Crime fiction events in 2020

One of the regular posts on my blog is my listing of forthcoming crime fiction events, despite the fact that I hardly managed to make it to any events this year – a combination of having a new puppy and more limited funds than normal. I hope that I can find a way to attend at least a few in 2020.

Remember this isn’t all literary events (there are plenty of lists of those and there must be hundreds of events) but it is a list of the main dedicated crime fiction events taking place in the UK (with a few notable additions). Please see the bottom of the list for smaller events which are repeated throughout the year.

I aim to maintain the list and update it as dates are confirmed, so do let me know if there’s anything I should add.

Annual events

January

27 January – West Barnes Library Author event
A triple bill of thrills with authors Barbara Nadel, Derek Farrell & Valentina Giambanco. £2 entry, refreshments provided, book in advance with library staff.

February

20 – 23 February – Granite Noir 2020, Aberdeen’s crime writing festival
This is the fourth year for this crime writing festival featuring some of the most celebrated talent from the Nordic Noir scene alongside Scotland’s own Tartan Noir authors.

21 – 23 February – Crime and Punishment, Lockerbie
A slightly different event, this is a creative writing course are designed for budding crime fiction authors of all levels.

March

7 March – MysteryFest 2020, Portsmouth
A one-day event forming part of Portsmouth’s BookFest this one-day event has a great line up of speakers including Guest of Honour Len Tyler, Professor Becky Milne talking about police interviewing and two author panels.

And then COVID-19 started to take hold and most forthcoming events are now cancelled or, at the very least, postponed. Lots of people trying to fill the gaps with online events – keep checking on social media for info. 

 

15 March – Killer Women Festival, London
A one-day event being run by the ‘Killer Women’ group there is a really varied programme with something for everyone.  (I’m personally tempted by the live police dog demonstration!)

28 March –  NOIRELAND International Crime Fiction Festival, Belfast
A one-day festival showcasing some of Ireland’s greatest crime novelists, lending a helping hand to aspiring writers, and highlighting Belfast’s significant impact on the world of crime fiction, on page and on screen

April

3 – 5 April – Quais du Polar – Lyon
The festival is totally free except for film viewings and some events in our partner bars and museums. I’m particularly impressed to see John Grisham and Don Winslow will be appearing.

24 – 26 April – Books by the Beach, Scarborough
Not a dedicated crime fiction event but this does get a good contribution from crime writers, full details still to be published.

May

1 – 3 May – Newcastle Noir, Newcastle
Programme still to be released although the PR says “This year, organisers will seek to widen the appeal of this criminally fine weekend by seeking to attract younger readers and crime fiction lovers with small children.”

June

4 -7 June – Crimefest – Bristol
After last year’s change of venue we now have a change of month. This is a four-day convention drawing top crime novelists, readers, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world.

6 June – Fairford Festival of Fiction – Fairford, Gloucestershire
A small event but the participants are Russell T. Davies, John Connolly and Rachael Stott. 

Crime and Coffee Festival, Cardiff
This would be the third year if and when dates are confirmed.

Slaughter in Southwold, Southwold
This will be the eighth year, dates to be confirmed.

19 – 21 June – Alibis in the Archives, Gladstone Library, Hawarden, Flintshire
An event run in association with the Crime Writers’ Association and The Detection Club.

26 – 28 June – Lyme Crime, Lyme Regis
A new event this festival will bring the very best talents in crime & thriller fiction to Lyme Regis for a relaxed weekend of talks, conversations, panels and other events.

July

2 – 4 July – Captivating Criminality, Bath
The seventh UK conference from the Captivating Criminality’, “Memory, History and Revaluation” will examine the ways in which Crime Fiction as a genre necessarily incorporates elements of the past – the past in general and its own past, both in terms of its own generic developments and also in respect of true crime and historical events. The CfP will thus offer opportunities for delegates to engage in discussions that are relevant to both past and present crime writing.

4 July – Bodies from the Library – British Library, London
A one day conference with an exciting programme of discussions, presentations and panels on the Golden Age of Detective Fiction Writers.

23 – 26 July – Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival – Harrogate, Yorkshire
Four days of Europe’s biggest come writing event, the full programme for 2020 is due to be announced in Spring 2020 and tickets will be released shortly after including Day Rover and Weekend Rover tickets.

31 July – 2 August – Bute Noir, Bute
Bute Noir celebrates five years of its crime writing festival held on the Isle of Bute, bringing together bestselling authors from the U.S, England and Scotland.

August

14 – 16 August – St Hilda’s Mystery and Crime Weekend – Oxford
One of the longest running dedicated crime fiction events (it started in 1994) the 2020 event is ‘All Our Yesterdays’: historical crime fiction.

September

15 – 19 September – International Agatha Christie Festival – Torquay, Devon
It’s not clear from the IACF website what the plans are for 2020 but the tourist board are advertising these dates.

10 – 13 September – Noirwich Crime Writing Festival, Norwich, Norfolk
The Noirwich Crime Writing Festival is an annual celebration bringing together superstar crime authors, exciting new talent and fans of all things crime fiction.

12 – 13 September – Morecambe & Vice, Morecambe
The fourth year for this event.

18 – 20 September – Bloody Scotland – Stirling, Scotland
Scotland’s festival celebrating crime writing – bringing together leading Scottish and international writers, showcasing debut voices and encouraging new writers.

October

1 – 3 October – Capital Crime, London’s West End
A second year for this event. The brains behind this event are David Headley, MD of  Goldsboro Books and organiser of the infamous ‘Crime in the Court’ and novelist and screenwriter Adam Hamdy so it has excellent credentials. Capital Crime welcomes some of the world’s favourite authors and filmmakers to London

2 – 11 October – Cheltenham Literary Festival, Cheltenham
I wouldn’t normally include this festival as it’s so diverse and doesn’t have the same focus as most of the other events listed here but it’s worth a check of the programme when published.

