(Your fourteen-year-old daughter's been taken, and her kid...)
Your fourteen-year-old daughter's been taken, and her kidnappers demand half a million pounds in cash. They give you 48 hours to raise the money and warn you that if you call the police, she'll die. Trying desperately to remain calm, you realize that your husband - the man you married only two years previously - is also missing. But he can't be involved in your daughter's abduction. Or can he? As your nightmare begins, you can be certain of only two things: that you will do anything to get your daughter back alive - and that time is running out...
(It's a typical cold November night and Detective Sergeant...)
It's a typical cold November night and Detective Sergeant Dennis Milne, a very atypical policeman, waits in the Traveller's Rest Hotel parking lot for the arrival of three men. Cynical and jaded, Milne earns money on the side by doing what he does best: punishing the bad guys. But this time he's been duped. Instead of blowing away drug dealers, he kills three innocent people, their deaths starting an investigation that sees him and his conscience heading for trouble. Less than twelve hours later, Milne is out on the streets again. Eighteen-year-old Miriam Fox has been found dead by Regent's Canal - her throat slashed. Desperate to find Miriam's killer, Milne uncovers a web of depravity far more shocking than he could ever have imagined. Can he evade arrest for his own crimes and solve a case so sickening that it may provide the key to his personal redemption? The clock is ticking and everyone's watching their backs as a war of morality is fought in the mind of one renegade policeman in this gripping first novel by a talented young crime writer.
(When ex-mercenary Max Iversson accompanies a nightclub ow...)
When ex-mercenary Max Iversson accompanies a nightclub owner to an ill-fated rendezvous in a deserted north London industrial estate, it turns out to be not so much a set-up as a bloodbath. Three men have been shot, the briefcase Iversson has been guarding is empty - and he wants to know why. So begins a hunt for answers that will take him into direct conflict with Detective Sergeant John Gallan - and take both men into very dangerous territory.
(When Operation Surgical Strike, a police sting designed t...)
When Operation Surgical Strike, a police sting designed to catch Colombian drug traffickers in the act of selling a large consignment of cocaine to undercover police officers, goes horribly wrong, suspicion quickly falls on one of the police officers involved: "Stegs" Jenner. Stegs is no ordinary cop. Something of a maverick, he has in the past played the role of a criminal just a little too well. Now suspended from duty, and with his close friend killed in the shoot-out, he determines to go at it alone. DI John Gallan and his partner Tina Boyd are part of the subsequent investigation that will take them to the heart of one of London's most notorious criminal gangs. What they cannot know is that they've also embarked on a journey that will lead one of them straight into the rifle sights of the enemy.
Die Twice: Two Crime Novels in One The Business of Dying and The Murder Exchange
(When ex-mercenary Max Iversson agreed to provide security...)
When ex-mercenary Max Iversson agreed to provide security for nightclub owner Roy Fowler, he never expected a bloodbath. Three men have been shot, the briefcase Iversson was guarding is empty... and now he wants to know why. So begins a dangerous hunt for answers that will take him into direct conflict with Detective Sergeant John Gallan, who is investigating the mysterious death of one of Fowler's doormen, and toward a confrontation that neither is likely to escape unscathed. The Business of Dying Cynical and jaded, Detective Sergeant Dennis Milne earns money on the side by doing what he does best: punishing the bad guys. But this time he's been duped and instead of blowing away drug dealers, he kills three innocent men, setting off a war of morality that could leave him broken, or worse... dead.
(When Dennis Milne - now living under an assumed identity ...)
When Dennis Milne - now living under an assumed identity in the Philippines - hears that his old friend and colleague Malik has been gunned down in a restaurant, he decides to go back to the violent city he once called home and bring the murderer to justice. Milne arrives in a pre-Christmas London that is cold and hostile. But he is no longer a policeman; no longer charged with keeping the peace and upholding the law. Although his old friends at the King's Cross station do not know that Milne is back in town, it soon becomes clear that his arrival has been expected by men who are after his blood. Hungry for revenge and determined to uphold his own very rough brand of justice, Milne searches for the person behind his friend's demise - and leaves a trail of death and destruction more wide-reaching than even he could have expected.
(Ex-soldier Sean Tyler wakes up in an unfamiliar room next...)
Ex-soldier Sean Tyler wakes up in an unfamiliar room next to the headless corpse of a girl he's met recently. With his memory of the previous 24 hours wiped clean, he's hardly out of bed before he notices a note next to the TV telling him to press play on the room's DVD machine. The film shows him stabbing someone to death.
(When ex-police officer John Cone is found lying wounded i...)
When ex-police officer John Cone is found lying wounded in a room full of dead bodies, he has a terrifying story to tell. Three days earlier he was hired by a mysterious client to snatch a suspected serial killer, Andrew Kent (aka the Penthouse Predator) from custody while he's being transferred between prisons. Kent is snatched, but then things immediately go wrong. People start dying, Kent goes missing, and Cone begins to realize that the case against him is not what he was led to believe.
(#1 bestselling author Simon Kernick weaves a masterful pl...)
