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Travel to the UK with Books

Books Set in the UK

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I came to Rome for three days back in 2001 and ended up staying. Married an Italian, had kids... long story short, I'm still here.

I often get homesick for the UK though as I don't manage to get back for visits as much as I'd like. One way I deal with it is to read books set in England.

Obviously there are loads of books set in England. Some of the most famous titles include the Harry Potter series, Bridget Jones's Diary, the Sherlock Holmes series, Oliver Twist, Wuthering Heights, The Secret Dreamworld of a Shopaholic (or as it was titled for the US and some other countries Confessions of a Shopaholic. And these are just the tip of the iceberg!

For the purpose of this post I'll be sharing books with a UK setting that I've read and reviewed.

Books that take place in England

If I Should Die by Matthew Frank

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

**WINNER of the 2014-2015 Waverton Good Read Award**

If I Should Die is the astounding debut from British author Matthew Frank.

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When a homeless man walks into Greenwich police station and confesses a killing, it should be the admission that cracks open a murder enquiry. Instead, he stumbles out on to the street and collapses, bleeding from a stab wound he's attempted to repair himself . . .

The newest member of the Met's murder investigation team, twenty-five year-old Afghan veteran Joseph Stark, doesn't believe the man's story. Yet it becomes clear that Stark and the down-and-out share a connection. And that this could provide the key to unlocking the case.

Soon, the young detective and his colleagues are drawn deeper into a dark, disturbing world as dangerous as anything Stark has known on the frontline. And where there's enough at stake for a man to risk everything . . .

If I Should Die is the first title in a new crime series, and outstanding characterization, pitch perfect dialogue and precision plotting mark out Matthew Frank as a debut writer to watch. With the introduction of series character and ex-soldier police detective Joseph Stark, fans of Ian Rankin's Rebus novels will be hooked from the word go.

Nine O'Clock Bus To Brompton by Kevin Fitzpatrick

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

The quiet village of Brompton is shaken when the body of former sex worker Suzanne Hoskins is discovered in Bluebell Wood. To add to the mystery, her husband Steven has disappeared.

PC Don Barton's life seems to be going nowhere. Moved from the coveted motorcycle section to a rural beat as a result of misconduct, he is morosely standing by as his career passes before him.

Soon, his quiet life as a village bobby is shattered, as he enters a world of pornography, S&M, drug dealing and terrorism. But can Don find the killer before more lives are lost, and redeem himself?

One for Sorrow by Sarah A Denzil

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

A chilling psychological thriller by the million-copy bestselling author of Silent Child.

After a family tragedy leaves Leah destitute, she’s forced to accept a job she doesn’t want at a place that fills her with dread.

Nestled in the heart of the Yorkshire moors stands Crowmont Hospital, a secure psychiatric unit housing hundreds of convicted criminals. On Leah’s first day there, she meets her new patient, Isabel Fielding, a teen murderess.

Isabel spends her days sketching birds to hang on the walls of her room. She never raises her voice. She is gentle and kind. She is nothing like the violent child killer described in gratuitous headlines.

Online rumours suggest Isabel’s father or brother were more likely to have committed murder on that fateful day. Soon Leah is drawn to conspiracy theories that might just be true.

But whoever committed the crime, Leah is heading down a dangerous path. One much darker and more dangerous than her worst nightmares.

The Family at No. 12 by Anita Waller

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

When Janette answers the door to a potential customer looking to board his dog, she never imagines he has nefarious plans.

But minutes later he’s dead and in her cellar.

Weeks later she realises she’s pregnant.

And so she becomes Mother and the baby Child, and a hidden life begins.

But all secrets come out eventually . . .

The Eight Year Lie by JM Hewitt

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

She ran from the truth. She will do whatever it takes to hide it.

Jessica returns home one day to find her husband, Patrick, dead. It’s unclear what caused his death and though the shock is huge, she cannot pretend it’s entirely unexpected. The police have questions, and Jessica knows that once they hear the answers her fate may well be sealed.

Eight years ago, Jessica was living another life. She was a different person, and despite what people think, she has changed. Anyway, there was never any proof that she harmed anyone back then. Yet on the day she loses her husband, a ghost from the past reappears.

Louise was her friend once, but that was then. Now, they are strangers. Except Louise seems very familiar – so familiar that it’s like peering into a mirror. Why would she go out of her way to look just like Jessica? Unless more than one person has been keeping deadly secrets…

Seven Days to Die by Michelle Kidd

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

MEET DETECTIVE JACK MACINTOSH IN THIS BRILLIANT NEW CRIME SERIES.

Please note this book is a completely revised version of Seven Days.

A twisted killer.

A deadly game of cat-and-mouse.

Detective Jack MacIntosh has seven days to find the truth.

A young woman is discovered strangled in Hyde Park. Wearing only one shoe.