November

November – Margate Bookie, Margate
No confirmed dates at time of writing.

20 – 21 November is the biennial Iceland Noir, Reykjavik
No website or programme as yet…

December

All busy shopping for books …

Recurring events

There are a few smaller events which will be happening throughout the year.

First Monday
Regular events which take place on, would you believe, the first Monday of each month (with a few exceptions). A free event with a consistently good panel of authors.
https://www.firstmondaycrime.com

Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers
Val McDermid, Mark Billingham, Chris Brookmyre, Luca Veste, Doug Johnstone and Stuart Neville are the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers and after a year that saw them play Glastonbury they have quite a tour coming up in 2020 https://funlovincrimewriters.com/gigs/ 

Noir at the Bar
These are events, apparently originated by Peter Rozovsky of Detectives Beyond Borders, which can be summed up as “A relaxed evening in a local hostelry where crime writers (established, emerging & would-be) read from their work.” Having started in the US they now make appearances in the UK either as part of a larger crime fiction event or as small standalone events. I’ve tracked down a few UK location where you can find them. Let me know if you come across more!

Bath – next meetings 13 Feb and 21 May

Edinburgh – no future events showing

Newcastle – 19 Feb

London – no recent events

It would be nice to be able to find a comprehensive list of these small events as they are so accessible – low cost and take little time commitment.

Crime fiction events in 2019

My post listing the 2018 events was one of the most popular I published last year so it would be remiss of me not to carry the listings on to 2019.

Remember this isn’t all literary events (there are plenty of lists of those and there must be hundreds of events) but it is a list of the main dedicated crime fiction events taking place in the UK (with a few notable additions).

I aim to maintain the list and update it as dates are confirmed so do let me know if there’s anything I should add.

January

Nothing uncovered so far – perhaps we’re all busy reading!

February

22 – 24 February – Granite Noir 2019, Aberdeen’s crime writing festival
This is the third year for this crime writing festival featuring some of the most celebrated talent from the Nordic Noir scene alongside Scotland’s own Tartan Noir authors.

27 February – Noir at the Bar, Edinburgh
An evening event, check the FB page for info on this and more events – https://www.facebook.com/NoirattheBarEd/ 

March

8 – 10 March – NOIRELAND International Crime Fiction Festival, Belfast
The 3-day festival will be showcasing the amazing talent emerging from Ireland currently.

29 – 31 March  Quais du Polar – Lyon
I can’t see yet that a programme has been published for 2019 – the festival is free, a short flight from the UK and much of the content accessible for English-speakers.

April

11- 14 April – Books by the Beach, Scarborough
Not a dedicated crime fiction event but this does get a good contribution from crime writers.

May

3 – 5 May – Newcastle Noir, Newcastle
Programme release at the end of January, tickets on sale in February (weekend passes & panel passes), & the venue for the Friday night cabaret revealed

9 -12 May – Crimefest – Bristol
A four-day convention drawing top crime novelists, readers, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world.

June

3 – 8 June – Crime and Coffee Festival, Cardiff
Returning for a second year, with a packed bill, including talks, readings, panel discussions, and workshops.

12 – 15 June – Captivating Criminality, Bath
The sixth UK conference from the Captivating Criminality Network, ‘Metamorphoses of Crime: Facts and Fictions‘, will examine the ways in which Crime Fiction as a genre incorporates elements of real-life cases and, in turn, influences society by conveying thought-provoking ideas of deviance, criminal activity, investigation and punishment.

15 – 16 June – Slaughter in Southwold, Southwold
Now in its seventh year, Southwold Arts Centre will host two days of crime fiction heaven. Speakers include Val McDermid, Elly Griffiths, Martin Edwards and Kate Ellis. With a variety of events planned, including a quiz, murder mystery evening and a murder mystery musical, there’s something for everyone.

21 – 23 June – Alibis in the Archives, Gladstone Library, Hawarden, Flintshire
An event run in association with the Crime Writers’ Association and The Detection Club.

29 June – Bodies from the Library – British Library, London
A one day conference with an exciting programme of discussions, presentations and panels on the Golden Age of Detective Fiction Writers.

July

18 – 21 July – Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival – Harrogate, Yorkshire
Four days of Europe’s biggest come writing event, this year Mari Hannah Child is the chair of the Programming Committee. Special Guests already announced include James Patterson, Jo Nesbo, MC Beaton and Stuart MacBride.

August

2 – 4 August – Bute Noir, Bute
Bute Noir is the first crime writing festival to be held on the Isle of Bute bringing together bestselling authors from the U.S, England and Scotland.

16 – 18 August – St Hilda’s Mystery and Crime Weekend – Oxford
The 26th year of this unique conference – https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/2019-st-hildas-crime-fiction-weekend

September

11 – 15 September – International Agatha Christie Festival – Torquay, Devon
The festival is now a biennial event, the next 5-day festival is scheduled for 11th-15th September 2019.

12 – 15 September – Noirwich Crime Writing Festival, Norwich, Norfolk
The Noirwich Crime Writing Festival is an annual celebration bringing together superstar crime authors, exciting new talent and fans of all things crime fiction.

20 – 22 September – Bloody Scotland – Stirling, Scotland
Tickets on sale from 3 June. Scotland’s festival celebrating crime writing – bringing together leading Scottish and international writers, showcasing debut voices and encouraging new writers.

26 – 28 September – Capital Crime, London’s West End
The brains behind this new event are David Headley, MD of  Goldsboro Books and organiser of the infamous ‘Crime in the Court’ and novelist and screenwriter Adam Hamdy so it has excellent credentials.

September – Margate Bookie, Margate
No confirmed dates at time of writing.

