Film News: The New Girlfriend

A new French film, The New Girlfriend, is based on a Ruth Rendell short story of the same name from 1978. I'm not including the trailer as apparently it gives too much away.

IMDB keeps it short and sweet: "A young woman makes a surprising discovery about the husband of her late best friend."


Nice to see the poster name-checking Ruth Rendell.

New Reviews: Alaux & Balen, Grey, Hall, James, Kelly, McKinty, Rendell, Russell, Schumacher

Since the last set of reviews went up, the Euro Crime favourite reads of 2014 have been compiled and the most mentioned authors/titles/translators announced.

In addition the review team's favourite discoveries of 2014 have been revealed.

In addition, here are nine reviews which have been added to the Euro Crime website today.

NB. You can keep up to date with Euro Crime by following the blog and/or liking the Euro Crime Facebook page.

New Reviews

Terry Halligan reviews Treachery in Bordeaux by Jean-Pierre Alaux & Noel Balen tr. Anne Trager, the first in the Winemaker Detective series;

Susan White reviews Isabelle Grey's Good Girls Don't Die;

Lynn Harvey reviews Tarquin Hall's The Case of the Love Commandos;

Rich Westwood reviews Christina James's Sausage Hall, the third in the DI Yates series;

Geoff Jones reviews Jim Kelly's At Death's Window, the latest in his North Norfolk-set Shaw & Valentine series;

Mark Bailey reviews Gun Street Girl by Adrian McKinty, the fourth in the Sean Duffy series;

Michelle Peckham reviews The Girl Next Door by Ruth Rendell;


Amanda Gillies reviews Leigh Russell's Race to Death

and Susan also reviews Tony Schumacher's The Darkest Hour.

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

New Reviews: Fossum, Henry, James, Johnstone, Lawton, Rendell, Roberts, Vichi, Wilson

This week's set of reviews, added to Euro Crime today, is a mixture of new reviews and a catch-up of those posted directly on the blog in the last two weeks, so you may have read some of them before if you're a regular :).

News you may have missed in the last few days:

1. Margot Kinberg's has edited, contributed to and published an e-anthology of short stories, the proceeds from which are going to Maxine Clarke's (Petrona) preferred charity, the Princess Alice Hospice.
2. Borgen is back on BBC4 next weekend.
3. A "new" Hercule Poirot novella is available as an ebook.

Keep up to date with stories like these (and more) by following the blog and/or liking the Euro Crime Facebook page.

New Reviews

I review Karin Fossum's I Can See in the Dark, tr. James Anderson, a non-Sejer standalone;

Terry Halligan reviews James Henry's Morning Frost, the third in this well-received prequel series based on R D Wingfield's characters;

Michelle Peckham reviews Peter James's Dead Man's Time, the ninth in the Roy Grace series, which is now out in paperback;

Rich Westwood reviews Doug Johnstone's Gone Again, also just out in paperback;

Susan White reviews the re-released Second Violin by John Lawton, set during WWII;

Terry also reviews the new "Wexford" novel from Ruth Rendell - No Man's Nightingale - no rest for the retired chief inspector;

Another recent paperback release is Mark Roberts's The Sixth Soul reviewed here by Amanda Gillies;

Lynn Harvey reviews Marco Vichi's Death in Florence, tr. Stephen Sartarelli the fourth in the Inspector Bordelli series set in 1960s Italy

and Lynn also reviews Laura Wilson's The Riot the fifth in the DI Stratton series set in post WWII London.




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.

The New Wexford Novel

Contrary to reports in the papers when Monster in the Box was published, Wexford is not finished - he's set to return in The Vault published in August.

Apparently The Vault is a sequel to a non-Wexford novel (I don't know which) and is the first time Rendell has written a sequel.

No plot details are available yet.

Hat-tip and thank-you to Philip who has had to keep this a secret for a few months.

Ruth Rendell - Publishing Deal

This will come as no surprise to anyone, especially as this has been listed on amazon.com for a while...From BookBrunch:

To Hutchinson, MONSTER IN THE BOX (October 09), a 22nd Inspector Wexford novel by Ruth Rendell. The novel is set in the past and the present day: in the past, Wexford is involved in a fruitless murder investigation; in the present, the person he had suspected as the murderer returns to Kingsmarkham.

..to change a lightbulb...

The Chemistry of Death by Simon Beckett is reviewed here and The Intruders by Michael Marshall is reviewed here. Any advance on 3 covers?
UPDATE: A fourth cover has been spotted by Fiona.

New Reviews: Carter, Peace, Rendell, Walters

The following reviews have been added to the review archive over on the main Euro Crime website:

New Reviews:

I review Maureen Carter's latest Bev Morriss book - a series set in 'unfashionable' Birmingham - Bad Press;

Pat Austin reviews the first book in the Red Riding Quartet by David Peace - 1974 (three of the four books are being televised next year);

Fiona Walker reviews Portobello by Ruth Rendell

and Maxine Clarke reviews the newest in Michael Walters' Mongolian series, The Outcast.

Previous reviews can be found in the review archive and forthcoming titles can be found here plus for those thinking about their favourite books of 2008, there's a list (generated from my database) of British/European crime novels (written by British/Europeans) published in the UK in 2008, here. (I haven't yet updated it to include non-Europeans writing about Europe).

New Reviews: Mike Ripley's crime file, crime express novellas 4 & 5, Brownley, Holt

The following reviews have been added to the review archive over on the main Euro Crime website:

New Reviews:

In Mike Ripley's latest Crime File he reviews The Maze of Cadiz by Aly Monroe, Portobello by Ruth Rendell and The Murder Stone by Louise Penny;

I review the latest in the Crime Express novella series: The Okinawa Dragon by Nicola Monaghan and The Quarry by Clare Littleford;

Michelle Peckham reviews The Sins of the Children by James Brownley a series which features "Alison Glasby, first female crime correspondent for the Sunday Herald in London"

and Maxine Clarke recommends Norwegian author Anne Holt's The Final Murder (US: What Never Happens).

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

A Good Year for the Baronesses

Not content with having a new Dalgleish from P D James in September, The Private Patient, we are to be spoilt with two new books from Ruth Rendell in 2008. Firstly in August comes The Birthday Present written as Barbara Vine, followed in November by Portobello.

Ruth Rendell - Wexford books offer

The Book People have another great crime fiction offer. This time it's ten paperbacks from the Inspector Wexford series by Ruth Rendell for £9.99.

The titles are:

From Doon With Death
Shake Hands For Ever
A Sleeping Life
Put On By Cunning
An Unkindness Of Ravens
The Veiled One
Kissing The Gunner's Daughter
Simisola
Road Rage
The Babes In The Wood

Go to the offer here and view the whole Wexford series in order on the Euro Crime website.

Go here to view earlier crime fiction offers from The Book People which may still be available.