Our top book picks this week: a thriller set in the bloodlands of 1943 Russia and more

Courtesy Reaktion Books

Courtesy Penguin UK

Courtesy W. W. Norton & Company

Courtesy Bloomsbury

Courtesy Atlantic Books

Death Zones by Simon Pasternak

As the decisive Battle of Kursk rages between the Third Reich and Russia, parts of the country are branded death zones, with horrific consequences for the locals. A visiting Nazi general is found dead and detective Heinrich Hoffman is assigned the case as he struggles to retain his humanity. Winner of the Danish Crime Book Award. (Harvill Secker, April 28)

The Suit: Form, Function and Style by Christopher Breward

The suit has been typically associated with masculinity and tradition throughout its 400-year history. But this looks at how the suit has also been used by women and artists to subvert ideas of gender and conformity. (Reaktion Books, April 4)

Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise by Anders Ericsson

Is pure talent something you are born with or can learn? Here psychologist Anders Ericsson argues that the “gift” of talent is simply a myth and we all have to ability to achieve excellence through hard work and dedication. (Bodley Head, April 28)

The Great Departure by Tara Zahra

Between 1846 and 1940, more than 50 million Eastern Europeans moved to the Americas. Using primary archive material, this looks at the challenges these people faced and the toll on those left behind. (W W Norton and Company, April 19)

The Bricks that Built the Houses by Kate Tempest

First novel from the Mercury Prize-winning rapper. It follows the fortunes of a group of friends who are seeking a way out from the violence, joblessness and temptations of London. Tempest won the Ted Hughes Award for poetry in 2013. (Bloomsbury Circus,

April 7)

The Midnight Watch by David Dyer

April 1912. RMS Titanic sinks and 1,500 people die. But charting the same course is the SS Californian, whose crew claims they did not see the eight distress rockets from the doomed ship. Journalist John Steadman becomes fixated on the Californian and investigates what really happened on the ship’s deck that night. (Atlantic Books, April 7)