No catches, no fine print just unadulterated book loving, with your favourite books saved to your own digital bookshelf.
New members get entered into our monthly draw to win £100 to spend in your local bookshop Plus lots lots more…
Find out moreWilliam Shaw was born in Newton Abbot, Devon, grew up in Nigeria and lived for sixteen years in Hackney. For over twenty years he has written on popular culture and sub-culture for various publications including the Observer and the New York Times. A Song from Dead Lips is his first novel, which is followed by the next in the series, A House of Knives. He lives in Brighton.
In what is promising to be an assured series, Deadland sits as a gripping, fabulous read in its own right. Two 17 year old lads end up in a whole heap of trouble when they steal a mobile phone, meanwhile DS Alexandra Cupidi returns to investigate a severed limb, but without the rest of the body is there actually a murder to investigate? The first in this DS Alexandra Cupidi Investigation series by William Shaw is Salt Lane, with the standalone The Birdwatcher taking place before, but also linking to the series. So there are a couple of recommended stops to make before potentially embarking on Deadland. I just slipped straight into the storyline, I immediately felt at home, there was a fresh feeling of reality and I didn’t question, just read. DS Cupidi is a really strong lead, the relationship with her daughter adding a contrasting note of tension. There is a wonderful balance between the investigations taking place, and the story of Benjamin and Joseph, the links starting to tighten as the story progresses. Dungeness thrusts itself into the story, the social aspects substantial and compelling. Deadland is an absolutely fascinating read, one that I highly recommend and I have chosen it as one of my Liz Robinson picks of the month.
SHE ALWAYS WENT TOO FAR DS Alexandra Cupidi has done it again. She should have learnt to keep her big mouth shut, after the scandal that sent her packing - resentful teenager in tow - from the London Met to the lonely Kent coastline. Murder is different here, among the fens and stark beaches. SHE WAS THE ONE WHO FOUND THE KILLERS The man drowned in the slurry pit had been herded there like an animal. He was North African, like many of the fruit pickers that work the fields. The more Cupidi discovers, the more she wants to ask - but these people are suspicious of questions. AND NOW IT WAS KILLING HER It will take an understanding of this strange place - its old ways and new crimes - to uncover the dark conspiracy behind the murder. Cupidi is not afraid to travel that road. But she should be. She should, by now, have learnt. Salt Lane is the first in the new DS Alexandra Cupidi series. With his trademark characterisation and flair for social commentary, William Shaw has crafted a crime novel for our time that grips you, mind and heart.
London, 1968. The Runaway. A young woman is found naked and strangled in an alley in well-to-do St John's Wood. The African. The neighbours would love to pin it on the enigmatic black stranger who has just moved in. The Pariah. Detective Sergeant Cathal Breen is convinced there's more to the case than anyone wants to admit; no-one's listening. The Outsider. In walks WPC Helen Tozer - awkward chatterbox, farmgirl, and the first woman to enter the murder unit - and gives Breen a breakthrough. A Song from Dead Lips is a crime thriller that shows the glorified sixties close-up, as it really was - comfortably sexist, racially prejudiced, class-bound and crawling with corruption.
'If you're not a fan yet, why not?' VAL MCDERMID 'A superb storyteller' PETER MAY A BIZARRE DISCOVERY An unidentified cadaver is found in a freezer in an unoccupied luxury house. No-one seems to know or care who it is or who placed it there. When DS Alexandra Cupidi is handed the case, she can have no idea it will lead her to a series of murderous cover-ups and buried secrets. Namely the discovery of the skeleton of public-school boy, Trevor Wood, beneath a housing development. A HISTORIC CRIME His disappearance twenty five years earlier had almost passed unnoticed. But as evidence surfaces that his fate was linked to long suppressed rumours of sexual abuse, Cupidi, her teenage daughter Zoe and her friend Bill South find themselves up against powerful forces who will try to silence them. A BURIED LIFE Digging deep into the secrets that are held underground leads to Cupidi's realisation that crime and power are seldom far apart. There are dangerous connections between the two cases, which are complicated by Constable Jill Ferriter's dating habits, a secret liaison and the underground life of Trevor Grey's only friend. The most riveting and atmospheric DS Alexandra Cupidi novel so far, Grave's End confronts the crisis in housing, environmental politics, the protection given to badgers by the law. With meticulously mastered characters and a brooding setting, this third book in the series confirms William Shaw as one of the finest crime writers.
