The Crime & Investigation network is running a contest where you can win one of five copies of Peter’s latest Inspector Banks novel, All the Colours of Darkness. Open to UK residents only, though 15 September, the contest asks you to answer a simple question. (Hint: you can find the answer on this page.)

So take a chance to get a free copy of this new best-selling novel now!

I haven’t had a lot of time for reading this summer, but I did manage to get through a couple of terrific and rather hefty crime novels. The first was Revelation by C.J. Sansom. I have enjoyed his Matthew Shardlake series ever since the first one, Dissolution, and this, the fourth, is up there with the best. It’s 1543 and Henry VIII, old and sick, has his sights set on Lady Catherine Parr. Against a background of court intrigue and religious mania, lawyer Shardlake finds himself investigating a series of gruesome murders based on the Book of Revelations. In modern-day terms we would call them the work of a serial killer, but no such creature existed in the 16th century imagination, though Sansom does give a couple of intriguing parallels. As usual, the period detail is impeccable and the plotting and pacing spot on.

The other is a first novel by Tana French called In the Woods, which recently won both the Edgar for best first novel and an L.A. Times book award. This is an absorbing tale about the search for a young girl’s killer in a small community outside Dublin. What gives it a special edge, though, is that one of the detectives on the case, Adam Ryan, grew up in the community, and his two best friends disappeared while playing in the same woods twenty years ago. One of the real joys of the book is the quirky relationship that grows between between Adam and his partner on the case, Cassie Maddox. The goods news is that there’s another Cassie Maddox book out now, called The Likeness.

As far as music goes, there has been a bumper crop lately. The first CD from the Fleet Foxes is a joy to listen to, Eliza Carthy’s Dreams of Breathing Underwater pushes the boundaries of “folk” even further than usual, and Thea Gilmore’s Liejacker is one that I’ll be listening to again and again over the coming months. Evil Urges, the new CD by My Morning Jacket, at first seems something of a mixed bag compared to their previous work, but it definitely grows on you, and “Librarian” is a standout track. I would also be remiss in failing to mention three live concerts recently issued in CD form, all from roughly the same period. First comes The Byrds Live at the Royal Albert Hall, 1971. It’s not their best line-up by a long shot, but it’s a good show nonetheless. Next is The Doors Live in Pittsbrugh, 1970, a remarkably together and focused performance for that period in the band’s history. Last but not least is David Bowie Live in Santa Monica, 1972, gems from the Ziggy Stardust era, with the excellent Mick Ronson on guitar. Finally, I should mention a compilation called Tribute to Goffin & King 1961-67, which, even if it didn’t have lots of other great songs, would be worth it just for Dusty Springfield’s rare version of “Wasn’t Born to Follow.”

I was also lucky enough to get to the Beverley Folk Festival in late June and heard great sets from Edwina Hayes, Rachel Unthank & The Winterset, Chumbawumba and Waterson: Carthy. Perhaps the standout act for me, though, was Martin Simpson & Andy Cutting. From the traditional (“Little Musgrave”) to the contemporary (“Never Any Good”) their skill and intensity entranced everyone, and I think I held my breath through their moving version of Richard Thompson’s “Strange Affair,” a song very dear to my heart.

Peter’s settling down after spending several days at the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate. Here are some photos of Peter at the festival.

Here’s Peter being interviewed by Simon Kernick:

This one is Peter in front of the poster celebrating the 21 years of Inspector Banks novels:

And, finally, here’s Peter with Sharyn Rosenblum, Kerry Hood (Hodder & Stoughton) and Australian crime fiction author Kathryn Fox:

If you live in Australia, there’s a great contest you can enter. Buy the latest Inspector Banks novel (All the Colours of Darkness) and enter a contest to win a weekend for two in the Barossa Valley or some fantastic wine from Peter Lehmann Wines.

All you need to do is enter on this web page and enjoy the new book. Hachette Australia is giving away one weekend for two, and a total of twenty cases of wine.

If you’re a Canadian resident, you can take a chance to win a copy of the forthcoming Inspector Banks novel, All the Colours of Darkness. Peter’s Canadian publisher is running a contest. For more information, go to this website.

In April, we mentioned that Piece of My Heart had been named on the longlist for the Theakston’s Old Peculiar Crime Novel Of The Year prize, to be awarded at the Harrogate festival in July. Well, Piece of My Heart has made it to the shortlist (which is still pretty long, containing 12 novels. The website for the festival and prize hasn’t been updated to show the shortlist yet, but Peter got the word from the organizers. Thanks to all readers who voted for Piece of My Heart to get it into this final round.

