New Reviews: Bauer, Benacquista, Blake, Cleeves, James, Scott

Just a few hours left to enter the January competition: 3 copies of A K Shevchenko's Bequest are up for grabs. There are no geographical restrictions. Details of how to enter can be found here.

Here are this week's reviews:

Paul Blackburn reviews the much talked about (in the UK) Blacklands by Belinda Bauer which made his 'top 5 reads of 2009';

I review the violent black comedy that is Tonino Benacquista's Badfellas, tr. Emily Read which may make my 'top 5 reads of 2010';

Amanda Gillies praises the second in Richard Blake's Roman Empire series, now out in paperback - The Terror of Constantinople;

The last part of Ann Cleeves's Shetland Quartet, Blue Lightning, is out this week and Maxine Clarke's review will want to make you read it and the previous three if you haven't already;

Terry Halligan continues to be impressed with the Roy Grace series by Peter James; the latest - Dead Tomorrow is now out in paperback

and Michelle Peckham reviews the reissue of Manda Scott's The Crystal Skull, now prefixed with 2012 (nb. the film 2012 is not based on it) and is the third euro crime reviewer to enjoy the book very much.

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

2012 The Crystal Skull

Manda Scott's The Crystal Skull is being reissued on 5 November as 2012 The Crystal Skull to capitalise on the release of the blockbuster film, 2012, on the 13 November. However they are two different beasts and the film is not based on the book, but apparently you can learn all about the prophecy about the end of the world from 2012 The Crystal Skull.

The Crystal Skull has been reviewed twice on Euro Crime and Pat's review said that it is "a cracking story, with believable characters, a complicated plot, convincing historical details and a bit of mysticism thrown in" and Amanda's review opened with "The story is incredibly well researched and so powerful and captivating that its bitter-sweet ending has the potential to reduce you to floods of tears".

There is a three minute trailer for 2012, here on YouTube (and it stars one of my favourite actors, John Cusack).

New Reviews: Mike Ripley's crime file, Scott, Tallis, Wingfield

This week, Mike Ripley reviews some new releases whilst the rest of the reviews cover some recent paperbacks that we can recommend:

New Reviews:

In Mike Ripley's Crime File he reviews When Will There Be Good News? by Kate Atkinson, A Darker Domain by Val McDermid and Lost in Juarez by Douglas Lindsay;

Amanda Gillies enthuses about The Crystal Skull by Manda Scott;

Terry Halligan thoroughly enjoyed his time in 1903 Austria in Fatal Lies by Frank Tallis

and Maxine Clarke reviews the last ever Frost book, A Killing Frost by R D Wingfield which sees Inspector Frost juggling many cases whilst trying to stay put in Denton CID.

The Crystal Skull by Manda Scott - now out in paperback

While the days whittle down until the new Indiana Jones film (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull) is out, there's still time to read beforehand, Manda Scott's The Crystal Skull which is now out in paperback. Euro Crime reviewer Pat Austin called it "a seriously good thriller by a top class writer". Read her full review here.


There's a separate website for The Crystal Skull, where the offerings include an extract and interview, iPod competition and a game.

New Reviews

Here are this week's new reviews and a reminder of January's competition:

Latest Reviews:

Declan Burke reviews Saturday's Child by Ray Banks writing "Ray Banks offers us a glimpse of what Samuel Beckett might have read like had he turned his hand to crime fiction";

Fiona Walker reckons The Sinner by Petra Hammesfahr is every bit as good as Stieg Larsson's The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo, (so look out for that one on the International Dagger shortlist);

Maxine Clarke adds another Swedish author to her list of favourite writers after reading Unseen by Mari Jungstedt;

and she also enjoyed The Simian Curve by Mark Lalbeharry - a London based police procedural with a science angle

and Pat Austin gets the read she's long been waiting for with Manda Scott's The Crystal Skull which could be her 'read of the year'.


Current Competition (closing date 31 January):

Win a copy of Bad Traffic by Simon Lewis (UK & Europe only)

(geographical restrictions are in brackets)