Simon Ritchie takes a look at the latest thrillers to hit the bookshelves.

YORKSHIRE author Ken McCoy has turned to crime at last.

And the Leeds-born writer, who is best known for historical sagas such as Two Rings For Rosie, Change For A Farthing and Annie's Legacy, has definitely done the right thing.

At the start of Tripper (Allison and Busby (£18.99), we find former bouncer Ron Crusher being forced at gunpoint to the parapet of a 12-storey office block in the centre of the fictitious West Yorkshire town of Unsworth. He suspects that he's being used to distract the police while a criminal gang escapes. He has no idea that he is about to die.

He can't recall any grudges, and he doubts there is any connection with gangster Milo Morrell, a local club-owner and drugs supplier who is offloading cocaine in order to go legit. But just minutes later he is sent plunging to his death without ever knowing why.

The local police believe Crusher committed suicide and are not pursuing the matter, but the deceased's brother claims he was pushed and calls on the services of Sam "Mad" Carew, ex-cop turned builder and amateur private detective, to investigate.

With the help of his Welsh police friend Owen Price, the likeable Carew delves into Unsworth's criminal underworld and, as his investigations start to bear fruit, stares death in the face on more than one occasion.

Tripper is one of the best private eye stories I've read in a long time; it's fast paced, with a great cast of strong characters, a generous amount of wit and murder aplenty. It's the real McCoy.

The problem with fictional accounts of historical events is you know the ending. Take the Julius Caesar story for instance. Everyone knows that in the end he is stabbed to death by his peers, including best mate Brutus. But don't let it put you off reading The Gods Of War (HarperCollins, £12.99), the fourth and final volume in the acclaimed Emperor series, by Conn Iggulden.

The former teacher brilliantly interweaves history and adventure to recreate the astonishing life of one of history's most compelling figures.

In the concluding instalment, the animosity between Pompey, the dictator of Rome, and the young general Caesar, fresh from his triumphant conquests of Gaul and Britain, comes to a head.

This excellent series has put Iggulden on a par with the king of history stories, Bernard Cornwell. Iggulden's next project is Genghis Khan. Watch this space...

Odd Thomas is one of Dean Koontz's unlikeliest heroes. He never asked to communicate with the dead - they sought him out. He is the unofficial goodwill ambassador between our world and the next. Odd lives between two worlds in the small US desert town of Pico Mundo, which he can never leave.

In Forever Odd (HarperCollins, £17.99), our hero is visited by the recently murdered father of a childhood friend.

Odd follows him to his home, where he finds his body, and also discovers that his crippled friend is missing.

After calling the police, Odd goes in search of his friend who has been kidnapped by an evil "sorceress" and her two henchmen. Why? Because she wants Odd to conjure up some spirits for him.

Not one of Koontz's best, but an entertaining tale all the same.

Oz Blackstone makes a welcome return in Quintin Jardine's For The Death of Me (Headline, £18.99)

It's summertime in Monaco and Oz is sitting on the veranda of his mansion, idly gazing at Roman Abramovich's luxury yacht as it cruises into the harbour. Life doesn't get much better than this. But somebody knows where he lives. A struggling author talks him into buying the movie rights to his latest novel for $50,000, and a shocking trap is laid. The demons of the past begin to creep up on Oz's new life: blackmail and murder are lurking in the shadows.

Oz travels to Singapore to track down the owner of some incriminating photographs. And when organised crime muscles in on the picture, Oz is perilously close to losing a lot more than his wealth and reputation. It's an entertaining and enjoyable read from the always reliable Mr Jardine.

David Baldacci turns to murder and intrigue in Washington's halls of power for The Camel Club (Macmillan, £12.99).

Oliver Stone (not the film director!) spends most days camped opposite the White House, hoping to expose corruption wherever he finds it. But the stakes are raised when he and his friends, a group of conspiracy theorist misfits known as The Camel Club, witness the murder of an intelligence analyst.

The authorities are happy to write it off as a suicide, but Secret Service agent Alex Ford, who is monitoring the investigation, thinks it could be murder.

Soon Ford - together with The Camel Club - discover a conspiracy that reaches into the heart of Washington's corridors of power.

It's an intelligent thriller from an author who has hit top form.

Updated: 10:18 Saturday, January 21, 2006