#1 bestselling author Simon Kernick weaves a masterful plot in this race-against-time thriller that puts Detective Inspector Tina Boyd in the middle of a criminal conspiracy and up against the brutal murderer known as the Night Creeper. 36 hours ago: A vicious serial killer is arrested on the streets of north London after a two-year reign of terror. Known only as the Night Creeper, he’s earned his reputation by torturing five young women to death. 24 hours ago: Undercover cop Sean Egan has infiltrated one of the country's most notorious criminal gangs. Now he’s about to risk his life in a desperate bid to bring its members to justice. 12 hours ago: DI Tina Boyd has discovered that the Night Creeper’s murders are part of a much larger criminal conspiracy. But her quest for the truth has brought her into contact with some very dangerous people who want to silence her - permanently. The last 10 seconds: A man, a woman, a sadistic killer. As they race toward a terrifying confrontation only one thing is certain: when time runs out, not everyone will still be alive.
(Dennis Milne is a man with a past, and a past that involv...)
Dennis Milne is a man with a past, and a past that involves murder. A former cop, he's earned his living killing the bad guys - drug-dealers, corrupt businessmen - people who, in his opinion, deserve to die. For the past two days, he's been in Manila, waiting for his next target: a young woman who's made herself some poor life-choices, and some even worse enemies.
(The #1 international bestseller. One day Tom Meron, a hap...)
The #1 international bestseller. One day Tom Meron, a happily married father of two who’s never been in trouble, receives a phone call that will change his life forever: his friend Jack Calley, a high-flying city lawyer, is screaming down the phone for help. As Meron listens, Calley is murdered. His last words, spoken to his killer, are the first two lines of Meron's address. Confused and terrified, Meron grabs his children and hurries out of the house as soon as he can. It is only just in time. Within minutes, a car pulls up outside, and three men get out. It’s clear that they’re coming for him. And with his wife missing, an unidentified corpse in her office, and the police after him for murder, his life’s about to get a whole lot more interesting.
(#1 bestselling author Simon Kernick will leave you breath...)
#1 bestselling author Simon Kernick will leave you breathless with his sheer storytelling power in this race-against-time thriller about a terrorist threat in London. An explosion blasts through a cafe in Central London. Minutes later, a call from an unknown terror group warns that a far greater attack will be launched in twelve hours' time. William Garrett, nicknamed "Fox," is awaiting trial for mass murder. He claims he can name the bombers - but only at a price. It's a terrifying race against time for Detective Inspector Mike Bolt and Deputy Commissioner Tina Boyd as they chase their targets across the city in a desperate bid to prevent a major atrocity before it’s too late…
(From the #1 internationally bestselling author of Relentl...)
From the #1 internationally bestselling author of Relentless, Stay Alive, and Ultimatum, a heart-pounding, race-against-time thriller about a carefully orchestrated hostage takeover at a London hotel. London is under attack. An unknown number of its citizens are dead. Many more lives hang in the balance as a group of highly trained gunmen storm the luxuriÂous Stanhope Hotel on Park Lane, demanding the government meet their requests within five hours - or they will blow up the building and everyone still inside it. Shots ring out. Some guests panic. Others text their loved ones. A few try to escape. All are united by their desire to live. And at the center of it all is one man who has information so dangerous that it must be kept safe - at any price. Darkness falls. The gunmen become increasingly violent. One question is on everyone’s mind: Will any of them survive the night?
(A gripping Quick Read from the master of the race against...)
A gripping Quick Read from the master of the race against time thriller. Have you ever been in the wrong place at the wrong time? You are hiking in the Scottish highlands with three friends when you come across a girl. She is half-naked, has been badly beaten, and she can't speak English. She is clearly running away from someone. Do you stop to help her? Even if it means putting your friends' lives - and your own - in terrible danger?
(From Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick comes ...)
From Sunday Times bestselling author Simon Kernick comes the thrilling second installment in the Bone Field series, featuring the return of DI Ray Mason and PI Tina Boyd. A house deep in the countryside where the remains of seven unidentified women have just been discovered. A cop ready to risk everything in the hunt for their killers. A man who has seen the murders and is now on the run in fear of his life. So begins the race to track down this witness before the killers do. For Ray Mason and PI Tina Boyd, the road ahead is a dangerous one, with bodies and betrayal at every turn... Find out what readers are saying: 'an enthralling, twisted and absolutely unputdownable read' - Noelle on Goodreads, 5 stars 'thrilling, gripping, shocking, and a complete page-turner.
(A young woman goes missing while backpacking in Thailand....)
A young woman goes missing while backpacking in Thailand. She is never seen again. In 2016 her bones are discovered 6000 miles away in an English field and, within hours, the boyfriend who reported her disappearance all those years ago is dead. So begins a hunt to solve her murder that will take DI Ray Mason and PI Tina Boyd into a dark and terrifying world of corruption and deadly secrets, where murder is commonplace, and nothing and nobody is safe.
(You have it all. Success, a beautiful home, a happy famil...)
