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Nordic noir novel not to be judged by its cover

ByTony Berry

‘Never judge a book by its cover’ may be a tired old warning, but it still deserves  an occasional airing. Such as for the one pictured here.. The excessively busy artwork is intended as an instant eye-catcher. But the author’s name probably means little to all except deeply committed lovers of nordic noir. It is…

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Cop killings thriller earns top Mark for Billingham

ByTony Berry

Every crime fiction addict has a top of the pops list. Or should that be top of the cops? Slow days on social media often mean someone will post a request for “Your top ten cosy crime writers.” Or “Who is best at tartan noir?” or “Scandi noir” or “Old school cop with drinking habit.”…

Everything old becomes new again in the book marketing world
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Everything old becomes new again in the book marketing world

ByTony Berry

Dressing up old books in new covers seems to be a growing ploy of  publishers’ marketing departments. Authors’ names are emblazoned in bold type – more prominent than that used for the actual title – on redesigned covers enclosing novels written decades ago. It is an eye-catching trick that can bamboozle avid readers into thinking…

The tale of a love-lorn prime minister
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Love-lorn PM’s steamy backseat affair makes intriguing wartime tale

ByTony Berry

Imagine any prime minister of recent times having regular trysts with a woman many years their junior and expecting no one to breathe a word. Or a love-lorn prime minister taking his paramour for regular cosy drives in the official limousine, with its blacked out windows, without a hint of a whisper beyond their inner…

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Sentenced to lengthy spells when coping with action-filled thriller

ByTony Berry

Shorter sentences are all the rage among the judiciary and the anti-jail do-gooders. They are also something long recommended (and widely practiced) among most forms of writing. After all, brevity is the path to comprehension. But there are always the recidivists and mavericks. The pseudononymous Elly Conway, alleged creator of the excessively hyped Argylle, is…

Cover: The Wrong Child
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Baby-snatch thriller adds riddle of which author wrote which part

ByTony Berry

Two puzzles for the price of one As if one superbly twisted plot was not enough, two top crime writers have united to leave readers puzzling over who wrote what. Author credits for The Wrong Child are highlighted on the cover as MJ Arlidge and Julia Crouch. Both have long been famed as being among…