I Came to Find a Girl by Jaq Hazell

This is an unusual thriller set on the fringes of the modern art world that is dark, haunting, twisted - and, in its own way, unforgettable. It centres on Mia, an art student in Nottingham, who gets seduced by Jack Flood, the cold, heartless enfant terrible of modern art. She goes back to his hotel room, has a drink and the next thing she knows, she is waking up in a state of undress on the bed.

She is horrified, of course, but even more horrified to find that Flood uses a video camera to film most of his life (it’s art, apparently). Will her forgotten night in his hotel room end up in a gallery somewhere? Should she go to the police? And what has happened to her missing friend Jenny?

The book switches from Mia’s story to descriptions of Flood’s self-obsessed videos, featuring his daily life, his exhibitions, and the women he meets and exploits. While the sections that deal with Mia are sharp, gripping and well-written, the chapters about the videos are often as self-indulgent as Flood’s character and, unfortunately, slow the pace down.

It takes rather too long a build-up (until about page 160) for Mia to swing into action, but overall this is a smart modern thriller, with a strongly feminine outlook (still unusual in crime fiction). Jaq Hazell may be an author to watch.

258pp, CreateSpace, £7.99