Secrecy by Rupert Thomson Granta HB/EB Out now Florence in the 1690s, a city of beauty, passion, mystery and death. Into this maelstrom
comes sculptor Zummo, secretly commissioned by the Grand Duke of Tuscany to work on a figure modelled on the corpse of a murdered woman. Zummo has to conceal his past, negotiate the dangerous politics of court life and the repressive mores of the times – all the while vying for the affection of a woman whose secrets, if revealed, would endanger both their lives. The plot builds to a denouement that, while inevitable, is still shockingly powerful.
CRIME
The Catch by Tom Bale Preface PB/EB Out March Set in
modern-day Brighton, The Catch opens in a village pub with a secretive
payoff which turns nasty. Then a horrible accident leads to a big cover-up. Characters question why events are taking place, but we start to see how these events are connected – or do we? What is the motivation for the characters? Who is pulling the strings? The characters are varied and well-drawn, Brighton appears vividly as the setting, and the plot is interesting, though perhaps ultimately frustrating.
Gone Again by Doug Johnstone Faber HB/EB Out March When his wife Laurie fails to collect their son Nathan from school, Marc tells himself
she’s stuck in traffic. When her phone goes to voicemail, she probably forgot to charge it. But just after Nathan’s birth, his mother disappeared for ten days. Has she gone again? Doug Johnstone’s stripped-back style builds believable characters, authentic settings and an intriguing plot. Although gentler than his previous two books, Gone Again is still hard-hitting, and it lingers past the inevitable climax. AL
CT
The Necessary Death of Lewis Winter by Malcolm Mackay Mantle HB/EB Out now This is a confident, gritty noir thriller based in Glasgow. Callum is a
hitman who has been hired to kill Lewis Winter – all he knows is that it will send a message to someone. But the people who hired Callum don’t know who the message is for. Lewis is simply the first shot across the bows to persons unknown. The story unfolds simply and quickly; MacKay’s writing style is sparse, fluid and fresh, giving us little more than sketches of personalities and plot. However, it forms a story far greater than its simple parts suggest.