28 – 29 September – Morecambe & Vice, Morecambe
The third year for this event, “there will be panels and talks & trials and debates as authors and guests from around the globe gather to converse, consider and confabulate over crime in all its many facets”.

October

4 – 13 October – Cheltenham Literary Festival, Cheltenham
I wouldn’t normally include this festival as it’s so diverse and doesn’t have the same focus as most of the other events listed here but it’s worth a check of the programme when published.

October – Killer Weekend,
The website suggests that there won’t be an event this year but one in March 2020.

October – Crime Writing: Truth, Myth, Death and Mayhem at Darkfest, Portsmouth
Part of Darkfest – no confirmed dates at time of writing.

November

Mid-November is the biennial Iceland Noir, next due to take place in  2020. No news yet on the location a festival taking place in this slot 2019.

December

All busy shopping for books …

Crime fiction events in 2018

It’s time to put my 2018 events listing together. Remember this isn’t all literary events (there are plenty of lists of those and there must be hundreds of events) but it is a list of the main dedicated crime fiction events taking place in the UK.

I aim to maintain the list and update it as dates are confirmed so do let me know if there’s anything I should add.

As a few new events are already being announced for 2019 I’ve added a brief update at the bottom of this post. A whole 2019 listing to follow.

January

Nothing uncovered so far – perhaps we’re all busy reading!

February

23 – 25 February – Granite Noir – Aberdeen
This is the second year for this crime writing festival featuring some of the most celebrated talent from the Nordic Noir scene alongside Scotland’s own Tartan Noir authors.

24 February – Crime at the Castle, Glamis Castle, Angus, Scotland
This looks like a fascinating one-day event.

March

1 March – Noir at the Bar, Edinburgh
An evening event, number 7 in the series. Check the FB page for info on this and more events – https://www.facebook.com/NoirattheBarEd/ 

March – Deal Noir – Deal
TBC

April

6 – 8 April – Quais du Polar – Lyon
I can’t see yet that a programme has been published for 2018 – the festival is free, a short flight from the UK and much of the content accessible for English-speakers.

11- 15 April – Books by the Beach, Scarborough
Not a dedicated crime fiction event but this does get a good contribution from crime writers.

May

17 -20 May – Crimefest – Bristol
A four-day convention drawing top crime novelists, readers, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world, with headline appearances from Lee Child and Jeffrey Deaver.

June

1 – 2 June – Crime and Coffee Festival – Cardiff
A new event being organised by Cardiff libraries promoting Wales-based crime writers and stories set in Wales.

8 – 10 June – Alibis in the Archives, Gladstone Library, Hawarden, Flintshire
An event run in association with the Crime Writers’ Association and The Detection Club.

16 June – Bodies from the Library – British Library, London
A one day conference with an exciting programme of discussions, presentations and panels on the Golden Age of Detective Fiction Writers.

28 – 30 June – Captivating Criminality, Bath
The fifth UK conference from the Captivating Criminality Network, ‘Crime Fiction: Insiders and Outsiders’, will examine the ways in which Crime Fiction as a genre is able to incorporate both traditional ideas and themes, as well as those from outside mainstream and/or dominant ways of thinking.

July

19 – 22 July – Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival – Harrogate, Yorkshire
Four days of Europe’s biggest come writing event, this year Lee Child is the chair of the Programming Committee.

August

3 – 5 August – Bute Noir, Bute
The third year of this small but growing festival on the Isle of Bute.

17 – 19 August – St Hilda’s Mystery and Crime Weekend – Oxford
The 25th year of this unique conference – https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/2017-st-hildas-mystery-and-crime-conference 

September

15 September – International Agatha Christie Festival – Torquay, Devon
The festival is now a biennial event however there will be a one-day celebration of Agatha Christie’s birthday in Torbay on Saturday 15th September 2018. The next 5-day festival is scheduled for 11th-15th September 2019.

13 – 16 September – Noirwich Crime Writing Festival, Norwich, Norfolk
The Noirwich Crime Writing Festival is an annual celebration bringing together superstar crime authors, exciting new talent and fans of all things crime fiction.

21 – 23 September – Bloody Scotland – Stirling, Scotland
Scotland’s festival celebrating crime writing – bringing together leading Scottish and international writers, showcasing debut voices and encouraging new writers.

28 – 30th September – Margate Bookie, Margate
Moving to September this seaside literary festival usually features a session on crime fiction and this year it’s “Murder in the Dark”  on the evening of 29th.

29 – 30 September – Morecambe & Vice, Morecambe
The second year for this event, “there will be panels and talks & trials and debates as authors and guests from around the globe gather to converse, consider and confabulate over crime in all its many facets”.

October

October – NOIRELAND, Belfast
No confirmed date for 2018 yet

5 – 14 October – Cheltenham Literary Festival, Cheltenham
I wouldn’t normally include this festival as it’s so diverse and doesn’t have the same focus as most of the other events listed here but it’s worth a check of the programme. Specific crime fiction highlights include:

• The Sunday Times Must Reads: Charles Cumming And Mick Herron
• a creative writing workshop with Mark Billingham
• Brookmyre And Billingham After-Hours
• Agatha Christie: Queen Of Crime – featuring Sophie Hannah
• Ambrose Parry
• In Cold Blood: Scandi And Nordic Noir

21 October – Killer Weekend 2018, London
Full details anticipated mid-July

24 October – Crime Writing: Truth, Myth, Death and Mayhem at Darkfest, Portsmouth
Part of Darkfest – full details to be announced shortly.

November

16 – 18 November – Iceland Noir, Reykjavik
Two days of panels and readings, there will also be the Icelandic Crime Disco Night at IDNO on Saturday evening.

December

All busy shopping for books …

Crime fiction I’m looking forward to reading in 2018

This is a personal look at the books I’m looking forward to reading next year. There are a few debuts, a few series that I really should catch up on and the climax to one specific series that I just can’t wait for!

