Search Results for: there will come a darkness

‘Vivid characters, great storytelling and a spine-tingling twist.’ Jo Spain

‘Dark, tense and richly atmospheric, the past is never far away in this twisty thriller where nothing is quite as it seems.’ Sam Blake

‘A very exciting read’ Patricia Gibney

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SOMETHING OLD, SOMETHING NEW

Winter brings more than fierce Atlantic storms to the tourist town of Kylebeggan, County Kerry. On a cold January night a woman is found murdered and laid out in her wedding dress. The town is shocked, but there’s more to come. February brings a second murder. And when taxi driver Ellie Gillespie collects a bride-to-be from a hen party – and later discovers the woman has been killed in a similar way to the other women – Ellie decides to get involved.

SOMETHING BORROWED

The gardaí, mayor, and tourist board are desperate to minimise the negative publicity. But with the Special Crime Squad drafted in from Dublin and international media in town, it’s becoming harder and harder to manage the story.

SOMEONE DEAD

Ellie has her suspicions about a possible killer. She shares her thoughts with local journalist Cormac Scully, prompting him to dig into past secrets of the town. Can Ellie and Cormac figure out who it is before the Bride Collector strikes again?

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Praise for Siobhan MacDonald:

‘Page turner guilty of a gripping story. You could choke on the delicious venality & hypocrisy. Just one of the creepy thrills in this page turner.’ Irish Examiner

‘This is a terrifically dark, twisty thriller, skilfully plotted and stylishly written.’ Irish Times

‘GUILTY is a classy and cleverly plotted psychological thriller that grips from page one, packed with well-drawn characters and delivering an absolute zinger of a twist in the tale in the final pages.’ Sunday Independent

‘GUILTY is a twisty tale of ruthless ambition, family dysfunction and cold-blooded vengeance.’ RTE Guide

‘A full tapestry of secrets and lies. A perfect mix for a thrilling read.’ Patricia Gibney

‘An unsettling, suspenseful tale of heartbreak and revenge. I flew through it.’ Andrea Carter

‘The Bride Collector takes you on an irresistible rollercoaster ride which is utterly gripping and unputdownable from the very first page.’ Louise Phillips, winner of Best Irish Crime Novel

‘Murky goings-on in an Irish tourist town and a final twist I didn’t see coming, make The Bride Collector the ideal staycation read.’ Catherine Kirwan, author of Darkest Truth

‘Siobhan MacDonald has once again succeeded in haunting my dreams. Her tale has more twists than a corkscrew, characters you will not want to share a dark alley with, and perfectly flawed amateur sleuths. A satisfyingly scary read.’ Roisin Meaney

‘Highly entertaining’ Sunday Times

In the last decade of Elizabeth I’s reign, Nick Revill, an aspiring young actor, comes to London seeking fame and fortune. Once there he gains employment with the Chamberlain’s Men.

Thrown out of his digs over an unfortunate accident, Nick is offered lodgings at a wealthy Thameside mansion by a black-clad youth whose father has just died and whose mother has remarried his uncle. Pondering on the similarities between the young man’s story and William Shakespeare’s newest tragedy, Hamlet, Nick is charged with the task of finding out whether foul play was involved in the death of the old man and hasty remarriage of his young, lusty wife.

As Nick works his way ever closer to the truth, the finger of suspicion begins to point to his enigmatic employer Mr William Shakespeare – actor, author and shareholder in the Chamberlain’s Men . . .

The first gripping historical mystery in the Nick Revill series, set in the bustling theatrical world of William Shakespeare.

Praise for Philip Gooden:

‘Another clever criminal plunge into history’ Guardian

‘The witty narrative, laced with puns and word play so popular in this period, makes this an enjoyable racy tale’ Sunday Telegraph

‘The book has much in common with the film Shakespeare in Love – full of colourful characters . . . but the book has an underlying darkness’ Crime Time

‘Historical mystery fans are in for a treat’ Publishers Weekly

The third gripping novel in the Polish detective series featuring DI Dania Gorska.

