TV News: Jack Taylor on Channel 5

Iain Glen plays Jack Taylor in The Guards based on the first of Ken Bruen's series of books. The Guards is the first of three feature-length episodes of Jack Taylor which starts on Channel 5 next Thursday at 9pm:

In this introduction to the dark and seamy underbelly of Galway and the tortured world of Jack Taylor, the beautiful Anne Henderson comes into Jack´s local pub and asks him to find her missing daughter.

Before long, Jack is submerged in the grimy secret lives of Galway’s outwardly respectable middleclass citizens. The plot thickens when the bodies of four girls turn up in the river and Jack´s old paratrooper friend Sutton arrives in Galway, luring Jack back into trouble.

When Jack´s favourite barman then dies under mysterious circumstances, everything Jack believes in begins to unravel, making him question even those closest to him.

New Reviews: Bolton, Bruen, Faletti, Graham, Haynes, Hill, Lackberg, Wahloo, Winspear

Competition: During May (closes 31st) you can win a copy of Tessa Harris's The Anatomist's Apprentice. The competition is open to UK residents. Answer the question and fill in the form here.

Here are this week's 9 new reviews:

Michelle Peckham is a bit disappointed in S J Bolton's fifth book, and second in the DC Lacey Flint series, Dead Scared, which is set in Cambridge;

Lynn Harvey is bowled over by Ken Bruen's Headstone the ninth in the Jack Taylor series set in Galway;

Laura Root reviews Giorgio Faletti's I am God, tr. Howard Curtis a standalone thriller set in New York City;

Terry Halligan reviews Eliza Graham's literary thriller, The History Room;

Amanda Gillies reviews Elizabeth Haynes' Revenge of the Tide (author of the highly praised Into the Darkest Corner);

Terry also reviews Suzette A Hill's A Load of Old Bones the first of five in the Francis Oughterard (plus his pets Maurice and Bouncer) series which now has a much overdue paperback release;

I review Camilla Lackberg's The Drowning, tr. Tiina Nunnally on audio book, the sixth in the Hedstrom-Falck series set in the coastal Swedish town of Fjallbacka;

Maxine Clarke reviews Per Wahloo's Murder on the Thirty-First Floor which has had a fresh translation by Sarah Death

and Susan White reviews Jacqueline Winspear's The Mapping of Love and Death, the seventh in the Maisie Dobbs series which has found a new UK home at Allison & Busby.

Previous reviews can be found in the review archive.

Forthcoming titles can be found by author or date or by category, here along with releases by year.

New Reviews: Bruen, Fossum, Haynes, Hilton, Kelly, le Carre, Ridpath, Tyler

July's competition: Win a set of 3 books by Armand Cabasson (UK only)

Here are this week's reviews, which visit Egypt, Iceland, Norway, Russia, USA as well as the UK:

Terry Halligan reviews the movie-tie-in release of Ken Bruen's London Boulevard;

I review Karin Fossum's latest Inspector Sejer, The Caller, tr. K E Semmel;

Amanda Gillies reviews Elizabeth Haynes debut, Into the Darkest Corner which has just been shortlisted for the "New Blood" Dagger;

Michelle Peckham reviews the fifth Joe Hunter from Matt Hilton, Blood and Ashes which is just out in paperback;

Susan White reviews the paperback release of Erin Kelly's The Poison Tree which has also been shortlisted for the "New Blood" Dagger;

I review the radio play version of John le Carre's The Russia House on the blog;

Maxine Clarke reviews Michael Ridpath's second Icelandic novel, 66 Degrees North which sounds bang up to date politically

and Lizzie Hayes reviews L C Tyler's Herring on the Nile which she says is more fun than a certain other crime book set on the Nile!

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

Trailer - London Boulevard

The film based on Ken Bruen's London Boulevard will be released on 26 November in the UK. Here's the trailer:

New Reviews: Anderson, Bruen, Indridason, Navarro, Tighe, Xiaolong

The settings for this week's books include Scotland, Ireland, Iceland, Iraq, England and China:

Laura Root reviews the paperback release of Easy Kill by Lin Anderson;

Terry Halligan reviews Sanctuary by Ken Bruen the latest in the Jack Taylor series;

Maxine Clarke reviews Hypothermia by Arnaldur Indridason writing that "it is truly a mature, masterful and utterly fantastic book";

Amanda Gillies is equally enthusiastic about The Bible of Clay by Julia Navarro which is now out in paperback, beginning her review: "This is a cleverly written novel with a gripping storyline";

Geoff Jones reviews Druids Hill by Carl Tighe

and Michelle Peckham reviews The Mao Case by Qiu Xiaolong calling it a "a fascinating book".

Previous reviews can be found in the review archive and forthcoming titles can be found here.

New Reviews

Here are this week's new reviews and details of the new competition.

Latest Reviews:

In the latest Crime File from Mike Ripley, he reviews The Manor of Death by Bernard Knight, Murder's Immortal Mask by Paul Doherty, A Killing Frost by R D Wingfield and Dog Eats Dog by Iain Levison;

Norman Price reviews the paperback release of Cross by Ken Bruen saying that "If you haven't read Ken Bruen yet then you are missing some the finest crime fiction being written today";

Maxine Clarke reviews Black Seconds by Karin Fossum, which has also just come out in paperback, and believes it's even better than Calling Out for You/The Indian Bride;

Terry Halligan reviews the latest in the award winning series by Ariana Franklin, The Death Maze which was released in the US as The Serpent's Tale;

Maxine also reviews the second in the Gotland set series from Mari Jungstedt, Unspoken calling it "a great read"

and new reviewer Eve Olsen is less than impressed with Julia Navarro's The Brotherhood of the Holy Shroud with its cardboard characters and lack of research.

Current Competition (closing date 31 May):

Win a signed copy of Spider by Michael Morley*

* UK/Europe only

Interview with Ken Bruen

Over on the Mystery Readers International website, the latest of their 'at home online' interviews is Reed Farrel Coleman interviewing Ken Bruen.

Here's a snippet:

RFC: How do you determine that a series has run its course? Can you envision a series that could go on indefinitely that would still be fresh?

KB: Well, that's a tough one, my own 2 series, Brant, the very last one is AMMUNITION, OUT IN JULY FROM SMP and Jack Taylor, I'm working on no 7......... also the end......... I want them to end on a blast and a What if.

John Sandford, Larry Gough seem to be able to keep their series up to 17, 18, etc......... me, I'D GO MAD

A few items of interest

From the Jill McGown website:

There will be a celebration of Jill McGown's life at Kettering Crematorium on Wednesday 25th April at 3.45pm. All are welcome.

Also see my previous blog post which has a link to tribute from a fellow author.

On a happier note, those of us who had read with distress that the next Jack Taylor book from Ken Bruen, 'Benediction', was going to be the last in that series, can rest easy. There are now plans for another outing, called 'Amen'.

From Val McDermid's newsletter:

Val will be participating on BBC's Radio 4 Current Affairs programme 'Broadcasting House' this Sunday (22 April) at 9am BST.

If you usually have a lie-in on Sundays and miss the 9am start, or you can't listen via your radio where you are, you can always catch the programme later via the BBC's listen again feature - http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/news/bh/.

Friday's strip from the ever excellent 'Unshelved' made me chuckle.

And finally, something completely OT and cute! When a cat and a rat become friends.