The Drop by Michael Connelly

The Drop is yet another fantastic Harry Bosch story by the one and only Michael Connelly.

Harry Bosch is just three years away from retirement and he has been placed in the Deferred Retirement Option Plan (DROP).

He is desperate for more cases, and he gets his wish, with two on the one day.

First, the Regional Crime Lab throws up a positive DNA match for an unsolved rape and murder that took place in 1989.

Only problem is the accused, who is currently locked up for a different rape, would only have been 8 years old at the time.

Has something gone wrong at the lab?

Then a councilman's son dies after falling from a hotel balcony. Did he jump or was he pushed?

Councilman Irving demands Bosch investigate his son's death, despite previous enmity between the two men.

Bosch discovers that a serial killer has been operating in the city for up to 30 years, and that there is a deep political conspiracy going on that involves the police department at political level.

Typical Michael Connelly. Just pure brilliant.

Witness by Cath Staincliff

As the title suggests, Witness  is about the reactions of witnesses to a crime which could happen anywhere. In this instance it involves gangland figures in Manchester, but it could be in any UK city.

A teenage boy is shot down. The immediate witnesses to the scene are in danger and have to struggle with their own demons as to whether or not they will appear in court for the prosecution, knowing their own or their family's lives could be at risk.

In Cath Staincliff's Witness, the story centres around 4 witnesses.

Fiona, a midwife, hears the gunshots and attends to the dying boy.

Mike, a delivery driver on his rounds, finds himself having to choose between testifying in court or losing his own family.

Cheryl, a single mum, has the dilemma of speaking out now, despite the obvious dangers, or risking her child growing up in the same climate of fear.

Zak, a homeless man, has little to lose and more to gain by speaking out.

This is a well-paced and fascinating read which places ordinary people in a situation most of us wouldn't want to be, but which could happen to any one of us.

The One You Love by Paul Pilkington

Described as a fast paced thriller, The One You Love by Paul Pilkington is not to be missed.

Action-packed, the story revolves around actress Emma Holden, who is due to marry her fiancé, Dan, in two weeks time.

On the eve of the hen/stag night, he goes missing, and Emma discovers her brother's battered and bloody body in their London apartment.

The race is on to discover what happened.

Full of unguessable twists and turns, you will find The One You Love hard to put down, and you will be kept guessing right up until the very end.

An excellent novel, well worth reading.

Into the Darkest Corner by Elizabeth Haynes

Into the Darkest Corner

Into the Darkest Corner is a very impressive first novel by Elizabeth Haynes, that will grip you from the very start.

It's a psychological thriller about a normal woman who develops Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, through the behaviour of another close to her. We see close at hand how a woman is affected by domestic violence, willing her to get out of her situation.

This is a real page turner that is best read when you have no other pressing activities to take you away, but don't read it late at night or you may not be able to sleep!

Into the Darkest Corner is one of the best books on the market which is highly recommended reading, unless you are of a very nervous disposition.

Available in Kindle and Paperback.

Negotiate by Jay Laurell

Negotiate

The title 'Negotiate' seems to have confused a lot of readers of this fantastically-paced book by Jay Laurell, as there is very little negotiating actually going on!

Invariably described as one of the best books in a decade, Negotiate is set in the US where persons under the control of the mysterious Diablo have set a series of bombs in 8 FBI buildings in 8 different cities.

If they are set off, thousands of lives will be lost.

President Stanton cannot accede to terrorist demands due to the governments frequently affirmed policy, yet is aware that a terror worse that 9/11 will be unfolded should those bombs explode.

Tremendous drama in Negotiate, this is a thriller that will thrill. This is a book that is very hard to put down, and should appeal to a wide range of readers.

Available in Kindle edition.

London Calling (Inspector Carlyle 1) by James Craig

London Calling by James Craig 

James Craig has written a winner with this action-packed political thriller.

Our hero of the day is down-to-earth London Police Inspector John Carlyle whose job it is to track down a brutal murderer.

The country is in the middle of a General Election and the leader of the opposition, Edgar Carlton, a powerful and ambitious man from an upper class background, goes out of his way to ensure the killer is not found, because it could compromise his position.

An exciting and fast-paced thriller, this book is un-put-downable and a thoroughly good read as well as insightful into the world of power and murky politics.

Hard Landing: The First Spider Shepherd Thriller by Stephen Leather

Hard Landing by Stephen Leather

Hard Landing: the First Spider Shepherd Killer is a thoroughly enjoyable book about undercover agent Jack Shepherd, who, as Bob MacDonald, is caught red-handed carrying out an armed robbery.

Fast -tracked off the the remand wing of a category A British prison, he continues his undercover work behind bars.

Full of believable characters from the other prisoners to the wardens, this is an action-packed British thriller of the highest quality.

Daddy's Home by A.K. Alexander

Daddy's Home by A.K.Alexander

Daddy's Home is a crime thriller about a man who befriends single mothers so that he can get close to her children, hence the title "Daddy's Home".

But unlike a real Daddy, this Daddy turns nasty and kills them when things are not going well for him. The San Diego Police Department are investigating the murders and trying to track the killer down, but none more so than Crime Scene Investigator Holly Jennings, herself a single mom, whose best friend and her family become a victim of this evil entity known as "The Family Man".

Holly is also fighting her own personal demons, feeling guilt for the death of her husband while resisting an affair with an attractive veterinarian Brendan O'Neill.

Full of twists and turns, this book can move the reader to tears at times, dealing as it does with such sensitive issues as child murders.

Daddy's Home seems to be a book you'll either love or hate, if you can ignore the typos and errors throughout the book.

Bone and Cain by David Belbin

Bone and cane by David Belbin

Bone and Cain a political thriller set in Nottingham in the last 1990's, which according to reviews has been warmly received all round.

A young MP helps quash the conviction of a man accused of the murder of a policeman and his wife, but this man, Ed Clark, later attempts to rape the MP and admits to her that he was in fact guilty.

During the course of the story and with elections looming, the MP, Sarah Bone, meets up with old university flame Nick Cane who is fresh out of prison having served 5 years for an illegal cannabis growing operation. The biggest question on his mind is 'who grassed him up?'

He is now driving a mini-cab and a colleague of his is Ed Clark, the man whose conviction MP Bone helped to quash.

Pressure is growing on Sarah, as the dead policeman's sister, Polly Burton, demands a fresh enquiry into her brother's death and is making it  a political issue with the upcoming election.


Sarah herself has grave doubts about the Ed Clark's release as she realises she may have helped a gross injustice, and is determined to find out the truth.

Reviewers have stated that this book is a little bit difficult to get into at the start, but then it become un-put-downable with a great storyline that leaves the reader feeling knowledgeable about how election campaigns are run.