2) Homegrown Hero by Khurrum Rahman I read Rahman's first book, East of Hounslow about a year ago, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, as a pacy, up-to-the-minute terrorist thriller (with a nice sideline in humour). Homegrown Hero is the follow-up, and in some senses it is more of the same - we are back with (our hero) Jay Qasim,… Continue reading Year 5 / Book 2: Homegrown Hero
Category: thriller
Year 4 / Book 50: The Godmother
50) The Godmother by Hannelore Cayre In a strong field of good thrillers and crime books that I've read towards the end of 2019, this is right up there. It has won several prizes in France and Europe, and I can completely see why, as funny, sharp, and thrilling. It features the wonderfully droll Patience… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 50: The Godmother
Year 4 / Book 49: Black Dahlia, Red Rose
49) Black Dahlia, Red Rose by Piu Eatwell The 'Black Dahlia' was the name given to Elizabeth Short, a young woman killed in Los Angeles in early 1947, and has since been made famous by authors like James Ellroy (who wrote a fictional book with that title) and by countless people still trying to solve… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 49: Black Dahlia, Red Rose
Year 4 / Book 48: To The Lions
48) To The Lions by Holly Watt I hugely enjoyed this thriller, which is both a dive into the depths of human depravity and evil (steel yourselves!) and also a fascinating look at the world of investigative journalism, and how they overlap with the criminal worlds they are trying to expose. Casey and Miranda are two… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 48: To The Lions
Year 4 / Book 45: Beside the Syrian Sea
45) Beside the Syrian Sea by James Wolff As anyone who's read the last several reviews will be able to tell, it's been mostly crime and thrillers in the last few weeks - and mostly the quality has been high. I had high hopes for this as well, as it came armed with blurbs and quotes… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 45: Beside the Syrian Sea
Year 4 / Book 44: The Katharina Code
44) The Katharina Code by Jorn Lier Horst I've read quite a few of Horst's 'Wisting' novels, and I've liked his more gentle, cerebral, character-driven approach to Scandi crime for a while - generally, not understanding why he doesn't get as much attention as some of the others. But he does seem to be breaking through,… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 44: The Katharina Code
Year 4 / Book 43: The Secret Place
43) The Secret Place by Tana French Tana French is widely feted in the crime-writing world, but I didn't really get on that well with the previous book I read by her (Broken Harbour) and have subsequently avoided her, despite myriad positive reviews from all directions. So finally I succumbed to The Secret Place and, whaddyaknow, it… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 43: The Secret Place
Year 4 / Book 42: Black Widow
42) Black Widow by Chris Brookmyre Some slightly delayed book reviews forthcoming, which also usually means some slightly delayed recall on what I've actually read. This twisty, relevant thriller by Chris Brookmyre is highly memorable, though. It tells the tale of Diana Jager, a female surgeon who may (or may not, naturally) have killed her new-ish husband… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 42: Black Widow
Year 4 / Book 40: A Darker Domain
40) A Darker Domain by Val McDermid Val McDermid is probably best known for her Tony Hill & Carol Jordan books, but I think I prefer Karen Pirie, the independent, funny female detective who features again here in A Darker Domain. It is her character and believability which drives forward this complex and at times… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 40: A Darker Domain
Year 4 / Book 38: The Spy and the Traitor
38) The Spy and The Traitor by Ben MacIntyre This was recommended to me while we were on holiday by our friends Claire and Matt, who said it was "as good as a thriller, except it's real". And how right they were. It's an amazing tale of the most famous Russian mole who spied for… Continue reading Year 4 / Book 38: The Spy and the Traitor
Dog-eared Man: a book a week 