Thriller School - Killer Reads Exclusive Offer

In this month’s newsletter there was a special offer for all those on the Killer Reads mailing list to book their place on crime writing course Thriller School for a discounted rate.

We managed to catch up with founder Sarah Williams before she launches the inaugural event in January to see what she hopes to achieve with the course and why specialise in crime fiction…

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2010 Crime Fiction Highlights

To whet your appetite HC editors Rachel Rayner and Sammia Rafique have put together a list of top titles you can expect from HarperCollins in 2010 whilst Mike Gerrard has put together a round-up of everything else you can expect and this will be going live in the new year…

January

Snow Hill by Mark Sanderson (HarperCollins)

Mark Sanderson does for the 30s what Jake Arnott did for 60s London - vividly revealing its hidden underworld in an unforgettably gripping crime novel. Inspired by a true scandal that centred around Snow Hill police station in 1936.

Read an extract here

February

Pretty Little Things by Jilliane Hoffman (HarperCollins)

We’ve been excited about the latest offering from Jilliane Hoffman for a while now and there isn’t long until publication. For an exclusive extract click here.

City of Lies by Alafair Burke (Avon)

The new fast-paced thriller from rising star Alafair Burke, where no-one in Manhattan is safe. And no-one is innocent. When New York University student Megan Gunther is murdered in a vicious attack after receiving threats posted on a campus website, NYPD Detective Ellie Hatcher is convinced there is a link.

March

Heresy by SJ Parris (HarperCollins)

Introducing the monk Giodarno Bruno, magician, scientist, and heretic in a new series of historical thrillers for fans of C.J.Sansom and ‘The Name of the Rose’

For more information take a look at the book page.

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Desmond Bagley

Desmond Bagley was one of a group of writers including Alistair MacLean and Jack Higgins who contributed greatly to the modern concept of action thrillers.

With a career which encompassed many things form mining to journalism, Bagley became a full time writer after his first novel The Golden Keel became a bestseller. He went on to write 16 thrillers, most of them  Top 10 bestsellers and he established a trademark style which featured ordinary men pitted against again villains with intent on causing global chaos. Bagley died relatively young at fifty nine, and his books have remained in print ever since. His writing continues to influence new writers in the genre.

Read an extract from The Snow Tiger

This November sees HarperCollins published a further selection of classic titles from Bagley’s back catalogue as ‘2 in 1; double action thrillers’. The titles available include:

High Citadel AND Landslide - Buy now from Amazon

Flyaway AND Windfall - Buy now from Amazon

The Spoilers AND Juggernaut - Buy now from Amazon

Wyatt’s Hurricane AND Bahama Crisis - Buy now from Amazon

A Q&A with Avon’s David Kessler

The author of our current ‘Featured Title’ David Kessler gives us an insight into his world

KillerReads: When did you start writing?

David Kessler: When I was 15 and on the verge of dropping out of school in the early seventies.  I wrote a screenplay with a singing role for myself because I had dreams of being the next Donny Osmond.  I sent it to my mother’s cousin - the film director Clive Donner.  He gave me some useful advice, but of course it was an early juvenile effort and nothing came of the project.

However, having written it I discovered that I had a talent for creative writing - as distinct from singing or songwriting! And so I carried on writing from then on - and haven’t stopped since.

I should also acknowledge the earlier influence of my older sister Simone, who was an avid reader and writer.  There was a certain amount of sibling rivalry between us and I had already made some preliminary efforts at writing even when I was still in school to compete with her.  Also I should acknowledge the encouragement and positive influence of two of my English teachers: Mr McLaughlin and Mr Marx.

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