The Best Crime Fiction For March
The Family Friend by Claire Douglas - out 12 March
The Brief: An addictive psychological thriller in which an unexpected inheritance pulls a woman back to the site of a long-buried tragedy – and a mystery that may be far from over.
The Suspects: Dorothea Roe, the reclusive artist whose death may hide darker truths; Imogen, whose return to the house ties her to a tragedy from years earlier; Josh, the partner who follows her there just as rumours of murder begin to surface.
The Setup: When Imogen learns she has inherited a country house near Bath from reclusive painter Dorothea Roe, she is baffled. The two barely knew each other, except for one fateful summer years ago that ended in tragedy. Hoping for a fresh start, Imogen moves in with partner Josh, but the house quickly begins to yield unsettling clues. In Dorothea’s abandoned study she discovers a box bearing her name, suggesting the older woman had been trying to reach her before she died. As whispers spread that Dorothea may have been murdered, Imogen realises the inheritance could be a trap.
The Judgement: Thick with atmosphere and steadily tightening tension, this is a classic Douglas mystery, blending past secrets, uneasy inheritance and creeping danger into an engrossing psychological puzzle. A must-read.
Unreliable Narrator by Araminta Hall – out 5 March
The Brief: When a woman discovers her life retold inside a bestselling novel, the truth about a disastrous summer begins to unravel.
The Suspects: Hope, whose long-buried secret is suddenly exposed; Ambrose Glencourt, the celebrated author now telling a very different version of events; the close-knit household at his Somerset home that summer.
The Setup: As a young woman, Hope landed a dream job working for rising literary star Ambrose Glencourt at his secluded Somerset house. Drawn into the orbit of his glamorous, bohemian circle – including his artist wife and their enigmatic semi-adopted son, Tom – she becomes captivated by their world. But the summer ends in tragedy, and Hope has spent the decade since living quietly, carrying the weight of what really happened. Then she discovers her past has resurfaced in the pages of Ambrose’s new bestselling novel. Except the story he tells is not hers. As the competing versions of that summer begin to clash, Hope realises someone is determined to control the narrative – but who is telling the truth?
The Judgement: Hall leans fully into the slippery territory of memory and truth here, crafting a tense literary thriller about who gets to tell the story and how dangerous it can be when the past refuses to stay buried.
The Hiding Season by Ava Glass - out 26 March
The Brief: A fast-moving spy thriller that begins with a shocking discovery in the Rocky Mountains and spirals into a nationwide chase.
The Suspects: Maya Landry, the witness suddenly forced into hiding; FBI agent Riley Maguire, the man offering protection she may not be able to trust; and whoever wanted a powerful U.S. senator silenced.
The Setup: After leaving a difficult marriage behind, Maya Landry hopes for a quiet reset in Bozeman, Montana, working at a private ski resort nestled beneath the Rocky Mountains. The solitude suits her – until she stumbles upon a dead body on the mountain. By the time she returns with police, the body has vanished and no one believes her story. That night, FBI agent Riley Maguire delivers a stark warning: leave the state immediately or she won’t survive the morning. Forced to abandon her identity and move from one safe location to another, Maya becomes entangled in a covert investigation stretching from Montana to Texas and Chicago – one that suggests the events she witnessed may have dangerously far-reaching consequences.
The Judgement: Glass leans into her intelligence-world credentials here, delivering a slick, globe-trotting thriller (with a little added romance) that blends relentless pursuit with the uneasy question of who a fugitive can truly trust. It’s an absolute blast!
It’s Not What You Think by Clare Mackintosh - out 26 March
The Brief: A woman convinced her partner is cheating instead finds herself at the centre of a murder investigation in this twist-laden psychological thriller that draws from timely real-world concerns.
The Suspects: Nadeeka, whose suspicions about her partner’s behaviour bring her home at exactly the wrong moment; Jamie, whose secret life may hold the key to his death; and DCI Lauren Caldwell, the detective piecing together what really happened behind the closed doors of their home.
The Setup: Nadeeka is certain she recognises the signs. Her partner Jamie is working late more and more often, his explanations don’t quite add up, and she has lived through betrayal before. Determined to catch him in the act, she heads home ready for a confrontation. Instead she arrives to find police outside and her house sealed as a crime scene – Jamie is dead. As the investigation unfolds, Nadeeka must confront the possibility that she barely knew the man she loved, and that the truth behind his death is far more complex – and terrifying – than she could have imagined.
The Judgement: Built around a killer premise and Mackintosh’s trademark knack for misdirection, this slick psychological thriller promises a tense game of shifting perspectives, where trust is fragile and every revelation threatens to turn the story on its head.