First on the list must be Turn a Blind Eye by Vicky Newham which is due to be published on 5 April 2018. I first met Vicky not long after I started blogging and we have been friends since. When I first met people as a blogger I seemed unusual in being someone who was only interested in reading books with no desire to become a writer myself. Over the intervening years I’ve seen many of these bloggers become published authors (people like Sarah Ward, James Law, Steph Broadribb) and it’s been a long wait for Vicky! The good news is that she will be published by HQ books (part of Harper Collins) so she should get lots of publicity and support. They’ve already done a great job on the cover! 

The book does sound intriguing too “When the head teacher of Mile End High School is found brutally murdered, DI Maya Rahman is called in to the East End community – an area buzzing with energy, yet divided by its own multiculturalism. Maya must battle ghosts from her past and navigate East London’s cultural tensions to find the perpetrator before they kill again.”. As a fan of police procedurals this is right up my street and Vicky is bringing in an extra dimension with a Bangladeshi female detective and a Tower Hamlets setting.

Not only did HQ by the rights to two books but TV rights sold to Playground Entertainment so fingers crossed that this develops into something we get to see on screen too.

Next on the list is another debut – this is Strangers on a Bridge by Louise Mangos and is due to be published in August 2018 by HQ Digital, again part of Harper Collins. Louise is another debut author that I’ve met at a number of crime fiction events. Despite having an agent she made her ‘pitch’ to HQ via a tweet when they were asking for authors to do just that and following the tweet they made contact with Louise and she subsequently signed to them. Who says social media is all bad?

A psychological thriller the blurb is ‘While running near her home in Switzerland, English-born Alice stops a man jumping from a notorious suicide bridge. He mistakes Alice’s euphoric relief as budding affection, and he begins to stalk her.’ While the premise sounds intriguing I definitely don’t read enough books set in Switzerland so I’m looking forward to a bit of armchair-tourism too.

I didn’t post a roundup of my reading highlights  for 2017 – there were a couple of reasons for this. First my blog was pretty neglected in the first half of the year with a house move coinciding with a period at work that was both busy and stressful. I’ve done about the same amount of reading as I normally would but it’s been too time-consuming to get all the reviews posted on my blog. But I also felt that there weren’t any absolutely ‘five-star’ standout books in what I’d read. I did ask around on Facebook for some suggestions of what I might have missed and I’ve also had a look at many of the other ‘best of 2017’ lists. Taking all of this into account and scouring the lists on Crime Time I made sure to ask for Bluebird, Bluebird by Attica Locke for Christmas and I’m pleased to say that Santa did his stuff. The only hold up may be the fact that as a hardback I shan’t want to take it to work on the train as I like to keep my books in pristine condition!

I’ve always tried to read books in the correct series order and if I have started a series from the beginning I don’t want to skip a book and miss something important. There are a couple of series that I’ve got behind on and I really need to catch up. I feel a particular affinity to these as I read and reviewed the debuts on my blog. Firstly there’s Sarah Hilary’s Marnie Rome series. I’ve read the first three books in the series but missed out on the fourth and can see some reviewers have already received copies of the fifth book, so I need to get myself the two missing titles and squeeze them in to my reading next year.

1. Someone Else’s Skin (2014)
2. No Other Darkness (2015)
3. Tastes Like Fear (2016)
4. Quieter Than Killing (2017)
5. Come and Find Me (2018)

Another series that I have followed from the beginning is David Mark and his Aector McAvoy series. I miss reading about Aector and I must catch up. More for the shopping list…

1. The Dark Winter (2012)
2. Original Skin (2013)
3. Sorrow Bound (2014)
4. Taking Pity (2015)
4.5. A Bad Death (2015)
5. Dead Pretty (2016)
5.5. Fire of Lies (2016)
6. Cruel Mercy (2017)
7. Scorched Earth (2018)

There is a third set of books to add to this and I did make an exception and read some of this series out of order. It’s the Nic Costa series by David Hewson. When David stopped writing this series set in Italy I didn’t feel any pressure to fill in any gaps but with a new book due out in 2018 I shall have to get my skates on to catch up. I have posted reviews on my blog for The Fallen Angel which was the last Nic Costa novel and Carnival for the Dead which was a spin off from the series. You can read more about David’s announcement on his blog.

There is also a series coming to an end which although I shall be sad to see it finish I am REALLY looking forward to reading the final instalment. This is the Frieda Klein series from Nicci French. I wasn’t sure how a move from standalones to a series of eight books would work but I shouldn’t have worried. The series has been excellent – one you really should read from the start to get the most out of the books. But July will see the final book published and I shall be rushing to read it because I would hate to see a spoiler!

 1. Blue Monday (2011)
2. Tuesday’sGone (2012)
3. Waiting for Wednesday (2013)
4. Thursday’s Children (2014)
5. Friday on My Mind (2015)
6. Saturday Requiem (2016)
aka Dark Saturday
7. Sunday Morning Coming Down (2017)
aka Sunday Silence
8. Day of the Dead (2018)

So what have ai missed? What books are your must haves or must reads for the next year?

Looking forward to 2017

Perhaps it’s the post-Iceland Noir blues but I’ve already started to think about the crime events to look forward to next year, so it seemed a good time to put my 2017 events listing together. Remember this isn’t all literary events (there are plenty of lists of those and there must be hundreds of events) but it is a list of the main dedicated crime fiction events taking place in the UK.

I aim to maintain the list and update it as dates are confirmed so do let me know if there’s anything I should add.

January

Nothing uncovered so far – perhaps we’re all busy reading!

February

24 – 26 February – Granite Noir – Aberdeen
This is a new crime writing festival featuring some of the most celebrated talent from the Nordic Noir scene alongside Scotland’s own Tartan Noir authors.