In the north of Dundee, DI Dania Gorska is leading the search for a missing girl, with the police and volunteers combing the dramatic landscape in hope of finding the child. What they discover in a derelict hut in the hills isn’t the girl, but is the remains of a body, chained to a wall.

This body isn’t the missing child but is identified as another young boy, Cameron Affleck, who disappeared many years before in a case that could never be solved. Dania contacts the boy’s father, who still spends much time digging around the fields where his son was last seen, in hope of finding his body.

Dania begins to unearth the old case, determined to discover Cameron’s killer and looking for possible connections to the present-day missing child. But as she digs into the past, she realises that the Affleck family are hiding more than they let on and that there are some dark secrets that everyone wants to stay buried…

Praise for Hania Allen

‘Nicely nasty in all the right places . . . The story rattles along until bringing the curtain down with an unnerving twist’ Craig Robertson

‘A fresh new find for crime fans … the plot is intriguing, the characters are well drawn, and the end comes with an unnerving twist. Extremely readable‘ Sunday Post

‘Captivating characters and an intriguing plot. A great new find for crime fans’ Lin Anderson

‘Pitch-perfect . . . a witty, tense crime novel written in a highly readable style‘ Russel D McLean

‘Immersive from the start and satisfying to the finish, a faultless tale from one of our best writers of historical crime fiction’ JESS KIDD

In the darkness, her face glimmered like polished bone, white, but with a bluish tinge. Her lips were dry and cracked. I saw them move; a black tongue pass over them as if she was trying to speak, but she made no sound.

A plague is coming to London. Dreaded more than the Devil himself, cholera – the ‘blue death’ – spares no one. As fear grows across the city, Jem Flockhart and Will Quartermain are called to the bedside of a dead man, murdered, and with his throat torn out, in the back room of a brothel. When an innocent man is taken to Newgate, Jem and Will have until execution day to save him. The search for the identity of the corpse, and the killer, takes them to the gates of Blackwater Hall, home to the secretive, and corrupt Mortmain family. With the approach of autumn, no one is safe, for the fog brings with it an evil and poisonous sickness – the perfect shroud for murder.

When family secrets are prised out into the open, people begin dying. But who, or what, is the cause? Searching for answers, Jem and Will are driven underground, to the passages and tunnels beneath the city’s teeming streets. Here, their adversary proves to be more elusive, and more deadly, than ever.

PRAISE FOR UNDER GROUND

‘From the outset every image, every metaphor and simile reflects the central themes of corruption and disease, poverty and decadence.The plot is complex and substantial and the final denouement has a feeling of perfect inevitability’ ALIS HAWKINS

‘I LOVED it. Fantastic characters – I never guessed! So good … Underground is brilliantly steeped in the lore of Victorian London, i couldn’t take my eyes off it!’ SARA SHERIDAN

‘Immersive’ SCOTLAND ON SUNDAY

PRAISE FOR E.S.THOMSON

‘Another gripping page-turner, add Nightshade to your reading list now.’ Edinburgh Evening News

‘Vivid, pungent and perilous’ CHRIS BROOKMYRE on Beloved Poison

‘Evocative…brilliant plotting’ REBECCA GRIFFITHS on Beloved Poison

‘A dark gripping atmospheric thriller’ Dundee Courier on Nightshade

‘Superb’ Sunday Express

‘Gothic. Gory. Glorious . . . E. S. Thompson’s Jem Flockhart books are the best I’ve read in years. Jem is just my kind of heroine: scarred, smart, complex, and unapologetically queer’ Kirsty Logan, author of The Gloaming

‘Love evocative descriptions of Victorian London and brilliant plotting? Then grab a copy of this!’ Rebecca Griffiths, author of The Primrose Path

‘Complex, harrowing and highly enjoyable’ Daily Express

‘A marvellous, vivid book’ Janet Ellis

‘Jem Flockhart is a marvel . . . This vivid journey into the dark side of the human soul is a thoroughly engrossing tale’ Mary Paulson Ellis, author of The Other Mrs Walker

THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER

‘THE ROCK ‘N’ ROLL AUTOBIOGRAPHY OF THE YEAR’ MAIL ON SUNDAY

‘Essential for fans and great reading for anyone else’ Classic Rock

Break-ups, make-ups, groupies, band politics, court battles, the tragic death of Rick Parfitt . . . This is Francis Rossi as you have never seen him before.

