Midnight at the Bright Ideas Bookstore

By Matthew Sullivan William Heinemann, £14.99

Bookseller Lydia’s rather dull world is turned upside down after a young man commits suicide in her bookshop. It turns out Joey has left her a box full of books, but as she flips through them she finds he has cut seemingly random holes in the pages. Soon Lydia stumbles upon a hidden message that will not only help her shed light on Joey’s past and a link to her own life, but also provides fresh clues to the brutal triple murder that defined Lydia’s childhood. Can she finally find the killer and come to terms with the past? Award-winning short story writer Matthew Sullivan’s debut novel is a cleverly constructed thriller with enough twists to keep readers guessing (almost) until the end. The grim storyline focuses on the dark side of human passion, and the description of the gruesome murder at its centre is not for the faint-hearted – but the feisty heroine and the dark family secrets that are revealed layer by layer make this a compelling read.