{"id":127935,"date":"2020-07-27T12:34:54","date_gmt":"2020-07-27T01:34:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/?p=127935"},"modified":"2020-08-06T13:37:58","modified_gmt":"2020-08-06T02:37:58","slug":"whats-on-michael-robothams-crime-bookshelf","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/2020\/07\/27\/whats-on-michael-robothams-crime-bookshelf\/","title":{"rendered":"What’s on Michael Robotham’s Crime Bookshelf?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Crime<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019re celebrating Crime Month<\/a><\/strong> here at Booktopia for all of July with a collection of the best in recent crime fiction! Here to help us celebrate is Michael Robotham, author of the brilliant Joseph O’Loughlin and the Cyrus Haven crime novels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michael is on the blog today to show us his ultimate crime bookshelf \u2013 the books that have become his absolute favourites from the genre. Read on \u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Miss Smilla’s Feeling for Snow<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Peter H\u00f8eg<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Long before Lisbeth Salander, Harry Hole and Kurt Wallander emerged from the snows of Scandinavia, another fictional giant stepped from the ice. Her name was Smilla Jaspersen, but she\u2019s best known as \u2018Miss Smilla\u2019, a heroine with an unforgettable voice and a feeling for snow. The ending might be slightly underwhelming, but I don\u2019t care. I\u2019m in love with Smilla. I wish I\u2019d written her. I wish I knew her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Secret History<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Donna Tartt<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Part psychological thriller and part chronicle of debauched, wasted youth, this stunning debut novel proves there is no demarcation between genre fiction and literary fiction. A book can be both. The Secret History<\/em> tells the story of a group of eccentric students, who let normal morality slip and fall into a world of betrayal and corruption, that will alter their lives forever.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Constant Gardener<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by John le Carr\u00e9<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Justin Quayle, a middling British diplomat posted to Kenya, begins to investigate the gruesome murder of his young adventurous wife, who dies while investigating the dark side of unbridled capitalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This is further proof that great crime writing isn\u2019t formula-driven or at the mercy of plot and pacing. It can be beautifully written, full of suspense and propelled forward by the characters as much as the unfolding story and growing sense of dread.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

The Broken Shore<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Peter Temple<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

We lost Peter last year, which saddens me more each time I glance at my bookshelf. He was truly one of Australia\u2019s great writers, who never sacrificed the nuances of character, setting, or back story for the sake of plot or pace, giving equal care and attention to even minor players.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The mystery in this one is terrific, full of simmering corruption and prejudice, but I promise you it won\u2019t matter. You will fall in love with the characters and the sparse beauty and wit of Temple\u2019s prose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A Place of Execution<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Val McDermid<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In a long and prize-studded career, this is Val McDermid\u2019s finest novel \u2013 a Greek tragedy set in 1963 on the streets of Manchester when two children have disappeared off the streets and the infamous careers of Myra Hindley and Ian Brady are just beginning. This is a tense, taut psychological thriller told from multiple viewpoints where expectations are constantly subverted and the greatest deception is how we deceive ourselves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Presumed Innocent<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Scott Turow<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s more than thirty years since Presumed Innocent<\/em> was published, but it continues to shape the literary world that we live in, influencing novels like Gone Girl<\/em> and The Girl on The Train<\/em> and a slew of fiction that utilises the technique of the unreliable narrator.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It tells the story of Rusty Savage, a man whose fatal attraction for a colleague who turns up dead puts everything he loves and values on trial, including his own life. Yet again it proves that highbrow literature and middlebrow entertainment are not mutually exclusive.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Gone Girl<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Gillian Flynn<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Clever, compelling and ingenuous, Gone Girl<\/em> is full of wonderful writing and clever social commentary, but more than anything else, it subverts the crime genre in a spectacular way. Neither of the two main characters Nick or Amy are particular likeable and readers don\u2019t know who to hate most as they each narrate the story of Amy\u2019s disappearance and possible murder. Both are victims. Both are aggressors. Both deserve each other.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Gorky Park<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Martin Cruz Smith<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

