Books by V. L. McDermid

Hostage to Murder, the long-awaited sixth Lindsay Gordon mystery, is a lightning-paced story spliced with crackling action and an intense emotional dimension.Spraining an ankle is rarely a stroke of luck, but for Lindsay Gordon, jobless in Glasgow, the injury is her introduction to young freelance journalist Rory McLaren and the opening of a new chapter in her life. Rory's invitation to work alongside her in her booth at the Cafe Virginia is irresistible. From there it is just a short step to political corruption and other juicy stories - all welcome distractions from Lindsay's problems at home, where her long-term lover Sophie has decided to heed the ticking of her biological clock and get pregnant. But when a local car-dealer's stepson is kidnapped, Lindsay and Rory are invited to trade journalism for detection. The trail leads them to St Petersburg and a dangerous snatch-back operation. It's a journey that brings a whole new dimension of risk into Lindsay's life. Back in Glasgow, it becomes clear that Lindsay and Rory have stumbled into a bigger, more violent piece of business than either of them could have guessed - and one which will test Lindsay to her absolute limits.

The first novel in the Lindsay Gordon series - a gripping and thrilling page-turner, starring a self-proclaimed 'cynical socialist lesbian feminist journalist' - from the number one bestseller Val McDermid.Freelance journalist Lindsay Gordon is strapped for cash. Why else would she agree to cover a fund-raising gala at a girls' public school? But when the star attraction is found garrotted with her own cello string minutes before she is due on stage, Lindsay finds herself investigating a vicious murder.Who would have wanted Lorna Smith Cooper dead? Who had the key to the locked room in which her body was found? And who could have slipped out of the hall at just the right time to commit this calculated and cold-blooded crime?Report for Murder is the first title in Val Mcdermid's Lindsay Gordon series.

The second novel in the Lindsay Gordon series - a gripping psychological thriller - from No.1 bestseller Val McDermid. When her former lover is accused of murder in a women's peace camp, Lindsay must bring all of her expertise as an investigative reporter into play.A protest group hits the headlines when unrest at a women's peace camp explodes into murder. Already on the scene, journalist Lindsay Gordon desperately tries to strike a balance between personal and professional responsibilities. As she peels back the layers of deception surrounding the protest and its opponents, she finds that no one - ratepayer or reporter, policeman or peace woman - seems wholly above suspicion. Then Lindsay uncovers a truth that even she can scarcely believe.Common Murder is the gripping second novel in Val McDermid's Lindsay Gordon series.