New Fiction May 2022
Ones to Watch – New Fiction Focus
Our roundup of new, not-to-be-missed fiction – available now or coming soon to Gloucestershire Libraries!
2022 is shaping up to be a great year for fiction, and we have been busy adding plenty of new titles to our library catalogue. If like us, you love getting stuck into a good book, why not add the following titles to your ‘must read’ list? We predict they are going to be popular!
If you like a cracking crime novel, keep a look out for…
Cat and Mouse by M.J. Arlidge - Coming June 2022
We love a good detective series, and we’re thrilled to see DI Helen Grace return in Cat and Mouse, the latest novel by bestselling author M.J. Arlidge. Could this be her most dangerous case yet? Quite possibly. Due to be released at the start of June, but available to reserve in advance on our catalogue.
From the publisher: “A silent killer stalks the city, targeting those home alone at night - killing without pity or remorse. As panic spreads, D.I. Helen Grace leads the investigation, but is herself a hunted woman, her every step dogged by a ruthless killer bent on revenge. As she tracks the murderer, Grace begins to suspect there is a truly shocking home truth that connects these brutal crimes.”
The Botanist by M.W. Craven - Coming June 2022
CWA Gold Dagger Award winner M.W. Craven brings us the latest instalment in the brilliant Washington Poe series. This will be hitting the shelves in June and is available to reserve now. Don’t wait around!
From the publisher: “Detective Sergeant Washington Poe can count on one hand the number of friends he has. And he'd still have his thumb left. There's the insanely brilliant, guilelessly innocent civilian analyst, Tilly Bradshaw of course. He's known his beleaguered boss, Detective Inspector Stephanie Flynn for years as he has his nearest neighbour, full-time shepherd/part-time dog sitter, Victoria. And then there's Estelle Doyle. It's true the caustic pathologist has never walked down the sunny side of the street but this time has she gone too far? Shot twice in the head, her father's murder appears to be an open and shut case. Estelle has firearms discharge residue on her hands, and, in a house surrounded by fresh snow, hers are the only footprints going in.”
No Less the Devil by Stuart MacBride - Coming very soon
If you’re looking for an intense, gripping, deeply-dark crime thriller, then look no further. Stuart MacBride introduces us to DS Lucy McVeigh for the first time, and we are hooked! A word of warning, best not to read this one before bedtime…
From the publisher: “It's been 17 months since the Bloodsmith butchered his first victim and Operation Maypole is still no nearer catching him. The media is whipping up a storm, the top brass are demanding results, but the investigation is sinking fast. Now isn't the time to get distracted with other cases, but Detective Sergeant Lucy McVeigh doesn't have much choice. When Benedict Strachan was just 11, he hunted down and killed a homeless man. No one's ever figured out why Benedict did it, but now, after 16 years, he's back on the streets again - battered, frightened, convinced a shadowy 'They' are out to get him, and begging Lucy for help. It sounds like paranoia, but what if he's right? What if he really is caught up in something bigger and darker than Lucy's ever dealt with before? What if the Bloodsmith isn't the only monster out there? And what's going to happen when Lucy goes after them?”
If you like top-notch thrillers, keep a look out for…
The Dark by Sharon Bolton - Coming soon
Tense, chilling, unputdownable – Sharon Bolton does not disappoint. The next, highly anticipated novel in the brilliant Lacey Flint series is due out in May, and you can reserve a copy now!
From the publisher: “When a baby is snatched from its pram and cast into the river Thames, off-duty police officer Lacey Flint is there to prevent disaster. But who would want to hurt a child? DCI Mark Joesbury has been expecting this. Monitoring a complex network of dark web sites, Joesbury and his team have spotted a new terrorist threat from the extremist, women-hating, group known as 'incels' or 'involuntary celibates.' Joesbury's team are trying to infiltrate the ring of power at its core, but the dark web is built for anonymity, and the incel army is vast. Pressure builds when the team learn the snatched child was just the first in a series of violent attacks designed to terrorise women. Worse, the leaders of the movement seem to have singled out Lacey as the embodiment of everything they hate, placing her in terrible danger.”
Mirrorland by Carole Johnstone - New to paperback, arriving soon!
A grand gothic house? Check. Hidden secrets? Check. A dark, keep-you-on-the-edge-of-your-seat thriller? Check. Heading over to our catalogue to place a reservation on this now? Check! This debut novel from Scottish writer Carole Johnstone ticks all the right boxes. Do. Not. Miss.
