The last couple of weeks have been light on new books, so we took a break from On the Radar, but we’re back with six killer reads for the end of August. Our lead is something new from ice queen Lilja Sigurdardottir, who starts a new series with Cold as Hell, set in her home country of Iceland. We’ve also got big new releases from British writers Ann Cleeves and Paula Hawkins, and three authors who are brand new to the site – Heidi Amsinck (Denmark), Christian Unge (Sweden) and Onyeka Nwelue (Nigeria).
Read on and maybe you’ll find the ideal crime novel to round off your summer.
Cold as Hell by Lilja Sigurdardottir
It’s time to celebrate as award-winning Icelandic author Lilja Sigurdardottir returns with a brand new series – and you only have to wait until 28 August to grab a copy of Cold as Hell on Kindle, with the paperback due 28 October. Icelandic sisters Áróra and Ísafold are the epitome of estranged; they live in different countries and haven’t talked for years. But when Áróra’s mother gets in touch, she comes home. Ísafold is missing, vanished without trace – could it have something to do with her abusive, drug-dealing boyfriend Björn? Áróra enlists the help of police officer Daníel as she tries to track her sister’s movements and tail Björn… but she isn’t the only one watching.
Pre-order now on Amazon
The Heron’s Cry by Ann Cleeves
Two years have passed since we met Ann Cleeves’ latest creation, Detective Matthew Venn, in The Long Call – prepare for a return to his North Devon patch when The Heron’s Cry is released on 2 September. The area is enjoying great weather and lots of tourists as Venn is called out to a rural crime scene at an artists’ commune. Dr Nigel Yeo was fatally stabbed with a shard of glass from a vase created by his glassblower daughter, Eve, a member of the art collective. Dr Yeo was well liked, so who could have wanted him dead? Then another body is found – killed in similar fashion, and Venn is shocked when his enquiries begin to take him dangerously close to home.
Pre-order now on Amazon
A Slow Burning Fire by Paula Hawkins
Three women, one murder, myriad possibilities… Prepare for some late nights because the author of the blockbuster The Girl on the Train is back with another psychological thriller. Laura is a hot tempered, troubled loner, who is spotted by Miriam leaving the scene of a horrific murder with blood on her clothes. Did she do it? Miriam isn’t one to make rash judgements – she knows from experience how easy it is to get caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. Meanwhile Carla is reeling from the brutal murder of her nephew. She refuses to trust anyone – but how far will she go to find peace? A Slow Burning Fire by Paula Hawkins is out on 31 August.
Pre-order now on Amazon
My Name is Jensen by Heidi Amsinck
There’s a killer on the loose in Copenhagen and he’s targeting the homeless in Heidi Amsinck’s My Name is Jensen, out on 31 August. The murderer’s second victim is found by Dagbladet reporter Jensen, who stumbles across the body on her way to work, a cardboard sign bearing the word ‘Guilty’ at his side. Her first call is to her ex-lover DI Henrik Jungersen – and that could be a mistake, because as Jensen pursues the allure of a front page exclusive, she gets sidetracked by their rekindled romance. But as the reporter is soon to discover, taking her eye off the ball could prove to be a very dangerous error.
Pre-order now on Amazon
Hell and High Water by Christian Unge
Say hello to a new Swedish crime series featuring Tekla Berg, a fearless doctor with a photographic memory. Berg’s latest patient has 85 per cent burns to his body and virtually no chance of survival, but as she battles to keep him breathing, she can’t shake the thought that he is oddly familiar. The police have him down as a terrorist and urgently need to question the man, while there are other shadowy figures who want him dead at any cost. Can the pill-popping medic get to the bottom of a mystery that appears to have links to her wayward brother? Christian Unge’s Hell and High Water is out now.
Buy now on Amazon
The Strangers of Braamfontein by Onyeka Nwelue
Osas, a young and impressionable Nigerian painter, escapes poverty and hardship in Benin City and heads for the chaos of crime-ridden Johannesburg. He soon realises that to survive, he must become a criminal too, but as Osas walks through the corners of Braamfontein, a suburb of Johannesburg, he encounters a disparate group of people. Nigerian Janus-faced Chike, Zimbabwean Machiavellian Chamai, sly Papi, duplicitous Ruth, savvy April and fiendish Detectives Jiba and Booysen, are about to teach him some valuable lessons. The Strangers of Braamfontein by Onyeka Nwelue is out now.
Buy now on Amazon