Judge Stone by James Patterson and Viola Davis - out 9 March
The Brief: A courtroom thriller set in small-town Alabama, where a revered judge faces a case that could tear her community apart.
The Suspects: Judge Mary Stone, determined to deliver justice despite mounting pressure; the defendant at the centre of a case that seems legally straightforward but morally explosive; the divided town of Union Springs watching every decision she makes.
The Setup: In Union Springs, Alabama, Judge Mary Stone is the town’s most respected figure, balancing the responsibilities of presiding over her courtroom with running her family farm. Known for her integrity and calm authority, she has built a reputation for fairness that few dare question. But when she is assigned the most controversial case the town has ever seen, that reputation is put under intense scrutiny. What appears to be a clear-cut criminal case quickly reveals deeper ethical stakes, forcing Mary to weigh the law against the expectations of the community she has sworn to serve. As tensions rise and opinions harden, the judge finds herself at the centre of a battle that will test both her principles and her courage.
The Judgement: Patterson and Davis combine legal drama with moral tension here, crafting a character-driven thriller that explores how justice can look very different depending on which side of the courtroom you stand.
Eye Spy by C. M. Ewan - out 26 March
The Brief: A high-speed thriller set almost entirely aboard a Eurostar train, where a father’s family holiday turns into a desperate race to stop a deadly threat.
The Suspects: Mark, the father suddenly forced into crisis mode; the mysterious passenger his daughter identifies as the ‘Bad Man’; the wife who perhaps isn’t telling the truth about where she is.
The Setup: Waiting to board the Eurostar in Paris, Mark is playing a game of Eye Spy with his four-year-old daughter when she points out a stranger she calls the ‘Bad Man’. At first, he brushes it off as childish imagination – until he spots the same man on their train, seated nearby with a suspicious suitcase. As the train speeds toward its destination, Mark’s unease turns to alarm. With nowhere to escape and hundreds of passengers on board, he must work out whether the threat is real and how it might connect to parts of his own life he thought were long buried. What begins as a routine journey quickly becomes a tense, claustrophobic battle to protect his family.
The Judgement: Ewan excels at high-concept suspense, and this tightly contained thriller uses its ticking-clock setting to deliver relentless tension and emotional stakes in equal measure. Bring on a TV adaptation!
Based On A True Story by Sarah Vaughan - out 26 March
The Brief: A family gathering on the Cornish coast turns deadly when a long-buried secret threatens to destroy a celebrated author’s carefully crafted legacy.
The Suspects: Dame Eleanor Kingman, the famed children’s writer guarding a 50-year-old secret; her three daughters, each with a stake in her publishing empire; and the figures from her past who may be ready to expose the truth.
The Setup: Dame Eleanor Kingman has built a glittering career as the beloved author of a bestselling children’s series. As she prepares to celebrate her 70th birthday at her dramatic clifftop manor in Cornwall, family, friends and a television crew gather to mark both the milestone and her latest literary success. But the night before the celebrations begin, Eleanor receives a chilling email from someone claiming to know the truth about a secret she has kept hidden for more than half a century. Suspicions quickly circle those closest to her – including her estranged literary agent, her ex-husband, a former nanny and even her own daughters. When a body is later discovered on the storm-battered beach below the house, the gathering transforms into something far darker.
The Judgement: Vaughan blends family drama with sharp social observation here, crafting a glossy literary thriller where reputation, wealth and buried truths collide beneath the windswept beauty of the Cornish coast.
It Ends Here by Heidi Perks - out 26 March
The Brief: Five strangers trapped inside a seaside café. Five families waiting for answers. One secret that could turn a tense standoff into tragedy.
The Suspects: The five people inside the café – the barista, the novelist, the returning husband, the influencer mother and the birthday guest; detective Aaron Field, the police officer outside racing to work out what is happening.
The Setup: In a quiet marina town, an ordinary morning is shattered when five people become trapped inside a local café. Outside, their loved ones receive a chilling call: someone they care about is in danger. As the hours pass and the situation tightens, attention turns to the strangers inside – a young barista starting an early shift, a bestselling novelist seeking a quiet place to write, a husband returning from a work trip, an influencer mother carefully curating her life online, and a woman marking her birthday with a solitary coffee. Each seems ordinary, yet as the standoff unfolds, it becomes clear that things may not be as they appear.
The Judgement: Perks thrives on high-concept tension, and this tightly contained thriller uses its single-location setup to build relentless suspense while peeling back the hidden lives of the people caught inside. Utterly brilliant.
A Very Vexing Murder by Lucy Andrew – out 5 March
The Brief: A playful Regency-set whodunnit that sends a familiar face from Jane Austen’s Emma into the role of unlikely detective.
