The Best Things In Life Are Free … Books

The good people at Serpent’s Tail have been kind enough to offer Crime Always Pays three free copies of Sam Hawken’s THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ, a debut no less than a personage than Sir Kenneth of Bruen describes as, “A beautiful, compassionate, gruelling novel, as ferocious to read as it is soul wrenching … This book will haunt you for a long, long time.” Quoth the blurb elves:

Since 1993 over 400 women have been murdered in Ciudad Juárez. Residents believe the true number of disappeared stands at 5,000. When a new disappearance is reported, Kelly Courter, a washed-up Texan boxer, and Rafael Sevilla, a Mexican detective, are sucked into an underworld of organised crime, believing they can outwit the corruption all around. THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ follows these two men obsessed with seeking the truth about the female victims of the Mexican border wars.

  To be in with a chance of winning a copy of THE DEAD WOMEN OF JUAREZ, just answer the following question:

What one Mexico-set novel, other than Sam Hawken’s debut, should we all read before we die?

  Answers via the comment box below, please, making sure to include a contact email address (using ‘at’ rather than @ to confuse the spam monkeys). All entries go into my bobbly hat. Competition closes at noon on Thursday, January 13th. Et bon chance, mes amis …

The Best Things In Life Are Free … Books

Bit of a doozy for you this week, folks, courtesy of the outrageously generous folk at Serpent’s Tail. Up for grabs are two – yes, TWO! – sets of David Peace’s Red Riding Quartet, comprising 1974, 1977, 1980 and1983. First, the blurb elves:

Commissioned by Channel 4, Revolution Films are producing three feature films based on the Red Riding Quartet, to be premiered at the Berlin Film Festival before a UK premiere on Channel 4 in spring 2009, with a theatrical release likely to follow.

Nice. As for those pesky critic-types:

‘Breathless, extravagant, ultra-violent’ – Independent on Sunday

‘British crime fiction’s most exciting new voice in decades’ – GQ

‘Brilliant’ – The Times

‘The pace is relentless, the style staccato-plus and the morality bleak and forlorn ... Peace’s voice is powerful and unique’ – The Guardian

‘A triumph of sustained narrative energy that reinvigorates the British crime novel’ – Daily Telegraph

So there you have it. To be in with a chance of winning a set of the Red Riding Quartet, just answer the following question.

Is the real-life ghoul who haunts the backdrop to the Red Riding Quartet called:
(a) The Yorkshire Ripper;
(b) The Yorkshire Pudding;
(c) The Yorkshire Cookie Monster;
(d) John Giles.

Answers via the comment box, please, leaving a contact email address, and using (at) rather than @ to confound the spam-munchkins, before noon on September 2nd. Et bon chance, mes amis …