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The Pinnacle by Abir Mukherjee (Harvill, £16.99)
In a famous Mumbai mansion, the super rich and those who serve them live on the same side but worlds apart. Fading American actor George Abercrombie, married to actress Sweety Sahota, finds himself promoting Indian whiskey while his young wife’s career continues. Waking up on the sofa with a dizzy spell and memories of the night before, George finds Sweety murdered in the wedding bed and one of her shirts, stained with blood, in the laundry basket. He knows that he is the main suspect, but not only is Sweety’s phone and laptop missing, but also her assistant, Amit…
Violent Art by Jordan Harper (Faber, £9.99)
Based in LA, American novelist Harper’s latest novel is a dark and topical story. Jake, who presents crime shows to audiences who want to be obsessed, is entering the mass murder market with stories about the LA Ripper, “up to three victims and counting”. Kara works at Sub Rosa, a concierge service that provides the super rich with anything they want, legal or not. And Gibson is a public defender who reluctantly agrees to take action against a wealthy monster who threatens to tear down “the monuments of the whole town”, including Sub Rosa’s clients, before killing himself in his cell. When Kara’s friend goes missing and is suspected to be the work of the Ripper, the three worlds collide. Told in apocalyptic terms, there are shades of both James Ellroy and Tom Wolfe in this story of greed in all its forms, which is played out in a world of power, chaos and immorality.
Killing on the Red River by Marcie R Rendon (Viper, £9.99)
American playwright and poet Rendon was founded in 1970, on the border of North Dakota / Minnesota. Cash Blackbear, a 19-year-old Ojibwe woman, is a farm worker who spends her evenings playing pool to earn money for alcohol. His world is one of little hope, little opportunity, poverty and alcoholism; a hardscrabble childhood and a series of foster families made him self-reliant, his true friend is Sheriff Wheaton, who has tried to look after him since he was “legally stolen” from his mother and siblings. When an Ojibwe man is killed, he helps gather Wheaton’s intelligence to investigate, risking it. Beautifully written, with an interesting central character, this is the first book in an anticipated series; Rendon is well-organized, focusing on large-scale, devastating crimes against Native Americans, such as the forced removal of children from their families, as a private investigation. Information, please.
Volunteers by Catherine Cho (4th Estate, £16.99)
There’s more pain and less choice in Cho’s Hong Kong-set novel, this time among the rich and powerful. As the daughter of a major player in the Triad crime syndicate, narrator Eunha has made her own life, but her happy life as “or or” (a rich woman) comes to an end when her son is kidnapped and, although he recovers well, he is considered unfit to look after him. In the past, this is an interesting story of mysteries, given by the way women refuse responsibility: The Godfather, seen through a female eye.
Repentant by Kate Foster (Mantle, £18.99)
The fourth mystery of Foster’s history begins in 1790, at St Monans on the east coast of Scotland, where the Rev Mitchell is determined to keep his flock on the straight and narrow. When Florrie Aitken, the unappreciated wife of wealthy businessman Jonny, is caught by a lover, she is forced to commit a shameful act to repent; There he meets Eliza Wood, who is also punished for not going to church. Eliza is one of Jonny’s employees, having no choice but to work for him – first to harvest sea salt then, after Florrie accompanies Jonny to Iceland where he hopes to expand his work by using British prisoners from the port of Reykjavík as workers, as their servant. As Jonny prepares to avenge his wife, a bond is formed between the two women – both, in their different ways, as slaves as the men on the prison ship – who begin to plan their escape. A brilliant, 19th century astronaut.
