WILL STONE takes a ticket to indie disco heaven, but misses the rarely performed tunes
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Crime fiction with Mat Coward: September 19, 2023
A crime wave like no other includes narratives from JL Blackhurst, Stella Blomkvist, Linwood Barclay, Chris Nickson
Reviews of new releases by Jens Lekman, Big Thief, and Christian McBride Big Band
TOM PIERSCIONEK recommends a remarkable series of interviews with those few and brave Israeli citizens who refuse to do military service
The bard rests on his laurels, and swipes left and right
MARIA DUARTE cherishes the flashes of absurd humour and theme of community healing in a documentary set in a Soviet-era Black Sea sanatorium
ANGUS REID and MARIA DUARTE review The Courageous, The Cut, Christy, and On Swift Horses
JL BLACKHURST, author of THREE CARD MURDER (HQ, £8.99), must have a degree in Fun Engineering, judging by the way she’s constructed this multi-faceted delight for crime fans.
It’s set in Brighton, where acting DI Fox is in charge of a murder inquiry for the first time — and it turns out to be a locked-room mystery, just the sort of insoluble puzzle that could ruin her career. When she finds out who the victim is, she has bigger things to worry about, and no choice but to re-establish contact with her sister. Sarah isn’t a cop: she’s the best con-woman on the south coast.
Long cons, grifters, no less than three impossible crimes, conspiracy, serial killing and police procedure – this book’s got it all.
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