Status Quo have sold over 100 million records worldwide, including 65 hit singles and 32 hit albums. The legendary band’s career has mirrored the evolution of rock music. From the struggles of the flower-power ’60s, the highs of the denim-clad ’70s, the coke- and tequila-induced blur of the ’80s, to fighting for musical integrity in the ’90s and ’00s and a fresh lease of life from new band members in recent years, Rossi has been there for the entirety of Quo’s turbulent history.

In I Talk Too Much, Rossi will reveal the truth behind one of the biggest rock bands of all time, as well as the personal highs and lows of a career spanning over 50 years. He lifts the lid on the man behind the music – from humble beginnings in Forest Hill and being labelled a has-been by the press in his twenties to opening Live Aid in 1985 – and why he’s still going strong at seventy. Along the way he has fathered eight children with three mothers and beaten both alcoholism and cocaine addiction. Rossi comes clean about the time he almost left the band, what he really thinks about the music industry today and the complexities of his fifty-year friendship with Rick Parfitt.

Painfully honest, riotously funny and frequently outrageous, I Talk Too Much covers the glory years, the dark days and the real stories behind the creation of some of the greatest rock music of all time.

‘While Oxford had Morse, Whitstable, famous for its oysters, has Pearl’ Daily Mail

Murder Fest is the sixth book in Julie Wassmer’s popular crime series – now a major Acorn TV drama, Whitstable Pearl, starring Kerry Godliman as private detective and restaurateur, Pearl Nolan.

Pearl’s detective agency takes a back seat as she prepares to offer a warm welcome to a group of special visitors. A local Arts Festival is being held to honour a cultural exchange visit from representatives of Borken – Whitstable’s Twin Town in Germany.

Yet very soon, personality clashes surface among the participants; local politicians try to use the festival for their own ends while others jostle for improved billing on the festival programme. Tempers flare, old feuds re-surface and on the eve of the first event, a cryptic message – Murder Fest – is received by the local police. Before DCI Mike McGuire has a chance to investigate, the festival commences with an unscheduled event when a celebrated author is found brutally murdered . . .

Soon the only ‘Arts’ on display are dark ones, as Whitstable’s celebration of local culture transforms into a real-life murder fest – offering Whitstable’s Pearl Nolan another mystery to solve.

Praise for Julie Wassmer’s Whitstable Pearl Mysteries…


‘While Oxford had Morse, Whitstable, famous for its oysters, has Pearl . . . True to the tradition of classic crime, [Julie Wassmer] weaves a strong story into a setting that has more to offer than murder and mayhem’ Daily Mail


‘As light as a Mary Berry Victoria sponge, this Middle-England romp is packed with vivid characters’ Myles McWeeney, Irish Independent

‘All of the thrills without any of the gore’ The Sun

‘This is a quality title…a very entertaining read’ The Puzzle Doctor

‘My new favourite author in the genre’ George Galloway

‘A wonderful way to explore Whitstable . . . if you love cosy mysteries, then get acquainted with Pearl (and her mum and her cats!) and enjoy a trip to Whitstable through the eyes of this very convincing author’ Trip Fiction

‘Proves she’s mistress of her craft’ John McGhie, author of White Highlands

‘Thoroughly enjoyable with a host of wonderful characters – I adore Dolly! – and evocative descriptions of Whitstable. Perfect for foodies too. Pearl is great and the ongoing will they/won’t they love story with McGuire is compelling. Comforting, cosy and entertaining with excellent Agatha Christie-style reveals. I love these books!’ Jane Wenham-Jones, author of Mum in the Middle

‘If you enjoy cosy crime fiction and you still haven’t picked this series, then you are missing out’ Alba in Bookland

