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The Best Books of 2023: Crime & Thrillers
It would be simply criminal of us not to bring the amazing range of great crime novels and thrillers published this year to your attention. This is where you'll find a rogues gallery of compelling detective fiction, spy stories and literary rollercoaster rides from both the usual suspects and some hot new storytelling gunslingers.
Spearheaded by the bestselling phenomenon that is Richard Osman's The Thursday Murder Club series (whose latest instalment is featured below), the genteel locations of 'cosy crime' have become enormously popular. 2023 saw the welcome returns of Janice Hallett, with a festive take on her modern classic The Appeal, and the Reverend Richard Coles, with the sequel to his clerical crime debut Murder Before Evensong.
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The geriatric sleuths of the Thursday Murder Club are faced with their most dangerous case yet when the disappearance of a highly dangerous package sends the body count spiralling in Osman's irresistible fourth crime caper.
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An outrageous ritualistic killing breaks through the petty bickering and parish politics of Champton in the deliciously witty and page-turning sequel to the bestselling Murder Before Evensong.
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From the inimitable imagination of the bestselling author of The Appeal comes a dazzlingly clever Yuletide mystery, as the discovery of a dead body disrupts the festive pantomime preparations of a group of small town amateur drama enthusiasts.
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At once an ode to classic murder mystery and a thrillingly unique slice of detective fiction, West Heart Kill finds a body and an unlikely cast of soon-to-be-suspects at a country club, inviting the reader to take part in solving the gruesome deed.
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Another wonderfully witty slice of Gallic cosy crime, the fourth Follet Valley mystery finds B&B owner Richard Ainsworth investigating the suspicious death of an actor on a film set.
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Conrad the cat returns to solve another purr-fectly fiendish mystery as a brutal murder and audacious art theft call for feline investigation of the highest order.
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Sophie Hannah puts Poirot to work solving a medical murder mystery in this hugely enjoyable reimagining of Agatha Christie's iconic detective.
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From the author of The Christmas Murder Game and Murder on the Christmas Express comes another irresistible slice of festive crime, as a renowned puzzle setter is tasked with seeking to prevent a yuletide killing spree.
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The author of the bestselling former Waterstones Thriller of the Month The Three Dahlias spins another fiendishly clever vintage mystery, as the three sleuthing actresses reunite to solve a murder on a movie set.
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Cosy and noirish in equal measure, Murder at Holly House is an ingeniously plotted festive murder mystery set on the 1950s Yorkshire Moors from the bestselling author of the D.C.I. Daley series.
Flawed mavericks with an uncanny talent for sniffing out the truth, we all love a good detective. The best detective novels of 2023 feature Robert Galbraith's Strike and Ellacott, Ann Cleeves' Matthew Venn, Stephen King's Holly Gibney and - possibly stretching the definition ever so slightly - Lee and Andrew Child's iconic Jack Reacher. From cerebral to all-action, it's time for a bit of hero worship for your favourite sleuths.
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Ellacott goes undercover in a religious cult to try and rescue a brainwashed young man in the latest addictive page-turner from Robert Galbraith featuring Cormoran Strike.
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Reacher returns in another high-octane rollercoaster ride of a novel from Lee and Andrew Child, as the US government call the lone wolf in to investigate a spate of strange, seemingly unconnected deaths across the country.
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The Secret: Signed Exclusive Edition (Hardback)
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Holly Gibney - star of Mr Mercedes, Finders Keepers and The Outsider - returns in another chilling masterwork from Stephen King, as the eponymous investigator is drawn into the orbit of two sinister professors harbouring a terrifying secret.
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Harry Hole returns in another page-turning thriller from the master of Nordic Noir, as a serial killer's unusual signature spells deadly danger for the woman who saved the maverick detective's life.
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Marwood and Lovett investigate the murder of a man discovered in the ruins of an ancient almshouse in another brilliantly realised historical mystery from the author of The Ashes of London and The Royal Secret.
