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Find out moreAll engrossing, pure escapist, nail-biting anxiety, mind bending terror and psychological twists. We’re not sure why it’s so appealing. Good though, isn’t it! You might also like to browse our Crime and Mystery category.
You just have to say Oslo Detectives series and it conjures up everything you need to know, this is Nordic Noir with knobs on! Detective Frolich investigates a simple missing person case, but as a killer strikes, so the complexity rises. This could be read quite successfully as a standalone novel as Frolich has turned private investigator and it suggests a beginning. Do pop Faithless and The Ice Swimmer on your list though and start with these if you can! Kjell Ola Dahl writes with such crisp clarity, and translator Don Bartlett is on point as it feels as though not a word has been wasted. Short, sharp sentences pounce. I love how the story builds, the plot almost turns itself inside out, and yet is kept as tight as can be. There are no easy tick-box answers on offer here. Bang up-to-date, Sister is a raw, real, and fabulous read.
This brilliant novel will be released in April 2020. Click here to pre-order a copy! Well! This is an absolute corker of a debut, different and intelligent, it wormed its way into my thoughts and then proceeded to hunt them down. Narrator Jane tells of her friendship with Marnie, and the seven lies that change that friendship forever. This is Jane’s chance to be honest, and if she had told the truth to start with, Marnie’s husband might still be alive. The introduction to each lie hits with hammer hard precision, there are truths waiting ready to trip you up. Elizabeth Kay has the ability to blur lines, and I found myself stopping, questioning, considering my thoughts. She quite simply made me look at things in a different way. I write notes as I read, and these were peppered with ‘Crikey!’, ‘Blimey!’, and an awful lot of exclamation marks! Provocative, thoughtful, and so very clever, Seven Lies deserves to be a huge hit. A debut of the month and a LoveReading Star Book, Seven Lies comes with a tremendous thumbs up from me.
Chock-a-block with chills, this supernatural thriller also beautifully evokes teenage feelings of uncertainty and how they travel with us into adulthood. Theatre usher Chloe witnesses the iconic musical Dust returning to the stage after 20 years, the very stage said to be haunted by the leading actress who was murdered in her dressing room. It feels as though this book, which crosses genres so successfully, could only have been written by Louise Beech. Her ability to delve into the deepest of emotions and describe them so they land with acute precision in your own thoughts, is handfasted with her knowledge of the theatre. The past collides with the present and boy does the tension increase with each time switch. I felt as though I was a teenager again, and with all the buckets full of feelings that Chloe has to manage, I could have gathered her into the hugest hug. While this is spooky as heck, it is also hugely considerate of emotional heartache and distress. Compelling, original, and unmistakably Louise Beech, I Am Dust glides onto my Liz Robinson picks of the month.
The Gilded Cage by Camilla Lackberg is an intriguing psychological thriller and disturbing domestic noir. Faye seems to have it all – the perfect husband, the perfect daughter, the perfect house, the perfect life... Yet she’s spent much of her life running away from her very dark past. The book shows that no one really knows what goes on behind closed doors and who people really are. The book is set in the Swedish city of Stockholm. Its beautiful vivid descriptions are perfect for audiobook – I felt as though I could see the characters and their surroundings just as much as I could hear them. The narrator has a chilling voice, which certainly adds atmosphere, and the narrative makes astute observations of people’s mannerisms and interactions, bringing the characters and story to life. The book does contain quite a bit of explicit sexual content though, so maybe check who’s listening in the background! The Gilded Cage switches between the past and present, following Faye and her husband Jack from the moment they met until the present day. This is a tale of love, friendship, betrayal and revenge, featuring secrets, lies, manipulation and shocking revelations. Faye certainly isn’t who her friends and family think she is – she’s craving love and attention from her often-distant husband and will do anything to get it. She’s very mixed up and very chilling – a character that’s difficult to warm to and one that you’ll love to hate. But is she really a psychopath and how much has she been shaped by her past? The Gilded Cage is a book that will thrill, shock and entertain its readers – and certainly not for the fainthearted!
