Do you watch the news? Does it intrigue you? Or do you avoid it? It’s a tough call. So we’re not sure whether starting our news roundup with a book set in the Middle East is daring or foolhardy. What we do know is that Paul Vidich wrote this before everything kicked off (again) in Gaza and that he’s a top espionage author. Plus, if Beirut Station doesn’t take your fancy, we’ve also got a cold case in Ireland, a Reykjavik killing spree, a psychological thriller and PI novel from Lawrence Kelter.
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Beirut Station by Paul Vidich
Look out! Beirut Station by Paul Vidich will take you into the deadly complexity of the Middle East – just like the news – when it arrives on 4 January. In this espionage novel, the year is 2006 and war is tearing Lebanon apart with bombs raining down and the residents scrambling to evacuate. The country is on the brink of chaos. The CIA and Mossad believe an attempt is about to be made on the life of US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is due in Beirut to broker a ceasefire. But when moves to get close to a reclusive Hezbollah terrorist fall apart, a young Lebanese-American CIA agent suddenly finds herself in the firing line – with nowhere to turn.
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Three Little Birds by Sam Blake
Dublin and Co Mayo in the Republic of Ireland are the twin settings for Sam Blake’s Three Little Birds, out on 4 January. Facial reconstruction expert Dr Carla Steele is called to Lough Coyne after a skull is discovered. Is this connected to a case the garda failed to solve 14 years ago? The investigation takes a turn when the body of a murdered woman is discovered by the shore. Carla, local police detective Jack Maguire, and Carla’s partner, criminal psychologist Grace Franciosi, begin to piece together a tragic story with very dangerous and current implications.
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The Dancer by Óskar Gudmundsson
Life has dealt out more than a few blows to Tony over the years. Many of them came from his troubled, alcoholic mother, who was a talented ballerina until a life-changing accident brought her dreams to a sudden end. She then took out her frustrations on her child, with devastating consequences. Now there’s a vicious killer on the loose in Reykjavik, and it is up to veteran police detective, Valdimar, and his inexperienced young partner, Ylfa, to catch the culprit. The Dancer by Óskar Gudmundsson, translated by Quentin Bates, is out for Kindle on 5 January.
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The Woman on the Ledge by Ruth Mancini
Tate Kinsella is a would-be actress, working as a temp at a London bank. She is someone generally ignored by her co-workers. Until one of the people she works with falls to her death off the 25th floor of the office building. Falls? Or was she pushed? Tate is arrested for murder and what happens next in this twisty psychological thriller is completely unexpected. The protagonist is clearly being framed – but there’s more to this innocent bystander than meets the eye… Make a date with The Woman on the Ledge by Ruth Mancini. It’s out on 4 January.
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Man-Killer by Lawrence Kelter
Gina Marie Cototi is a Brooklyn-based PI with a fondness for family, friends, and a roguishly handsome Casanova named Rocco Benelli. She’s also got more cases than she can handle, and against her better judgement takes Rocco on to lighten the load. But what he finds out about Vlad “The Scud” Rzhevsky, a disreputable boxer running point on dirty deeds for Luca Mura – a mobster as evil as he is dangerous – is about to get the pair into deep, deep trouble. Man-Killer by Lawrence Kelter, author of the studio-authorised novels based on the film My Cousin Vinny, is out on 11 January.
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