California Fire & Life by Don Winslow (Century, £10 in UK)

A fine, fast-paced thriller set in the world of arson investigation

A fine, fast-paced thriller set in the world of arson investigation. Jack Wade is the best at his business that the California Fire & Life Mutual has ever employed. He knows fire, can read it like a map. If there is something suspicious about a conflagration, he'll find it but, having done so, his motto is "You don't get involved". However, when he is asked to evaluate the claim made by the husband of a woman who died in a fire at her home, he becomes intrigued, gets in over his head and finds himself unearthing corruption in the very company that employs him. Using a staccato type of prose that exactly suits his purpose, Winslow has penned a most exciting and engaging thriller.