The Crime Warp

The Crime Warp welcomes another Northern lass today. Please meet the lovely Danielle Ramsay whose latest book,  The Last Cut, recently hit our shelves .  The Last Cut is all about empowerment and I defy any of you, after reading this Q&A, not to go out and buy it.  This is a stunning and honest interview and I am honoured that Danielle agreed to be Warped with us today. 

Debut author, Fiona Cummins is the first of Val McDermid's 2017 New Blood panel from Theakston's crime festival to be interviewed on The Crime Warp.  I make no bones about saying that every year the New Blood panel is one of the ones I look forward to the most.  I find it entertaining, encouraging and welcome the chance to share this interview with The Crime Warp readers.

Available on Amazon Click  here This is the seventh in the Helen Grace series and after Helen's traumatic experiences in number six  Hide and Seek) it's not surprising she feels vulnerable. Love Me Not has a different feel from Arlidge's previous books an I think that reflects his empathy with his main character.

Do you have a favourite piece of clothing? A wonderful old sweater say, warm and cozy – one that you ditch your stylish suits for the minute you walk in the door? One that you wear for comfort simply because it just feels so damn good? Well ´A good thief´s guide to Amsterdam´ is a book just like this sweater. It is not a cutting edge police procedural, it is not laced with current fads like supernatural… it is not even terribly gritty. It is just a wonderful moreish good read – a book with the easy feel good factor so needed in our challenging times. A book that you pick the moment you walk in the door and one that you cozy up with on a wet afternoon. Actually you may even wish for a wet afternoon to have the slightly guilty pleasure of a good long read.

The Good Thief Guides to: Amsterdam, Venice, Vegas, Berlin and Paris. Charlie Howard is by far the most interesting thief I’ve ever come across. He is not some seedy little slime-bag who steals handbags from little old ladies to support a drug habit, but a better class of thief, one who takes pride in his professionalism. His day job as a crime writer always seems to take second place to stealing mysterious objects, works of art, important documents … -as if real life adventures, such as witnessing murders, getting caught up in a spy intrigue, being on the run from either baddies or the police, or both at the same time, and trying to solve any number of bizarre mysteries, are more interesting than being stuck inside writing. And he gets to travel to amazing cities: Amsterdam, Venice, Vegas, Berlin and Paris. I’ve enjoyed reading about his escapades so much in fact, I’m even thinking of closing my laptop and taking up thieving too.  These books would make a great TV se...

The Crime Warp is pleased to announce that 'The Lucky Ones' Giveaway winners are..... drum roll....   John Brooks from Essex  and  Melanie Hodge s from the Vale of Glamorgan Thanks to everyone who entered and to our lucky winners  your Giveaway gift of a signed copy and a pen will be with you shortly!

It's great to have Northern lass Kerry Richardson on The Crime Warp today.  I have been a fan of her north east police series for ages and its been lovely chatting to her. Liz:  T ell us a bit about your latest book. Available on Amazon Click  here Kerry: My latest novel is Watch You Burn - it's the fourth in the north east police series and is based around arson. It was released on 2nd May 2017 and is gathering some fab reviews. Liz: How long did  Watch You Burn  take to write? Kerry: This one actually took me nigh on 2 years to complete. I was diagnosed with an autoimmune condition and it really affected my ability to write for some time. It's settled down a bit now and I'm grateful I was able to get the book finished. Liz:  Well I for one am very happy you've managed to keep writing. Could you describe how the germ of an idea develops into a full-blown novel? Kerry: For me I start with a general idea - wi...

Available on Amazon Click  here As you'll have worked out by now, I love a good serial killer book, but what makes The Fourth Monkey different is the way the author weaves the killer's back story so seamlessly with the ongoing investigation.  This is due for release on 27th June.  Pre-order your copy today!

Available on Amazon Click  here I love a good serial killer novel... I especially love one that puts a new twist on it and in The Lucky Ones that's exactly what Mark Edwards has done. I mogen Evans realises she's dealing with a serial killer when a body is found in  the grounds of a ruined priory in Shropshire... the difference is this body looks like it died in a state of absolute bliss... troublesome for the detective to say the least.   Alongside that we have Ben Holland who is carving a new life for himself and his son, Ollie.  Just when things seem to be going right for them for once things take a sinister turn as someone is watching them. Mark Edwards is a skilled psychological thriller writer and in The Lucky Ones his experience and creativity show.   This is a stunning novel which amid the warped mind of the killer and the pulsating menace, succeeds in evoking a strong sense of place.  The beauty of the 'Shropshire i...

