Steve Craggs

EVERYBODY seems to think they have a book inside them, but how can they be certain they won’t finish up among the also-rans?

Darwin – God’s Ambassador by George Di Palma (Troubador Publishing £9.95) IN view of the consternation caused by Darwin’s Origin of the Species, it is remarkable to find that the great man was so unsure of his theory that he considered it a “rag of a hypothesis” and was troubled by his “accursed book” until the end of his days.

WHEN the family of a multi-millionaire is gunned down on their ranch, Lieutenant Peter Decker, of the LAPD, has a case and a half on his hands.

THERE is a lot more to rifle shooting than loading up, taking aim and hoping for the best, and Bruce Potts, with over a quarter of a century’s experience as a shooter and wildlife photographer, knows only too well how to get you bang on target.

AN intriguing historical novel about a shadowy period from the past. Bonaparte has been beaten at Waterloo and exiled to St Helena; the Bourbons have been restored to the French throne and Bonapartists see a chance to restore the old glory through Napoleon’s young son, currently a prisoner of the French. And so a plot is hatched to release “the young eagle”, a plot centred around obscure teacher Maurice Rodange whose actions can decide the fate of Europe. This is a what-if? book to tantalise and tease, while also being entertaining and true to its period.

MONSTERS of all shapes and sizes, real or imagined, literal or metaphorical and from all eras and cultures are put under the microscope in this all-embracing study.

BROADCASTER Humphrys and experienced GP Jarvis examine the issues of living well/dying well and the rights of people over the manner and timing of the death in age when more people than ever before are living longer than ever.

IN her second Spanish sleuthing adventure, Primavera Blackstone has to take the police pressure as the prime suspect for the slaying of a powerful councillor who had recently quarrelled with her.

A MODERN supernatural romantic love triangle featuring the dyslexic but gifted David and the two loves of his life, Anna and Susan. David is a younger version of Dr Doolittle with a natural empathy for animals, but he has a distrust for most humans which is only overcome thanks to a chance meeting with Anna who changes his whole outlook and direction in life. Aycliffe author Ogden takes the reader on a journey of passion and pain, joy and sorrow, but when he introduces the supernatural element, it sometimes stretches the bounds of credibility too far.

A HELTER-skelter ride of corruption, mayhem, murder and conspiracy involving the Roman Catholic church, the Mafia, a secret society and Italian police and politicians is almost too much for reformed art thief Tom Kirk to handle. But grief and the desire for revenge spur on Kirk to cross from the shady to the sinister side of the street and lay his life on the line.