Coming February 2021
Available to pre-order from Amazon.

One of the great priviliges of being a writer, is that you often get sent early copies of yet-to-be-published books, to see what you think.

Karin Nordin's debut thriller is set in Sweden and I am delighted that it is the first outing for the gloriously troubled Detective Kjeld Nygaard. I really do look forward to seeing where she takes him and his side-kick Esme in years to come.

The story centres around the return home of Kjeld Nygaard to the tiny Swedish mining town of Varsund that he escaped years before. His father, Stenar, leaves a rambling, incoherent message on Nygaard's phone, claiming he's witnessed a murder. Having not spoken to his father in many years, Nygaard is sufficiently concerned to take advantage of his temporary suspension (imposed after his last case went catastrophically wrong), to drive up north to investigate.

Arriving, he is confronted by a father suffering from Alzheimer's, still obsessed with the shed-full of ravens he tends to daily, and no evidence that he didn't imagine the whole episode. With the relationship between the two estranged men hardly improved by Stenar's confusion, and frequent angry outbursts, Nygaard wants nothing more than to escape back to his life - such as it is - in Gothenburg.

And then he discovers a human tooth in the raven's barn...

This is classic Scandi-Noir, the story set against the frigid, icy weather, and endless hours of darkness that make such tales so atmospheric. Nygaard is a well-rounded character with many flaws and a complicated relationship with his family. His father's deteriorating mental condition is dealt with honestly and at times brutally, and the toll on his loved-ones described with sympathy and compassion. The old man's obsession with his ravens is integral to the story and adds another disturbing layer; there's something especially creepy about corvids that you just don't get with a budgie!

The investigation has more than enough intrigue and twists to make it a satisfying and compelling read, and whilst it is fully resolved, leaves enough should the author choose to return to that setting.

As to the future? Well it is the first in a series, and Nordin has carefully built a cast of characters that will work even if Nygaard doesn't return to Varsund for a couple of books. Throughout the novel, we are treated to hints at what actually happened to earn Nygaard his suspension, and I will be interested to see to what degree that features in later entries in the series. Aside from that, we are introduced to his partner, Esme and even though this isn't a traditional police procedural as such - given that he is working an investigation for personal reasons, well-outside his jursidiction - we see hints at how they work together.

Although this is the first in the series, it doesn't feel like it. It could almost be book three or four, and that's a very clever decision by Nordin. It leaves her options to look both forwards and backwards. I have no insight into the author's plans, but I look forward to seeing what comes next and I am excited that I was afforded the chance to join in right at the beginning!

Very highly recommended.

Today you are treated to a double-bill!
I've known Craig Robertson for a number of years and he is a generous and lovely man. A stalwart of the Scottish crimewriting scene, The Mirror says that "Robertson is doing for Glasgow what Rankin did for Edinburgh". High praise indeed.
But as always, these two books are listed here as they are damn good reads (which I have bought people for Christmas... shhh), not because Craig is a mate.

These are the two latest releases in Robertson's Glasgow-based DI Rachel Narey series. I like Robertson's writing as he always brings an original twist. As a writer of police procedurals myself, I know how hard it is to make a book stand out, and both of these distinguish themselves in a crowded field.

In The Photographer, a dawn raid by the police leads to the discovery of a chilling collection of photographs hidden under floorboards. The story has a nice balance of surprising twists with a growing sense of impending dread, with readers never sure what will come next. 
As always, the book has a strong supporting cast - both series regulars and new characters for this book, and each is written as an individual with their own strengths and foibles, with readers easily becoming invested in their fates. 

The next in the series Watch Him Die is another high-concept idea. The book opens in Los Angeles, with the apparently non-suspicious death of a man in his own home. However, closer inspection of the residence soon reveals something disturbing...
Back in Glasgow, Robertson's series regular, Rachel Nary is embroilled in a missing person case - she believes she knows who is responsible, and furthermore believes that he has killed her. 
These two seemingly unrelated cases, thousands of miles apart, become linked when the detectives in California discover a live internet feed broadcasting the slow and painful death of another victim...
I love this book. The marrying together of these two disparate cases is both chilling and plausible, and the blending of the familiar world of DI Nary with the radically different culture of US law enforcement is handled skilfully.
In 'race against time' books, it can be difficult to engender a true sense of danger for the victims. We want our heroes to succeed, and we know that the writer is also rooting for them. Here, Robertson genuinely has you wondering 'will they or won't they'? From the outset, there is no foregone conclusion, and it really is a 'page-turner'.

I heartily recommend both of these books, and others by Craig Robertson. He deserves the respect that he receives from reviewers, readers and his peers. I'll definitely be keeping an eye out for whatever he releases next.