Head Cases: The first in a brand-new action-packed spy thriller series from a bestselling author, perfect for readers of Mick Herron, David Baldacci and John Grisham
-
-
4.0 • 39 Ratings
-
-
- $9.99
Publisher Description
Mick Herron's Slow Horses meets David Baldacci's The Camel Club in a hot new series. When a serial killer starts targeting other serial killers, and seems to be one step ahead of the FBI at every turn, only one team of misfits has a chance of stopping him ...
Shortlisted for International Thriller Writers Awards 2026 - Best Series Novel
Gardner Camden is a walking analytical brain with an affinity for riddles, puzzles, and codes. It makes him the perfect fit for the Patterns and Recognition (PAR) unit of the FBI, a team of five brilliant but misfit agents who are too talented, too extraordinary to fire from the Bureau.
Gardner's smart, but he's all business - except for his seven-year-old daughter and occasional visits to his elderly mother, he prioritises his work and justice over everything else, no matter the cost.
A serial killer from one of Gardner's solved cases, presumed to be long dead, is found murdered, and then soon after, another body with a similar story. The mastermind murderer has left clues and riddles for Gardner and his team - a mathematician, a sniper and weapons expert, a computer analytics specialist, and their leader, a career agent - as they track him across the country. With the threat of PAR dissolving, the team can't afford to make any mistakes and Gardner must work to solve the riddles before it's too late.
McMahon's suspenseful and irresistible thriller confronts the scales of justices in the face of a twisted vengeance plot as this engaging cast of characters works together to stop a misguided vigilante.
'McMahon's inventive, eventful, smartly written, Head Cases, with its brilliant but fallible protagonist, its twisted-minded perpetrator, and its mix of sentiment and intrigue, is a terrific debut that augurs well for further installments in the series' Wall Street Journal
'[A] sterling series debut … McMahon introduces several clever wrinkles to this classic cat-and-mouse setup, while making the socially awkward Camden and his colleagues three-dimensional enough to sustain future installments. With pulse-pounding action and enough surprises to blindside even seasoned mystery fans, this is an excellent start' Publishers Weekly starred review
'Everything this crime fiction-lover could want: gripping, twisty, and atmospheric, with a harrowing and intriguing plot, gorgeous prose, and fresh and compelling characters' Karen Dionne, author of the #1 international bestseller The Marsh King's Daughter
'A masterfully done game of cat and mouse with an unforgettable cast of characters. I couldn't get enough of this addictive, propulsive story of intellect and intrigue' Matthew Quirk, author of The Night Agent
APPLE BOOKS REVIEW
The Good Detective author John McMahon kicks off a new series centred on the FBI’s unsung Patterns and Recognition (PAR) unit. More importantly, he introduces a prickly, idiosyncratic virtuoso in the lineage of Sherlock Holmes and Dr Gregory House. Meet Agent Gardner Camden, a world-class puzzle whizz who’d rather not venture away from his desk. When he and his team are called upon to locate a potential serial killer, this motley crew of agents find themselves—and their families—in direct danger. McMahon immediately establishes his protagonist’s dry, offbeat voice, then gradually complements it with an engaging ensemble cast that bodes well for future instalments. As for the procedural elements and satisfying suspense, they are reliably ratcheted up with equal parts propulsion and precision.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this sterling series launch from McMahon (the Detective P.T. Marsh novels), investigative savant Gardner Camden tracks a vigilante who targets serial killers. Camden—a member of the FBI's Patterns and Recognition team—has history with the vigilante's first victim, Ross Tignon, whom the investigator suspected of three murders in Florida a decade earlier. Though Camden believed Tignon died in a fire seven years ago, he'd instead moved to Texas, where a killer caught up with him. Before the team can make much progress on the Tignon case, rumors start swirling that their unit might be dissolved. Then another suspected serial killer turns up dead. With pressure boring down from all sides, the team comes to believe that the murderer has privileged information about unsolved serial killer cases—meaning that a member of the FBI is likely involved. McMahon introduces several clever wrinkles to this classic cat-and-mouse setup, while making the socially awkward Camden and his colleagues three-dimensional enough to sustain future installments. With pulse-pounding action and enough surprises to blindside even seasoned mystery fans, this is an excellent start.
Customer Reviews
The book I’ve been waiting years for.
Nothing had captured my interest for so long. I desperately wanted that book that I couldn’t wait to get back to, couldn’t put down when I did I was that addicted. Head cases is that book. I once again love reading and can’t wait to read more like it