I do love reading the odd spot of crime, I suppose it’s one of my guilty pleasures. A day wrapped in Harry Hole’s Smith and Western totin’ arms is a day well spent, and for vintage thrills you can’t go wrong with a Daisy Dalrymple or Agatha Christie. I recently finished my first Oscar Wilde mystery by Gyles Brandreth, where Oscar, accompanied by poet Robert Sherard and Arthur Conan Doyle, run about 19th C Paris and London solving CRIMES. This is a concept that could be ridiculous, but turns out to be great fun, and I will def give another a go At Some Point.

Yorkshire loves crime more than most places, The North in general is known for being the home of some of the most depraved and evil serial killers in Britain’s history. Crime fiction has it’s fair amount of Leeds hero’s-Kate Atkinson set her latest Jackson Brodie book here, and we of course have the wonderful Richard Nottingham books if you prefer your crime a little more historic.

This year also marks the Theakstons Old Peculiar Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate’s tenth anniversary, and to celebrate, some authors are going on the road, including to a special do in Leeds Central Library this Tuesday 29 May. Steve Mosby, Leeds author of six novels, will be introducing talks by David Mark, former crime writer for the YEP, whose debut novel The Dark Winter is set in Hull, and Danielle Ramsey, whose two novels have been massive eBook successes, the latest, Vanishing Point, making the Bookseller’s eBook top 20.

The event starts at 6.30 and costs a mere £5, you can buy tickets online now at www.harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/crime. If you are a fan of crime, this is an event not to be missed!