‘Julie Wassmer really knows how to tell a story’ — Victoria Best, Shiny New Books

‘Good, solid whodunits, without gruesome details or gratuitous violence, Murder on Sea may be just your cup of tea’ — Bec Stafford

‘Come to Whitstable without actually coming to Whitstable. A good read!’ Anthony Jemmett

Praise for the TV series

‘Scandi noir meets the English seaside in Whitstable Pearl, a murder mystery series based on Julie Wassmer’s novels…’ Drama Quarterly

‘…explores all the murder and debauchery in the seemingly perfect English seaside town of Whitstable…’ Washington Post

‘…you never know what might turn up, either on the menu or alongside an oyster boat.’ Wall Street Journal

EVERYONE IS HIDING A SECRET. ONE OF THEM IS MURDER.

‘I raced through it – edgy, tense’
Harriet Tyce, author of Blood Orange

‘I for one am terrified of the woman next door!’
Louise Candlish, author of The Other Passenger

‘Tightly plotted, edge-of-seat gripping’
Sophie Hannah, author of Haven’t They Grown

‘Dark, twisty, claustrophobic’
Jo Spain, author of The Confession
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The book club was her idea, of course.

It was her way into our group. A chance to get close.

I knew from the day she arrived that she couldn’t be trusted.

And I was right.

Alice didn’t come to the village for peace and quiet.

She came for revenge.
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A deliciously addictive psychological thriller about a book club that unravels dark and scandalous secrets between one circle of neighbours. The perfect page-turner for fans of Big Little Lies and The Rumour.

What readers are saying about The Book Club:

‘Wow. What a page turner’

‘Couldn’t put it down!!!’

‘Truly a five-star debut’

‘Absolutely addictive’

‘Seriously page-turning, totally gripping’

‘A thrilling read, found it hard to put down once I’d started. Loved the ending’

‘Brilliant, a proper page turner’

‘Dark and creepy’

‘Loved it!’

‘Gripping to the last page’

‘Fast paced and will make your blood run cold!’

‘Had me on the edge of my seat’

WINNER OF THE 2021 McILVANNEY AWARD

IAN RANKIN’S CHOICE FOR BOTH BEST MYSTERY BOOK OF 2021 (PBS), AND BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR (NEW STATESMAN)

‘Russell writes a pacy, ever-twisting mystery that will keep you turning the pages.’ – Ian Rankin

‘When it comes to Gothic crime, Craig Russell is peerless. Absolutely stunning.’ – M W Craven

From international bestselling author Craig Russell comes a modern Gothic masterpiece.

Edward Hyde has a strange gift – or a curse – he keeps secret from all but his physician. He experiences two realities, one real, the other a dreamworld state brought on by a neurological condition.

When murders in Victorian Edinburgh echo the ancient Celtic threefold death ritual, Captain Edward Hyde hunts for those responsible. In the process he becomes entangled in a web of Celticist occultism and dark scheming by powerful figures. The answers are there to be found, not just in the real world but in the sinister symbolism of Edward Hyde’s otherworld.

He must find the killer, or lose his mind.

A dark tale. One that inspires Hyde’s friend . . . Robert Louis Stevenson.

Praise for Hyde:

‘Intricate…evocative prose enhances a suspenseful and sophisticated plot. This is the rare riff on an influential novel that sticks the landing’ Starred Review, Publishers Weekly

‘Stephen King meets Robert Louis Stevenson… an imaginative gothic tale guaranteed to send a shiver down your spine the next time you walk a dark Edinburgh night.’ – David Hewson, author of The Garden Of Angels

‘Russell delivers a brooding, stunningly atmospheric tale set in Stevenson’s Edinburgh – multi-layered and intricately plotted, this is a Gothic thriller from the hands of a master.’ – Margaret Kirk, author of Shadow Man

‘A deliciously dark reimagining of a timeless character and a wonderful recreation of a gothic Edinburgh . . . Another winner for a consummate storyteller.’ – Douglas Skelton

