Saturday Spotlight: Latest Book Releases w/c 9th May
by Claire Buss, Deputy Editor, Write On!
At Write On! and Pen to Print we want to help connect authors and readers, so we’ve created a Spotlight page every Saturday, showcasing some of the exciting new reads available. The list has been curated by Lisa Rouiller and myself, based on books that you send us, so if you’re an author and you’d like your book in the spotlight, reach out to Lisa at pentoprint@lbbd.gov.uk. Whether you’re an indie author, with a small press or mainstream publisher, we’d love to hear from you and shine a light on your new novel.
Write On! offers other opportunities for writers as well. If you’d like us to feature an extract from your book or a short story, please send the extract, book cover and blurb to pentoprint@lbbd.gov.uk with the subject Write On! Showcase (ensuring you have your publisher’s permission, of course).
Pen to Print are also looking for short videos from people reading a passage from their favourite book, or authors reading extracts from their own books. These videos will be featured on the Pen to Print YouTube channel and across our social media. Please send in your videos or links to pentoprint@lbbd.gov.uk with the subject ‘Video Stories’.
Please Do Not Ask For Mercy As A Refusal Often Offends by Paul Bassett Davies
A darkly comic dystopian crime novel.
Detective Kilroy is assigned to investigate a horrible murder. He’s a fine cop, from the brim of his hat to the soles of his brogues, but his inquiries, far from solving the mystery, lead him into a deeper one – and to Cynthia, an enigmatic woman with a secret that could overturn Kilroy’s entire world.
But where is this world? It seems both familiar and uncanny, with electric cars, but no digital devices, and the audience for a public execution arriving by tram. Meanwhile, the seas are retreating, and the Church exerts an iron grip on society – and history. Power belongs to those who control the narrative.
Kilroy is forced to take sides between the Kafkaesque state that pays his wages, and the truth-seekers striving to destroy it, all the while becoming increasingly besotted with a woman who may only love him for his mind – in an alarmingly literal way.
Please Do Not Ask For Mercy As A Refusal Often Offends is a dystopian satire that manages to be funny and frightening in equal measure.
Available to buy here
Connect with Paul Bassett Davies
The Soul Killer by Ross Greenwood
‘Repent in this life, rejoice in the next…’
A murder made to look like suicide. Another that appears to be an accident. DI Barton investigates the tragedies that have shattered a family’s lives but without obvious leads, the case goes nowhere. Then, when the remains of a body are found, everything points to one suspect.
Barton and his team move quickly and, once the killer is behind bars, they can all breathe a sigh of relief. But death still lurks in the shadows, and no one’s soul is safe. Not even those of the detectives…
How do you stop a killer who believes life is a rehearsal for eternity, and their future is worth more than your own?
Ross Greenwood writes gritty, heart-pounding thrillers, with twists aplenty and unforgettable endings. Perfect for fans of Mark Billingham and Stuart MacBride.
Available to buy here
Connect with Ross Greenwood
The Scribbler by Iain Maitland
DI Gayther and his rookie colleague DC Carrie have been assigned a new caseload. Or, rather, an old one: cold cases of LGBTQ+ murders dating back to the 1980s and beyond. Georgia Carrie wasn’t even born when the notorious serial killer began his reign of terror across the east of England. Roger Gayther was on the force that failed to catch him and remembers every chilling detail. Now, after all these years, there’s a sudden death featuring The Scribbler’s tell-tale modus operandi. Can Gayther and Carrie track the murderer down and bring him to justice before the slaughter starts again?
Available to buy here
Connect with Iain Maitland
The Pursuit Of William Abbey by Claire North
‘I was cursed in Natal, in 1884. Cursed by truth and by blood. The shadow took to me, and we have been together since.’
From the bestselling and award-winning author of The First Fifteen Lives Of Harry August and 84K comes a powerful new novel about a young man haunted by a ghost from his past, and by the dark crimes committed in the name of the British empire.
Available to buy here
Connect to Claire North
Reckless by Gemma Rogers
A gritty new thriller from the bestselling author of Stalker. Perfect for fans of Kimberley Chambers and Martina Cole.
One life-changing moment of madness.
English teacher Izzy Cole wanted a fresh start with her family. A new town, a new home, and a new school.
When sixth form student Nicky Stevens takes a special interest in her, Izzy is initially flattered. But as their dangerous friendship teeters on the edge of something more, alarm bells go undetected and one moment of madness leads to devastating consequences.
Izzy soon finds her family, her career and her life hanging in the balance as she becomes his darkest obsession…
Available to buy here
Connect with Gemma Rogers
Magical Intelligence by M.K. Wiseman
When you are a member of Britain’s first team of wizard spies, every mission might be your last. But as the dawning of the 20th century draws ever nearer, magic grows weak. ‘Violectric Dampening’, the clash of man-made electricity with the gifts of magekind, threatens M.I.’s existence. If that isn’t enough, they’ve now been discharged from their own government. Obsolete. Mistrusted. And now hunted by one of their own.
Myra Wetherby has always feared her so-called fits: strange visions of people and places she cannot explain. It is the emotional manipulation, however, a strange empathic connection to those around her, which threatens her very sanity. A danger to her family, Myra runs away, falling straight into the hands of the newly-ousted Magical Intelligence team. Who just so happen to need an ability like hers.
Which makes Myra one of them…whether she likes it or not.
Available to buy here
Connect with M.K. Wiseman
Remember, if you’re an author and you’d like to see your book in our Saturday Spotlight, email pentoprint@lbbd.gov.uk and send us the details of your new novel.
Further Links
For details of Penguin RandomHouse new releases, visit their website here.
For details of Hachette new releases, visit their website here.
For details of HarperCollins new releases, visit their website here.
For details of PanMacmillan new releases, visit their website here.
For details of Simon & Schuster new releases, visit their website here.
Disclaimer: Amazon links are given for ease but please remember there are a number of other online retailers operating, including hive (which helps to support independent book shops), Kobo, Apple Books, Google Play and Nook as well as online stores for bookstores like Waterstones, Barnes & Noble and WHSmiths. Given the current situation, though, please check first.
We want to help connect authors and readers, so we've decided to create a spotlight page every Saturday, showcasing some of the exciting new reads available.
