There’s something properly thrilling about getting caught up in a well plotted, suspense-packed crime novel. From twisty whodunits to gripping police procedurals, we’ve picked out the best new crime fiction to devour next.
The Killer Question by Janice Hallett
This meticulously plotted whodunit centres on the disappearance of pub landlords Mal and Sue Eastwood. Five years after they vanish, their nephew, Dominic, attempts to piece together what happened. His aunt and uncle had hosted a “fiercely competitive” weekly quiz night, which had always been a relatively low key affair until a mysterious new team of outsiders arrived, said Zoe West in Woman & Home. Weaved together from WhatsApp messages, quiz sheets and newspaper clippings, it’s a gripping read – with a twist “so clever, you’ll want to read it again”.
The Predicament by William Boyd
The second novel in William Boyd’s trilogy about accidental spy Gabriel Dax is “elegant, intelligent and carefully written”, said Allan Massie in The Scotsman. Dax is a successful travel writer and part-time M16 agent, living in rural Sussex and longing for his “unrequited love interest” and handler, Faith Green. Set in the early 1960s, the action swings between Guatemala and Berlin as he attempts to gather intelligence on an assassination plot. I’m already looking forward to the third and final instalment in this “tremendous” series.
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Out of the Dark by Heidi Amsinck
In this “outstanding” new novel, a nine-year-old girl disappears from a playground in Copenhagen, triggering a desperate search across the city led by “tormented” Nordic cop DI Henrik Jungersen, said Joan Smith in The Times. This is “superior” crime fiction; Amsinck “expertly” balances an intriguing plot with a “clear-eyed understanding” of the “anguish” her characters face.
Fair Play by Louise Hegarty
Irish author Louise Hegarty’s debut novel kicks off with a group of guests arriving at an Airbnb for a murder-mystery birthday party. Abigail has organised the celebration for her brother Benjamin – but he winds up dead the next morning. “So far, so run-of-the-mill,” said Laura Wilson in The Guardian, but the book then begins oscillating between two “engaging” storylines: a “metatextual golden age narrative” and a “heartbreaking account of grief”. In all, it’s an “ingenious” book that is “undoubtedly the most original crime novel you’ll read all year”.
The Mystery of the Crooked Man by Tom Spencer
“Sometimes you know immediately that a book is going to get under your skin and stay there,” said Sarah Weinman in The New York Times. Within the first few pages of Tom Spencer’s “tart” debut novel, I was hooked. Readers are drawn into the world of Agatha Dorn, an “irritable” archivist and murder mystery addict, who discovers what she believes is a lost manuscript by the legendary Gladden Green. It’s not long before the precious pages are revealed to be a hoax and Agatha’s ex-girlfriend dies by suicide. “Or did she?”
This Is Not a Game by Kelly Mullen
Following his “amazing” debut, “Squeaky Clean”, in 2023, Callum McSorley is back with another “cavalcade of gruesome violence” and “torrent of fantastically filthy language” said Mark Sanderson in The Times. In this darkly comic follow-up, DCI Ally McCoist has been newly promoted to chief inspector and must try to stay calm as the “bodies mount up” in Glasgow’s underworld. “Fizzing with energy and full of heart, it’s one of those books that you simply don't want to end.”
Paperboy by Callum McSorley
Following his "amazing" debut "Squeaky Clean" in 2023, Callum McSorley is back with another "cavalcade of gruesome violence" and "torrent of fantastically filthy language", said Mark Sanderson in The Times. In this darkly comic follow-up, DCI Ally McCoist has been newly promoted to chief inspector and must try to stay calm as the "bodies mount up" in Glasgow's underworld. "Fizzing with energy and full of heart, it's one of those books that you simply don't want to end."
All the Other Mothers Hate Me by Sarah Harman
This “bitingly sharp” debut novel from Sarah Harman is a “hugely enjoyable, addictive ride”, said Daisy Lester in The Independent. “Razor-sharp” in its probing of school-gates culture, it’s little wonder it’s already been “snapped up” by Disney for a TV adaptation. The action follows single mother Florence Grimes, whose world is turned upside down when her 10-year-old son’s bully vanishes on a school trip. “Funny and full of twists, it’s a real page-turner.”
Sleeper Beach by Nick Harkaway
Nick Harkaway’s “genre-bending” book follows Cal Sounder, a detective investigating the murder of a young woman while “struggling” to adjust to his life as a “medically enhanced” Titan, said Anna Bonet in The i Paper. Gradually we’re introduced to a town full of “simmering tensions” and a cast of characters who “aren’t who they say they are”. It makes for a “gripping” read.