Achingly painful and stunningly beautiful, be prepared to fall long and hard for We Begin at the End. This is a crime novel that will stay with me, and is now firmly ensconced on my list of favourite books. Duchess, full of awareness of the difficulties of life at just 13 years old, throws her family’s life into chaos when Vincent King is released from prison after 30 years. The first few sentences caught and held me, the prologue sets a shiver inducing scene. By the time the first chapter began I was already in thrall to Chris Whitaker’s writing. I felt, really felt the pain, the love, the joy, the desolation, each feeling clamouring to have its say. Duchess has stamped her way into my mind and will remain there, occasionally elbowing my attention into remembering. I adore her, she feels vibrantly alive to me. The ending felt truly perfect, and not that I would deface a book of course, but imagine ‘Highly Recommended’ stamped all over We Begin at the End. We have chosen this as a Book of the Month, Liz Pick of the Month, and a LoveReading Star Book too, because it is so completely gorgeous. I’m just sad that I don’t have the opportunity to experience it again for the very first time.
The Gilded Cage by Camilla Lackberg is an intriguing psychological thriller and disturbing domestic noir. Faye seems to have it all – the perfect husband, the perfect daughter, the perfect house, the perfect life... Yet she’s spent much of her life running away from her very dark past. The book shows that no one really knows what goes on behind closed doors and who people really are. The book is set in the Swedish city of Stockholm. Its beautiful vivid descriptions. I felt as though I could see the characters and their surroundings. The narrative makes astute observations of people’s mannerisms and interactions, bringing the characters and story to life. The book does contain quite a bit of explicit sexual content though, so maybe check who’s listening in the background! The Gilded Cage switches between the past and present, following Faye and her husband Jack from the moment they met until the present day. This is a tale of love, friendship, betrayal and revenge, featuring secrets, lies, manipulation and shocking revelations. Faye certainly isn’t who her friends and family think she is – she’s craving love and attention from her often-distant husband and will do anything to get it. She’s very mixed up and very chilling – a character that’s difficult to warm to and one that you’ll love to hate. But is she really a psychopath and how much has she been shaped by her past? The Gilded Cage is a book that will thrill, shock and entertain its readers – and certainly not for the fainthearted!
A blistering, gripping, and absolutely fascinating novel. Set aside plenty of quality time as I was consumed, and read it all in one heady, breathtaking go. It’s based on the true story of Nancy Wake, named by the Gestapo as The White Mouse, as she evaded their capture by slipping through check points in France during The Second World War. It is almost impossible to comprehend the wartime life of Nancy, it feels as though all of it is brilliant but astonishing fiction. Darby Kealey and Imogen Robertson have created a living, breathing, headstrong woman and I shook my head in wonder and shock at some of her escapades. She’s not perfect, she makes mistakes and at times appears somewhat gung-ho, with no apparent regard for the safety of herself or her team, yet this woman was quite simply incredible. The authors have made changes to timelines and invented some episodes which they fully explain in the Historical Notes. A major film production is underway, and I recommend reading the book just as soon as you can (before the film) as it is fabulous. Nancy Wake has entered my heart, and we just had to choose Liberation as a LoveReading Star Book.
You really couldn’t pack any more action into this captivating and thoroughly entertaining novel. I’ve been in on the Orphan X series from the beginning and it’s a must-read series for me. Evan Smoak, former government assassin codenamed Orphan X, now known as the Nowhere Man, takes on one last mission. This is the fifth book in what has been an outstanding series so far, will it be the last? As usual, the first chapter hits hard and keeps running, I was on high alert throughout and in the back of my mind I was wondering just how it was all going to end. There are some lovely light notes in the form of Dog, and the interaction with Joey adds some zing. The plot keeps expanding, and I was almost out of breath trying to keep up with Evan. Into The Fire by Gregg Hurwitz is just as enthrallingly enjoyable as the rest of the series has been.
Lisa needs to disappear. And her friend's rambling old home in the wilds of Yorkshire seems like the perfect place. It's miles away from the closest town, and no one there knows her or her little boy, Joe. But when Lisa meets some of the locals, and hears some disturbing rumours about the house, she realises it might not be the sanctuary she thought. What secret has Rowan Isle House - and her friend - kept hidden all these years? And what will Lisa have to do to survive, when her own past finally catches up with her?
