Author:Christopher Fowler
It’s a fresh start for the Met's oddest investigation team, the Peculiar Crimes Unit.
Their first case involves two teenagers who see a dead man rising from his grave in a London park. And if that's not alarming enough, one of them is killed in a hit and run accident. Stranger still, in the moments between when he was last seen alive and found dead on the pavement, someone has changed his shirt...
Much to his frustration, Arthur Bryant is not allowed to investigate. Instead, he has been tasked with finding out how someone could have stolen the ravens from the Tower of London. All seven birds have vanished from one of the most secure fortresses in the city. And, as the legend has it, when the ravens leave, the nation falls…
Soon it seems death is all around and Bryant and May must confront a group of latter-day bodysnatchers, explore an eerie funeral parlour and unearth the gruesome legend of Bleeding Heart Yard. More graves are desecrated, further deaths occur, and the symbol of the Bleeding Heart seems to turn up everywhere - it’s even discovered hidden in the PCU’s offices. And when Bryant is blindfolded and taken to the headquarters of a secret society, he realises that this case is more complex than even he had imagined, and that everyone is hiding something. The Grim Reaper walks abroad and seems to be stalking him, playing on his fears of premature burial.
Rich in strange characters and steeped in London’s true history, this is Bryant & May’s most peculiar and disturbing case of all.
Stunning
—— Ruth RendellExhilarating...addictive...fascinating
—— IndependentA master storyteller
—— Sunday TelegraphCaptures sinister atmosphere brilliantly
—— SpectatorFor the first time in years, P.D. James has serious competition
—— Philip Oakes , Literary ReviewI raced to finish this story of a couple caught in the fall-out of their best friends' split. Beautifully written and peppered with moments of stunning observation, it's a superb read.
—— Amanda JenningsReading Tamar Cohen's THE BROKEN is like sitting down with your most eloquent, quick-witted friend. She sees every side of the story. She's always one step ahead of you, full of empathy and insight. This is a story of the implicit social pacts of marriage, a fresh examination of human nature. And also, let's just say it. It's downright, utter, nasty, page-turning, delicious fun.
—— Caroline Kepnes, author of YOUFabulous. I was drawn in from the very first page. Tamar is very skilled at creating characters that seem so real, almost as if we're their best friends too, yet beneath their exteriors, you just know there's so much more simmering away. The tension grew with every page turn, until it was almost unbearable, yet I couldn't stop reading! I literally gasped out loud, so shocked by the very unexpected ending. This brilliant book will be on my mind for a long time.
—— Samantha Hayes, author of UNTIL YOU'RE MINECompulsive reading ... the tension racks up and the book switches from domestic drama into full-blown, chilling thriller
—— Essentials, Book of the MonthEveryone's talking about this ... A gripping cocktail of betrayal and revenge
—— Prima MagazineDramatic, sad and tense, it's essential you get your hands on this thriller. (Five stars)
—— CloserA chillingly brilliant thriller
—— Red MagazineA sustained work of near genius that takes a very familiar theme - man leaves wife for younger model - and not only brilliantly dissects the breakdown of the marriage but also teh consequences for the couple's close circle of friends ...Cohen's first foray into psychological suspense is a triumph.
—— Daily MailTaut, tense and addictive
—— Good HousekeepingCohen’s marital drama morphs into a psychological thriller, and a last-minute twist set into motion much earlier in the narrative is brilliant.
—— Publishers Weekly USA war novel like no other…“Dark desires sizzle” and explode with a furious climax. Ellroy is not only back in form – he’s raised the stakes.
—— Kirkus Review (starred review)One of the most original and daring writers alive.
—— Independent on SundayIt’s an epic 687-page undertaking that is at times disturbingly violent – a must for noir fans.
—— StylistEllroy, writing in his signature telegraphic style, strives to depict reality, every dark aspect of it: there’s murder, apparent ritual suicides, hate crimes and a world of characters that you just cannot root for. Ellroy successfully establishes his four main characters, alongside a wealth of fully developed, clever and sophisticated secondary characters, within his own creation of a microcosm of a community challenged by politics and an unavoidable history.
—— Culture FlyJames Ellroy is the best crime writer in the world.
—— Irish TimesA brash, two-fisted tour-de-force of spleen and invective which holds up a cracked and tarnished mirror to a turbulent period of American history … powerful in scope, theme and character … for blood and guts, he could give Beowulf a run for its money … it is impossible to deny the power and energy that has gone into Perfidia, which is more than a crime novel whilst showing, at the same time, what the crime novel is capable of.
—— SHOTSThe prose is as tight and fast moving as ever … If you are in pursuit of vintage Ellroy, this book is for you.
—— The RegisterA sprawling, uncompromising epic of crime and depravity.
—— Publishers WeeklyAs unflinching and sharp as ever, even more so . . . Perfidia might be his [Ellroy’s] finest novel yet . . . Its story is full of tectonic movements, fascinating and dangerous characters with ambiguous morality, and events bigger than life itself. It’s brilliant in its complexity and vastness.
—— Upcoming4.meAs abrasive and compelling as always.
—— Me and My Big Mouth