Twist in the River

Stig Abell believes that discovering a crime fiction series to enjoy is one of the great pleasures in life. His first novel, Death Under A Little Sky, introduced Jake Jackson and his attempt to get away from his former life in the beautiful area around Little Sky, which was followed by his second and third novels, Death in a Lonely Place and The Burial Place.Away from books, he co-presents the breakfast show on Times Radio, a station he helped to launch in 2020. Before that he was a regular presenter on Radio 4’s Front Row and was the editor and publisher of the Times Literary Supplement. He lives in London with his wife, three children and two independent-minded cats called Boo and Ninja (his children named them, obviously).

'Abell has skillfully created a magnetic landscape for his crime fiction hero Jake to patrol – the bucolic idyll with a layer of menace underneath it. Spending time in Jake's company becomes rather addictive' Broadcaster Fi Glover'Getting lost in the world of Little Sky is an absolute pleasure. The entire series is mysterious, romantic and exciting' Actor Phil Dunster Praise for Stig Abell 'The Jake Jackson books get better and better. I loved this excursion into the distant past. Atmospheric and chilling but also humorous and always humane' Elly Griffiths'Terrific characters, locations, action and suspense, all floating on an easy charm in the writing and a deep love of the genre – this series is irresistible' Lee Child‘Loved this. Multiple layers of delight for crime fiction fans’ Lee Child‘I LOVED this. I found it totally immersive…The writing is very classy’ Ann Cleeves‘An immersive, intelligent delight with huge atmosphere and heart. My favourite new crime series' Lucy Foley‘Abell is a skilled storyteller…highly recommend’ Karin Slaughter‘Utterly beautiful descriptive prose’ Jane Casey‘A darkly elegant, thrilling, escapist slice of countryside crime’ Chris WhitakerA deep, searching novel’ A. J. Finn‘Perfect to get lost with next to the fireside’ Dermot O’Leary‘An outstanding debut’ Jeffrey Archer‘Stylish…a more than promising debut’ The Times‘An absorbing tale’ Sun‘A vivid, atmospheric debut’ Daily Mail‘A cosy crime read with an appealing protagonist’ Guardian‘Characters so real we feel we know them’ Jeffery Deaver‘Brilliant, gripping, fantastic … I can’t put it down’ Chris Evans‘An atmospheric, often meditative, and beautifully written crime novel’ Vaseem Khan‘A joyful dive into the detective genre’ Observer‘A tense and twisty crime thriller’ iPaper‘A wonderful tale, magnificently told’ Sam Holland‘Beautifully written, as ever, and with a twist that truly knocked me sideways’ Andrew Taylor