Best legal thrillers and courtroom drama books

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The best legal thrillers and courtroom dramas to read now

The Wild We Know

In a quiet part of the Norfolk countryside, a local wildlife park has been broken into and all of its animals released. As predators roam wild through the neighbouring streets and the town goes into lockdown, two of its residents search for a missing child – and each other. 
 
Hannah, one of the park’s former keepers, was supposed to be leaving town: escaping the darkest parts of her past, and the traumatic memories the park holds. But when she realises that a little girl is lost in the forest, she springs into action. Doing so means facing the fact that someone far more dangerous than the animals may be waiting for her in the trees. 
 
Local policeman Cam wants to find Hannah before it’s too late. He can’t let her down again – but as predators stalk the familiar streets of his childhood home, will protecting the people he loves most mean trusting his instincts over his orders? 
 
Because the wild we know is the thing we should fear the most …

A highly original and assured psychological thriller, it keeps readers guessing until delivering a satisfying punch. Simply stunning.

Stunning: so clever, so gripping, so timely. This deserves to be huge

From the very first page, this thriller is unique, punchy and super-smart. Her Many Faces is itself so multifaceted, so rich - a courtroom drama, a character study, a social commentary - but it wears each guise with real heart and style.

Beautifully written, experimental, and fast-paced. I’m addicted.

A brilliantly structured and beautifully written story

A smart thriller with slick, snappy chapters that had me reading ‘just one more’ until the early hours… A must-read

Ingenious and gripping – I loved it

Nicci Cloke is an author and editor based in Cambridgeshire. Her novels have been published in twelve languages and she previously worked at Faber Academy. Her Many Faces was an international bestseller and was shortlisted for the CWA Twisted Dagger Award.

Nicci Cloke

A brilliantly structured and beautifully written story about a troubled young woman who may or may not have murdered a room full of some of the most powerful men in the country at an infamous London members’ club

Clever, compulsive and razor-sharp ... An unusual genre redefining thriller that dissects identity, bias and media obsession in a gripping, multi-voiced mystery

Her Many Faces had me gripped from the start and I raced through it in two sittings. Clever, twisty and with such a unique narrative method that I was second guessing Katie Cole's guilt or innocence throughout, this novel firmly stakes Nicci Cloke's claim as the breakout suspense writer of the year, and she can count me as her number one fan!

This page-turning, multiple viewpoint thriller is a densely plotted novel full of amazing twists

An ingenious, indignant, beautifully wrought psychological thriller. Nicci Cloke had me fooled repeatedly and I absolutely loved it.

Masterfully exploring themes of privilege, gender bias and conspiracy theories […] with a narrative that questions the societal forces silencing women’s voices, it’s a powerful novel indeed

A clever, fast paced but emotionally insightful book. I loved it

HER MANY FACES is a masterfully plotted thriller - original, assured, and emotionally insightful. Cloke has a new fan in me!

I can’t remember the last time I read such a quietly sensational page-turner. Astute, compelling and beautifully written, HER MANY FACES shines a light into the dark corners of power, family and obsession

A fresh, original and stunningly written thriller – I couldn’t stop turning the pages to get to the end. So clever.

I devoured this brilliant book. What a joy to read something so original, thrilling and utterly addictive. I loved it

Stunningly original and smart, Her Many Faces had me reading late into the night, promising myself “just one more chapter”. I had chills down my spine the closer I got to the end and the perfectly plotted resolution. Relevant and timely. And genuinely SO good

SAM HOLLAND, award-winning author of the MAJOR CRIMES series

Her Many Faces is a tour de force, intricately plotted and yet so readable. I raced to the end, never sure of Katie Cole’s innocence or guilt and fascinated by the many twists and turns. A brilliant read I will be recommending to everyone!

AMANDA REYNOLDS, bestselling author of CLOSE TO ME

Thoughtful, clever, subtle and socially aware. The best suspense I’ve read in a long time. The writing put me in mind of Abigail Dean.

Original, gripping, twisty and so well written

A brilliantly unique novel; perfectly combining depth of character with suspenseful mystery. I devoured this in a day - a phenomenal read

Now and again, a crime novel comes along and reinvigorates the genre - HER MANY FACES by the brilliant Nicci Cloke is this novel. Staggeringly good and genuinely unique, with endless twists and moral grey areas. If ever a book deserved a standing ovation, it's this!

So cleverly told, so gripping, so much heart, surprising to the last page. Utterly brilliant

Nicci Cloke has pulled off a masterstroke with this dazzling novel. Fresh, thought-provoking and highly original, Her Many Faces is a portrait of a young woman on trial through the lens of the men who think they know her. When we hear her voice at the end, it is all the more devastating for it. Beautifully written, fiercely intelligent and with gripping characterisation, this thriller has it all.

An insightful, captivating, and multi-layered tale of suspense that perfectly encapsulates the times we’re living in now. Sharp, timely, and impossible to put down

Fast paced, gripping and so unique. Had me guessing right till the end - and I still guessed wrong!

A unique and twisty thriller told in a kaleidoscope of voices; a smart and timely exploration of who gets to tell their story. Unputdownable!

Clever, twisting, timely, gripping - and like nothing else I've read. Her Many Faces is a unique and satisfying read that you won't soon forget

A tense, dazzling, brilliantly characterised read that just wouldn't let me go

I loved Her Many Faces, I couldn’t put it down. Layers and Layers of cleverness, I highly recommend

Smart, surprising, unsettling - a dark-bright jigsaw puzzle that kept me guessing

Daughter. Friend. Lover. Murderer? 
 
When four wealthy and influential members of London’s most exclusive private club are poisoned, a young waitress is charged with their murder. As the trial grips the nation, five men begin to question how well they really knew her. 
 
There's her father, who remembers the sweet girl growing up in Devon; her childhood friend, who is swept up in her fascination with conspiracy theories; her lover, who wants to distance himself from a young woman with an obsession; her barrister, who knows she's hiding something; and the journalist investigating the case, who is convinced he knows exactly what she is: a cold-blooded killer. 
 
To each of them, she is something different. But which is the true face of Katie Cole?

Nicci Cloke

Books by Nicci Cloke

Articles featuring Nicci Cloke

The best legal thrillers and courtroom dramas to read now

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