UNDER THE RADAR: SEVEN GOOD BOOKS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED IN 2025
Every year there are piles of books released with a fanfare of manufactured publicity by publishers, and certain reviewers, while other equally good books quietly find their way onto bookseller shelves and, increasingly, Kindle and Audible lists. This has particularly been the case in Australia in recent years, where the consolidation of newspapers and industry budget cuts have led to less books being reviewed and the overall number of reviews greatly reduced. Meaning that some very good titles remain virtually invisible to potential readers, even though they are far better written and more enjoyable than the latest Patterson/celebrity blockbuster.
In advance of doing my own summation of the year’s best crime and thriller titles, I thought I would do my usual list of seven good books that slipped under the radar.
In some cases they are books by smaller publishers, or those which focus on the library market, while others seemed to have limited, or no, release in Australia. There are also a couple of books which mainly came out as Audible or eBooks. I was tempted to include a couple of other very good books which attracted only limited coverage in Australia when they were released, for instance Matthew Blake’s A Murder In Paris (which was poorly packaged), Sulari Gentill’s Five Found Dead and Mike Ripley’s Buried Above Ground, but coverage around them seems to have increased in recent times. I have also included Mike’s Buried Above Ground on my ‘Best of 2025’ list.
With a bit more publicity, I think all of the ones below would have found larger, appreciative audiences.
The order is a bit arbitrary, as all are very entertaining. I have attached links to my earlier reviews, where I have done one.
Chasing Shadows, (Raven Street, 5 June 2025), is the ninth book in Robert Bryndza’s series about Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster, and takes the reader back to an early defining event in her career.
During the course of a routine investigation Erika unexpectedly encounters, and arrests, Jerome Goodman, the drug dealer who murdered her husband and other police officers ten years ago. The only problem is that Goodman’s passport, and his solicitor, say that his name is actually Kieron Bagshaw, and that his record is squeaky clean. With top brass demanding she take leave to deal with her PTSD, and even her closest colleagues questioning her sanity, Erika decides to use the time off to do some digging of her own. In the process she uncovers some surprising secrets that make her question what really happened on that day ten years ago.
Chasing Shadows is a fast paced, gripping tale that quickly draws the reader in. The early surprising developments keep you interested, and a secondary timeline from ten years ago efficiently recaps what happened and shows it in a different light. The investigation unfolds in a credible manner, although it does rely on a touch of luck. There are certainly some good surprises, and nicely placed red herrings keep everything up in the air until the end. I have tended to prefer Robert Bryndza’s series about PI Kate Marshall over his books about Detective Chief Inspector Erika Foster, but Chasing Shadows is probably the best thing he has done in recent years. Highly recommended.
Here is the link to the full review: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/chasing-shadows-by-robert-bryndza/
Darcy Coates’ How Bad Things Can Get, (Poisoned Pen Press, 26 August 2025), is one of those books that seems to be mainly targeted at the Kindle and Audible market, although a paperback edition is available.
The story revolves around a televised reality survival event on a remote island. Things, however, get out of hand when the event is highjacked by people with murder on their minds.
This is a wild ride of a story that quickly draws you in and keeps you interested all the way to the blood-soaked finale. The pace is hectic, and there are enough twists and turns to keep even the most jaded thriller fan on edge. The central character, Ruth, is a very engaging narrator, and the secondary characters are also efficiently sketched and interesting. Some appear to be caricatures at the beginning, but Darcy does a good job of developing and changing them in surprising ways. The climax is not for the faint hearted, with people being killed by a variety of weapons in often gruesome ways, but it keeps you turning the pages and there are some real moments of poignancy.
Darcy does not receive the attention she deserves in Australia, and her books are always highly entertaining. How Bad Things Can Get is a good book for the holiday season.
Here is the link to the full review: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/holiday-reading-new-2025-books-by-sulari-gentill-mike-ripley-and-darcy-coates/
Simon Mason is one of those authors who seem to quietly go about their business without drawing much attention. The Woman Who Laughed, (Riverrun, 5 June 2025), is the third book in his Finder series and is another enjoyable read.
The Finder, a former police detective called Talib, is hired by the British police authorities when they have difficult missing person cases that they want reviewed. In the process he has become a respected specialist in finding missing people. In The Woman Who Laughed, the South Yorkshire Police bring in the Finder when an old missing person case, and a more recent murder, collide. It was assumed at the time that the missing woman, a sex worker called Ella, was killed by one of her clients, but recent possible sightings suggest that she may still be alive.
Bit by bit, the Finder pieces together what happened to Ella by carefully interviewing those originally involved in her supposed murder. The plot unfolds at a smooth pace and although there is not much action it always holds interest. Mason carefully brings a diverse cast of characters vividly to life through their words, and the backdrop of the more unsavoury parts of Sheffield is nicely evoked. We are also given brief glimpses into the Finder’s background and what happened to him. As with all good crime stories, there are the requisite twists and turns, and the ending produces some well-crafted surprises. A very good, low-key murder mystery, that reminded me of the better known Raker novels by Tim Weaver.
Here is the link to the original review: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/spies-and-lies-my-recent-may-2025-reading-simon-mason-gerald-seymour-john-lawton-and-charles-beaumont/
Kerry Wilkinson’s The Tapes, (Bookouture, 11 August 2025), is an unassuming psychological suspense novel that delivers more page turning tension than a host of domestic thrillers by better known, and more highly promoted, authors.
