Oliver Harris – författare

“A twisting spiral of lies and corruption, a pitch-perfect portrait of contemporary London, and a beguiling bastard of a hero—what a recipe for a great read.”—Val McDermid, author of The Mermaids Singing

Describing London police detective Nick Belsey, hero of The Hollow Man, an enthrallingly original thriller from British crime novelist Oliver Harris—the Daily Mail declared, “He’s got to be London’s coolest cop.” Crime fiction fans are sure to agree, especially those hooked on the novels of Ian Rankin, Peter Robinson, Mark Billingham, and Jo Nesbø. The first book in a series of tense and twisting police procedurals, The Hollow Man starts with Belsey at rock bottom, and then embroils him in a brazen identity theft scam and possible murder that could leave him either wealthy or dead. It’s time to discover Oliver Harris, a new master of noir who’s destined to be a big man at the scene of the crime.

In this gritty, white-knuckle crime thriller, Detective Nick Belsey—introduced in the acclaimed The Hollow Man as a shrewd, street-smart cynic who is one of London’s sharpest, but most unprincipled, investigators—is plunged into a perplexing mystery of secrets, danger, and suspense beneath the city’s streets.

Trouble once again finds Nick Belsey when he takes a date to an abandoned bomb shelter buried beneath the heart of London. One minute the young woman is there, and the next, she’s gone, mysteriously vanishing into the dark labyrinth of secret tunnels. A seasoned cop with a bad reputation, Nick knows that if he reports her disappearance, he’ll be the prime suspect. Instead, he’s going to find her. It’s not just her life at stake—it’s his, too.

Determined to discover who else is down in those forgotten tunnels, and how far this secret network of underground passages extends, he plunges head first into the investigation—and into a dangerous game of cat-and-mouse with a ruthless enemy who would rather let an innocent woman die than reveal old Cold War secrets hidden deep beneath the city’s streets.

An edgy, subversive thriller with the superb characterization of classic Lawrence Block and the psychological acuity and suspense of Sophie Hannah, Deep Shelter is a compulsively readable mystery from a master of literary suspense.

From the author of the acclaimed The Hollow Man and Deep Shelter, comes the third installment featuring the shrewd, cynical, and brilliant London detective, Nick Belsey, whose investigation into a child’s disappearance pulls him into the hedonistic orbit of a young, hot celebrity actress/musician and the dark world lurking underneath its glamorous exterior.

Twenty-seven, rich and beautiful, Amber Knight is living everyone’s dream. Her music career is established, her acting career is taking off, and she has a lifestyle fit for the top of the A-List. So why has she started acting so strangely? At least, that’s how it seems to Nick Belsey. A less celebrated resident of North London, Belsey’s decade-long career at Hampstead CID is coming to an abrupt end, but he still can’t seem to kick his habit of getting into serious trouble. When he’s asked by a desperate mother to help find her only son, Belsey has to infiltrate Amber’s glittering world. The seedy underside to her seemingly perfect life—a realm of excess, obsession, lust, and greed—doesn’t surprise him. What does is the blood trail that leads directly to Amber. As one twisted crime is followed by another, Belsey finds himself chasing even more answers than when he started out. And when the stakes are raised dangerously high, Belsey’s own survival is at stake. It may be too late to save his reputation but he’s not ready to die just yet—and especially not at the hands of a celebrity.

“Harris has a terrific sense of place, hurtling between the wealthiest and most-run-down areas of London. But the cleverest thing about his third Belsey novel is the way the plot unfolds in a chilling and totally unexpected direction.”—Sunday Times (London)

''A twisting spiral of lies and corruption'' Val McDermidFrom the hilltop he could see London, stretched towards the hills of Kent and Surrey. The sky was beginning to pale at the edges. The city itself looked numb as a rough sleeper; Camden and then the West End, the Square Mile. His watch was missing. He searched his pockets, found a bloodstained serviette and a promotional leaflet for a spiritual retreat, but no keys, phone or police badge.Detective Nick Belsey needs help.Something happened last night - something with the boss''s wife - and Belsey needs to get out of London, and away from the debt and the drink and the deceit.Collecting his belongings back at Hampstead CID on what should be the last day of his career, Belsey sees a missing person''s report. But this one''s different; this is on The Bishop''s Avenue, one of the most expensive streets in the city. Belsey sees a chance for a new life.But someone else got there first.Praise for A Hollow Man''[Belsey has] got to be London''s coolest cop... Harris has plundered London''s underworld for his richly plotted and unusual detective series... It''s heady stuff'' Daily Mail''Thrills, spills and fine writing'' Telegraph