March

25 March – Deal Noir – Deal
An event over just one day, although quite an intimate event it’s punched above its weight with the calibre of authors participating in previous years. I’m looking forward to finding out who will be taking part in 2017.

31 March – 2nd April – Quais du Polar – Lyon
The theme for 2017 is due to be published shortly (December) – the festival is free, a short flight from the UK and much of the content accessible for English-speakers.

April

May

18-21st May – Crimefest – Bristol
A four-day convention drawing top crime novelists, readers, editors, publishers and reviewers from around the world.

June

17 June – Bodies from the Library – British Library, London
A one day conference with an exciting programme of discussions, presentations and panels on the Golden Age of Detective Fiction Writers.

30 June – 2 July – RebusFest – Edinburgh
A three-day even celebrating thirty years of John Rebus.  A festival of arts, literature, music and film curated by Ian Rankin – your chance to step into Rebus’ world and explore the making of the iconic detective you love. More info to be announced on 17 March.

July

20 – 23rd July – Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival – Harrogate, Yorkshire
Four days of Europe’s biggest come writing event, this year Peter James is the chair of the Programming Committee.

August

4 – 6th August – Bute Noir, Bute
The second year of this small festival on the Isle of Bute.

18 – 20th August – St Hilda’s Mystery and Crime Weekend – Oxford
This looks like it may be getting a bit of a re-vamp in 2017 – https://www.sthildas.ox.ac.uk/content/2017-st-hildas-mystery-and-crime-conference 

August – Margate Bookie, Margate
There is a dedicated series of crime fiction sessions in their Crimewave (ha!) part of the programme date TBC.

September

8 – 10th September – Bloody Scotland – Stirling, Scotland
Scotland’s festival celebrating crime writing – bringing together leading Scottish and international writers, showcasing debut voices and encouraging new writers.

13 – 17th September – International Agatha Christie Festival – Torquay, Devon
Traditionally taking place in Torquay in the middle of September this festival features a range of events celebrating the life and work of Agatha Christie.

14 – 17th September – Noirwich Crime Writing Festival, Norwich, Norfolk
Taking place across four days, the festival takes place at the Norwich Arts Centre, the University of East Anglia and Jarrolds. Fringe events will run throughout the festival at locations around the city.

30 September – 1st October – Morecambe & Vice, Morecambe
A new event from the organisers of Deal Noir.

October

27-29 October 2017 – NOIRELAND, Belfast.
A new international crime fiction festival and a celebration of Ireland’s love of crime fiction. The weekend includes the best in local talent, guest appearances by international crime-writing stars, and in-depth conversations with some of the greatest screenwriters to put crime dramas on the screen.

28-29th October – Killer Weekend, London
All about becoming the next big thing in the crime fiction world this is a weekend of masterclasses, workshops and pitching sessions.

November

18-19th November – Hull Noir – Hull
An event filling the slot of the biennial Iceland Noir and part of the City of Culture celebrations.

December

All busy shopping for books …

Crime fiction debuts to look out for in November 2016

This is a look forward to the crime fiction/thriller debuts being published in November 2016.

3 November 2016

Cut to the Bone by Alex Caan (from Twenty7 Books)

Ruby is a vlogger, a rising star of YouTube and a heroine to millions of teenage girls. And she’s missing. She’s an adult – nothing to worry about, surely? Until the video’s uploaded. Ruby, in the dirt and pleading for her life.

Who better to head up the investigation than the Met’s rising star, Detective Inspector Kate Riley? She’s leading a shiny new team, high-powered, mostly female and with the best resources money can buy. It’s time for them to prove what they can do. Alongside her, Detective Sergeant Zain Harris – poster boy for multiracial policing and the team’s newest member – has his own unique contribution to make. But can Kate wholly trust him and when he’s around, can she trust herself?

Alex Caan has spent over a decade working in Information Systems Security for a number of government organisations, and is currently specialising in Terrorism Studies. A lifetime passion for writing was sparked by the encouraging words of an English Teacher in school, and eventually led to Alex successfully completing an MA in Creative Writing.

Gone Without a Trace by Mary Torjussen (from Headline)

Hannah Monroe’s boyfriend, Matt, is gone. His belongings have disappeared from their house. Every call she ever made to him, every text she ever sent, every photo of him and any sign of him on social media have vanished. It’s as though their last four years together never happened.

As Hannah struggles to get through the next few days, with humiliation and recriminations whirring through her head, she knows that she’ll do whatever it takes to find him again and get answers. But as soon as her search starts, she realizes she is being led into a maze of madness and obsession. Step by suspenseful step, Hannah discovers her only way out is to come face to face with the shocking truth…

Mary Torjussen has an MA in Creative Writing from Liverpool John Moores University. She worked for several years as a teacher and lives outside of Liverpool, where Gone Without a Trace is set.

10 November 2016

The Harbour Master by Daniel Pembrey (from No Exit Press)

I’m not quite sure if this counts as a ‘ringer’ in my debuts posts, because if you look on Amazon you will find that this book has already garnered over 60 5 star reviews. I think this is because of a change of publisher and /or that the book was originally published in three parts. Not bad ratings for a debut whichever way you look at it!

Henk van der Pol is a 30-year-term policeman, a few months off retirement. When he finds a woman’s body in Amsterdam Harbour, his detective instincts take over, even though it’s not his jurisdiction. Warned off investigating the case, Henk soon realises he can trust nobody, as his search for the killer leads him to discover the involvement of senior police officers, government corruption in the highest places, Hungarian people traffickers, and a deadly threat to his own family…

Daniel Pembrey grew up in Nottinghamshire, England — beside Sherwood Forest. He studied history at Edinburgh University and spent over a decade working in America and more recently Luxembourg, coming to rest in Amsterdam and London — dividing his time now between these two great maritime cities. He is the author of the Henk van der Pol detective series and several short thriller stories, and he contributes articles to publications including The Financial Times and The (London) Times.