A WORLD HALF IN DARKNESS. A SECRET SHE MUST BRING TO LIGHT. 2059. The world has stopped turning. One half suffers an endless frozen night; the other, nothing but burning sun. Only in a slim twilit region between them can life survive. In an isolationist Britain, scientist Ellen Hopper receives a letter from a dying man. It contains a powerful and dangerous secret. One that those in power will kill to conceal…
'Downtime Shift' is an intriguing, complex and chilling work of science fiction by Robert Holding. Set in the twenty-first and twenty-ninth centuries, it paints a frightening picture of a future in which mankind is totally controlled by artificial intelligence. Evelyn, the main character, is a 'Shifty', that is someone who has been trained to survive and carry out tasks for the 'EYE' when travelling 800 years into the planet's past to alter its future for the better. Questioning these tasks, Evelyn returns to her own time to find that many of the remaining population want to take back control of their lives but that the 'EYE' also has more forces under her control than had been reckoned with. This is a very challenging read on many levels and so plausible in general that it is truly terrifying. The characters are well-defined and the plot fast-paced. The author does leave us with a light at the end of a horrendously turbulent tunnel. I would certainly recommend this book, especially to anyone feeling disillusioned with the way modern life seems to be heading. Drena Irish, A LoveReading Ambassador
A very disturbing story of the descent into madness of a woman who has spent her life caring for her schizophrenic father and sees the development of the same illness in her four-year old son. When he drowns she is convinced her husband killed him. The tale is told by her brother, in part as a statement to the police and in part as narrative. Deeply gripping, sometimes frightening, it certainly deserves reading. Try his Breakheart Hill too, it’s excellent.Comparison: Roger Jon Ellory, John Sandford, Barbara Vine.
Shortlisted for the 2006 Duncan Lawrie Dagger.A real page turner with a surprising twist in the tail. Set in small town America the book explores dysfunctional families and the difficult subject of a missing child. Although a tricky theme Cook injects it with both suspense and pathos. It is beautifully written and full of good characterizations. If you enjoyed this then do try some of his earlier novels including Evidence of Blood and Interrogation.
Shortlisted for the 2006 Duncan Lawrie Dagger.A real page turner with a surprising twist in the tail. Set in small town America the book explores dysfunctional families and the difficult subject of a missing child. Although a tricky theme Cook injects it with both suspense and pathos. It is beautifully written and full of good characterizations. If you enjoyed this then do try some of his earlier novels including Evidence of Blood and Interrogation.
Two stories from this collection (Served Cold by Zoë Sharp and Mother's Milk by Chris Simms) are shortlisted for the CWA Short Story Dagger 2009. You may read both of them by downloading the extract. A collection of 35 short stories brought together by an expert in the field, and also one of Lovereading’s ‘Expert Voices’, Maxim Jakubowski. Plenty for the crime buff to get their teeth in to and perfect for trying out that new crime author you haven’t tried yet!
The second crime/thriller anthology from Mira. This time edited by Lee Child and the stories all come from new upcoming writers, with an introduction to each from established writers. The perfect book for dipping in to for a short, sharp dose of crime.
This is the first anthology of thriller short-stories ever written. Highly readable, if not down right spine chilling, this is the ideal book for dipping in and out of. Edited by James Patterson who is one of the biggest selling novelists in the world, it includes contributions from some very well know writers including Lee Child, MJ Rose, Denise Hamilton, James Siegel and Gayle Lynds and some lesser known who are well worth discovering. It's fantastic if you like to read a complete story before bedding down for the night and we can't wait for the second anthology to appear.
This is the first anthology of thriller short-stories ever written. Highly readable, if not down right spine chilling, this is the ideal book for dipping in and out of. Edited by James Patterson who is one of the biggest selling novelists in the world, it includes contributions from some very well know writers including Lee Child, MJ Rose, Denise Hamilton, James Siegel and Gayle Lynds and some lesser known who are well worth discovering.It's fantastic if you like to read a complete story before bedding down for the night and we can't wait for the second anthology to appear.
