On the Radar — March 2020 sees the return of Kathy Reichs and her main character, Temperance Brennan. As a forensic anthropologist, there’s nothing Tempe likes more than a sack of bones – the older the better – and the chance to investigate how their original owner died. And it follows that there’s nothing fans of forensic crime fiction like more than a new Tempe Brennan novel. It’s cause and effect… or something like that. However, even if forensics isn’t your bag of bones, we’ve got four other novels for you to investigate here in our new books column…
A Conspiracy of Bones by Kathy Reichs
Can it really be four years since we last had a book featuring forensic anthropologist Temperance Brennan? Yep, it was in January 2016 that The Bone Collection, containing four short stories, was released, so let’s welcome Kathy Reichs back to long form. A Conspiracy of Bones is out on 17 March, and we find Tempe right off her game, recovering from neurosurgery after an aneurysm. She’s sleeping badly and having migraines and hallucinations, so when she gets a series of texts including photos of a corpse without hands or a face, she thinks it might all be a dream. Then the body is found – and Tempe’s nightmare really begins.
Pre-order now on Amazon
The Creak on the Stairs by Eva Bjorg Aegisdottir
Here’s a new author for fans of Icelandic crime fiction to discover, with The Creak on the Stairs arriving on 14 March for Kindle and later in the year as a paperback. Not long after Reykjavik detective Elma returns to the town of Akranes, the body of a woman is found on shore by teenage lovebirds near the lighthouse. Did she fall in or was she done in? Well, this is crime fiction so it’s the latter, but what was it that the victim, Elisabet, had returned to the town for and why did it end up in her murder? Elma’s work is cut out for her as she tries to solve the case without upsetting her small-town boss by using somewhat more professional methods of detection.
Pre-order now on Amazon
Apartment 6 by Stuart James
If psychological thrillers are your thing, then this standalone is out now. Meagan was just five when her mother was murdered by her partner – now Meagan is trapped in an abusive relationship of her own and can see no way out. It’s a scary situation and Meagan is desperate to escape but can’t pluck up the courage to make the move. Then along comes Oliver, who seems like a decent bloke and is on the rebound and the pair become close, but when Meagan confesses that her husband is abusive, Oliver makes a decision that is destined to push him to his limits as he sets out to save the woman he cares for.
Buy now on Amazon
M for Murder by Keri Beevis
It was back in the 1980s that Alphabet Killer Professor Rodney Boone murdered eight students, the initial of their surname carved into their necks. He succeeded with letters A to H before victim nine escaped and the murderer was left to burn to death. Move on eight years and newbie police officer Rebecca Angell finds herself at the heart of a murder investigation when a body is found in a sewer, the letter J carved into their skin. A copycat? Or did Boone actually escape from that fire? As the body count rises, we’re about to find out. This book is out now and was previously published as Dead Letter Day
Buy now on Amazon
Venom by Thomas A Burns, Jr
North Carolina author Thomas A Burns has released the fourth book in his Natalie McMasters series, and this unusual lead character’s life has taken another unusual twist. She’s decided to live in a threesome in rural Georgia with her wife Lupe and her work partner Danny. What she doesn’t bargain on is being drawn into an investigation involving local meth producers, snake-handling preachers and a serial killer who is on the loose. You can expect the unexpected with Thomas A Burns.
Buy now on Amazon
Read about last week’s new books here.