''Makes the capital as eerie as Le Carré''s Berlin'' Evening StandardMonday 10 June, end of a hot day. The city had started drinking at lunchtime and by 3 or 4pm crime seemed the only appropriate response to the beauty of the afternoon...At quarter to five he felt his contribution to law and order had been made. He parked off the high street, sunk two shots of pure grain vodka into iced Nicaraguan espresso and put his seat back. In an hour he''d be off duty, and in a couple more he''d be on a date with an art student he''d recently arrested for drugs possession. London is steaming under a summer of filthy heat and sudden storms - and Detective Nick Belsey, of Hampstead CID, is trying to stay out of trouble. But then somebody sets him a riddle. How does a man walk into a dead-end alley and never come out? And then reappear - to snatch a girl, to dump a body beneath a London skyscraper, to send Belsey a package of human hair. The answer lies underground, where the secrets degenerating beneath the city''s sickly glitter are about to see the light of day.Praise for Deep Shelter''Relentless...explosive'' Mail on Sunday''The coolest cop you''ll have come across in ages. London through his eyes is as atmospheric as a drawing by Gustave Doré... This demands to be read before the television adaptation'' Kate Saunders

''Mazy, pacy London noir'' Ian RankinTen days after the station closed, he was informed he''d been officially suspended pending a hearing over allegations of gross misconduct. No details. A few hours after that, he got a call from a man who wouldn''t give his name but told him he was under surveillance...They were bracing themselves for a shit-storm. Stay safe, the caller said, and hung up.Amber Knight is hot property - pop star, film star, front-page gossip.DC Nick Belsey is less celebrated. He can''t shake his habit of getting into serious trouble and his career at Hampstead CID is coming to a dishonourable end. He is currently of no fixed address - squatting in a disused police station round the corner from Amber''s swanky Primrose Hill mansion. But a knock on the door from a frantic and confused woman looking for her missing son is about to lead Belsey straight into the heart of Amber''s glittering life. When a body is found and a twisted crime spree ensues, Belsey finds himself dangerously embroiled in a world of celebrity, obsession, glamour and desperation.Praise for The House of Fame''Harris has a terrific sense of place, hurtling between the wealthiest and most-run-down areas of London... The plot unfolds in a chilling and totally unexpected direction'' Sunday Times ''A fast-paced thriller that is also nuanced and evocative...hats off to Harris, who has, once again, managed it with style and authority'' Guardian''Gripping, and Oliver Harris is punchy and perceptive'' The Times

British spy Elliot Kane is forced out of semi-retirement to investigate a colleague’s suspicious death on Ascension Island, a remote and rocky outpost of the British military in the middle of the Atlantic.

Despite foiling a plot to incite a new world war, Elliot Kane has been on probation with MI6 since his rogue misadventures in Kazakhstan. Granted a job teaching literature to college students, he surprisingly enjoys a conventional life away from the intelligence services. Then a former colleague reaches out with a request: one of her tech specialists on a long-term, covert mission has killed himself, and the agency needs to find out why before proceeding with the vital operation. The carrot in this offer is helping his old friend; the stick is more disciplinary action if he doesn’t comply. So Kane takes on deep cover again and heads to one of the most remote places on the planet, Ascension Island.

A curious legacy of England’s imperial past, Ascension is a desolate rock made of dead volcanic cones located in the Atlantic Ocean halfway between Brazil and Angola. Only employees and their families are allowed to reside there, and the island contains both British and American military bases. After learning that a teenage girl disappeared on the same night as the technician’s suicide, Kane finds himself with two mysteries to solve. With local tensions running high, he needs to move quickly before suspicion falls on him. Kane soon realizes the island has more secrets than even the government knows, some leading straight to the highest offices in London.