Fans of crime novels and thrillers are often disappointed by the assumption that genre fiction is necessarily formulaic, conservative or predictable. Clearly that isn’t always the case - consider the quality, and huge popularity, of such writers as P. D. James, Ruth Rendell or Colin Dexter. Meanwhile, a number of British writers are creating new sub-genres such as gangster chic, comic crime and the literary thriller, while others are using the form to examine meaty issues such as race, sexuality and illness. This section features those writers who are not taking their genre for granted, and are breathing fresh life into a grand tradition.

Adebayo, Diran My Once Upon a Time

Abacus, 2001, £6.99, ISBN 0-349-11442-0, pbk

A Chandleresque thriller set in south London, where a less than successful private eye has seven days to find a bride for a mysterious millionaire. This is a rich and inventive novel that plays with the thriller genre to great effect, offering some perceptive insights into our times. The Telegraph said this is 'a book that sings ... rhapsodic, exhilarating and poignant'.

Arnott, Jake He Kills Coppers

Sceptre, 2001, £10.00, ISBN 0-340-74879-6, pbk
Sceptre, 2002, £6.99, ISBN 0-340-74880-X, pbk

Opening in the summer of 1966 after the brutal murder of three policemen in west London, He Kills Coppers explores the effect of the killing on three men and how their lives become linked through the ensuing chain of events. This is a hard-boiled crime thriller that evokes the spirit and style of 1960s London.

Bateman, Colin Mohammed Maguire

HarperCollins, 2001, £9.99, ISBN 0-00-226118-9, hbk
HarperCollins, 2002, £5.99, ISBN 0-00-651425-1, pbk

Bateman has made a name for himself with zany and pacey thrillers, and this novel featuring a psychiatrist called Tarantino and an Irish terrorist group called Banoffi, continues in this tradition. Reflecting a noisy and hectic Belfast, the child's-eye view of politics and the portrayal of human frailties is particularly refreshing.

Bidisha Too Fast to Live: the Second Coming

Duck Editions, 2000, £9.99, ISBN 0-7156-3008-3, hbk
Duck Editions, 2001, £5.99, ISBN 0-7156-3098-9, pbk

Turning the Arthurian legends on their head, this a fast-paced thriller which romps through the streets of London and the darker side of human nature. Subversive and dark, the novel touches on lost loves, crazy women, political betrayal and ambition.

Blincoe, Nicholas The Dope Priest

Sceptre, 1999, £10.00, ISBN 0-340-75044-8, pbk
Sceptre, 2000, £6.99, ISBN 0-340-75045-6, pbk

An eventful thriller set against the chaotic backdrop of Israel in the late 1990s and featuring drug smuggling, shadowy Mossad agents, murderous Russians and fanatical nuns. The Dope Priest is a lively mixture of humour and tension, combining a relentless pace with well-researched political detail.

Brookmyre, Christopher A Big Boy Did It and Ran Away

Little, Brown & Company, 2001, £17.99, ISBN 0-316-85743-2, hbk
Abacus, 2001, £9.99, ISBN 0-349-11467-6, pbk

This is a surreal and satirical novel and, like Brookmyre's other work, is difficult to categorise. The action is outrageous, the characters larger than life and the storyline blackly comic, but the plot is completely plausible, moving from crime novel to comedy to thriller in easy swoops. Brookmyre's take on the glamour of terrorism is particularly pertinent.

Davis, Anna Cheet

Hodder & Stoughton, 2001, £10.99, ISBN 0-340-79275-2, pbk~
Sceptre, 2002, £6.99, ISBN 0-340-79276-0, pbk

An unconventional love story and thriller set in London. Katherine, a taxi driver with attitude, has the black cab equivalent of a lover in every port and an inability to commit to any of them. But an encounter with an awkward passenger is set to wreak havoc with her carefully controlled life and force her to confront demons from the past.

Headley, Victor Off Duty

Hodder & Stoughton, 2001, £17.99, ISBN 0-340-77022-8, hbk
New English Library, 2002, £6.99, ISBN 0-340-77024-4, pbk

Headley's second novel is a taut thriller that moves between the back streets of London and the ghettos of Jamaica. It explores the effect of gangland crime, the world of drug trafficking and the choices confronting young people in the UK and the Caribbean.

Henderson, Lauren Pretty Boy

Hutchinson, 2001, £17.99, ISBN 0-09-179377-7, hbk
Hutchinson, 2001, £9.99, ISBN 0-19-179372-6, pbk

Another novel featuring Henderson's engaging amateur detective, sculptress Sam Jones, Pretty Boy sees her travel out of her native London to enjoy a rural New Year's Eve. However, things don't go according to plan and Sam is dragged into a witty and entertaining story involving flirtation, murder, mystery and love, and a cast that ranges from the quirky to the completely weird. Henderson excels in the comic crime genre.

Litt, Toby Corpsing

Penguin Books, 2000, £6.99, ISBN 0-14-028577-6, pbk

Toby Litt's third book is a stylish literary thriller complete with lovingly described bullet wounds, a cycle courier dressed to kill, fashionable restaurants and even more fashionable dresses. A cynical and ironic view of contemporary London life, its plot is gripping, the characters are intriguing if not always sympathetic and the writing is elegant and precise.

Mina, Denise Exile

Bantam Press, 2000, £9.99, ISBN 0-593-04653-6, hbk
Bantam, 2001, £5.99, ISBN 0-553-81327-7, pbk

Denise Mina brings a strong sense of place and character to the second idiosyncratic novel in her trilogy featuring mental illness survivor and amateur sleuth Maureen. Located in Glasgow, the novel presents a dark picture of the city and it's inhabitants. Through Maureen, Mina delves sympathetically into a range of gritty issues including the mental health system, incest and alcoholism.

Royle, Nicholas The Director's Cut

Abacus, 2000, £9.99, ISBN 0-349-11301-7, pbk
Abacus, 2001, £6.99, ISBN 0-349-11430-7, pbk

Littered with mentions of legendary films and movie people, this is a cleverly constructed thriller revolving around the grisly discovery of a long dead body and the impact on four former friends who are haunted by a film project they once worked on. Adultery, sexual obsession, guilt and mistrust are the backdrop to a labyrinthine narrative. The Independent said that it was 'a breakthrough book ... satisfying and surprising ... powerfully imagined'.

Sampson, Kevin Outlaws

Jonathan Cape, 2001, £10.00, ISBN 0-224-06005-8, pbk
Minerva, 2002, £6.99, ISBN 0-09-94223-9, pbk

Kevin Sampson's fourth novel is a fast-moving gangster yarn set in a Liverpool where guns are the law. Chronicling a race for control of clubland and with it the highly lucrative drugs trade, it is full of vividly drawn characters and combines a witty use of language with shocking brutality.

Thomas, Scarlett Bright Young Things

Flame, 2001, £10.99, ISBN 0-340-76781-2, pbk
Flame, 2001, £6.99, ISBN 0-340-76782-0, pbk

Scarlett Thomas takes the suspense genre, turns it on its head and concocts a lively mixture of adventure, mystery and psychology. Thomas has a strong ear for dialogue and a good sense of pacing, making this a funny and page-turning thriller.

Young, Louisa Tree of Pearls

Flamingo, 2000, £9.99, ISBN 0-00-226169-3, hbk
Flamingo, 2001, £5.99, ISBN 0-00-655234-X, pbk

Moving between London and Cairo, this is the final volume of Young's trilogy featuring Angeline Gower, and ties together all the loose ends of the complex plot. It is a careful study of the issues surrounding mixed-race relationships and single motherhood placed in the context of an action-packed mystery.