A Bad, Bad Place

Frances Crawford

What happened to the dog walker who found the body?

Twelve-year-old Janey won’t take her dog, Sid Vicious, for a walk. Not anymore. It’s Sid’s fault she found the murdered woman. Janey claims she can’t remember what she saw at the abandoned railway, but the police think she’s hiding something. And they’re not the only ones interested.

Fear and rumour rip through the tight-knit community of Possilpark. Janey and her nana, Maggie, are dragged into the hunt for a murderer. And Maggie’s struggle to keep her beloved granddaughter safe becomes ever more desperate.

Because Janey’s memories can’t stay hidden forever. And neither can the killer…

A Killer in Paradise

Tom Hindle

"The perfect crime novel." ~ Janice Hallett

The trip of their dreams is about to end in murder.

When five old friends are invited to join Abigail Blythe at the launch of her luxury hotel in the Costa Rican rainforest, they jump at the chance to spend a week in paradise.

None of them have heard from Abigail since the summer they went backpacking in Central America as students – a trip that ended in disaster for one member of the group…

Ten years may have passed, but old rivalries are never far from the surface. So when a body is discovered during the hotel’s launch event, it soon becomes clear that one among them must be responsible.

Someone is desperate to keep an old secret hidden – whatever the cost …

The Cut Up

Louise Welsh

"I loved everything about this book - the engaging characters, the credible backdrop to a clear, sharp plot, but most of all the writing. Oh my word, that writing!" ~ Ann Cleeves

It’s hard to be good when living is expensive. And times are tough on the streets these days. Luckily for Rilke at Bowery Auctions the demand for no-questions-asked cash is at an all-time high, and business is booming.

When Rilke hears his old acquaintance Les is fresh out of prison, his inclination is to stay well out of his way. Letting sleeping dogs lie is one thing - but when one of Bowery’s customers winds up dead on their tarmac, Rilke needs a bit of help from his friends to tidy things up. If only his friends didn’t have such a habit of making things worse.

The Good Liar

Denise Mina

The truth can set you free. Or destroy your life

When blood spatter expert Claudia O’Shiel finds herself on stage to talk about the most famous criminal case in recent history, she has a choice to make: explain how her evidence put away the man responsible for the brutal double murder? Or tell them the truth – that the real killer is still out there, and if she tries to expose this conspiracy, it won’t just be her life on the line.

A taut, intelligent suspense novel for fans of Val McDermid, Elly Griffiths and Tana French, The Good Liar is about power, class, and the lengths we're willing to go for family.

Wolf Hour

Jo Nesbo

The hunt is on to catch an unstoppable killer.

When a small-time crook is shot down in the streets of Minneapolis, all signs point to a lone wolf, a sniper who has vanished into thin air.

But when the shooter strikes again, maverick detective Bob Oz is called in to crack the case. He does not think this victim will be the last.

As the body count rises, Oz suspects something even more sinister is at play. And the closer he gets to the truth, the more disturbed he becomes. Because this serial killer reminds him of someone dangerous: himself.

Wolf Hour is a gritty thriller packed with unexpected twists, dark secrets and bubbling personal and political tension, from the king of the cliffhanger.

Pietr the Latvian

Georges Simenon

Not that he looked like a cartoon policeman. He didn't have a moustache and he didn't wear heavy boots. His clothes were well cut and made of fairly light worsted. He shaved every day and looked after his hands. But his frame was proletarian. He was a big, bony man. His firm muscles filled out his jacket and quickly pulled all his trousers out of shape.

He had a way of imposing himself just by standing there. His assertive presence had often irked many of his own colleagues.

In Simenon's first novel featuring Maigret, the laconic detective is taken from grimy bars to luxury hotels as he traces the true identity of Pietr the Latvian.

"One of the greatest writers of the twentieth century." Guardian