From the publisher: “Number 36 Westeryk Road: an imposing flat-stone house on the outskirts of Edinburgh. A place of curving shadows and crumbling grandeur. But it's what lies under the house that is extraordinary - Mirrorland. A vivid make-believe world that twin sisters Cat and El created as children. A place of escape, but from what? Now in her thirties, Cat has turned her back on her past. But when she receives news that one sunny morning, El left harbour in her sailboat and never came back, she is forced to return to Westeryk Road; to re-enter a forgotten world of lies, betrayal and danger. Because El had a plan. She's left behind a treasure hunt that will unearth long-buried secrets. And to discover the truth, Cat must first confront the reality of her childhood - a childhood that wasn't nearly as idyllic as she remembers.”
Little Sister by Gytha Lodge - Coming soon!
A twisty, well-crafted plot that will keep you guessing until the end. The fourth instalment in the Detective Jonah Sheens series is a top read that we think you will enjoy!
From the publisher: “Detective Jonah Sheens is enjoying a moment of peace and quiet, when a teenage girl wanders out of the wood. She's striking, with flame-red hair and a pale complexion. She's also covered in blood. She insists she's fine. It's her sister he needs to worry about. Jonah quickly discovers that Keely and her sister, Nina, disappeared from a children's home a week ago. Now, Keely is here - but Nina's still missing. Keely likes to play games. She knows where her sister is - but before she tells, she wants Jonah's full attention. Is she killer, witness, or victim? And will Jonah find out what Keely's hiding, in time to save Nina?”
Outside by Jónasson Ragnar - Coming soon
Atmospheric, vivid, claustrophobic, cold as ice. This Icelandic thriller will chill you to the core!
From the publisher: “When a deadly snowstorm strikes the Icelandic highlands, four friends seek shelter in a small, abandoned hunting lodge. It is in the middle of nowhere and there's no way of communicating with the outside world. They are isolated - but they are not alone. As the night darkens, and fears intensify, an old tragedy gradually surfaces - one that forever changed the course of their friendship. Those dark memories could hold the key to the mystery the friends now find themselves in - and whether they will survive until morning.”
If you like a good mystery, keep a look out for…
The Birdcage by Eve Chase - Coming very soon
Set in Cornwall, this well-written mystery leaps back and forth between 1999 and the present day. If you like your fiction full of family secrets, suspense and the most scenic of landscapes, you can’t go wrong with this one.
From the publisher: “When half-sisters Kat, Flora, and Lauren are unexpectedly summoned to Rock Point, the remote Cornish house where they spent their childhood summers, it is the first time they have been there together since their artist father painted them in the celebrated Girls and Birdcage. Since then they have drifted apart into wildly different lives, each one determined to forget the fateful summer of twenty years ago. But when they arrive at Rock Point it is clear they are not alone. Someone is lurking in the shadows, watching their every move. Someone who remembers what they did, and has been waiting for their return. As the events of that summer rise closer to the surface, will the three sisters escape unscathed for a second time? Or are some secrets too powerful to remain under lock and key?”
If you like something a little bit more scary, keep a look out for…
Sundial by Catriona Ward - Coming very soon
A highly original, deeply dysfunctional tale from the author who brought us The Last House on Needless Street. A nightmarish, ultra-dark slice of psychological horror. Read it if you dare!
From the publisher: “Rob fears for her daughters. For Callie, who collects tiny bones and whispers to imaginary friends. For Annie, because she fears what Callie might do to her. Rob sees a darkness in Callie, one that reminds her of the family she left behind. She decides to take Callie back to her childhood home, to Sundial, deep in the Mojave Desert. And there she will have to make a terrible choice. Callie is afraid of her mother. Rob has begun to look at her strangely. To tell her secrets about her past that both disturb and excite her. And Callie is beginning to wonder if only one of them will leave Sundial alive.”
If you like memorable, thought-provoking novels, keep a look out for…
The Island of Missing Trees by Elif Shafak - Coming soon in paperback
Enchanting, captivating, utterly spellbinding. A superb story about love, loss and identity. A beautifully written novel.
From the publisher: “1974, on the island of Cyprus. Two teenagers, from opposite sides of a divided land, meet at a tavern in the city they both call home. The tavern is the only place that Kostas, who is Greek and Christian, and Defne, who is Turkish and Muslim, can meet, in secret, hidden beneath the blackened beams from which hang garlands of garlic, chilli peppers and wild herbs. This is where one can find the best food in town, the best music, the best wine. But there is something else to the place: it makes one forget, even if for just a few hours, the world outside and its immoderate sorrows. In The Island of Missing Trees, prizewinning author Elif Shafak brings us a rich, magical tale of belonging and identity, love and trauma, memory and amnesia, human-induced destruction of nature, and, finally, renewal.”
Brood by Jackie Polzin - Out soon in paperback
This is a beautiful, poignant story about human grief, hope and connection, and the people (and creatures) that see us through the worst of times. Heartfelt yet humorous, this is a highly original novel that will stay with you long after reading.
