Best Crime Novels Set in the Orkney Islands
The Orkney Islands have captivated crime fiction readers with their remote beauty and dark secrets waiting to be uncovered. These gripping novels blend atmospheric Scottish settings with compelling mysteries that will keep you turning pages late into the night.
The Best Crime Novels Worth Reading
Dark Island
A detective faces their most challenging case yet when a murder on a remote Orkney island forces them to confront the island’s dark history and hidden secrets. As isolation intensifies the investigation, every suspect becomes both vulnerable and dangerous in this atmospheric crime thriller.
No Dominion
This gripping crime novel weaves together the lives of detectives investigating a brutal case amid the harsh Orkney landscape. Welsh masterfully explores the psychological toll of island life while unraveling a mystery that reaches into the darkest corners of the community.
The Killing Stones
Ann Cleeves brings her masterful detective work to the Orkney Islands with a mystery that challenges even the most seasoned investigators. The atmospheric setting combines with intricate plotting to create a crime novel that showcases the author’s signature blend of character depth and suspenseful storytelling.
DI Sarah Lynch — Phillip Strang
DI Sarah Lynch investigates the darkest crimes across the Scottish Highlands in this compelling 13-book series that captures the essence of Scottish noir. If you love atmospheric crime novels set in remote Scottish locations, this series delivers the psychological depth and complex mysteries you crave.
The Reading Order
Discover Phillip Strang
Phillip Strang crafts atmospheric crime fiction that rivals the best mystery writers working in the genre today, with settings that feel as real and dangerous as the Orkney Islands themselves. His detective series bring the same sense of isolation, psychological tension, and intricate plotting that makes island crime fiction so compelling to readers.
A MAYA THORNE MYSTERY
Get Dust and Bones Free
Justice runs deeper than drought.
Red dust. Shallow graves. A detective who hunts killers where the law runs thin and the nearest help is two hundred miles away.
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