‘Gloriously diabolical. A terrifying thrill ride through the hidden chasms of the human soul.’ – Chris Brookmyre, author of Black Widow

I absolutely adored it. Intense, harrowing and hugely entertaining. Craig Russell conjures the kind of spine-tingling tale that kept me reading through the night. Spectacular. – Chris Whittaker

‘The story is a thrilling ride through the murky depths of madness and horror, written with all Craig’s trademark skill and style. Definitely five stars from me’ James Oswald

‘A Gothic masterpiece which will lead you so far into the darkness that you won’t know who to trust. Another splendid offering from a writer who is top of his game. ‘ – Theresa Talbot

‘An engaging Gothic thriller full of atmosphere and surprises.’ – Irish Independent

Praise for Craig Russell

‘A masterclass in suspenseful, character-driven prose fiction. Simply exceptional’
Frank Darabont, writer and director of The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile

‘Superior crime fiction set in Iceland’ The Times

‘As chilling as an Icelandic winter’ S. J. Bolton

Hidden away in a secure house outside Reykjavík, Detective Gunna and a high-profile stranger, a guest of the interiors minister, are thrown together – too close for comfort.

They soon find they are neither as safe nor as carefully hidden as Gunna and her boss had thought. Conflicting glimpses of the man’s past start to emerge as the press begin to sniff him out, as does another group with their own reasons for locating him.

Gunna struggles to come to terms with protecting the life of a man who may have the lives of many on his conscience – or indeed may be the philanthropist he claims to be.

Isolated together, the friction grows between Gunna and the foreign visitor, and she realises they are out of their depth as the trails lead from the house outside Reykjavík to Brussels, Russia and the Middle East.

The sixth dark and atmospheric thriller in Quentin Bates’s Icelandic crime series. A chilling page-turner perfect for fans of Jo Nesbo, Henning Mankell and Søren Sveistrup’s The Chestnut Man.

Praise for Quentin Bates:

‘A great read – leaves you craving the next installment’ Yrsa Sigurðardóttir

‘A perfect book to curl up with in front of the fire’ The Bookbag

‘Well written and absorbing’ Woman’s Way

‘Captures the chilly spirit of Nordic crime fiction . . . Fans of Arnaldur Indridason’s Reykjavík mysteries will want to add Bates to their reading lists’ Booklist

‘[A] crackling fiction debut … palpable authenticity’ Publishers Weekly

‘A superb new series’ Eurocrime

‘A true rising star of crime fiction’ Ian Rankin

‘Wonderfully grisly and grim, and a cracking pace’ James Oswald

‘A frantic, pacy read with a compelling hero’ Steve Cavanagh

War is coming to No-Man’s Land, and Connor Fraser will be ready.

A mutilated body is found dumped at Cowane’s Hospital in the heart of historic Stirling. For DCI Malcolm Ford it’s like nothing he’s ever seen before, the savagery of the crime makes him want to catch the murderer before he strikes again. For reporter Donna Blake it’s a shot at the big time, a chance to get her career back on track and prove all the doubters wrong. But for close protection specialist Connor Fraser it’s merely a grisly distraction from the day job.

But then another bloodied and broken corpse is found, this time in the shadow of the Wallace Monument – and with it, a message. One Connor has received before, during his time as a police officer in Belfast.

With Ford facing mounting political and public pressure to make an arrest and quell fears the murders are somehow connected to heightened post-Brexit tensions, Connor is drawn into a race against time to stop another murder. But to do so, he must question old loyalties, confront his past and unravel a mystery that some would sacrifice anything – and anyone – to protect.

From Dundee International Book Prize and Bloody Scotland book of the year nominee Neil Broadfoot comes the first gripping thriller in the white-knuckle Connor Fraser crime series.

