Summer books of 2021: Crime
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Every Vow You Break
by Peter Swanson, Faber £12.99/William Morrow $27.99
If you’re looking for the suspense techniques of Alfred Hitchcock translated to the page, Swanson’s your man. Abigail’s idyllic weekend with her new millionaire husband ends when a partner from a drunken one-night stand becomes an unwelcome visitor. References to Hitchcock’s Vertigo give an index to the murderous fun here.
The Survivors
by Jane Harper, Little, Brown £14.99/Flatiron Books $14.99
From the author of the all-conquering The Dry. The Tasmanian coastal town of Evelyn Bay has grim associations for Kieran — his brother died there, and a young woman vanished — but the past is not dead. Steadily paced, perhaps, but Harper takes on board corrosive issues of guilt, memory and responsibility to mesmerising effect.
The Royal Secret
by Andrew Taylor, HarperCollins £14.99/$26.99
The fifth in Taylor’s masterful series of Restoration-era novels has unwilling government agent James Marwood and bloody-minded female architect Cat Hakesby looking into the disappearance of confidential files. Typically exuberant fare from the ever-reliable Taylor, incorporating a delicious trip to the hotbed of intrigue that is the French court.
Tell us what you think
What are your favourites from this list — and what books have we missed? Tell us in the comments below
Girl A
by Abigail Dean, HarperCollins £14.99/Viking $27
Dean’s heroine escaped from her gruesome family environment and returns later to convert the family home from a place of terror to a community centre. But this involves the co-operation of her fellow survivors of familial mistreatment. Dean’s novel is both an excoriating picture of psychological trauma and a transfixing crime narrative.
The Law of Innocence
by Michael Connelly, Orion £20/Grand Central Publishing $16.99
When the police pull over low-rent defence attorney Mickey Haller, a corpse is found in his boot — that of an ex-client. Mickey will need to strain every legal muscle to prove his innocence. Superior stuff as ever, with a too-brief walk-on for Connelly’s other key protagonist, robust policeman Harry Bosch.
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