If we mentioned the authors Val McDermid, Karin Slaughter and Ellis Peters, you’d probably be able to name several of their books. But here at Crime Fiction Lover, we’re also keen to introduce you to up-and-coming female writers we think you might enjoy.

Here are just a few of the names we think you should watch out for in the coming year. Most of the books mentioned are available on Kindle at very reasonable prices too…

Elizabeth Haynes
Elizabeth Haynes was hotly tipped by Amazon to be one of its Rising Stars in 2011, and if her debut novel Into the Darkest Corner is anything to go by this British writer is definitely one to add to your must-read pile. It’s quite clear that Haynes has drawn on her own experiences as a police intelligence analyst to produce a gripping yet sensitive story involving domestic violence.
Into the Darkest Corner on Amazon UK

Renée Pawlish
If crime noir in the style of Sam Spade is your thing, then you can’t go far wrong giving Renée Pawlish a whirl. This California-based writer broke onto the crime fiction scene in July 2011 with her debut novel This Doesn’t Happen at the Movies, featuring wannabe gumshoe Reed Ferguson. It was quickly followed up in October by the second book in the series, Reel Estate Rip-Off.
This Doesn’t Happen In The Movies on Amazon UK
Reel Estate Rip-off on Amazon UK

Faith Mortimer
British writer Faith Mortimer chose to set her novel The Assassin’s Village on the island of Cyprus, amongst the ex-pat community. A murderer is stalking a theatrical company and writer/actress turned amateur sleuth, Diana Rivers embarks on her first investigation. The novel won the Harper Collins/Authonomy.com Gold Medal, and a second novel is in the pipeline.
The Assassins’ Village on Amazon UK

Lyndsay Faye
In March 2012, one name to watch out for is Lyndsay Faye. Her second novel The Gods of Gotham takes us back to New York in 1845, the very beginnings of the New York Police Department. Policeman Timothy Wilde’s walk home turns into a murder investigation when he runs into a young girl who is covered in blood.
Pre-order The Gods of Gotham in hardback at Amazon US

Frances Brody
Fans of the Daisy Dalrymple and Maisie Dobbs novels will be delighted to meet WW1 widow Kate Shackleton. Working in 1920s Yorkshire, Frances Brody’s amateur sleuth is ably assisted by ex-policeman, Jim Sykes. In the first book in the series, Dying in the Wool, a wealthy mill owner disappears and his daughter asks Kate to investigate. In A Medal for Murder, Kate finds herself in Harrogate on the trail of a pawnshop thief. The third in the series, Murder in the Afternoon, is due for release in paperback on 1 March 2012, and sees Kate looking for the missing body of a murdered stone mason.
Dying In The Wool on Amazon UK
A Medal For Murder on Amazon UK
Pre-order Murder in the Afternoon on Amazon UK

Lynn Shepherd
Lynn Shepherd’s debut, Murder at Mansfield Park, is a sensitive re-working of Jane Austen’s classic novel and the basis for her murder mystery. Although the main characters from the original story are still present, this is Mansfield Park, but not as we know it. Shepherd has most definitely taken this tale and made it her own. It’s a debut that has delighted many and her eagerly anticipated second novel Tom-All-Alone’s, based on the Charles Dickens classic Bleak House, is due for release next spring.
Murder at Mansfield Park on Amazon UK
Tom-All-Alone’s on Amazon UK

If you’ve come across another female author that you’re tipping for the top, share some details about them with our readers below. Feel free to comment on any of these writers as well.