You have it all. Success, a beautiful home, a happy family. Until, in a heartbeat, it's gone. We've kidnapped your daughter, and we know everything about you. Including the dark secrets from your past, you thought were forgotten. We tell you not to contact the police - and that we’ll know if you do. Because we can see you. And now you know this is no ordinary abduction. It's worse. Within hours you're on the run, with only one thought in your head: That you will stop at nothing to get your daughter back. Even murder...
(Alastair Sheridan has all. Wealth, good looks, a beautifu...)
Alastair Sheridan has all. Wealth, good looks, a beautiful wife and children, and, in the chaotic world of British politics, a real chance of becoming Prime Minister. But Alastair also has a secret. He's a serial killer with a taste for young women. Only a handful of people know what kind of monster he is, and disgraced detective Ray Mason is one of them. Awaiting trial for murder, Ray is unexpectedly broken free by armed men and given an offer: assassinate Alastair Sheridan and begin a new life abroad with a new identity. The men claim to be from MI6. They say that Sheridan is a threat to national security and needs to be neutralized. Ray knows they are not who they say they are, and that their real motives are far darker. The only person Ray trusts is ex-cop and former lover Tina Boyd who's keen to settle her own scores with Sheridan. With enemies on every side, only one thing is certain. No one wants them to get out alive.
Simon Kernick is a British author of crime thriller books. He is the author of bestselling series such as Tina Boyd, Denise Milne, Sope, DI Ray Mason, and Bone Field written so far. He also wrote a few standalone thrillers over the years.
Background
Simon Kernick was born on January 25, 1966, in Slough, United Kingdom. He grew up up in Henley-on-Thames, a small town 40 miles west of London. His first stories that he started writing at the age of 6 were sci-fi and fantasy initially. At the age of 17, he wrote an 80-page fantasy novel, which he now considers to be rubbish. Eventually, he moved on to write crime thriller books.
Education
Kernick was educated at Gillotts School. He earned a degree in Humanities from Brighton Polytechnic (present-day University of Brighton) in 1991. During his time at the Brighton Polytechnic, he wrote several short stories that went unpublished.
Simon Kernick worked as the assistant plant and transport manager at a local company of civil engineers. As his work was more relaxed than he thought it would be, he got a lot of free time to read books and to also write some. He remained at that job for a year, and then he moved to Canada, living in Toronto for a few years.
There he continued his college education and took several odd jobs over the years. After a while, he moved back to England, where he started university in Brighton. After graduation, he worked some other odd jobs like laborer building roads, barman, fruit picker, and Christmas tree uprooter. He also started working as a computer salesman at the IT and Business Consultancy Metaskil plc in Aldermaston, Berkshire in 1998, where he remained for several years.
Before writing his debut novel, The Business of Dying, Simon Kernick wrote a few unpublished crime books which were rejected, and he never got to release them after. The first crime book he wrote and sent to publishers was rejected around 300 times. Then he wrote a second book which became a huge tome of 700+ pages, and it was also unreadable, except for one chapter, that he kept. He sent this one chapter to publishers, and they wanted to read the whole book, which Simon didn't have. Thus he spent his time frantically writing to have a book put together, which became The Business of Dying.
Also, the main idea behind creating his popular character Dennis Milne came after speaking with a few actual London cops who were very unhappy about their jobs, the pressure they got from everybody around them including their bosses and politicians, and how the main reason they still were cops were the pensions to receive at the end. As depressing as this was, it gave Simon an idea of how easy it could be for a lesser policeman to succumb to corruption instead or to send them straight over the edge.
After writing the book, Simon sent it to an agent who initially was interested in it, but the agent straight out rejected the story. So with some nudges from his wife, he kept sending that manuscript to other agents across the country after rewriting a few chapters and polishing the book a bit more. Eventually, a new agent liked what she saw, and they sold it to Transworld, who not only bought this book but also a sequel yet to be written at the time.
The first Simon Kernick book got lots of praise all over the world, with many critics and reviewers giving it full support and rating. Soon after, he kept on reading more books which kept selling better and better. His fourth book, A Good Day to Die, sold 15,000 copies, and his next book, Relentless, sold over 50,000 copies. Once it got picked up by Richard and Judy on their "Summer Reads" section of their TV show in 2007, Relentless went on to sell over 350,000 copies.
Before writing his books, Simon Kernick does a lot of research. For example, for writing A Good Day to Die, where a big chunk takes place in the Philippines, he traveled to the country for additional research. In terms of writing, he has a basic storyline plotted out, although sometimes he plots out each chapter, and then everything else is fleshed out while writing. Also, even if he has part worked out in his mind, he has been known to change it before the book goes for publication.
Many of his books deal with ordinary people put in strange and dangerous situations that they can't control. This is partly based on one of Simon's early experiences as a 16-year-old when he, along with two friends, was abducted, beaten, and finally released before Simon was sure he would be going to die.
Personality
From a very young age Simon knew what he wanted to do later in his life: write entertaining stories, write books, despite his mother cautioning him that writers never really made much money at all. During his earlier years, Simon loved reading science-fiction novels such as The Lord of the Rings, and these books helped him eventually write longer stories than he did before.
Interests
Writers
The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien
Connections
In 1992 Simon met Sally, who would become his wife in 1994. The couple has two daughters.