From the publisher: “Meet Gloria, Gam Gam, Darkness, Miss Hennepin County, and their unlikely owner. Over the course of a single year, our nameless narrator heroically tries to keep her small brood of four chickens alive despite the seemingly endless challenges that caring for another creature entails. From the freezing nights of a brutal winter to a sweltering summer which brings a surprise tornado, she battles predators, bad luck, and the uncertainty of a future that may not look anything like the one she always imagined.”
If you like captivating sagas, keep a look out for…
The Good Servant by Fern Britton - Coming June 2022
Fern’s novels never fail to captivate and delight. Keep a look out for her latest, due out in June. Even better, reserve a copy now!
From the publisher: “It is 1932 and Marion Crawford has her future mapped out. She has always dreamt of being a teacher, helping the children who need her most - and one day, perhaps, she hopes to fall in love and have children of her own. But everything is thrown off-course by a job offer she cannot refuse. She starts teaching the young princesses, Lillibet and Margaret, and is suddenly indispensable to the Royal family. Pulled into this extraordinary world, Marion starts to put her duty before her dreams. Without knowing it, she begins to lose herself. And, when she meets George and falls in love for the first time, Marion faces an impossible choice.”
Sarah’s Gift by Anna Jacobs - Coming soon!
Sarah’s Gift is the second instalment in the Waterfront series, brought to us by much loved author Anna Jacobs. Don’t forget to Check out Mara’s Choice - the first book in the series - while you wait for this one to arrive!
From the publisher: “Sarah has been married and widowed three times and seen great success in her business life. Now at the age of ninety-four, she signs her final will and testament pleased with how it will throw the cat among the family pigeons. She has left her luxurious home in a waterside development in Mandurah, Western Australia, to two female relatives in the UK, on the condition that they live in the house together for a year. After that which they can sell it and split the money between them. If either of them doesn't last the full year, the next person on the list will be invited to try for the inheritance, but will still have to last a full year before the house can be sold. Will the experience go as Sarah had hoped and shake them out of their ruts? And when they find another surprise bequest from Sarah, what will they do with it?”
If you like epic military/historical fiction, keep a look out for…
Lion by Conn Iggulden - Coming soon
New series alert! Lion, the first book in Conn Iggulden’s Golden Age series, is released at the end of May. If you’re a fan of grand, action-packed historical epics, you really, really won’t want to miss this.
From the publisher: “Witness the story of one of the great lives of ancient Greece. Cimon, son to Miltiades who commanded at Marathon, is a washed-out young drunk. He is as much a disappointment to himself as he is to his family. The Persians are back on Athenian shores, attempting yet another invasion. But the breaking of Athens may well be the making of Cimon. As he hand-picks a crew to burn out Persian strongholds on the islands of Eioin, defeats pirates on Skiros, and discovers the bones of the hero Theseus, Cimon begins to live up to his destiny. He will become the greatest strategos of Athens, the lion of a new generation.”
If you like a feel-good read, keep a look out for…
One Day I Shall Astonish the World by Nina Stibbe - Coming very soon!
This is a cracking novel, full of humour, life and charm. Spanning three decades, it is a wonderful observation of friendship, family and overcoming the trials and tribulations of everyday life.
From the publisher: “Susan and Norma have been best friends for years, at first thrust together by force of circumstance (a job at The Pin Cushion, a haberdashery shop in 1990s Leicestershire) and then by force of character (neither being particularly inclined to make friends with anyone else). But now, thirty years later, faced with a husband seeking immortality and Norma out of reach on a wave of professional glory, Susan begins to wonder whether she has made the right choices about life, love, work, and, most importantly, friendship.”
After the Rain by Lucy Dillon - now available!
Set in the fictional town of Longhampton, this is a warm, uplifting tale about new beginnings, family loyalty and learning to trust again.
From the publisher: “Tara Hunter is a therapist on a mission to restore Longhampton's community spirit after catastrophic flooding. But with her boyfriend AWOL, her family fragmented, and only a cat for company, Tara's own life's on rocky foundations. Dr David Dalloway is Longhampton Wellness Centre's new star counsellor. He invites pets to session. He also has a knack of reading people's minds - which is the last thing Tara needs right now. Charismatic architect Keith Hunter was last seen in Longhampton twenty years ago, when he walked out on ten-year-old Tara and her twin brother, Toby. But now he's back, with a surprising offer that could change everything. Is a bigger storm on the horizon? Or is this Tara's chance to rebuild her broken past?”
All of these titles can be reserved on The Library catalogue. Why not head over and see what else we have to offer?
Don’t forget to check our library blog regularly, for the latest recommended reads and so much more!