The Crime Warp

  How exciting is that? The competition for first-time unpublished writers has selected Caz Frear´s thriller Sweet Little Lies for the podium spot. Richard Madeley and Judy Finnigan, who described Frear as “an exciting new talent” and praised her for her “storytelling ability, distinctive foice and fantastic grasp of character” have offered Caz, in association with WH Smith and publishers Bonnier Zaffre a publishing contract, representation from literary agency Furniss Lawton and assurance that her books will be stocked in WH Smith stores across the country. For this unmissable read, set in contemporary London with flashbacks to late 1990s Ireland, police detective Cat Kinsella investigates the murder of Alice Lapaine, who is discovered near the pub Cat´s father runs. Evidence emerges that links Alice to a girl who went missing in Ireland 18 years before… Sylvia Campbell from the Crime Warp team interviewed the budding new author: Hi Caz, it's great to be Crime Warpin...

It gives me great pleasure to welcome Jane Harper author of The dry to The Crime Warp.  She is another one of Val McDermid's New Blood panelists and she's here to answer loads of questions!

I assume you already have your summer reading picked out, but in case you haven’t, I have posted a selection of various approaches to crime writing. We gravitate towards the type of books we have come to enjoy most, but sometimes it’s good to break out and try something different. The Wrong Case by James Crumley: Black Swan have reissued this American classic, first published in 1975, when everything was classier than it is now. If you want to read the most exquisite description of someone getting drunk, being drunk or being a hopeless drunkard, then this is the book for you. ‘The Wrong Case’ is seriously well-written vintage detective fiction. This type of American Noir makes you pause and think about what life would be like off the treadmill of lifestyle and achievement. Achingly cool. Summary Justice by John Fairfax: Courtroom drama is not usually my cup of tea, even if it is littered with dead bodies. However, the protagonist William Benson is an unusual ...

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.