Close to the body, Detective Jack MacIntosh finds a black stiletto, diamante buckle glinting in the early morning sun. But it doesn’t belong to the victim.

Two days later, another young woman is found strangled to death in nearby Green Park. Wearing just one shoe — the matching stiletto. Hidden in the long grass beside the body, the police uncover a low-heeled court shoe.

Detective Jack and his team are in a race against time to find the owner of the court shoe before it’s too late.

At the same time, Jack is fighting demons of his own. Demons which rise up from the past and threaten to cloud his judgement just when he needs it most.

Detective Jack is hunting a brutal killer. A killer who delights in playing twisted games. Who will win this deadly battle of wits?

Enola Holmes series by Nancy Springer

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

Now a Netflix original movie starring Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, and Helena Bonham Carter!

Meet Enola Holmes, teenaged girl turned detective and the younger sister to Sherlock Holmes.

When Enola Holmes, sister to the detective Sherlock Holmes, discovers her mother has disappeared, she quickly embarks on a journey to London in search of her. But nothing can prepare her for what awaits. Because when she arrives, she finds herself involved in the kidnapping of a young marquess, fleeing murderous villains, and trying to elude her shrewd older brothers—all while attempting to piece together clues to her mother’s strange disappearance. Amid all the mayhem, will Enola be able to decode the necessary clues and find her mother?

Nine Lives by Tom Barber

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

It’s New Year’s Eve. A major terrorist cell is planning a series of attacks across London over the next forty-eight hours. The government has surveillance on the group, a man undercover, and prepare to move in, to take out the terrorists before they can strike. But they lose contact with their inside man. And the cell vanishes into thin air, dispersing into the streets, armed and intent on completing their assault on London. The best Counter-Terrorist teams in the country are told to take them down before it's too late.

Nine terrorists. Nine lives.

The Armed Response Unit is one of these teams. Efficient and ruthless, the task force is ordered to locate the leader of the cell. As they hunt him down, they begin to realise that this is far bigger than any of them could ever have imagined. Bombings, rocket attacks, betrayal and a series of unexpected and shocking twists leave the ARU fighting to stay alive.

There's Archer, the youngest member of the team, keen to prove himself and justify his spot on the task force. His best friend, Chalky, who is forced to fight both the terrorists and his own demons. Porter, Deakins and Fox, tough and experienced men who’ve never dealt with anything of this magnitude. And Mac, their sergeant, who must make the quickest of decisions and lead his men against the invisible enemy. As events unfold, other people are drawn into the danger. The Prime Minister, desperately trying to find a solution and protect the capital. A mysterious female Mossad agent, who appears out of nowhere and joins the fight against the cell. Two Special Agents from the DEA, one of whom was a member of the SEAL team that stormed Osama Bin Laden’s compound and who for some reason is struggling with the memory. And the vicious, powerful leader of a Middle Eastern drug cartel, who operates in the shadows and is somehow connected to the terrorists.

With crowds all over London celebrating the New Year, and with nine terrorists somewhere amongst them, the Armed Response Unit is faced with the most dangerous night of their lives. As the savage, shocking plans of the enemy are fully revealed, the ARU officers are faced with the ultimate question.

How many times can a man cheat Death before Death evens the score?

One of the Good Guys by Araminta Hall

Amazon - Goodreads - My Review

A CrimeReads Most Anticipated Fiction Novel of 2024 and Best Psychological Thriller for January • A Book Riot Most Anticipated Book of Jan–Jun 2024 • A Tertulia Best New Crime and Thriller Book This Winter • A Paste Most Anticipated Mystery and Thriller Book of 2024

Two young women vanish in a seaside town. At the cliff's edge, nobody is who they seem.

Desperate to escape the ghosts of his failed marriage, Cole upends his life. He leaves London behind for a remote stretch of coast, relishing the respite from the noise, drama, and relentless careerism that curdled his relationship and mental health. Leonora has made the same move for similar reasons. She’s living a short walk from Cole’s seaside cottage, preparing for her latest art exhibition. Though Cole still can’t figure out what went wrong with his marriage, and Leonora is having trouble acclimating to the hostile landscape, the pair forges a connection on the eroding bluff they call home.

Then, two young women activists raising awareness about gendered violence disappear while passing through. Cole and Leonora find themselves in the middle of a police investigation and the resulting media firestorm when the world learns of what happened. And as the tension escalates alongside the search for the missing women, they quickly realize that they don’t know each other that well after all.

From the critically acclaimed author of Our Kind of Cruelty and Imperfect Women, comes an urgent psychological thriller about gender, power, and how both are captured in our contemporary media environment. Unexpected and twisty from its first page to its last, One of the Good Guys asks: If most men claim to be good, why are most women still afraid to walk home alone at night?