In a recent interview with The Crime Warp ( here ), Lesley Kelly described her work in progress like this: Taste   the bitter tang of the illegal drugs you purchased over the Internet in the hope that they will protect you from the Virus. By the way, they don’t work and you just gave your credit card details to some very unsavoury people. ·         See  the adverts on the TV round the clock about the  Health Enforcement Team who will be knocking on your door if you miss your fortnightly Health Check. ·    Touch  your hand against your daughter’s face, and pray  she never catches the Virus.  You know that teenagers are most at risk; their healthy immune system will work so hard to fight the Virus it will kill them. ·   Smell  the incense from that ‘church’ on your daughter’s clothes.  You know it’s a cult but she’s desperate for hope. ·           ...

It gives me great pleasure  to  welcome Linda Huber to The  Crime Warp.  I have been a fan of Linda's books for a while and with Baby Dear being hot off the press last month, it's great to have pinned her down for this Q&A.  (especially as she's come all the way from her home in Switzerland to be here) I'd like to say we're outside sipping Pina Colados but we're stuck indoors drinking coffee and eating Tunnocks tea cakes- aw well could be worse I could have forgotten the tea cakes.

A crime book for people with sophisticated tastes: Venice, opera, renaissance art, good food and wine… I enjoyed all that and more – having been to Venice, I particularly enjoyed walking down memory lane. Our protagonist is the British expat Nathan Sutherland, translator by profession, honorary consul by vocation and art lover whose passions land him in no end of troubles. The book starts with Nathan bored silly translating lawnmower manuals, but beware what you ask for … soon Nathan is up to his neck in more excitement than he can cope with. Find out how art theft can lead to murder and how difficult it can be to stay out of trouble in Venice. The author Philip Gwynne Jones is a teacher, writer and translator, who lives in Venice. This is his first book and we eagerly await the return of Nathan Sutherland and his adventures in La Serenissima. Published by Constable in paperback in 2017 (£8.99)

Available on Amazon Click  here When Melanie's daughter, Beth, goes missing after  lying about spending the night at her friend's house, Melanie is distraught.  Then, her daughter is found beaten, seriously ill and in a coma.

Available on Amazon Click  here The Crime Warp is delighted to announce the winner of our Love Like Blood Giveaway by Mark Billingham Giveaway.  Rea d on....

This is our second encounter with solicitor Benedikta O’Keeffe (Ben for short) and the people of the Inishowen Peninsula in Ireland. I enjoy familiarity with a protagonist and her surroundings and I reckon it’s this familiarity which makes crime series in general so popular. You don’t have to read yourself into a new setting, it’s already there waiting for you, like your local down the street. Imagine being a solicitor in a small place, the keeper of secrets. You know where many skeletons are hidden and you spend your working days navigating the dangerous waters of local feuds and dodgy local politics. If you have a longing for justice, which our engaging protagonist has, you will find it difficult to keep out of trouble. I remember one of the Dragons at Harrogate Crime Festival saying that people only wanted to read crime set in London, or at a push Manchester, but that’s hogwash, and that day excellent book ideas were rejected out of hand by the Dragons’ Pen because they were ...

My first Joseph Kanon book was Los Alamos – more years ago than I care to remember!   I loved the atmosphere of secrecy – the book was set in the Manhattan Project, so one big secret hid another secret - murder.   The protagonist’s affair with a scientist's wife added more layers of lies and duplicity to the plot.   I just loved it.   Kanon’s books all have a dark noirish atmosphere about them and when I saw details of his latest book Defectors , it became a must read for me. So, what’s it about?   Defectors is set in the 1960s, Simon Weeks’ brother Frank is an American defector living in Moscow, with his wife Jo.   Frank has decided to write his memoirs and asked Simon to publish and promote his book.   Simon flies to Moscow to meet Frank face to face, quickly realising that the book is a cover for Frank’s latest manipulative scheme.   Frank uses his charm, psychology and Simon’s remaining goodwill to put his plan into practice, bu...