Red Scorpion

Set within the gritty world of Colombian drug cartels, Tom Bradby's new standalone depicts the dark underbelly of the crime world with his signature atmospheric plotting his readers have come to love.

Life for Dr Laura Strong shouldn't be this hard. Nights working thankless A&E shifts. A much-loved disabled brother to look after. Loan sharks at her door. She needs a miracle to stop her life collapsing around her.

The arrival of South American coffee magnate Rafael Fernandez appears to be the answer to her prayers. A devoted father with a sick son requiring a 24/7 care, he is prepared to pay any price for expertise he can trust.

But if something appears to be too good to be true, then it probably is. Behind the façade of Rafa's gilded existence lies a dark family history which he has been doing his best to avoid - until the death of his estranged father brings it crashing back into his - and Laura's - world.

What had at first seemed to be a remarkable escape from an impossible situation now threatens to destroy everything Laura cares about. Friendless and far from home, she must rely on her own instincts to find a way out of this terrifying new landscape. Sometimes it's easier to trust the devil you know...

Red Scorpion vividly brings to life the tension and danger that lurk in the shadows of the Colombian drug world, with a gripping narrative that keeps readers on the edge of their seats.