SCADA technology quietly operates in the background of critical utility and industrial facilities nationwide. This important tool efficiently manages utility assets, refineries and other critical industrial segments, but protecting SCADA networks from cyber attacks, hackers and even physical assault is becoming a test of will, cleverness and determination. Cybersecurity for SCADA Systems provides a high-level overview of this unique technology, with an explanation of each market segment. Readers will understand the vital issues, and learn strategies for decreasing or eliminating system vulnerabilities. Benefits for readers: Functional breakdown and explanation of the typical features, capabilities, and components of a SCADA system; IT and cybersecurity technology and terminology overview and explanation; Industry-specific as well as generalized discussion of SCADA vulnerabilities and available remediation strategies; and Discussion of physical and electronic security issues and strategies. Suitable for the non-technical management level personnel as well as IT personnel without SCADA experience.
***The bestselling William Shaw returns with a thrilling investigation in the unmissable new series*** 'One of the great rising talents of UK crime fiction' PETER JAMES 'If you're not a fan yet, why not?' VAL MCDERMID 'A superb storyteller' PETER MAY YOU CAN RUN The two boys never fitted in. Seventeen, the worst age, nothing to do but smoke weed; at least they have each other. The day they speed off on a moped with a stolen mobile, they're ready to celebrate their luck at last. Until their victim comes looking for what's his - and ready to kill for it. YOU CAN HIDE On the other side of Kent's wealth divide, DS Alexandra Cupidi faces the strangest murder investigation of her career. A severed limb, hidden inside a modern sculpture in Margate's Turner Contemporary. No one takes it seriously - not even the artwork's owners, celebrity dealers who act like they're above the law. YOU CAN DIE But as Cupidi's case becomes ever more sinister, as she wrangles with police politics and personal dilemmas, she can't help worrying about those runaway boys. Seventeen, the same age as her own headstrong daughter. Alone, on the marshes, they're pawns in someone else's game. Two worlds are about to collide. Kent and its social divisions are brilliantly captured in Deadland, a crime thriller that's as ingeniously unguessable as it is moving and powerful.
***The bestselling William Shaw returns with a thrilling investigation in the unmissable new series*** 'One of the great rising talents of UK crime fiction' PETER JAMES 'If you're not a fan yet, why not?' VAL MCDERMID 'A superb storyteller' PETER MAY YOU CAN RUN The two boys never fitted in. Seventeen, the worst age, nothing to do but smoke weed; at least they have each other. The day they speed off on a moped with a stolen mobile, they're ready to celebrate their luck at last. Until their victim comes looking for what's his - and ready to kill for it. YOU CAN HIDE On the other side of Kent's wealth divide, DS Alexandra Cupidi faces the strangest murder investigation of her career. A severed limb, hidden inside a modern sculpture in Margate's Turner Contemporary. No one takes it seriously - not even the artwork's owners, celebrity dealers who act like they're above the law. YOU CAN DIE But as Cupidi's case becomes ever more sinister, as she wrangles with police politics and personal dilemmas, she can't help worrying about those runaway boys. Seventeen, the same age as her own headstrong daughter. Alone, on the marshes, they're pawns in someone else's game. Two worlds are about to collide. Kent and its social divisions are brilliantly captured in Deadland, a crime thriller that's as ingeniously unguessable as it is moving and powerful.
'William Shaw is one of the great rising talents of UK crime fiction. This is his best book to date' Peter James 'Taut, terrifying and timely' Val McDermid 'William Shaw is a superb storyteller' Peter May SHE ALWAYS WENT TOO FAR DS Alexandra Cupidi has done it again. She should have learnt to keep her big mouth shut, after the scandal that sent her packing - resentful teenager in tow - from the London Met to the lonely Kent coastline. Murder is different here, among the fens and stark beaches. SHE WAS THE ONE WHO FOUND THE KILLERS The man drowned in the slurry pit had been herded there like an animal. He was North African, like many of the fruit pickers that work the fields. The more Cupidi discovers, the more she wants to ask - but these people are suspicious of questions. AND NOW IT WAS KILLING HER It will take an understanding of this strange place - its old ways and new crimes - to uncover the dark conspiracy behind the murder. Cupidi is not afraid to travel that road. But she should be. She should, by now, have learnt. Salt Lane is the first in the new DS Alexandra Cupidi series. With his trademark characterisation and flair for social commentary, William Shaw has crafted a crime novel for our time that grips you, mind and heart.
'Big treat in store for fans. And if you're not a fan yet, why not?' Val McDermid 'William Shaw is one of the great rising talents of UK crime fiction' Peter James London 1969: A detective in love. A crime of passion The devil: She made a profit from rich men. They paid for her youth. She paid with her life. The angel: To investigate the prostitute's murder, DS Cathal Breen isn't scared to question powerful suspects. The fall: But when a mysterious man from MI6 calls, Breen begins to fear he's uncovered a spy scandal. And then Breen's girlfriend Helen Tozer, with her ex-copper instincts, gets dangerously involved. Right or wrong, Breen knows he has too much to lose. He can have no sympathy for the devil.
