Forget the SAS, the men of the LRDG were the original Rogue Heroes | Books | Entertainment

SAS 101 by Titch Cormack, Hardback, £22

Long before the SAS were a twinkle in the eye of their founder David Stirling, Ralph Bagnold and his merry band of explorers and mavericks of the Zerzura Club – named after a legendary lost Libyan oasis – were traversing the most hostile depths of the Sahara. The pre-war band of adventurers wrote the rule book on desert navigation, survival and warfare – inventing the idea of special forces and teaching the nascent SAS everything they knew – yet were subsequently overlooked in favour of the Rogue Heroes. Until now.

EX-SBS operator Titch Cormack, who spent 10 years in special forces, sets the record straight with his thrilling account of British eccentricity and grit. Bagnold and his boys confounded the Afrika Korps and invented techniques still used today. No wonder they were branded “highwaymen of the desert” by the Nazis. History at its gripping, fascinating finest. 9/10

The Last Place You Look by Nikki Smith, Paperback Original, £9.99

Tech bro Leo Kennedy is young, wealthy and handsome, enjoying a life of pleasures and looking forward to retiring at 41 after selling off his online rankings business. But when his wife Addison fails to return home from their luxury holiday home in South Africa, his carefully contained existence is overturned in an instant. Arriving at their lodge to find a scene of devastation after receiving a cryptic email, Leo is forced to retrace his wife’s steps to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Told in flashbacks and from different perspectives, The Last Place You Look will keep your heart rate pounding. But one warning, beware of picking this book up unless you’ve got time to spare – you’ll be instantly hooked. As good as Gone Girl, this absolutely first-rate psychological is perfect summer holiday reading. 9/10

My Sister’s Secret by Jane Corry, Paperback Original, £9.99

Two completely different sisters, Rosy and Amy, are bound together by a dark secret from their past they have sworn never to speak of again. Rosy is responsible, well-behaved and organised, while Amy is a free spirit and always breaking the rules, but they can never be apart as only they know what caused Amy to have a breakdown and spend years in a psychiatric hospital. When Amy’s new psychiatrist James begins to suspect neither sister is telling the truth about the events which triggered her breakdown, they know one wrong move could destroy them both.

But they are both drawn to him and soon cracks start to appear and consequences neither can predict. Corry is a master at exploring dark family dramas with complex characters and never-ending twists to keep readers guessing, and My Sister’s Secret is one of her best. The perfect summer holiday read. 8/10

In Deep Water by Elle Blair, Paperback Original, £9.99

Off-duty detective Rachel Harlow is enduring a family holiday aboard a cruise trip when a passenger she flirted with is found dead the next day. Danger, it seems, does not take a holiday – not even on a cruise – and when no investigation is launched, Rachel is determined to get to the truth but has to do so alone. With no eye-witnesses, silence from the crew and a web of lies, she soon finds herself in the eye of a storm.

In Deep Water is an astonishing and accomplished debut by a crime writer soon to be a fan favourite. Confident and considered, it’s a page-turner of breathtaking pace. In Rachel, readers will find a complex yet likable lead – someone we’d all pick for our team. With more twists and turns than a packet of fusilli, and a hell of a cliffhanger, it’s a strong contender for thriller of the summer. 9/10