I will not be rushing to the store tomorrow to buy a copy of The Lost Symbol, the long-awaited new book from Dan Brown of Da Vinci Code fame. I will not bore on here again about my views on Brown and his writing save to say that I thought The Da Vinci Code was a very poor film, but it was that rarest of silver screen phenomena: a movie that improved the book.
So if you want to read a thriller this week, allow me to make a case for these five books worthy of your consideration, before you give Dan Brown £10 and 12 hours of your life you will never get back.
The Anniversary Man by RJ Ellory
This is the only one of the five recommendations I have not read, but I bought it today as my alternative to Brown. Ellory has written six previous novels, all of which I have read and enjoyed. They all have three things in common: they tell compelling tales, as all novels should; they are beautifully written; they are suspenseful and are more than worthy of the dozen or so hours of your time you will devote to them. The Anniversary Man tells the story of John Costello, a man who survives the attentions of one serial killer and uses the knowledge gained from that experience to help track down another.
Shatter by Michael Robotham
In the last six months I have listened to all of the Australian author's books, bar The Night Ferry, which I read. There is so much about Robotham that is good that I am never going to do a book like Shatter justice in a few lines here. Like with Ellory, however, here are three essential components: the characterisation is exquisite, as good as anything I have read - central protagonist Joe O'Loughlin and his friend Vincent Ruiz are likeable, memorable and utterly human characters; second, these books are written with an emotional honesty that is at times paralysing; finally it has a brilliant story that stays on a knife edge for hours. Psychologst O'Loughlin is called upon to help talk a jumper down from the Clifton Suspension Bridge. He fails, but before long discovers that while the woman jumped to her death of her own free will, she did not commit suicide. His investigation takes pits him against a terrifyingly cruel and merciless killer. A brilliant piece of work.
The Girl with The Dragon Tattoo by Stieg Larsson
The one millionth blog post praising Larsson and his Millennium trilogy, I know, I know. But the English publication next month of The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets' Nest, the final act of the trilogy, is the true publishing event of the year, the book that thriller afficionados have been waiting for. The two previous novels - Dragon Tattoo and Played with Fire (available at Waterstones and heavily discounted) - were original and compelling thrillers that became extraordinarily popular book right across Europe. If you haven't found these books yet, what is keeping you?
The Turnaround by George Pelecanos
Pelecanos is a criminally under-read thriller writer. He writes with passion, intelligence and deceptive simplicity about life on the streets; about the decisions people take, the reasons they take them and the consequences they lead to. He does not judge those about whom he writes but instead his work stands as a savage indictment of modern American society and its abandonment of urban youth. Pelecanos received a high profile endorsement when it was revealed that Barack Obama was taking his recent novel The Way Home on his holiday. It's a good book, but The Turnaround is exceptional.
When Will There Be Good News by Kate Atkinson
When I am reading a Kate Atkinson novel I am barely capable of functioning in other areas of my live. The haunting mesmeric stories follow me around and occupy every other thought. Of her seven books, the Jackson Brodie "crime" trilogy are my favourites, and of that trilogy Good News is the most memorable. That is chiefly because of Reggie a sixteen-year-old nanny-cum-force-of-nature whose homespun wisdom, loyalty and courage dominate the book. Kate Atkinson is nothing less than a genius and these books are quite wonderful.