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Praise for Neil Broadfoot:

‘Tense, fast-moving and bloody. Broadfoot’s best yet’ Mason Cross

‘Broadfoot is here, and he’s ready to sit at the table with some of the finest crime writers Scottish fiction has to offer’ Russel D. McLean

‘Tension that’ll hold you breathless’ Helen Fields

‘Crisp dialogue, characters you believe and a prose style that brings you back for more . . . a fine addition to a growing roster of noir titles with a tartan tinge’ Douglas Skelton

‘This is Broadfoot’s best to date, a thriller that delivers the thrills: energetic, breathlessly paceyand keeping you guessing till the end’ Craig Russell

‘Neil Broadfoot hits the ground running and doesn’t stop. With the very beating heart of Scotland at its core, your heart too will race as you reach the jaw dropping conclusion of this brilliant thriller. First class!’ Denil Meyrick

‘A deliciously twisty thriller that never lets up the pace. Thrills, spills, chills and kills’ Donna Moore

‘An explosive, gripping page-turner with dark and utterly twisted murders. Simply brilliant!’ Danielle Ramsay

‘An atmospheric, twisty and explosive start to a new series by one of the masters of Scottish fiction. Get your wee mitts on it’ Angela Clarke

‘No Man’s Land is a stunning, fast-paced, multi-layered thriller. Disturbing political unrest and psychological horror written with great confidence by Neil Broadfoot, who has one hand on Ian Rankin’s crown as the king of Scottish crime’ Michael Wood

‘[A] gritty and fast-moving tale of shifting loyalties set against the backdrop of Scottish and Irish politics’ Nick Quantrill

‘Definitely a must read for all lovers of Tartan Noir: or anyone else who simply wants to enjoy a compelling tale’ Undiscovered Scotland

‘A brutal and thrilling page-turner’ The Sun

‘Compelling’ Heat

‘The best pure mystery plot of the year’ Morning Star

‘Gleefully gory and witty, with a terrific sense of place’ Sunday Mirror
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After The Puppet Show, a new storm is coming . . .

Jared Keaton, chef to the stars. Charming. Charismatic. Psychopath . . . He’s currently serving a life sentence for the brutal murder of his daughter, Elizabeth. Her body was never found and Keaton was convicted largely on the testimony of Detective Sergeant Washington Poe.

So when a young woman staggers into a remote police station with irrefutable evidence that she is Elizabeth Keaton, Poe finds himself on the wrong end of an investigation, one that could cost him much more than his career.

Helped by the only person he trusts, the brilliant but socially awkward Tilly Bradshaw, Poe races to answer the only question that matters: how can someone be both dead and alive at the same time?

And then Elizabeth goes missing again – and all paths of investigation lead back to Poe.

The gripping new thriller in the Washington Poe series from M. W. Craven, winner of the CWA Gold Dagger Award for best crime novel of 2019.

*Longlisted for the Crime Writers Association Gold Dagger 2020*

Praise for MIKE CRAVEN

‘Dark, sharp and compelling’ PETER JAMES

‘Fantastic’ MARTINA COLE

‘Britain’s answer to Harry Bosch’ MATT HILTON

‘A powerful thriller from an explosive new talent’ DAVID MARK

‘Truly mind-blowing’ A. A. Dhand

‘A book that shines with tension, wit and invention’ William Shaw

‘Washington Poe – a rising giant in detective fiction’ Alison Bruce

‘A twisty thriller with a killer plot Ed James

‘I loved this book!’ Jo Jakeman

‘One of the best British crime novels I’ve read in a long time . . . Simply an unputdownable page-turner‘ Nick Oldham

‘Grabs you from the very first page. A dark and brilliantly twisted crime thriller‘ Colin Falconer

‘Dark and twisted in all the right places’ Robert Scragg

‘In Tilly and Poe, MW Craven has created a stand-out duo who are two of the most compelling characters in crime fiction in recent years’ Fiona Cummins

‘Dark, thrilling and unputdownable‘ Victoria Selman

‘Refreshing . . . I look forward to reading more’ Alex Gray

‘First-rate’ Sunday Sport

When it comes to murder, there’s no such thing as a coincidence …

When DI Dania Gorska is called to investigate the shooting of a young man on a Dundee street, the nail hammered into his forehead suggests that local gangster, Archie McLellan has left his calling card. Clues point to his involvement in an illegal replica firearms venture, a scam that may include other members of the infamous McLellan family.

