Finally we have the full lowdown on the Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate on the 18th – 21st July. And there are some corkers, too! It seems that all the stops have been pulled out and no one is pulling their punches in 2013. With a mega line up including Ruth Rendell, Lee Child, Susan Hill, Charlaine Harris, Kate Atkinson and a ton of other literary stars then this is one festival not to be missed!
Six weeks ago Crimesquad.com reviewer and author of last year’s runaway success, ‘Blood Tears’, Michael J Malone emailed me and told me in no uncertain terms that Jonathan Holt and his book, ‘The Abomination’ simply HAD to be an ‘Author of the Month’ candidate. And I listen to all my reviewers. Between us we read a ton of crime fiction each year and if any of the fine reviewers on this website are that moved or awe-inspired enough to suggest a title for ‘Author of the Month’ or ‘Fresh Blood’ then I know that it HAD TO BE THAT GOOD!!! And so, without further ado, I give you Jonathan Holt and his new book, ‘The Abomination’ as Crimesquad.com’s Author of the Month. Read Michael’s review to see why he was so astounded by this new title.
Fresh Blood is James Oswald’s debut, ‘Natural Causes’. Well, I say debut as it is the first of the DI Tony McLean books but this title has been out there for some years as an e-book. Now it has been re-written by the guidance of James’ new publishers, Penguin and now it is released in the printed form. I was totally engrossed in this novel and I can see why there is much buzz about it. If you are fans of MacBride, Billingham or Rankin then this is one you must try.
Reviews will be going online throughout May so keep an eye out for new ones – but for the moment here are ten of the most recent books we have all loved reading.
Classic Crime for May is the first in an exciting series from Oleander Press and Richard Reynolds who we all know is the mastermind of crime fiction in Heffers in Cambridge. If you haven’t been to Heffers then go – their crime fiction section is to die for and make sure you have plenty of money as you will spend loads! Back to the book for Classic Crime – the first in a new series called ‘London Bound’ is J.S. Fletcher’s ‘The Charing Cross Mystery’ which is a rollicking good romp from 1923. If like me you love to discover a classic you never knew about – then this is certainly the best time to climb aboard and enjoy this new series.
Don’t forget our brand new feature – the ‘Review Archive’ Search under author surname and author Christian name for those who can’t recall the surname. And for good measure you can also search under the title of the book. Simply click on the box at the top of the page and then click on to the letter of the author/title you would like to find. As you will see, we have reviewed our fair share of books during Crimesquad.com’s seven years. Have a wander round our archives and I hope you will find something new and exciting to read.
Last month I gave you Christie's very own Top Ten of her own books. Now you can see MY Agatha Christie Top Ten novels (and boy, was it difficult!). There are so many to choose from that some titles which I love didn't quite make the Top Ten for various reasons. These were; 'A Caribbean Mystery', 'The Sittaford Mystery', 'The Hound of Death', 'Dumb Witness' and 'Death on the Nile'. And I could go on and on, but these ten made it. See if you agree. I am sure that everyone's Christie Top Ten would be subjective and open to debate. But these are mine - see if you agree or not with my choices!
If you have any comments or have a particular author you
would like to see highlighted on this website please e-mail
me at chrissimmons@crimesquad.com.
