morris's Porfiry Petrovich series, The Cleansing Flames;

Lynn Harvey also reviews the fourth in another series, Murder Club by Mark Pearson which features DI Jack Delaney and is set in London;

Maxine Clarke reviews Roslund-Hellstrom's Cell 8, tr. Kari Dickson

and Amanda Gillies reviews Anne Zouroudi's The Whispers of Nemesis, the fifth in the Hermes Diaktoros series.

Previous reviews can be found in the review archive.

Forthcoming titles can be found by author or date or by category, here and new titles by George Arion, James Becker, Nancy Bilyeau, Ken Bruen, Paul Grossman, Oliver Harris, James Henry, Antonio Hill, Hjorth-Rosenfeldt, Bogdan Hrib, Camilla Lackberg, Andy McDermott, Roger/R N Morris, Leif GW Persson, Sarah Pinborough, Oana Stoica-Mujea, Roland Vernon, Jason Webster, Kate Williams and Juli Zeh have been added to these pages this week.

New Reviews: Adler-Olsen, Kepler, Krajewski, Lackberg, Lewis, Marks

New competition for May:
Win a copy of Stagestruck by Peter Lovesey UK & Europe only

I've added a few more reviews of those titles eligible for the 2011 CWA International Dagger, a topic which I'll be revisiting on the blog before the announcement of the shortlist on Friday, so do check back.

(I'll be at CrimeFest next weekend so there won't be any new reviews next Sunday.)

Here are this week's reviews:

Maxine Clarke reviews Mercy by Jussi Adler-Olsen, tr. Lisa Hartford, the first in the Department Q series;

Lizzie Hayes reviews Lars Kepler's debut The Hypnotist, tr. Ann Long;

I review Marek Krajewski's somewhat seedy but compulsive Phantoms of Breslau, tr. Danusia Stok which though it is the third in the series is set before the previous two;

Maxine also reviews the fourth in the Erica Falck/Patrik Hedstrom series, The Gallows Bird by Camilla Lackberg, tr. Steven T Murray;

Susan White reviews Jonathan Lewis's debut, Into the Darkness

and Geoff Jones reviews Howard Marks's Sympathy for the Devil.

Previous reviews can be found in the review archive and forthcoming titles can be found by author or date, here.

Gone to the Dogs

As a change from cat-related mysteries, here are a couple of new books which feature dogs in prominent roles - not talking ones though:

No Going Back by Lyndon Stacey, published March 2010

The first in an exciting new mystery series featuring ex-police dog handler Charlie Whelan -

When two young sisters run away on Dartmoor, Charlie Whelan and his German shepherd, Taz, are called into action, and a desperate search quickly turns up one of the girls. However, rather than showing relief at being rescued, she seems terrified. Darkness halts their hunt for her elder sister, and Charlie returns home with one distressing question on his mind: just what were the girls running from?

Into Darkness by Johnathan Lewis, to be published 16 September 2010.

In the stinking mud of a great tidal river, a body lies half submerged. Sir Tommy Best, adored British actor, has fallen to his death through a hole in the walkway above. The saintly Sir Tommy was friend to the starving and penniless, to kings and stars. He was also totally blind and reliant on his brilliant guide dog, Suzy. But she is nowhere to be found. It seems unimaginable that Suzy would have led him into danger, so is it murder? And where is she? When she finally turns up, it is only to deepen the mystery. She is stressed and tense and soon Chief Superintendent 'Fatso' and Detective Chief Inspector Ned realise that only one person in the force can possibly help. Kate, police dog handler extraordinaire, known affectionately as the Dog Tart, suggests they find Nick Parsons, who trained Suzy, in the hope that he can get the dog to lead them to the truth. The search for Nick Parsons culminates in a highly unusual plan, in which Ned will become blind for one night and with Suzy the guide dog, re-enact Sir Tommy Best's last fateful walk. The truth which they uncover is utterly horrible.