A murder mystery set in deepest, snowiest Russia? The Trans-Siberian Express? A tough female protagonist? Sign me up NOW! Thanks to NetGalley and Constable for my copy in exchange for an honest review.
The story follows Olga Pushkin, a railway engineer (Third Class) who works in a little railway hut in a tiny and remote village called Roslazny. Along with her pet hedgehog (a random but delightful addition), she lives a quiet life and dreams of being a writer and going to Tomsk State University. With all her money being spent on her father’s drinking habit, it is fair to say she is going nowhere…until her world is rocked by a murder and an opportunity for her to take action.
2020 has been an absolute bin fire, so it is definitely time to look forward to what is coming this way next year!
These are the 10 books that I’m looking forward to in 2021. Some I can’t wait to read and some I’ve read already (thank you, NetGalley!) and can’t wait for others to read so I can chat about how amazing they are.
As always, my genres are broadly historical and crime – I’m sure there are fabulous books coming on other genres but this is my list…
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‘The Shape of Darkness’ by Laura Purcell(January 2021 – Raven Books)
I have really loved Purcell’s previous books – ‘The Corset’ and ‘Bone China’ are both creepily gothic and sinister in just the way I love! I haven’t read her first novel, ‘The Silent Companions’ (I know!), but am eagerly awaiting this one that tells a story wound up with elements of spiritualism and also the art of silhouette-cutting. I’m anticipating a strong female lead, lots of spookiness and a few murders along the way! Purcell can be relief upon for first-class historical fiction and I cannot wait.
‘Daughters of Night’ by Laura Shepherd-Robinson(February 2021 – Pan Macmillan)
Following on from the totally brilliant and immersive ‘Blood and Sugar’, this is another perfectly-pitched mystery set in Georgian London. Using some of the characters from the first novel, this one follows Caro Corsham as she investigates the death of a woman she finds dying in Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens. It is beautifully written and I cannot wait for its release so that more people can enjoy it – it was due for publication in 2020 but delayed due to the Current Awfulness (to use Caitlin Moran’s term!)
‘The Whole Truth’ by Cara Hunter (February 2021 – Penguin)
A new instalment in the DI Fawley series by Cara Hunter is always a cause for celebration – these are excellent modern police procedurals with plenty of twists and turns, plus a likeable and convincingly-portayed police team. This one takes a novel route through a sexual harassment case with a side of murder and no-one is safe from suspicion. There is so much I want to talk about with this one!
‘Nick’ by Michael Farris Smith (February 2021 – No Exit Press)
I’ve loved ‘The Great Gatsby’ since I first picked it up as a teenager back in the dark ages (OK, 1990s!) Something about the glamour, the decadence and the setting of 1920s America really appealed to me then, so I’m really excited for this new book about Nick Carraway, Gatsby’s narrator. It promises to tell his story before the events of F Scott Fitzgerald’s famous novel – from the trenches of World War I to Paris and New Orleans. I love the sound of all this!
‘Hyde’ by Craig Russell (February 2021 – Constable)
I loved Russell’s previous novel, ‘The Devil Aspect’, and also am pretty familiar with the source text for this one, Robert Louis Stevenson’s ‘Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde’ (a favourite of GCSE Literature syllabuses). I’m intrigued by the idea of there being no Dr Jekyll to balance out the Hyde (in this story Captain Hyde) and can’t wait to get immersed in Victorian Edinburgh to find out what happens.
‘Lie Beside Me’ by Gytha Lodge (February 2021 – Michael Joseph)
This is the latest in the modern crime series starring DCI Jonah Sheens. I’ve read the previous books in the series and am eagerly awaiting this one – and early reviews suggest it is good. The case here is of a women who wakes up next to a dead man that she has never seen before. She becomes the police’s prime suspect, but nothing is quite as it seems…
‘Madam’ by Phoebe Wynne (February 2021 – Quercus)
I heard about this one from Quercus’ excellent preview evening in which they showcased some of their 2021 titles. Loads of them sounded brilliant, but this one is just my thing – a gothic tale of a remote girls’ boarding school and the young women that arrives to join the teaching staff. This one looks deliciously dark and has a feminist slant too – plus the proof looks fabulous!
‘Dangerous Women’ by Hope Adams (March 2021 – Michael Joseph)
I’ll admit, I was totally won over by the cover of this one (I know – don’t judge a book and all that jazz!) It’s a glorious image of an old-fashioned sailing ship on rough seas with an intriguing theatre curtain surround. Digging further into the blurb, it turns out to be an early Victorian story of female convicts on board a ship heading for the colonies when a murder takes place. How can you solve a crime on a ship full of criminals? I have no idea, but it sounds brilliant!
‘The Last House on Needless Street’ by Catriona Ward (March 2021 – Viper)
Anything marketed as ‘The Gothic Thriller of 2021’ totally has my attention! The blurb doesn’t really give anything away but mentions that it is the story of a serial killer, an average house on an average street and that it will not be what you expect…sign me up! Early feedback on this one seems to be really positive so I am looking forward to finding out what the hype is about.
‘Ariadne’ by Jennifer Saint (April 2021 – Wildfire)
I love a Greek myth retelling and this one looks amazing. Picking up the story of Ariadne (admittedly one I’m a bit hazy on the details of…), this promises a feminist slant on the Classical tale. I’ve seen such beautiful proofs of this one on Twitter that I am wondering who I need to grovel to for a copy!
So there you have it – 10 books that I cannot wait to read and share! What books are you eagerly awaiting from the 2021 crop?