The story revolves around a reasonably simple central premise before spinning off in unexpected directions. Eve is clearing out her father’s house when she finds an old cassette player and a box of tapes. Though grieving, she smiles at the spark of nostalgia. One tape is labelled ‘Eve’ and is written in her mother’s distinctive scrawl. Her mother has been missing for more than ten years, and Eve is keen to hear her voice again. However, when she starts to listen she is shocked to hear her mother’s opening message: ‘If they say I’m missing, I’m not. If you’re listening to this, I’ve been murdered.’
The Tapes is a really enjoyable mystery that quickly draws you in and keeps you interested. It opens at a good pace and the interweaving of Eve’s point of view with extracts from a true crime book about a local serial killer works well, and helps to speed the story along. Eve is an engaging, and very believable character, who has her own problems and quirks but not to the detriment of the book’s pace. The other characters are also nicely sketched, especially Eve’s troublesome daughter. The central story is intriguing and Kerry introduces enough quirks to the plot to keep it interesting. The storytelling is largely uncluttered and the book builds to a good, surprising revelation. A clever and engaging psychological suspense thriller.
Here is the link to the original review: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/deadly-twists-and-turns-new-august-2025-crime-fiction-by-steve-cavanagh-and-kerry-wilkinson/
The House At Devil’s Neck, (Head of Zeus, 14 August 2025), is the fourth book by Tom Mead in his series about illusionist-turned-sleuth Joseph Spector.
It opens on the eve of World War II, with a coach slowly making its way through the rainy English countryside to visit an allegedly haunted house on a lonely island called Devil’s Neck. The visitors plan to hold a seance to conjure the spirit of a long-dead soldier. But when a storm floods the narrow causeway connecting Devil’s Neck to the mainland, Spector and the other visitors are stranded, along with a murderer.
The House At Devil’s Neck is a very enjoyable, old styled murder mystery of the ‘locked room’ variety. The opening sections are very good, and Mead effectively evokes the mood of classic British detective stories as he assembles his cast of victims and suspects. The supposedly haunted house at Devil’s Neck is a marvellous creation and its unfortunate history as a field hospital at the end of the First World War is given extra poignancy by the pending start of a new World War. The mystery elements are well handled and, despite the cleverly planted clues, few readers will be able to work out ‘whodunit’ before Spector.
An entertaining mystery, that is still to find its way to Australia!
Here is the link to my original review: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/recent-reading-new-books-by-lisa-jewell-tom-mead-riley-sager-and-alan-parks/
Mark Ellis’ series about World War II detective Frank Merlin is a bit of an overlooked gem, particularly here in Australia. His latest, Death Of An Officer (Headline, 29 May 2025), is the sixth book in the series and is another enjoyable tale.
The book opens in 1943 with Merlin investigating the murder of a respected Indian doctor. He seemed well liked by his colleagues and clients and there are no obvious suspects. A strange incident, however, leads Merlin and his team to the leader of a local black market gang, which takes the investigation down some unexpected paths and another murder.
This is a well constructed crime novel with a strong focus on its historical setting. The characters are credible and interesting, and I particularly liked the return of American Bernie Goldberg from the earlier books. As always, the well described milieu of wartime London, especially the criminal activities that proceed unhindered by the war, helps to ground story, and Ellis delights in the inclusion of interesting small details and references to real people. A very satisfying murder mystery.
The link to the full review: https://murdermayhemandlongdogs.com/new-british-crime-june-2025-mark-billingham-mark-ellis-and-a-a-dhand/
Kevin Wignall is an under-rated British author of spy novels. I have been a fan of his books for a long time now, although they can be hard to find in Australia, and have always felt that he does not receive the attention that other lesser authors do. This may be due to the cynical tone of his books, which eschews the patriotic fervour often associated with some spy novels and anti-terrorist thrillers. In style and content he is far more British or European in his approach, than American.
The First Law Of Chaos, (Hamsun Press, 30 August 2025), is a small press release that traverses familiar Wignall themes about relative amateurs caught up in the duplicity of the Intelligence Services:
“Sam Holland doesn’t see himself as spy material, and when he gets recruited right out of university, a part of him believes it has to be a practical joke. He’s no James Bond. A year later, he’s still not convinced: running a bogus news agency in Slovenia; engaging in juvenile banter with Adam, his sole colleague; flirting with a young woman from the embassy, it is not what he imagined life as a spy would be. And then it all goes horribly wrong when Sam and Adam see something they’re not meant to see, and finally understand the true danger of the game they’re playing. On the run and with people from their own government trying to kill them, Sam realizes too late that his recruitment was something much worse than a practical joke.”
I have just finished reading The First Law Of Chaos and thoroughly enjoyed it. It is witty, and interesting, and the story proceeds at a very good pace. Wignall is adept at creating a strong sense of place with his European locations and he really makes the reader feel that they are darting down dark cobble stone alleyways and hiding in local bars. Holland is a well rounded character, and is enjoyable to watch his transition from being an arrogant youth to someone clearly out of their depth. A very good read, and well worth hunting down.
Fans of intelligent spy fiction should also seek out some of Wignall’s earlier books, particularly A Death In Sweden and To Die In Vienna from a few years back.
So some good reading, which you may have missed during the year. I will be doing a list of my Top crime and thriller titles in the next few days.