Peter James recommends six of the best crime novels to read this winter

Peter James says: 'I love books that both grip me, and at the same time from which I learn things – everything from the author’s take on life, to nuggets unearthed in their research. S.J. Fleet’s writing drips with both authenticity and authority. All that happens in their courtroom scenes feel completely real – and even more importantly so do their characters. It’s all here: the villains, the victim, the crime, the heartbreak, the switchback ride of a murder trial and the big question of what actually is justice? Brilliant.'

We say: The Cut Throat Trial is the first legal thriller from the million-copy bestselling Secret Barrister, writing as S. J. Fleet. From an author with incomparable insider’s knowledge, this page-turner follows a trial billed as the ‘biggest of the year’, as three seventeen-year-old boys are accused of the brutal murder of an elderly teacher on New Year's Eve. Each boy denies it. Each points the finger at the other two. But they can’t all be innocent.

If you're looking for: Twists you won’t see coming, legal thriller, courtroom drama.

Great for fans of: The Secret Barrister, Mick Herron’s The Secret Hours, Sarah Vaughan’s Anatomy of a Scandal, C. J. Tudor’s The Chalk Man

Peter James says: 'Asking anyone “Do you have a favourite Ann Cleeves novel?” is to ask an almost impossible question.  My answer would be, “Yes, all of them!” She is unique and has carved out a very special niche with her meticulously plotted, beautifully written, jewel-like novels filled with memorable characters – especially her detectives. And it is particularly thrilling to find Jimmy Perez is back – a different location but the same Jimmy!'

We say: This is the new standalone novel featuring Detective Jimmy Perez. When a violent storm descends upon Orkney, the body of Archie Stout is left in its wake. An unusual murder weapon, a Neolithic stone bearing ancient inscriptions, is found discarded nearby. Perez, no stranger to the complexity of human nature and the darkness it can harbour, is soon on the scene. He counted Archie as a childhood friend, so this case is more personal than most. Here, in these ancient lands where history runs deep, Perez must discern the truth from legend before a desperate killer strikes again.

If you're looking for: A real sense of place, brilliant characterisation, ingenious plot, vivid setting.

Great for fans of: The Shetland series, Val McDermid, Ian Rankin, Louise Penny

Peter James says: 'For me, a big part of what makes Fiona Cummings such a brilliant author – and she has wonderful powers of observation and description – is her detective, the brilliantly named Saul Anguish. A seriously flawed and damaged human being, he risks his entire career crashing and burning by helping himself to souvenirs from murder scenes. It makes him utterly compelling – and contradictory. But at heart he is a man who wants to be on the side of the angels, not the demons. He makes me think so much of Raymond Chandler’s maxim of “Down mean streets a man must walk, who is not himself mean.”'

We say: Some of Us Are Liars is the latest thriller from bestselling author and award-winning former journalist, Fiona Cummins. When a devastating tragedy strikes at a glamorous beachside wedding party, Jen Miller's world is shattered. With her family in pieces, she must confront an unthinkable question: can she ever forgive? A brilliant but tormented young detective, Saul Anguish, is brought in to investigate, but what he uncovers is a shocking secret that a close-knit family has tried to keep buried for years. 

If you're looking for: Gripping domestic thriller, family secrets and lies.

Great for fans of: The Heights by Louise Candlish

Peter James says: 'No one does dark, macabre crime as well as Stuart MacBride. He’s never afraid to pull a punch, or come out with a joke that’s in the worst – but most glorious – possible taste, and he can be very funny indeed. And he really knows how to draw you in, writing with a kind of intimacy that pulls you into a peep show you know you shouldn’t be looking at, but which you can’t turn away from. He is truly one of the most original voices in crime fiction today.'

We say: Detective Inspector Logan McRae is forced to manage a major murder investigation with a skeleton crew of misfits as the city of Aberdeen descends into chaos. A firebombing, a huge protest, and a hostile media mogul are all adding to the pressure, but things are about to get much, much worse.

If you're looking for: Police procedural, Scottish crime fiction, detective series.

Great for fans of: Ian Rankin, Val McDermid

Peter James says: 'I really like Claire Douglas’s writing. She has the gift – and it truly is a gift – of describing characters in simple brush strokes and bringing them so vividly to life that you feel you instantly know them, and have met someone like them.  It’s a gift she shares with another of my favourite authors, Graham Greene. This is my favourite of all her books, it starts so calmly and misdirect and twist after twist grip you, and don’t let go. So human and so very, gloriously dark . . .'

Peter James says: 'Pascal Engman is Sweden’s biggest-selling crime fiction writer – and you just have to read this to understand why. At its heart it is the story of a good but troubled female cop finding herself pitted against an impending Isis terrorist attack – but this description does not do this story justice – it is so very much more than this.  A whole case of brilliantly rounded and believable characters – and Engman makes you care for virtually all of them in some way – even the lead terrorist when he murders his own father.  The denouement is one of the most original – and shocking – I’ve read in a very long while.'

Roy Grace would never have believed that a murder investigation would take him into Buckingham Palace. Her Majesty, Queen Camilla, is aboard the Royal Train heading to a charity event in Sussex when disaster strikes – the train is derailed, and a trusted aide is killed by a sniper. Grace alone is not convinced The Queen was the intended target – but no-one else agrees. Fighting against the scepticism of his colleagues and the Palace itself, Grace pursues his own investigation. But when there is a second murder, the stakes rise even higher, and Grace is at risk of being embroiled in a very public catastrophe – and in mortal danger.