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Screen legend and all-round national treasure Michael Caine delivers his rollicking, fast paced debut thriller about a maverick cop, missing uranium and shadowy oligarchs.
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The murder of a local celebrity in a village clouded by superstition presents Matthew Venn with his most challenging case yet in this gripping addition to Cleeves' Two Rivers series.
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William Warwick is back and facing the biggest challenge of his life and career as a criminal genius attempts to steal the Crown Jewels, in this pulsating instalment from the master storyteller and author of Next in Line.
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Griffiths' post-war Brighton-set mystery series continues apace, with the compelling case of a murdered magician's assistant and a boarding house with its own dark secrets.
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The Great Deceiver: Signed Edition (Hardback)
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DS Roy Grace confronts an alarming illegal trade in dogs which leads to savage murder in this unputdownable addition to James' acclaimed crime series.
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As Strafford and Quirke investigate the supposed suicide of a woman found in a lock-up, suspicions turn to foul play in this unputdownable instalment of Banville's celebrated literary crime series.
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DCI Karen Pirie returns in another stunningly plotted mystery from Val McDermid, as a recently recovered fictional manuscript seems to carry disturbing echoes of a real-life cold case killing.
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A richly imagined historical noir from the author of Political Tribes and Battle Hymn of the Tiger Mother, The Golden Gate follows a dogged detective's investigation into the murder of a former Presidential candidate and its disturbing connections to the killing of a child a decade earlier.
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A sordid reality TV show turns deadly in this compelling case for Detective Ffion Morgan, as a murderer starts picking off contestants one by one in the Welsh mountains.
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The author of the lauded L.A. Quartet delivers another visceral, thrilling crime drama set in the tumultuous summer of 1962, as a freewheeling ex-cop sets to work to unravel the mystery revolving around Marilyn Monroe's final days and a kidnapped starlet.
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The scintillating sequel to Morrison's Bloody Scotland Crime Debut winner Edge of the Grave finds Dreghorn and McDaid embroiled in sectarian terrorism in 1930s Glasgow.
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From the author of former Waterstones Thriller of the Month Blue Water comes another richly evocative period mystery for Laurence Jago, as murder in a rotten borough at election time exposes sinister political machinations.
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A second outing for Travis Devine, star of Baldacci's The 6.20 Man, The Edge finds the elite Homeland Security expert investigating the murder of a young woman in Maine.
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The sixteenth pulsating instalment to Deaver’s bestselling series finds Lincoln Rhyme grappling with a deadly conspiracy and an elusive assassin, The Watchmaker, sowing chaos all across New York City.
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In the seventh propulsive instalment of Connelly's bestselling Lincoln Lawyer series, defence attorney Mickey Haller agrees to defend a woman imprisoned for the murder of her husband and must turn to his half-brother Harry Bosch's detective prowess for assistance.
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The follow-up to Kayode's acclaimed former Waterstones Thriller of the Month Lightseekers, Gaslight sees investigative psychologist Philip Taiwo called upon to exonerate a Nigerian pastor's name when he is accused of the murder of his wife.
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Kay Scarpetta returns for one of her most shocking and engrossing cases yet, as two campers wanted by federal law enforcement are found savagely murdered in the Northern Virginia wilderness.
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The discovery of a corpse unearthed by an archaeological dig lead to DS Banks reopening a forty-year-old cold-case in this gripping instalment of the bestselling series.
2023's selection of stellar thrillers boasts two books that dedicated readers have been waiting for for a very long time; a decade in the case of Terry Hayes' sequel to the blockbuster success I Am Pilgrim and thirty-two years in the case of John Grisham's follow-up to the powerhouse legal thriller The Firm. Elsewhere, there are heart-pounding debuts from Alice Slater, Katy Hays and Colin Walsh, as well as characteristically enthralling novels by Joanne Harris, Laura Shepherd-Robinson and Jack Jordan.
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The author of the cult phenomenon I Am Pilgrim ratchets up the stakes in an eagerly-awaited follow-up that promises the same calibre of high-octane tension and plenty of unexpected twists besides.