25 November 2016

Losing Juliet by June Taylor (from Killer Reads)

A twisty psychological drama about a friendship gone bad.

Juliet and Chrissy were best friends until one fateful summer forced them apart. Now, nearly twenty years later, Juliet wants to be back in Chrissy’s life.

But Chrissy doesn’t want Juliet anywhere near her, or her teenage daughter Eloise. After all, Juliet is the only person who knows what happened that night – and her return threatens to destroy the life that Chrissy has so carefully built.

Because when the past is reawakened, it can prove difficult to bury. And soon all three of them will realize how dangerous it can get once the truth is out there…

Out as an ebook in November this will be followed by paperback publication in Jan 2017.

June Taylor is a UK writer who was runner-up in the 2011 Times/Chicken House Children’s Fiction competition with her Young Adult book Lovely me, Lovely You. But she mainly writes Adult psychological thrillers, and Losing Juliet is her debut novel. She was a TV promos writer/producer for many years before becoming a full-time writer. June also writes plays as well as fiction. She is very active in the Yorkshire writing scene, on the Board of Script Yorkshire and part of Leeds Big Bookend.

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For previous ‘debuts’ posts see January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September and October.

Crime fiction debuts to look out for in October 2016

This is a look forward to the crime fiction/thriller debuts being published in October 2016.

6 October 2016

Holding by Graham Norton (from Hodder and Stoughton)

The author of this debut needs no introduction (yes – THAT Graham Norton)

The remote Irish village of Duneen has known little drama; and yet its inhabitants are troubled. Sergeant PJ Collins hasn’t always been this overweight; mother of­ two Brid Riordan hasn’t always been an alcoholic; and elegant Evelyn Ross hasn’t always felt that her life was a total waste.

So when human remains are discovered on an old farm, suspected to be that of Tommy Burke – a former­ love of both Brid and Evelyn – the village’s dark past begins to unravel. As the frustrated PJ struggles to solve a genuine case for the first time in his life, he unearths a community’s worth of anger and resentments, secrets and regret.

You can see Phil’s review on reviewsrevues.

11 October 2016

Fidelity by Jan Fedarcyk (from Simon and Schuster)

Kay Malloy always knew hers would be a life of service. Following the tragic death of her humanitarian parents, Kay and her brother, Christopher, were raised in a world of wealth and culture by their godparents. With ambition and selflessness, Kay joins the FBI to honor her parent’s legacy, even while Christopher’s life grows increasingly aimless.

Paramilitary and male-dominated, the FBI could be an intimidating employer to anyone less confident, devoted, and insightful than Kay. But after early success in the Violent Crime Program in Baltimore she struggles working counterintelligence in New York. When Kay is assigned to investigate the loss of Russian government double agents, she sees this as her chance to prove herself. As pressure mounts and conflicting leads cloud the investigation, Kay discovers she must make the impossible choice between those she loves and the country she’s sworn to protect.

Upon her retirement in 2012 Jan Fedarcyk was the only woman to lead the FBI s prestigious New York Office as Assistant Director in Charge. Fidelity is Jan s first novel, drawing upon her twenty-five years of experience as an FBI Special Agent. A Maryland native, she resides in the Annapolis area with her husband, Mike.

15 October 2016

Deep Down Dead by Steph Broadribb (from Orenda Books)

Lori Anderson is as tough as they come, managing to keep her career as a fearless Florida bounty hunter separate from her role as single mother to nine-year-old Dakota, who suffers from leukaemia. But when the hospital bills start to rack up, she has no choice but to take her daughter along on a job that will make her a fast buck. And that’s when things start to go wrong. The fugitive she’s assigned to haul back to court is none other than JT, Lori’s former mentor – the man who taught her everything she knows … the man who also knows the secrets of her murky past.

Not only is JT fighting a child exploitation racket operating out of one of Florida’s biggest theme parks, Winter Wonderland, a place where ‘bad things never happen’, but he’s also mixed up with the powerful Miami Mob. With two fearsome foes on their tails, just three days to get JT back to Florida, and her daughter to protect, Lori has her work cut out for her. When they’re ambushed at a gas station, the stakes go from high to stratospheric, and things become personal.

Steph Broadribb was born in Birmingham and grew up in Buckinghamshire. Most of her working life has been spent between the UK and USA. As her alter ego – Crime Thriller Girl – she indulges her love of all things crime fiction by blogging at www.crimethrillergirl.com, where she interviews authors and reviews the latest releases. Steph is an alumni of the MA in Creative Writing (Crime Fiction) at City University London, and she trained as a bounty hunter in California. She lives in Buckinghamshire surrounded by horses, cows and chickens.

2o October 2016

Gone Astray by Michelle Davies (from Pan Macmillan)

This is the paperback publication date of Michelle’s debut and the first book in her DC Maggie Neville series.

Lesley and her husband Mack are the sudden winners of a £15 million EuroMillions jackpot. They move with their 15-year-old daughter Rosie to an exclusive gated estate in Buckinghamshire, leaving behind their ordinary lives – and friends – as they are catapulted into wealth beyond their wildest dreams. But it soon turns into their darkest nightmare when, one beautiful spring afternoon, Lesley returns to their house to find it empty: their daughter Rosie is gone.

DC Maggie Neville is assigned to be Family Liaison Officer to Lesley and Mack, supporting them while quietly trying to investigate the family. And she has a crisis threatening her own life – a secret from the past that could shatter everything she’s worked so hard to build. As Lesley and Maggie desperately try to find Rosie, their fates hurtle together on a collision course that threatens to end in tragedy.