The Suspects: Harriet Smith, Emma Woodhouse’s overlooked companion-turned-amateur sleuth; the formidable Mrs Churchill, convinced someone is plotting her demise; the charming Frank Churchill, whose romantic entanglements complicate everything.
The Setup: In this cosy mystery inspired by the world of Emma, Harriet Smith finds herself stepping out of the role of timid companion and into that of investigator. Mrs Churchill, convinced that someone wishes her dead, hires Harriet to uncover the truth – and, if possible, to also sabotage what she sees as the unsuitable romance between her nephew Frank Churchill and the talented Jane Fairfax. As Harriet begins to gather clues among the drawing rooms and gossip circles of Highbury, her growing list of suspects reveals just how tangled the town’s loyalties and rivalries can be. Yet with danger looming and emotions running high, Harriet must decide whether she can truly outwit the schemers around her.
The Judgement: Light-footed and delightfully knowing, this Austen-inspired mystery blends Regency manners with classic cosy intrigue, offering a witty sleuthing adventure that will charm fans of both period fiction and traditional whodunnits.
The Lottery Winner Widows Club by Elly Vine - out 26 March
The Brief: A mischievous dark comedy where sudden wealth, suspicious widowhood and an irresistible new friendship draw one woman into a dangerously glamorous world.
The Suspects: Paula, newly widowed and suddenly rich; the glamorous trio of jackpot-winning widows eager to welcome her into their club; the inconvenient husbands whose deaths seem to have paved the way to freedom.
The Setup: Paula’s life turns surreal within the space of a week. Her husband John dies in a freak car accident, and two days later, she discovers the lottery ticket he bought has made her a jackpot winner. Still reeling, Paula is approached by three women who claim they understand exactly what she’s going through. Each of them also won the lottery after their husbands died. Now fabulously wealthy and fiercely loyal to one another, they invite Paula into their tight-knit circle. Their world of luxury, secrecy and second chances proves hard to resist. But Paula insists on one crucial difference between her and them: she didn’t kill her husband. Whether that distinction matters may soon become the biggest question of all.
The Judgement: Wickedly funny and deliciously dark, this twisty debut crime novel blends friendship, revenge and guilty temptation into a sharply entertaining tale about the seductive thrill of starting over.
The Dark Heart by Neil Lancaster - out 12 March
The Brief: When a deadly explosion in York sparks fears of terrorism, a Scottish detective uncovers a far more complex and dangerous conspiracy.
The Suspects: DS Max Craigie, the relentless investigator following the trail; Dr Daniel Solomon, the author whose death in the bombing raises troubling questions; the figure pulling strings behind a series of brutal killings.
The Setup: The investigation begins with a devastating explosion in the historic city of York that kills renowned author Dr Daniel Solomon. Initial reports point toward an act of Islamist terrorism, and authorities are quick to frame the tragedy within that narrative. But as DS Max Craigie begins digging deeper, the evidence starts to tell a different story. A pattern begins to emerge linking Solomon’s death to a string of brutal murders, each victim tied to a secret someone is determined to keep hidden. As the case grows more tangled and the body count rises, Craigie finds himself pursuing an elusive figure known only as ‘The Cashier’, a shadowy operator seemingly orchestrating events from the margins.
The Judgement: Lancaster delivers another muscular entry in the Max Craigie series, blending high-stakes conspiracy with gritty investigative work in a fast-moving thriller that keeps widening its scope with every revelation.
The Shark by Emma Styles – out 12 March
The Brief: This tense Australian thriller sees two women take justice into their own hands while hunting a serial killer stalking the coastline.
The Suspects: Raych, a grieving woman driven by loss; Carmen, whose connection to the murders is far more personal than she admits; the man they believe to be ‘The Shark’, the predator targeting young swimmers.
The Setup: During a blistering Australian summer, fear grips a coastal suburb as a serial killer dubbed ‘The Shark’ begins targeting young female swimmers. With the police struggling to stop the attacks, anger and desperation ripple through the community. For Raych, the murders reopen a wound she has never truly healed, while Carmen carries her own troubling link to the crimes. When another girl disappears, the two women decide to act where the authorities have failed. Their plan is simple and reckless: kidnap the man they believe is responsible and force a confession. But once their interrogation begins, the situation spirals beyond their control, revealing unsettling truths about the suspect – and about themselves.
The Judgement: Styles delivers a dark, morally charged thriller here, using its coastal setting and shifting power dynamics to explore vengeance, grief and how easily the line between hunter and hunted can blur.
Come back for more reviews soon, including the incendiary new book from Liz Nugent