It begins with a triple murder in a Moscow park: three corpses found frozen in the snow, faces and fingers missing. Chief homicide investigator Arkady Renko is the only honest cop in Moscow and is cynical about everything except his profession. To uncover the truth, he has to battle the KGB and the FBI and the Politburo against the backdrop of the Cold War. Along the way, he falls in love with a beautiful, headstrong dissident, for whom he will risk everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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November Road<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Lou Berney<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This is a cracking novel, that opens in November, 1963, in Dallas, Texas, when JFK is assassinated. Frank Guidry, a loyal fixer for the New Orleans mob, unwittingly becomes a \u2018loose end\u2019 in the President\u2019s death. Forced to run from a ruthless hitman, he meets Charlotte Ray, a battered wife with two kids, fleeing from a violent marriage. Together they head west on a dangerous road trip to California. Don\u2019t wait for the certain film. This one is a real treat.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Tin Roof Blowdown<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by James Lee Burke<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Michael<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I could have chosen any one of a dozen books by James Lee Burke for this list, but this one has stayed with me the longest. Set in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, a disaster of Biblical proportions, Burke\u2019s writing suits such a setting because he has always been fascinated by good and evil, revenge and forgiveness.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Although it features his usual detective, Dave Robicheaux, the smaller characters are even more interesting, including two looters and a junkie priest. This is a book that will make you angry and make you cry, but more importantly it will make you think.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Bitter Wash Road<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Garry Disher<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"9781922268402\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Sometimes when a writer has been around a long while, they begin being taken for granted, or the quality of their writing slips. Garry Disher gets better with age and with each book. This is a masterfully plotted trip into the dark recesses of small-town Australia, where an outsider detective discovers what can happen if you upset a corrupt system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Burial Rites<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/h4>\n\n\n\n

by Hannah Kent<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"9781743516966\"<\/a><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In this brilliant literary debut, Hannah Kent brings to life the final days of a young woman accused of the brutal murder of her former master in Iceland in 1829. Awaiting her execution, Agnes is sent to an isolated farmhouse to wait out the winter, where she lives with a local family, who begin to question her guilt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy it here<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n
\"Michael

Michael Robotham<\/p><\/div>\n

About the Author<\/strong><\/h4>\n

Before becoming a novelist, Michael Robotham was an investigative journalist working across America, Australia and Britain. As a journalist and writer he has investigated notorious cases such as the serial killer couple Fred and Rosemary West. He has worked with clinical and forensic psychologists as they helped police investigate complex, psychologically driven crimes.<\/p>\n

Michael’s 2004 debut thriller, The Suspect<\/strong><\/em><\/a>, sold more than 1 million copies around the world. It is the first of nine novels featuring clinical psychologist Joe O’Loughlin<\/strong><\/a>, who faces his own increasing battle with a potentially debilitating disease. Michael has also written four standalone thrillers. In 2015 he won the UK’s prestigious Crime Writers’ Association Gold Dagger Award with his standalone thriller Life or Death<\/strong><\/em><\/a>. His latest series features the forensic psychologist Cyrus Haven, with the second book When She Was Good<\/strong><\/em><\/a> due out in August.<\/p>\n

He lives in Sydney.<\/p>\n\n\n

\"Crime<\/a><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Books by Val McDermid, Donna Tartt, Gillian Flynn and more!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":127970,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":""},"categories":[6677],"tags":[11633,11640,9480,1447,11541,1683,8961,2211,2241,11635,2332,2699,2869,11638,11636,3695,11630,11637,11631,4258,11634,4746,5366,11632,5918,11639,6353],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/MichaelRobothamCrimeBookshelf-Social.png","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127935"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/12"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=127935"}],"version-history":[{"count":36,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127935\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":128560,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/127935\/revisions\/128560"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/127970"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=127935"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=127935"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.booktopia.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=127935"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}