Michelle Davies has been writing for magazines for twenty years, including on the production desk at Elle, and as Features Editor of Heat. Her last staff position before going freelance was Editor-at-Large at Grazia magazine and she currently writes for a number of women’s magazines and newspaper supplements. Michelle has previously reviewed crime fiction for the Sunday Express‘s Books section.

Michelle lives in London with her partner and daughter and juggles writing crime fiction with her freelance journalism and motherhood. Gone Astray is her first novel, and the sequel is Wrong Place. You can find out more on Michelle’s own website  – michelledavieswriter.com.

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For previous ‘debuts’ posts see January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August and September.

Crime fiction debuts to look out for in September 2016

A little late – this is a look forward to the crime fiction/thriller debuts being published in September 2016.

8 September 2016

Tall Oaks by Chris Whitaker (from Twenty7 Books)

When three-year-old Harry goes missing, the whole of America turns its attention to one small town. Everyone is eager to help. Everyone is a suspect. Desperate mother Jess, whose grief is driving her to extreme measures. Newcomer Jared, with an easy charm and a string of broken hearts in his wake. Photographer Jerry, who’s determined to break away from his controlling mother once and for all.

And, investigating them all, a police chief with a hidden obsession of his own . . .

Chris Whitaker was born in London and spent ten years working as a financial trader in the city. When not writing he enjoys football, boxing, and anything else that distracts him from his wife and two young sons.

Follow Chris on Twitter @WhittyAuthor. The book was published as an ebook in April and is out now in paperback. You can see a review of this debut on Liz Loves Books.

Breaking Dead by Corrie Jackson (from Twenty7 Books)

This is the first book in a compelling crime series starring investigative journalist, Sophie Kent. Sophie’s tenacity and talent have seen her rise through the ranks of a tough newspaper industry, but her brother’s suicide has thrown her career and personal life into chaos. Whilst interviewing witnesses of a brutal child murder, Sophie befriends a traumatised Russian model. When the girl’s mutilated body turns up in an upmarket hotel on the eve of London Fashion Week, Sophie knows she could have saved her. Eaten away by guilt, she throws herself headfirst into the edgy, fast-paced world of fashion with one goal in mind: to catch the killer. Only then can she piece her grief-stricken self back together.

As Sophie chips away at the industry’s glittery surface, she uncovers a toxic underworld rife with drugs, secrets, prostitution and blackmail. The investigation propels Sophie from the glamour of the catwalk to London’s darkest corners, towards a sinister past and a twenty-year-old murder case that could hold the key. Battling her demons and her wealthy, dysfunctional family along the way, Sophie pushes her personal problems to one side as she goes head to head with a crazed killer. A killer who is only just getting started.

Corrie Jackson has been a journalist for fourteen years and has worked at Harpers Bazaar, The Daily Mail, Grazia and Glamour. After a sunny two-year stint freelancing in Los Angeles, she is now coming to terms with the weather in Surrey, England where she lives with her husband and two children.

22 September 2016

The Two O’Clock Boy by Mark Hill (from Sphere)

Thirty years ago, the Longacre Children’s Home stood on a London street where once-grand Victorian homes lay derelict. There its children lived in terror of Gordon Tallis, the home’s manager. Then Connor Laird arrived: a frighteningly intense boy who quickly became Tallis’ favourite criminal helper. Soon after, destruction befell the Longacre, and the facts of that night have lain buried . . . until today.

Now, a mysterious figure, the Two O’Clock Boy, is killing all who grew up there, one by one. DI Ray Drake will do whatever it take to stop the murders – but he will go even further to cover up the truth.

This debut is out as an ebook in September followed by paperback version in November.

Mark Hill is a London-based full-time writer of novels and scripts. Formerly he was a journalist and a producer at BBC Radio 2 across a range of major daytime shows and projects. He has won two Sony Gold Awards. And by night he blogs as Crime Thriller Fella.

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For previous ‘debuts’ posts see January, February, March, April, May, June, July and August.

Crime fiction debuts to look out for in August 2016

This is a look forward to the crime fiction/thriller debuts being published in August 2016.

1 August 2016

Doubt by C.E. Tobisman (from Thomas and Mercer)

When Caroline Auden lands a job at a top Los Angeles law firm, she’s excited for the challenge—and grateful for the chance to put her dark past as a computer hacker behind her. Right away, her new boss asks her to find out whether a popular GMO causes healthy people to fall ill. Caroline is only supposed to dig in the trenches and report up the ladder, but her tech background and intuition take her further than planned. When she suspects a link between the death of a prominent scientist and the shadowy biotech giant, she cries foul and soon finds herself in the crosshairs. The clock is ticking and thousands of lives are on the line…including her own.

Now this rookie lawyer with a troubled past and a penchant for hacking must prove a billion-dollar company is responsible for thousands of deaths…before they come after her.

For fifteen years, C.E. Tobisman has been an appellate attorney, handling cases in the California courts of appeal and Supreme Court. After graduating from UC Berkeley and attending law school there, she moved to Los Angeles, where she now lives with her wife and their three children. Doubt is the first novel in her new series featuring Caroline Auden. Tobisman is also the author of Inside the Loop, published by Emet Comics. Find her on Twitter at @cetobisman

25 August 2016

Nothing Short of Dying by Erik Storey (from Simon & Schuster)

Clyde Barr’s most powerful life-long instinct has been to right wrongs, a compulsion fed by a childhood tainted by domestic violence, a young adulthood working as a Third World gun for hire, and a recent stint in a Mexican prison that he barely survived. So when, only a week after his release, Barr receives a panicked, abruptly ended call from his older sister, Jen, pleading with him to “come get her” he’s grimly determined to do just that. Nothing short of dying will prevent him from keeping his promise.

Even though he has no idea where Jen is or who has taken her.

