It’s hard to believe it, but summer is right around the corner - and it’s bringing with it a whole crop of hugely exciting new crime fiction releases! Right at the top of my personal list of most-anticipated Summer 2019 reads is today’s featured title: A NEARLY NORMAL FAMILY by M.T. Edvardsson, releasing in the U.S. June 25th, 2019. This Scandinavian psychological thriller is gathering major buzz; it’s been on my radar for quite a while now, and I’m so excited to finally be digging in to it this weekend. Thanks to the book’s publisher, I’m also thrilled to be able to share with CBTB readers a sneak peek into what’s sure to be one of summer’s hottest crime reads! In today’s blog post, you can get the inside scoop on A NEARLY NORMAL FAMILY, including plot details, advance praise, and an excerpt from the book’s prologue and first chapter.
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Book Review: INBORN by Thomas Enger
A couple of weeks ago, I found myself in the airport in Oslo, Norway, waiting on a (very) delayed flight back to New York. What could have been a frustrating way to pass an evening was saved by my bookish companion on the trip: Norwegian author Thomas Enger’s thought-provoking standalone crime novel INBORN. Part courtroom drama, part exploration of small-town life in Enger’s native Norway, INBORN is an effortless read--one enhanced by precise plotting and the author’s knack for rich character development. Following a teenage boy who is accused of murder, INBORN moves readers between the courtroom, wherein the boy is being questioned by the prosecution, and the past, where readers slowly but surely unravel the secrets of what really happened on that fateful night. Given that this book did begin as a Young Adult novel, INBORN is lighter on violence and grit than is Enger’s Henning Juul series, but that’s no detriment to the story Enger tells here. Enger has done a superb job adapting this Young Adult crime novel for an adult readership, and readers will find the book’s clean, crisp prose and precise plotting appealingly easy to devour. I come to Thomas Enger’s writing when I want to read a book with characters who feel three-dimensional and endearing, and I found exactly that in his newest standalone. INBORN is a compelling blend of courtroom drama and heart-tugging examination of adolescence--Enger has delivered again.
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Crime Festival Preview: Krimimessen Horsens 2019
What an absolute thrill it is to be back in Denmark for the annual crime book festival Krimimessen! This exceptional festival is held every year at Fængslet, the Old State Penitentiary in Horsens. Bringing thousands of readers together with authors from Scandinavia and from around the world, Krimimessen is a vibrant and hugely exciting festival for any fan of Nordic Noir and crime fiction as a whole. Scandinavian crime fiction is, naturally, a focus of the festival, but readers are also treated to appearances by some of the biggest names in crime writing from all over the globe at Krimimessen; particular highlights include appearances by Camilla Lackberg, Sara Blaedel, Jussi Adler-Olsen, Clare Mackintosh, Lisa Jewell, Elly Griffiths, and many more! Bonus: the backdrop to this festival - an old prison - simply couldn’t be better for a crime-loving crowd. This will be my second year attending Krimimessen, and I am beyond excited for the crime fiction fun this weekend will have in store! I’m heading on the road from Copenhagen to Horsens later today, and can’t wait to take you along with me for Krimimessen Horsens 2019.
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Q&A: Annie Ward, Author of BEAUTIFUL BAD
I’m thrilled to welcome author Annie Ward to CBTB today to discuss her fantastic new psychological thriller, BEAUTIFUL BAD, which went on sale earlier this month! BEAUTIFUL BAD is a story both intimate and epic, taking readers around the world and into the innermost secrets of a troubled marriage. Told in multiple timelines, BEAUTIFUL BAD looks into the past, tracing the history of married couple Maddie and Ian, and into the future, building to a day known only as “The Day of the Killing,” when this family will be altered forever. Vividly and authentically told, BEAUTIFUL BAD rings true on so many levels, and I was fascinated to learn more about the highly personal inspiration behind this exceptional story—and in this Q&A, you can learn all about it, too. Many thanks to Annie Ward for taking the time to answer my questions, and to her publisher for facilitating this Q&A! Read on for more information about BEAUTIFUL BAD, an excerpt from my review of the book, and my conversation with Annie.
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Book Review: MY LOVELY WIFE by Samantha Downing
Appropriately billed as “Mr. And Mrs. Smith meets Dexter,” Samantha Downing’s deliciously dark debut crime novel MY LOVELY WIFE follows a married couple with a unique way of keeping the spark alive… serial murder. That’s right, this book centers around a pair of ordinary suburban spouses whose date nights involve death. Sound over the top? It is, but in the best possible way. In MY LOVELY WIFE, Downing pushes the domestic suspense novel to its limits—and the result is a hugely entertaining, seriously sinister suspense read. Let’s be clear: this book has a wild, larger-than-life premise - and it’s one that, frankly, could go wrong in less capable hands. But rest assured, Downing gets it very right. MY LOVELY WIFE is wicked fun to read; readers looking for a suspense novel with plenty of entertainment value that doesn’t take itself too seriously will be hooked on Downing’s razor-sharp debut. As for me, it had been a long time since I read a book that was this fun to devour, and I’m already eagerly anticipating what Downing will do next.
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