The Team
HOBECK RECOMMENDED READS
Rebecca loves to be spooked
Co-director, Hobeck Books
'I have just finished this book, Night Side of the River, which was recommended to me by a fellow book lover and editor. I was already a big fan of Jeannette Winterson and short stories, but oh my, I absolutely loved this! It isn't just about hauntings and ghostly goings on, it makes you think about the nature of ghosts, grieving and death through history and, more crucially, in today's age of AI and the metaverse. Do you know what the Dead Internet is? No? Then look it up. It will blow your mind!'
Night Side of the River
AJ Aberford thinks you'll either love it or hate it
Author of Inspector George Zammit series
This futuristic novel is both irritating and captivating in equal measure. The author presents a post-apocalyptic world in which a nuclear tsunami has swept away vast landmasses, leaving behind a flooded, Dalí-esque English landscape.
The initial irritation stems from the pre-tsunami circle of poets, scholars and literary agents who gather for a birthday party where an original poem is read, supposedly the equal of Elliot’s The Wasteland. But who would know, as the vellum script disappears without a trace. But this is far from a whodunit! One hundred years later, the plot shifts to centre on a scholar's search for the lost poem across this drowned landscape. However, the narrative truly springs to life when shocking disclosures unfold, revealing the complex backstories, relationships, loves and dubious motives of the poet and his pretentious birthday dinner guests, and Tom, the scholar in the future. This shift transforms the book into a clever literary thriller with a masterful final twist. Ultimately, however, this is a literary work, with moral themes, told in McEwan's familiar, languid style. Love it, or hate it, it's a standout book you'll remember!
All We Can Know
Brian Price didn't know whodunnit!
Author of the DC Mel Cotton crime series
There's been a resurgence in locked room mysteries in recent years and I must confess I have written a couple of short ones myself. Jane Casey’s latest includes a brilliant example – I had no idea how the murder was committed until I reached the ending. Not only does DS Maeve Corrigan have to deal with that, her friend and senior officer, DI Josh Derwent, has been accused of dreadful domestic violence. Altogether a highly satisfying mystery and police procedural. As to the on/off romance between Maeve and Josh – my lips are sealed!
The Secret Room