Former journalist Matt Grimshaw’s life is at a low ebb. He’s been ‘let go’ by the paper where he’s worked for years, and his relationship with his long-term girlfriend has come unstuck.
So when an invitation arrives from his two closest friends, Celia and Adam Murphy, to join them at their house in Greece, he jumps at it.
It may be harsh and unwelcoming on the Mani Peninsula but Matt determines to stay there for the whole summer and to write his much put-off screen-play.
But then the Murphys plus children arrive, and a wealthy newcomer to the area starts throwing loud and lavish parties in his big house across the bay.
As the nights become hotter and the parties wilder, everyone’s motivations darken. Envy rises, resentments grow – until a terrible accident stops the summer in its tracks.
At least, it looks like an accident…
Set over one blazing Mediterranean summer, Sabine Durrant’s new thriller is tense, claustrophobic and utterly gripping.
Book Info: Print length: 400 pages. Publisher: Century. Publication Date: 12 March 2026
My Thoughts:
I have read lots of Sabine Durrant’s books and have loved them all, so I was very excited to get an ARC copy of Dead Heat which is being published by Century in March 2026.
I don’t think this author gets the credit or recognition she deserves as a superior author of psychological thrillers and if you haven’t heard of her before, I can highly recommend Lie With Me, Finders Keepers, Under Your Skin and Take Me In whilst you wait for the publication day of Dead Heat.
Dead Heat is being praised by critics and early readers as The White Lotus meets The Great Gatsby. Set against the blistering backdrop of the Mani Peninsula in Greece. The story follows Matt Grimshaw, a former journalist whose life is slowing falling apart. Seeking solace and inspiration, he accepts an invitation to stay with friends in their remote Greek home. But what begins as a retreat quickly spirals into a tense, claustrophobic summer of envy, secrets, and betrayal and death.
This is a highly atmospheric psychological thriller with Durrant’s brilliantly complex and flawed characters jumping out of the pages and getting right under your skin.
From lavish parties, secret affairs, relationships at breaking point and a mysterious death to unravel, the reader is taken on a scorching journey of infatuation and resentment.
I absolutely LOVED this book and highly recommend it to any fan of tense, character-driven suspense. Also, I often recommend books to Lisa Jewell as we seem to love the same books, so when I sent her a Whatsapp telling her she must read it, I really should have looked at the cover first as there is a wonderful quote from Lisa calling it “gloriously dark and wildly engrossing” so if my review isn’t enough for you, take Lisa’s word for it.
