THIS is the perfect Christmas gift for any crime fiction fan. Critic Jakubowski offers up a page-turning compendium of British talent that has captured the imagination of readers around the world.

Contributors include: Ian Rankin, Martina Cole, Peter Robinson, Stella Duffy, Jerry Sykes, Stephen Gallagher, Judith Cutler, David Williams, Amy Myers, Bill James, Peter Turnbull, Robert Barnard, Peter Lovesey and Val McDermid. A gripping new Rebus story from Ian Rankin sits alongside a gritty slice of life from Martina Cole and a typically chilling tale from Val McDermid. From the subtle inversions of Stella Duffy's Martha Grace to the ingenious twists and turns of Peter Turnbull's Weasal and the Fish, this is a collection you will not be able to put down.

Stories by British masters such as Peter Robinson, John Harvey, Anne Perry, Robert Barnard, Peter Lovesey and Simon Brett sit alongside work by up-and-coming young writers.

The Best British Mysteries edited by Maxim Jakubowski (Alison and Busby, £12.99)