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Following three old friends reunited in their hometown on the Irish west coast as chilling secrets from their past start to unravel, Walsh’s atmospheric thriller is drenched in suspense and populated with richly drawn characters.
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Over thirty years after the publication of Grisham's seminal legal blockbuster The Firm comes a nerve-shredding sequel that finds high-flying lawyer Mitch McDeere at the centre of a huge global conspiracy.
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Wire-taut and twist-laden, the debut thriller from actor Richard Armitage pitches a Nobel Prize-winning scientist with the initial onset of Alzheimer's disease into a world of conspiracy and conflicted loyalties where her closest friend could prove to be her deadliest foe.
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Following seven women who discover a severed head belonging to a detestable man they all had reason to kill, this multi-layered, propulsive debut thriller announces the arrival of an exciting new voice in the genre.
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Using witness accounts, interviews and correspondence as part of the narrative, Clark’s cleverly-constructed novel delves into the shocking murder of a 16-year-old in a sleepy seaside town, exploring just how slippery the quest for truth can become.
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Delightfully dark, perfectly plotted and now available in a special Christmas edition, Slater's macabre crime debut finds two booksellers drawn towards each other in a sinister game of obsession.
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Penned by an art history professor and combining the rich atmosphere of The Secret History with the sinister thrills of Ninth House, Hays' debut about a mysterious group of art researchers and an invaluable fifteenth-century tarot deck is a mesmerising dark academia classic in the making.
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A podcaster's life threatens to unravel when she allows her 'birthday twin' to inveigle their way into her life in this barnstorming psychological thriller from the author of The Family Upstairs.
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Inspired by real-life events, Foster's electrifying seventeenth-century-set whodunit revolves around a respectable noblewoman accused of the shocking murder of her lover.
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Stieg Larsson's Millennium series continues with this blazing instalment penned by the author of My Brother, as Lisbeth Salander and Mikael Blomkvist head to Sweden's far north for a chilling showdown.
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The Girl in the Eagle's Talons: Signed Edition - Millenium 7 (Hardback)
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From the debauchery of Bartholomew Fair to the grandest estates in Georgian London, this page-turning slice of period crime from the author of Daughters of Night follows a fortune telling lady on a perilous quest to discover the truth about her late mother.
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A tragic incident unlocks the slumbering talents of the fifty-something Bernie Moon in this powerful tale of female ambition, ageing and taking back control from the bestselling author of Chocolat.
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In a world where a betrayal of trust can leave you dead in the gutter, loyalty is a very precious commodity in this muscular, violent and compulsive blockbuster from the queen of gangland crime.
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Loyalty: Signed Edition (Hardback)
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A discontented journalist stumbles on a connection between her grandmother and a sixty-year-old Australian mystery in this electrifying thriller from the author of The Secret Keeper.
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With heart-pounding suspense and a bevy of cliffhangers, the bestselling author of Falling spins a page-turning story of rescue and survival at two hundred feet below the surface of the Pacific Ocean.
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From the author of Sundial and The Last House on Needless Street comes another riveting, endlessly imaginative thriller in which a fictionalised account of a real-life murder case provides tantalising clues to yet another mystery.
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A blackmailed barrister defending a man accused of murder must choose between her principles and protecting those she loves in this gripping legal thriller from the bestselling author of Do No Harm.
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Leading the reader on a thrilling ride through the murky world of Chambers and the Old Bailey, broadcaster Rinder’s gripping debut revolves around the first case of maverick barrister-in-training Adam Green.
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With echoes of Strangers on a Train, this pulsating standalone thriller from the author of the Eddie Flynn series sees two wronged women engage in a deadly bargain.
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The page-turning debut thriller from the former director of the FBI and bestselling author of A Higher Loyalty, Central Park West takes the killing of a disgraced former governor as its starting point to weave an ingenious story of political corruption, legal wrangling, and murder.