This is the first of an irregular series where Peter will give some opinions on recent books, music and films.

The Rest is Noise: Listening to the Twentieth Century, by Alex Ross. Starting with towering turn-of-century figures Wagner, Mahler and Strauss, Alex Ross goes on to detail the lives and times of the twentieth century composers. On the way, he points out influences, innovations and arguments and introduces readers to a wide range of colourful characters, key events and back-biting musical feuds. All of it is put clearly in the context of twentieth century political and cultural life, so you learn almost as much about the world that gave rise to the music as you do about the music itself. Though it deals with a complex and difficult subject, one the main joys of this book is its accessibility. With only a little musical knowledge to begin with (and believe me, that’s all I have!) you can still understand a lot. I found myself making frequent trips to the piano to try out a sequence of notes or chords Ross mentioned, and quickly discovered that the piano needs tuning! The book is a hefty tome, though, in more ways than one, and I think finishing it will be a long-term project.
www.therestisnoise.com

The second collaboration between Isobel Campbell and Mark Lanegan, Sunday at Devil Dirt, is every bit the equal of Ballad of the Broken Seas, their first. Stand-up bass, acoustic guitar and strings, very Astral Weeks at times, dominate the musica landscape, and the singers turn up the heat around the half-way mark with “Come On Over (Turn Me On),” “Back Burner” (shades of Dr John’s Night Tripper period) and “The Flame That Burns.” Lanegan’s voice dominates most tracks, a resonant baritone that sometimes sounds like a cross between Nick Cave and Johnny Cash. Every now and then Isobel Campbell’s ethereal tones come in, as if from a great distance, and harmonise with or wind sinuously around Lanegan’s melodic lines. Haunting, sensuous music.
www.myspace.com/isobelcampbell

Swedish singer-songwriter Thomas Denver Jonsson was kind enough to send me a copy of his CD, The Lake Acts Like an Ocean, and while it rocks a lot more than I expected, there are still plenty of sensitive ballads like “Only For Beginners” and “Like Friends Falling in Love” to balance the mood. A very versatile album that grows on you with continued listening.
www.thomasdenver.com

I was fortunate enough to bump into a touring Dutch chamber quartet, called Zapp, at breakfast in a hotel in Parry Sound when I was up there to do a reading in April, and they gave me a copy of their CD, Peculiar. It’s not what you’d expect from a string quartet, but instead it’s full of very jazzy, playful and innovative music, much of which they wrote themselves. Well worth a listen.
www.zappstringquartet.com

The Orphanage is a Spanish ghost story produced by Guillermo Del Toro, who made the wonderful Pan’s Labyrinth a couple of years ago, and directed by J.A. Bayona. While it’s nowhere near as complex and visually stunning a movie as Pan’s Labyrinth, it’s still well worth watching. The story concerns a woman called Laura who grew up in an orphanage and returns to live there with her husband and son thirty years later. Naturally, the place is haunted by the ghosts of her past, and the film details her struggle to confront them. The setting and cinematography are excellent, and Belén Rueda is terrific as the vulnerable, haunted and strong-willed Laura.

Peter has written up some answers to a few of the most frequently asked questions he gets about the Inspector Banks novels, and a new page has been added to the site. Check it out; even if you haven’t asked these questions yourself, you may find the answers interesting.

Nineteen original stories–including a new contribution by New York Times bestselling author Michael Connelly–about riveting showdowns between cops and criminals.

From Hawaii at the turn of the twentieth century to the post-Civil War frontier, from smoggy Los Angeles to the woods of Idaho, these gripping stories trace the perils and occasional triumphs of lawmen and -women who put themselves in harm’s way to face down the bad guys. Some of them even walk the edge of becoming bad guys themselves.

Peter’s story in this volume is called The Price of Love. You should check this book out for Peter’s great story, but also the many other wonderful stories by 19 of the best crime authors around.

The longlist was announced today for one of the most prestigious awards in the international crime writing calendar – the 4th Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award, the only literary prize of its kind to be voted for by the general public.

Peter’s 2007 installment in the Inspector Banks series, Piece of My Heart, has been nominated for the coveted Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year Award, which is presented at the Harrogate festival, at which Peter will be present. The award includes cash and a small hand-carved oak beer cask.

This year’s winner of the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year will be annouced at an award ceremony on the opening night of the Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate on Thursday 17th July.

Readers can vote for their favorite book from 2007 on this page, so cast your votes for Peter’s novel now!