OUR BOOKS

A Crime In the Land of 7,000 Islands is a powerhouse crime thriller fused with folk tales and the influence of anime. 

This psychological literary fiction tells the tale of Ikigai Johnson, a Special Agent working out of the FBI's Portland, Oregon field office, who pledges to bring justice to children abused by a monstrous American in the Philippines. Amidst an expertly accurate police procedural, Ikigai recounts her tale to her eleven-year-old daughter through fantastical allegory. 

Her story exposes the damage that arises from exploitation, inequality, and generational trauma. Exploring the nuances of criminal justice, it enacts the battle between our courage and our submission to fear. It is an important call to act against evil.

"A Crime in the Land of 7000 Islands is an extraordinary feat of storytelling, blending the real and the fantastical, with a hard-edged crime procedural woven through the rich imagery of a child's imagination. This is a thriller like none you've ever read before." Stuart Neville, Bestselling author and LA Book Prize Winner

"Zephaniah Sole’s debut novel is hard-hitting, but 7000% worth the read. As many novels do, A Crime in the Land of 7,000 Islands dots around between locations and characters, but unlike most, it does a good job at keeping the flow intact. A blend of mythology, magical realism, and crime drama makes for an intriguing reading experience, amplified by its frame narrative. Whereas this narrative choice might make other books confusing or messy, this one manages to stay on track. There is a wonderful seamlessness between the different branches of the novel" 

Zanna Buckland, Co-Editor-in-Chief, Felix

"Sole is a fresh, bold and exciting new voice in crime fiction - Beautiful and powerful."

Michael J Malone

"Brought to you by a serving FBI agent! A Crime In The Land of 7,000 Islands is a powerhouse crime book like The Silence of the Lambs fused with anime and Grimm’s fairy tales."

By The Letter Book Reviews

"I really loved this book. I've never read anything written like this before and it cast a spell over me. The folk tale approach works beautifully." 

Alison Cross Reviews

 The Black Spring Crime Fiction 2020 Prize Winner

Chic Cowan will do anything to find his daughter's killer . . . even sacrifice his own sanity… and maybe he wasn’t all that sane to start with…

Six months ago, tough-as-nails, old-school, no-time-for-the new-school Glasgow Detective Chic Cowan received a call no parent should have to take. His daughter has been murdered, 4,000 miles away from their home in Scotland. Across the Atlantic ocean to a United States riven by protests and riots.

Determined to find out the truth, his way, and bring justice to those who killed his daughter, Cowan travels from Glasgow to Washington D.C., intent on discovering what happened. And Chic Cowan is both sarcastic, and brutal, when he has to be.

Taking him from the deprivation of Southeast D.C. to the opulence of Capitol Hill, Cowan soon realises that not only were his suspicions correct, but his daughter's murder may be only the beginning of a story that could have far-reaching implications for society itself.

Driven by grief and obsession, Cowan sets out to find his own justice. Because the justice currently on offer just isn’t good enough…

Set during the turbulence of a divided America, a plot that engages with what 'woke' means, and the realities of policing, The Scotsman is the blistering debut from a new Tartan Noir talent. This is Rebus meets Taken. 

 "Rob McClure's debut novel introduces one of the most memorable detectives to come along in quite some time. [The Scotsman] is hilarious and infuriating, relentless and reckless, hard-headed and (occasionally) soft-hearted --a compelling lead in a compelling story full of hard twists and dark corners." 

Lou Berney, author of The Long and Faraway Gone, Whiplash River and November Road 

Cormac McCarthy meets North-East England in this unforgettable novel, with a fresh and exciting voice from a debut author.

It Takes a Killer . . .

Foster is not Jasper’s father. He’s the assassin who killed his family. Jasper was eight years old when he was kidnapped and raised by a killer. Not only raised . . . trained.

To Raise a Killer . . .

Jasper has now been a trained assassin for decades. Not only does he kill for a living, he has continued in Foster’s footsteps – raising a ‘family' of his own. Lost souls of the departed. Children who should be dead. Saved by Jasper.

To Raise a Killer . . .

Now, Jasper must contend with the imminent return of his most accomplished protégé, Gulliver. He decides to tell him everything - his life, how he came to be the man he is now, and what has happened to the family since he left. Only, there is someone else out there determined to stop Jasper and find the lost and missing. And they'll stop at nothing to bring an end to what Jasper has built.

 The Black Spring Crime Fiction 2022 Prize Winner

York, 1862. A city in flux, as new technology begins to take hold. And a killer is lurking in the shadows . . .

Ada Fawkes is the first forensic crime scene photographer – a skill in a new science that generates shock and hostility from the society around her. For some, it’s akin to witchcraft. For others, the grisly nature of her work is both fascinating and mawkish.

After a particularly harrowing murder case in Paris, Ada seeks a new life in York. She has turned her back on the work that has left her mentally and physically scarred. However, three young women in her new home city have been found dead in mysterious circumstances. 

She is recruited by Detective Inspector Sam Straker – her former lover and a man she never wanted to see again – to work alongside him, despite their traumatic past together.

Against the backdrop of the ancient streets of York, they must put the past behind them in order to stop the serial killer stalking young women in the city. 

Bolivia. 1991. A soldier arrives in the small town of Uyuni. A place where people endure rather than enjoy. Survive than live. 

The soldier knows they’re coming for him. Hunting him down so they can deal their own brand of justice.

He needs to get out. To make it to the border and escape what is waiting for him.

He’s prepared to do anything to survive.

Even kill.

This is noir fiction at its finest. With characters that you will root for, heartbreak and breathtaking writing, this is a story that will linger in reader’s minds long after you’ve turned the final page.
 

Jason Griffith was a Navy SEAL, but now he’s returning to Trinidad. He has been away for a long time with the US Special Forces and reclaiming a place in society is tough.

In an attempt to make some quick money, he reunites with some old friends. Only, they’re now criminals. Car thieves, to be exact. Jason needs the money though, so he joins with them.

That’s where things go downhill.

After they find a large quantity of drugs in the trunk of a stolen vehicle, Jason finds himself the target of a notorious drug lord. The killing begins, but it’s when Jason’s sister is kidnapped that it becomes personal for him.

With the clock ticking, Jason has to not only track down his now former friends, return the drugs, but find his sister before it’s too late.

One man against all the odds.
 

Coming soon...