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An utterly addictive suspense thriller from the author of The Rising Tide, The People Watcher blends ingenious plotting with deft character work, as a woman determined to quietly help people and a man with a desire to punish collide with devastating consequences.
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Mixing fact and fiction to page-turning effect, the second thriller from the popular journalist and broadcaster pitches an ambitious BBC hack into a deadly conspiracy against the background of the global credit crunch.
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Continuing the criminal escapades of Danny Ryan, Winslow's spectacular sequel to City on Fire finds the former longshoreman holed up in Hollywood and in love with a dangerous movie star.
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The author of the smash hit bestseller You delivers a scathing thriller set in the world of privileged writers that mixes her trademark black comedy with page-turning twists and turns.
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A pulsating high-octane debut thriller from the music legend and actor Martin Kemp, The Game finds a fallen 1980s popstar on a path of no return in London's seedy underbelly.
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The Game: Signed Edition (Hardback)
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Mining the dark side of motherhood and community, this brooding psychodrama from the author of The Push tracks the devastating ripple effect from a tragic accident.
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Deftly recreating the oppressive society of 1950s London, this captivating thriller from the author of That Green Eyed Girl centres on the female occupants of a shabby boarding house as their dark secrets catch up with them.
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Perfect for fans of Cain's Jawbone and The Appeal, this thrillingly plotted mystery from the bestselling author of Close to Home pulls the reader into the investigation as an active participant, as an infamous true crime show starts digging into an unsolved murder case.
Following in the footsteps of le Carre and Fleming (literally in Charlie Higson's case), these terrific spy thrillers have lit up the literary landscape in 2023, from astronaut Chris Hadfield's Yom Kippur War-set page-turner to Mick Herron's sardonic yet suspenseful tale of top secret files.
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From the iconic astronaut and author of The Apollo Murders comes a nerve-shredding espionage thriller set during the 1973 Yom Kippur War, as a Soviet MIG fighter vanishes from over the Israeli scrublands.
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The Defector: Signed Edition (Hardback)
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From the author of the bestselling Slough House series comes another mesmerising espionage thriller dripping in wry wit and unexpected twists, as a parliamentary inquiry into the intelligence services turns lethal with the appearance of the explosive OTIS file.
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The Secret Hours: Signed Exclusive Edition (Hardback)
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The one and only James Bond meets the new British monarch on the eve of his coronation in this gripping thriller in aid of the National Literacy Trust.
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A powerful, morally complex story mining questions of justice and conscience, the thrilling final novel from the much-missed Spanish master reunites readers with Tomás Nevinson, the former secret agent from Isla Berta, now tasked with eliminating a deadly female ETA terrorist.
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Tense and topical, the third instalment in Charles Cumming’s bestselling series revolving around the top-secret intelligence agency BOX 88 finds Lachlan Kite faced with an uncomfortably personal threat from a criminal network, as his old mission in West Africa comes back to haunt him.
This summer was most definitely the summer of Murdle, the utterly addictive volume of fiendish murder mystery puzzles (and there's good news for Murdle obsessives with volume two out now and volume three arriving in March next year), whilst in the dark hinterland of the true crime genre an instant classic was birthed in the form of Mark O'Connell's spellbinding A Thread of Violence.
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Prepare to become utterly obsessed with these addictive logic puzzles with a murder mystery spin, as you join Deductive Logico for one hundred brain-bending whodunits.
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Both an utterly compelling account of one of Ireland's most notorious crimes and an interrogation of the nature of true crime writing itself, O'Connell's unputdownable book recounts the brutal 1982 double murder carried out by Malcom Macarthur.
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Both a riveting account of a series of killings in late 1960s Glasgow and a philosophical meditation about the nature of urban mythmaking and the modern obsession with historic true crime, We All Go Into the Dark focuses on the elusive figure of scripture-quoting murderer Bible John.
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A story so jaw-dropping it's hard to believe it's actually true, The Angel Makers chronicles the crimes of a group of female serial killers in early twentieth century Hungary who were responsible for the deaths of over 160 people.
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