Good As Dead

The Hostage. Police officer Helen Weeks walks into her local newsagent's on her way to work. Little does she know that this simple daily ritual will change her life forever. It's the last place she expects to be met with violence, but as she waits innocently at the till, she comes face to face with a gunman.

The Demand. The crazed hostage-taker is desperate to know what really happened to his beloved son, who died a year before in youth custody. By holding a police officer at gunpoint, he will force the one man who knows more about the case than any other to re-investigate his son's death. That man is DI Tom Thorne.

The Twist. While Helen fights to stay alive and the body-count rises, Thorne must race against time if he is to bring a killer to justice and save a young mother's life.

Long-listed for International Thriller Writers Award 2012 (UK)

“A rollercoaster of a read...confirms Billingham's status as one of the finest crime writers around. - Daily ExpressTaut and tense, with an unusually sympathetic hostage-taker. - The TimesThe best thrillers make you see familiar territory in a new light. Mark Billingham has always done that. - Sunday TelegraphWith DI Tom Thorne's 10th outing, Mark Billingham proves he's a real contender for the title of the nation's top crime writer. - Daily MirrorJust as we become used to (and are perhaps wearying of) the influx of foreign crime novels, here comes Mark Billingham with a thoroughly British police thriller. - Time OutUtterly engaging... The series' page-turning credentials remain more than intact. - Independent on Sunday Books of the Year”

A rollercoaster of a read...confirms Billingham's status as one of the finest crime writers around. - Daily Express

Taut and tense, with an unusually sympathetic hostage-taker. - The Times

The best thrillers make you see familiar territory in a new light. Mark Billingham has always done that. - Sunday Telegraph

With DI Tom Thorne's 10th outing, Mark Billingham proves he's a real contender for the title of the nation's top crime writer. - Daily Mirror

Just as we become used to (and are perhaps wearying of) the influx of foreign crime novels, here comes Mark Billingham with a thoroughly British police thriller. - Time Out

Utterly engaging... The series' page-turning credentials remain more than intact. - Independent on Sunday Books of the Year

Mark Billingham is the author of eleven bestselling novels and the creator of the Thorne series. He has twice won the Theakston's Old Peculier prize for best novel of the year. He lives in North London with his family.

The Hostage Police officer Helen Weeks walks into her local newsagent's on her way to work. It's the last place she expects to be met with violence, but she is about to come face to face with a gunman. The Demand The hostage-taker is desperate to know what happened to his beloved son, who died a year before in youth custody. By holding Helen at gunpoint, he will force a re-investigation into his son's death. And one man knows the case better than any other - DI Tom Thorne. The Twist As the body count rises,Thorne must race against time to bring a killer to justice and save a young mother's life. Taking place over three action-packed days, this is Mark Billingham's fastest and most surprising Thorne thriller yet; a rollercoaster read in which every second counts...

The Hostage. Police officer Helen Weeks walks into her local newsagent's on her way to work. Little does she know that this simple daily ritual will change her life forever. It's the last place she expects to be met with violence, but as she waits innocently at the till, she comes face to face with a gunman.The Demand. The crazed hostage-taker is desperate to know what really happened to his beloved son, who died a year before in youth custody. By holding a police officer at gunpoint, he will force the one man who knows more about the case than any other to re-investigate his son's death. That man is DI Tom Thorne.The Twist. While Helen fights to stay alive and the body-count rises, Thorne must race against time if he is to bring a killer to justice and save a young mother's life.

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