Under Orders: Dick Francis
One of our all-time favourite storytellers is back with his first new novel in six years. Starring Sid Halley, the ex-champion jockey hero of Francis's early blockbusters, it is bang up-to-date on today's racing issues and mixes page-turning excitement with a touch of romance, as Halley finds himself on the brink of engagement to Marina van der Meer.

The Husband: Dean Koontz
Imagine getting a ransom demand and knowing you can't possibly pay -- even though the life of the one person you love is on the line. That's the gripping premise of The Husband, a tense thriller about a young gardener, Mitch Rafferty, who is forced to avoid the police in order to make a bold, single-handed attempt to save his wife. This is rated as Dean Koontz's best yet.

Scared To Live: Stephen Booth
A double treat for crime fans. Not only is this novel set in the stunning Peak District of England, rich in history and atmosphere -- but Booth's detective duo, DS Diane Fry and DC Ben Cooper, are addictively likeable. While investigating two seemingly unrelated crimes, the detectives stumble upon a surprising Bulgarian connection.

Orbit: John Nance
For Kip Dawson, winning a seat on a commercial space flight is a dream come true -- until disaster strikes. Trapped in space, seemingly out of communication, he starts writing a record for his family on a laptop, oblivious that a young hacker in Western Australia manages to receive it. Whereupon a worldwide audience, reading his every word, waits on tenterhooks for news of Kip's fate.