Violence erupts almost immediately as a succession of hard men block Barr’s path. Helping the ex-mercenary run his gauntlet is an unlikely ally named Allie, whose moxie and uncanny ability to read people has made her a survivor. Now, the two of them are on a propulsive, action-driven race against the clock to find Jen before the unthinkable happens…

Storey is a former ranch hand, wilderness guide, dogsled musher, hunter, bartender and locksmith, who has lived and wandered through the American West. Erik’s short fiction has been published by such online magazines as Waving Hands Review and Literary Erosion. He and his family live in Rangely, Western Colorado.

My Husband’s Wife by Jane Corry (from Penguin Random House)

What if your life was built on a lie?

When lawyer Lily marries Ed, she’s determined to make a fresh start. To leave the secrets of the past behind.

But when she takes on her first criminal case, she starts to find herself strangely drawn to her client. A man who’s accused of murder. A man she will soon be willing to risk everything for.

But is he really innocent?

And who is she to judge?

Jane Corry is a writer and journalist, and teaches creative writing all over the world. Recently she spent three years working as the writer-in-residence at a high-security prison for men.

All These Perfect Strangers by Aoife Clifford (from Simon and Schuster)

Within six months of Pen Sheppard starting university, three of her new friends are dead. Only Pen knows the reason why.

College life had seemed like a wonderland of sex, drugs and maybe even love. Full of perfect strangers, it felt like the ideal place for Pen to shed the confines of her small home town and reinvent herself. But the darkness of her past clings tight, and when the killings begin and friendships are betrayed, Pen’s secrets are revealed. The consequences are deadly.

‘This is about three deaths. Actually more, if you go back far enough. I say deaths but perhaps all of them were murders. It’s a grey area. Murder, like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder. So let’s just call them deaths and say I was involved. This story could be told a hundred different ways.’Your secrets define you, don’t let them kill you.’

Born in London of Irish parents, Aoife Clifford grew up in New South Wales, studied Arts/Law at the Australian National University, Canberra and now lives in Melbourne.

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For previous ‘debuts’ posts see January, February, March, April, May, June and July.

Crime fiction debuts to look out for in July 2016

This is a look forward to the crime fiction/thriller debuts being published in July 2016.

14 July 2016

The Last One by Alexandra Oliva (from Michael Joseph)

When Zoo agrees to take part in a new reality TV show, In the Dark, she knows that she will be tested to the limits of her endurance. Beating eleven competitors in a series of survival tasks deep in the forest, living on camera at the extremes of her comfort zone, will be the ultimate challenge before she returns home to start a family.

As the contestants are overcome by hunger, injury and psychological breakdown, the mind games, tricks and hazards to which Zoo is subjected grow dark beyond belief. This isn’t what she signed up for: the deserted towns and gruesome props, the empty loneliness. Is this a game with no end? And what is happening away from the cameras’ gaze? Discovering the truth will be just the beginning…

A graduate of Yale University, Alexandra grew up in a small town deep in the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York. She earned an MFA in Creative Writing from The New School University and undertook intensive wilderness survival training while researching The Last One. She lives in the Pacific Northwest with her husband and their brindled mutt, Codex.  You can find her on Twitter – @ali_oliva

The Couple Next Door by Shari Lapena (from Bantam Press)

You never know what’s happening on the other side of the wall. Your neighbour told you that she didn’t want your six-month-old daughter at the dinner party. Nothing personal, she just couldn’t stand her crying. Your husband said it would be fine. After all, you only live next door. You’ll have the baby monitor and you’ll take it in turns to go back every half hour. Your daughter was sleeping when you checked on her last. But now, as you race up the stairs in your deathly quiet house, your worst fears are realized. She’s gone. You’ve never had to call the police before. But now they’re in your home, and who knows what they’ll find there. What would you be capable of, when pushed past your limit?

Shari worked as a lawyer and as an English teacher before turning to writing fiction. She has written two critically acclaimed literary novels. The Couple Next Door is her suspense debut. You can find Shari on Twitter – @sharilapena

The Unseeing by Anna Mazzola (from Tinder Press)

It is 1837 and the city streets teem with life, atmosphere and the stench of London. Sarah Gale, a seamstress and mother, has been sentenced to hang for her role in the murder of Hannah Brown on the eve of her wedding.

Edmund Fleetwood, an idealistic lawyer, is appointed to investigate Sarah’s petition for mercy and consider whether justice has been done. Struggling with his own demons, he is determined to seek out the truth, yet Sarah refuses to help him. Edmund knows she’s hiding something, but needs to discover just why she’s maintaining her silence. For how can it be that someone with a child would go willingly to their own death? You can see my review here.

Anna lives in Camberwell, London, not far from where the murder at the heart of The Unseeing took place. The Unseeing is Anna’s first novel. She is currently working on her second, which is about a collector of folk tales and fairy lore on the Isle of Skye who realises that girls are going missing.

Anna studied English at Pembroke College, Oxford, before becoming a criminal justice solicitor. She divides her time between writing, reading, lawyering, and child-wrangling. Ann is on Twitter – @AnnaMazz

28 July 2016

The Last Thing I Remember by Deborah Bee (from Twenty7)

Released on Kindle in February this is the paperback publication date of this debut.

Sarah is in a coma. Her memory is gone – she doesn’t know how she got there. And she doesn’t know how she might get out. But then she discovers that her injury wasn’t an accident. And that the assailant hasn’t been caught. Unable to speak, see or move, Sarah must use every clue that she overhears to piece together her own past. And work out who it is that keeps coming into her room

Deborah studied fashion journalism at Central St Martins in the ’80s. She has worked at various magazines and newspapers including Vogue, Cosmopolitan, The Times and the Guardian, as a writer, fashion editor and later as an editor. Currently, she is a director of creative marketing.

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For previous ‘debuts’ posts see January, February, March, April, May and June.