If you have no shelf control then you’re in the right place. Transport yourself to another land without having to leave your bed or change out of your pyjamas. These top novels will soon have you twisting and turning between the covers.
23rd Midnight
by James Patterson & Maxine Paetro
Another month, another James Patterson novel. In this, the twenty-third book in the Women’s Murder Club series, we have the usual murder that Detective Lindsay Boxer has to try and solve along with her colleagues, and typically, with her three best friends Cindy, a journalist, Yuki a prosecutor and Claire, the Chief Medical Examiner, who all get involved in one way or another. With the usual short, sharp, fast-paced chapters that all Women’s Murder Club fans have grown to love, this is a sure fire hit.
Dream Town
by David Baldacci
Here we have the third instalment in Baldacci’s Archer series which continues with the thrilling 1950’s setting. This time the charming PI travels to Hollywood to see in the new year with Liberty who is trying to hit the big time as an actress. During the revelry Archer is approached by Eleanor Lamb who believes her life is in danger. Before long Lamb has disappeared and there is a dead man in her Malibu house. Action-packed and suspenseful, this will take you on a roller-coaster ride right up until the final page.
A Heart Full of Headstones
by Ian Rankin
This book sees the twenty-fourth instalment of the Detective Rebus series and starts with the shocking twist that he is in the dock, but with no hint as to what he is charged with. We then head into the past to uncover the truth. Brilliantly complex and highly entertaining.
The Girls Who Disappeared
by Claire Douglas
An atmospheric thriller about the mysterious disappearance of three girls in a 20-year-old car crash. A deliciously dark, captivating and twisty thriller, meaning-if you’re craving more mystery in your life-that itch will be scratched perfectly.
Poster Girl
by Veronica Roth
In this intelligent and emotional dystopian thriller the author muses questions about freedom, the essence of society and freedom. Once again Roth writes a page turner which is somewhere between The Hunger Games and 1984. The allegory in the plot translates into our own world which may make everyone re-evaluate their relationship with social media.
Sparring Partners
by John Grisham
This is a collection of three novellas and all are excellently written; Homecoming, Strawberry Moon and, completing the set, Sparring Partners. All are fast-paced page-turners written with Grisham’s usual mastery of the legal thriller. Arguably Sparring Partners is the best of the bunch and probably why it graces the cover, yet all are well worth a read.
The Institute
by Stephen King
Although this not a short book, and let’s be honest, King’s novels seldom are, at over 500 pages it still felt like a quick page-turner. This book shows the continued quality of his writing and he certainly lets us all know he is still the King. A feel of Stranger Things meets the X-Men, this novel has lots of nostalgia-inducing content for King fans and is also a great starting point for new King readers. A change from my usual genre, but well worth a read.