crime writing appeared in unexpected places this year. the man booker award shortlist, usually sniffing out mysteries, found a place for his gory project (bootleg) by graeme macrae burnet, a clever amalgamation of legal thriller and literary game that reads as if umberto Echo would have been resurrected in the Scottish Highlands of the 19th century. Ian McEwan also blurred the boundaries of the genre in In a nutshell (Jonathan Cape), a clever rewrite of Hamlet as a murder story in which a fetus is both detective and possible victim.
The crime reader’s dream of a long, labyrinthine novel that he never wants to finish is magnificently fulfilled in six four by hideo yokoyama (riverrun). This Japanese bestseller, translated by Jonathan Lloyd-Davies, is a police and procedural conspiracy thriller involving two disappearances that also rivetingly dramatizes the mindset and lifestyle of contemporary Japan.
You are reading: Best legal thriller books 2016
Among the more familiar practitioners, The Intruder (Hodder & Stoughton), the sixth in Tana French’s Dublin Murder Squad sequence, will introduce new readers to a crime writer phenomenal. Readers of her first five will be delighted to delve deeper and deeper into the mind of Detective Antoinette Conway, the co-star of French’s previous best movie, The Secret Place, as she investigates a seemingly simple murder case while questioning personal and professional beliefs. . After publishing new adventures for Sherlock Holmes and James Bond, Anthony Horowitz returns to the original work with Magpie Murders (Orion), a delightful puzzler in which a sleepy English detective writer may have buried more scenes. unpleasant real life life in the last manuscript of it.
Although busy as TV showrunner (fargo, legion), noah hawley has fortunately found time to continue his suspense fiction career with before the fall (hodder & stoughton), which, at Like its predecessor, The Good Father, it uses a family catastrophe—in this case, a private plane sinking into the sea—to explore broader American tensions: a plot involving a political campaign manager eerily anticipates triumph. of donald trump.
See Also: 8 Best Lap Book Holders For Reading (Soft & Cozy)
a writer popularized by television, ann cleeves, confirms that she is the best living evocator of the landscape, with cold land (macmillan), the seventh book in her shetland series, in which a landslide of land reveals crime. Meanwhile, Ruth Ware’s (Harvill Secker) Woman in Cabin 10 channels the murders of Agatha Christie at sea in a satisfying contemporary direction as a travel journalist questions what she’s seen in a cruise.
There were notable crime debuts from Sanjida Kay, whose bone to bone (Corvus) becomes unsettling about the lengths a mother must go to protect her child, and Susie Steiner. Her Alleged Disappearance (County Press) begins with the sudden disappearance of a woman whose loved ones may have an intriguing variety of reasons for misleading the police.
On the eve of Hull becoming the UK’s City of Culture in 2017, the local tourist board probably won’t be thanking David Mark for dead pretty (Mullholland), his fifth novel police set in the city. where the wild extremes of wealth and poverty are the background to the murders. Mark, a former reporter, provides a rare insight into urban undercurrents.
Several vintage lags defied the relentless pressure of the year-to-year book market to stay fresh and inventive for a long time on the shelf. Taking a breather from his di tom thorne novels, mark billingham finds a smart and poignant twist on the classic “closed circle” crime story with die of embarrassment (small, brown): when a member of a rehab support group is murdered, the police stay behind to question his fellow addicts, who keep secrets and tell lies easily. Val Mcdermid reaches the milestone of 30 published novels with Out of Limits (Little, Brown), in which a car accident reopens an old crime. It’s a showcase of McDermid’s deft plotting and psychological cunning.
See Also: The Hunger Games Book Summary, by Suzanne Collins – Allen Cheng
Some of the longest-running crime series were still going strong in 2016. Peter Robinson’s novel about 23rd DCI Banks, When the Music’s Over (Hodder & Stoughton), intertwines bravely two controversial storylines: one is about a savile-type sex offender; the other talks about an Asian gang that is allegedly grooming girls. Though Ian Rankin is clearly struggling to find ways to rehire retiree John Rebus, series #21, I’d Rather Be The Devil (Orion), thoughtfully explores the strange codependent relationship between the cop and his old rival, old gangster “big ger” cafferty. Likewise, I Love You Dead (Macmillan), Peter James’s 12th DCI novel Roy Grace, expands on the backstory of the detective’s missing wife with compelling results.
James’s book features the so-called “black widow slayer,” a woman whose lovers go to suspicious lengths, and this metaphor seems to have gone viral among writers this year. Provides the plot and title of Chris Brookmyre’s Black Widow (small, brunette), featuring his handsome and ghastly journalist-hero Jack Parlabane, and addresses the Internet’s effect on reputation. In The Black Widow (HarperCollins), Daniel Silva, an increasingly impressive Washington-based novelist, dramatizes an Islamist attack on Paris. Silva wrote most of the book before the Bataclan attacks, however in her account of how such events could be thwarted, the story still feels ahead of the game.
Understandably, the potential impact of terrorism on cities has become a key theme of recent thrillers. the possibility of a global holy war underlies the conclave (hutchinson), in which robert harris saves the vatican thriller from the clutches of dan brown. By contrast, Crisis (bantam), an enjoyable and informative debut from BBC security correspondent Frank Gardner, takes a broader look at Western insecurities.
any of the above titles, if given as a gift, would leave the recipient more inclined to kiss you than kill you. However, those seeking a present that is seasonal in both content and intent are well served by a British example of a tinsel mystery subgenre that is more common in the United States. Murder Under the Christmas Tree (profile) collects tales from late December of practitioners dead (conan doyle, christie) and living (rankin, mcdermid). and the mistletoe murder and other stories (faber) is a box of pretzels from pd james, a writer who is still viscerally missed by her readers.
Save at least 30% on this year’s Critics’ Choice when you shop at Guardian Bookstore. visit bookshop.theguardian.com or call 0330 333 6846. support the guardian and its journalism with every book you buy this christmas. * Free UK delivery for online orders over £10. A minimum of £1.99 p&p applies to phone orders.
See Also: 11 Best Books On Frugal Living You Need To Read – Tuppennys Fireplace
lists of the best books of 2016
- best fiction
- best crime and thriller
- best science fiction and fantasy