Look Out For These. For November I'm suggesting an audio drama, a radio programme and of course, a couple of excellent novels!

Hello and welcome to my monthly post, highlighting crime and thriller fiction worth looking out for. I’ve previously concentrated exclusively on novels, but this month I wanted to highlight a couple of other things I believe are worth looking out for.
 

Six Degrees of Assassination is an exciting five hour political thriller series by Audible. It starts on a sullen, cloudy July day ten years since 7/7. The happy, confident and optimistic British Prime Minister is visiting a charity in East London. Just two months after the general election which saw his government returned to power with a clear majority, the economy is on the mend and the coalition is fast becoming a bad memory. Suddenly, a man appears out of the crowd and shoots him three times in the chest. Alex Cartwright, MI5 Chief Counter Terrorism Officer (Andrew Scott) must find out the truth and the action follows Cartwright’s investigation into the assassination. Six people, from assassin to mastermind, are unravelled from a web-like, complex chain of command – each of them a vital step towards uncovering the truth.
 

Six Degrees of Assassination was written for Audible by Matt J. Arlidge (Silent Witness). I think Audible have scored again by commissioning an original drama and using credible actors to star in the production. These include Andrew Scott (Sherlock), Freema Agyeman (Doctor Who) and Hermione Norris (Spooks). Here’s a link to a YouTube clip previewing Six Degrees of Assassination:
 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UV0ItwzvRyY
 

Foreign Bodies. Mark Lawson has returned to Radio 4 to host a five part series which looks at the way that crime novels have reflected the political system in five different countries. Lawson’s travels encompass Cuba, the USA, Poland, Australia and Nigeria. The programmes are only 15 minutes long, but are both entertaining and informative. It’s series of pithy programmes, well worth listening to. Here’s the link to the Foreign Bodies page on the Radio 4 website:
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01nq6s8/episodes/guide#b04st152
 
I also found a link to a number of radio interviews with crime authors including Henning Mankell, Jo Nesbo, Le Child, Martina Cole, Peter James, Ann Cleeves and of course Liz Mistry’s favourite Val McDermid:
 
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00zktd7
 

Nunslinger by Stark Holborn (out on 4 December 2014). It’s 1864 and Sister Thomas Josephine is left stranded, shocked and terrified after an attack on her wagon train. She’s rescued by Abe Muir, a rough and ready rogue who is both baffled by and somewhat attracted to her. The mismatched pair set off on a journey that’s littered with mishaps – brushes with the US cavalry, gun fights, abductions, midnight escapes, hangings and so much more! Nunslinger was originally published as 12 separate downloadable stories on e-book. Hodder have brought these tales of the Sister Thomas Josephine's Wild West adventures together in a single volume of action, romance, drama and fun. One commentator likes the book to “the style of the much loved penny dreadfuls of the past.” I was instantly attracted by the title and garish cover. I thought the stories were a hoot and definitely worth looking out for.
 

The Arc of the Swallow by Sissel-Jo Gazan. Set in Copenhagen, Denmark, beginning with controversial scientist Kristian Storm found hanged in his office. His assistant Maria Skov refuses to believe he has committed suicide, as Storm had just returned from a research trip in West Africa, convinced he has uncovered data that provides shocking truth about adverse impacts of immunology programmes in the developing world. Police detective Soren Marhauge is also suspicious and determined to prove what really happened to the professor.
 

This is Sissel-Jo Gazan’s second novel using the bio thriller theme, showing us that biological science is far from tame and can be filled with lies, treachery, betrayal and of course murder. The story follows the “crime plot” but we also see deeply into the personal lives of the people in the novel, which provides a more profound insight into their characters, lives and perspectives as well as making the book a good read.
 
That’s all for this month. I hope you liked the mix of different media in this month’s post. As always, please do send in your comments to let me know what you think. Happy reading and listening!
 
Romancrimeblogger