A Maxim Jakubowski selected title. A rare example of contemporary Chinese crime fiction, this harrowing but precise tale carries echoes of Dostoyevsky and offers often disturbing insights into what makes Chinese society tick. A disaffected high school student plans a perfect murder. He lures a beautiful young violin player to his home and, in cold blood, strangles her before briefly going on the run. Uneasy with his situation, he soon engineers matters so he is caught by the authorities and thereafter meticulously, and without the slightest shred of remorse, plots to fight the state, psychologists assigned to his case, family and the law to escape the inevitable death penalty. A brutal X-ray of the pressures inherent in Chinese society and the despair that controls it, this is also a compelling read and an eye-opener into a world which is not as unfamiliar as we first think and displays an ironic resonance with our own reality. Challenging but rewarding. ~ Maxim Jakubowski
February 2018 Debut of the Month. Oh my word, this is an absolutely cracking psychological thriller. Anna is unable to leave her house, she views the world from her window and connects with it on her laptop, when she witnesses a horrific incident in a neighbouring house, turmoil awaits. The first few pages set me on edge, and I remained on high alert throughout the story, doubting and questioning my own reasoning. Even if you suspect, you can’t be confident, and there are plenty of shocks and surprises lying in wait. Set over a few weeks, the short chapters whipped into my consciousness, yet the story reveals itself gradually. A. J. Flynn allows the tension to build, slowly, torturously, and exquisitely. Anna tells her own story, wounded herself, can she be trusted? When the revelations came, they spilled from the page and slapped my thoughts. So clever and focused, yet utterly mind-bending, ‘The Woman in the Window’ is a heart-hammering read and I highly recommend stepping into Anna’s world.
Oh my word, this is an absolutely cracking psychological thriller. Anna is unable to leave her house, she views the world from her window and connects with it on her laptop, when she witnesses a horrific incident in a neighbouring house, turmoil awaits. The first few pages set me on edge, and I remained on high alert throughout the story, doubting and questioning my own reasoning. Even if you suspect, you can’t be confident, and there are plenty of shocks and surprises lying in wait. Set over a few weeks, the short chapters whipped into my consciousness, yet the story reveals itself gradually. A. J. Flynn allows the tension to build, slowly, torturously, and exquisitely. Anna tells her own story, wounded herself, can she be trusted? When the revelations came, they spilled from the page and slapped my thoughts. So clever and focused, yet utterly mind-bending, The Woman in the Window is a heart-hammering read and I highly recommend stepping into Anna’s world.
Oh my word, this is an absolutely cracking psychological thriller. Anna is unable to leave her house, she views the world from her window and connects with it on her laptop, when she witnesses a horrific incident in a neighbouring house, turmoil awaits. I remained on high alert throughout the story, doubting and questioning my own reasoning. Even if you suspect, you can’t be confident, and there are plenty of shocks and surprises lying in wait. Anna tells her own story, wounded herself, can she be trusted? When the revelations came, they spilled forth and slapped my thoughts. So clever and focused, yet utterly mind-bending, The Woman in the Window is a heart-hammering experience and I highly recommend stepping into Anna’s world.
A Maxim Jakubowski selected title. THE BEAUTY OF MURDER, the debut novel by Hastings-based performer Alexandra Benedict, was a memorable cross-time Oxford-set crime thriller with strong supernatural overtones and her follow-up contemporary thriller is equally evocative and colourful and confirms her voice as quite unique: florid, wide-screened, and masterful in the way she builds up wonderful, truly original characters and the most unsettling of protagonists. A once-blind researcher who despite a successful operation insists on still not seeing is the target of a sinister serial killer and troubled London cop Jonathan Dark, who has the power to see ghosts, is caught in the web of murder and intrigue that surrounds them like an evil fog. Add revengeful ghosts helping and hindering the living, loving evocations of London's river and dark side, conspiracies by the handful and characters quite unlike those encountered in your average modern British crime novel and you have a potent cocktail that will linger in your mind and nightmares for ages.
Picture it. You’re going on holiday. The bags are packed and the family is ready, you’re at the gate, the plane is boarding, you’ve decided to start your brand new, especially purchased thriller right away. Suddenly, you’re immersed into the corridors of intrigue, conspiracy, murder, espionage and you don’t know who to trust. The plane has left without you. So has the family. You haven’t even noticed. At least you have a good book … and the whole house to yourself for a week!
This section is crammed with dangerously compelling adventures that will have your nails bitten and nervous system tested to the full. From Dan Brown, Stieg Larsson and James Patterson to Fred Vargas, Bernard Minier and C.J Sansom, there’s enough here to keep you ‘head-down and out-of-it’ for years. There’s certainly time to read one more before the family gets back from Torremolinos … and that’s where we come in!