I recently took part in THE Book Club’s 20/20 Blogger Event on Facebook. 20 bloggers shared their all-time favourites – and I was lucky enough to get picked for crime!
Luckily we were notified quite a few months in advance … and I really needed it! I had about 75 books on my list to start with, which I then whittled down by theming them. So first up, here are my top 5 choices featuring MALE LEADS … enjoy!
1) Dead Simple by Peter James. Book 1 in the Roy Grace police procedurals, set in Brighton. A young man is buried alive as a prank for his stag night, but his four mates are killed in a car accident. Grace must track him down before it’s too late! This is in my Top 20 cuz it’s got a real sense of time running out for our poor stag and it’s SO claustrophobic! Classic crime.
2) Flowers For The Dead by Barbara Copperthwaite. In this book, Adam, a serial killer stalks Laura – but this is a serial killer story with a difference! A brilliant and original offering from indie author Copperthwaite, Adam is absolutely mesmerising. I could not believe I was actually rooting for this guy, he’s a serial killer for Pete’s sake!!! The author’s clever use of flowers too really adds to the storyworld. Very much recommended.
3) Stalkers by Paul Finch. Book 1 in the DS Mark ‘Heck’ Heckenburg novels. In this one, Heck must track down the infamous and sinister-sounding Nice Guys’ Club who are behind the disappearances of several women. This is in my Top 20 because it is a pacy and visual feast, but beware – it’s gory and violent and NOT for the faint-hearted!
4) The Dry by Jane Harper. When Aaron Falk returns to his Outback home for the funeral of a friend who’s killed himself and his family, he’s pulled into a web of intrigue, secrets and lies that goes back two decades. This is in my Top 20 because I LOVED the storyworld here: the arid, overheating Australian landscape really stayed with me. Brilliant story.
5) Sleepyhead by Mark Billingham. Book 1 in DI Tom Thorne Novels, where our police protagonist must investigate the murders of three women and the case of Alison, who’s been left with ‘Locked in syndrome’ consigned forever to a hideous waking hell. Hugely original, this novel showed us the inside of a killer’s head and was a massive influence to police procedurals. No Top 20 crime list is complete with it, IMHO!
NEXT: My Top Female Leads in Crime Fiction … stay tuned!
