October brings with it a bumper crop of excellent new crime and thriller books. Century, £22The Long Shoe by Bob MortimerMatt’s life has collapsed – until a job offer with suspicious perks lands in his lap. Sphere, £22The Murder at World’s End by Ross MontgomeryIn this terrific debut billed as “Downton Abbey meets Knives Out”, a butler and an elderly genius team up to solve a manor-house murder. Set between calm village life and looming catastrophe, Penny’s latest is cat-and-mouse thrills at their best. Hodder & Stoughton, £20Lucky Thing by Tom BaragwanathBaragwanath’s follow-up to his award-winning debut Paper Cage probes crime, community and corruption in small-town New Zealand.