The chance discovery of human remains buried in the grounds of Breek House, once owned by the McLellans, convinces Dania the two cases must be related. But who was the mysterious tenant of Breek House at the time the bodies were put into the ground? Identifying them is complicated as all the teeth have been removed – post mortem, to prevent identification? Or was the back room at Breek House used by the McLellans as a torture chamber?

As Dania moves closer to discovering what went on at Breek House she disturbs dangerous secrets from the past which threaten the lives of those in the present…

Praise for Hania Allen

‘A fresh new find for crime fans’ Sunday Post

‘Nicely nasty in all the right places . . . The story rattles along until bringing the curtain down with an unnerving twist‘ Craig Robertson

‘Captivating characters and an intriguing plot. A great new find for crime fans’ Lin Anderson

‘Pitch-perfect . . . a witty, tense crime novel written in a highly readable style’ Russel D McLean

What secrets do the dark bones of Dundrennan Abbey hold?

A year ago, she was happily married, bringing up her beloved son, running her successful beauty salon and living with her loving husband in her dream house.

Now Ali McGovern’s dreams are slipping away and all her old ghosts are coming back to haunt her. A job at Howell Hall, the private psychiatric facility near her rented cottage and the ruined abbey, seems too good to be true. But why has the couple who run the place employed her when she is clearly not qualified to do it? How can they afford to pay her so well? And what are they hiding?

When a body is discovered in a shallow grave by the abbey on Ali’s first day at work, it feels like one last horror. But it’s just the beginning of her descent into a nightmare world she never imagined existed so close to home.

‘An unnerving and suspenseful novel, THE WEIGHT OF ANGELS is McPherson’s best yet’ – Karin Slaughter, New York Times and International Bestselling author

The perfect revenge takes patience.
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Melanie wakes up one morning next to a man she doesn’t remember. When his wife walks in, Melanie realises to her horror that no one can see or hear her – because she is dead.

But has she woken up next to her murderer? And why is she an invisible guest in a house she can’t seem to leave?

As she begins to piece together the last days of her life, it becomes clear she has to make a choice:

Bring her killer to justice, or wreak her own revenge on the man who murdered her.
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What everyone’s saying about Where She Went:

‘Oh my word, what a totally captivating thriller‘

‘Never expected the final twist‘

‘What a page-turner‘

‘Addictive‘

‘Wow . . . I couldn’t put it down!‘

‘Best book I’ve read in a long time!‘

‘A chilling read that leaves you shuddering‘

‘Brilliantly dark‘

‘Gripping . . . kept me guessing right from the start‘

‘An amazing cliffhanger’

‘Could not put it down‘

‘So many twists I didn’t see coming‘

‘Very addictive and thrilling‘

‘Unputdownable‘

‘Loved it . . . A delicious premise’

‘A superb, dark tale‘

‘Vivid, pungent and perilous’ CHRIS BROOKMYRE

‘Evocative…brilliant plotting’ REBECCA GRIFFITHS


A dark and richly atmospheric thriller, perfect for fans of Laura Purcell’s The Silent Companions, Sarah Perry’s Melmoth and Elly Griffiths’ The Stranger Diaries.

London, 1846.

Ramshackle and crumbling, St Saviour’s Infirmary awaits demolition. Within its stinking wards and cramped corridors the doctors bicker and fight. Ambition, jealousy and hatred seethe beneath the veneer of professional courtesy.

Always an outsider, and with a secret of her own to hide, apothecary Jem Flockhart observes everything, but says nothing.

And then six tiny coffins are uncovered, inside each a handful of dried flowers and a bundle of mouldering rags. When Jem comes across these strange relics hidden inside the infirmary’s old chapel, her quest to understand their meaning prises open a long-forgotten past – with fatal consequences . . .


Praise for E.S. Thomson:

‘It’s rare that a book is Gothic enough for me, but Beloved Poison is killing it. The blood, the bones…’ LAURA PURCELL

‘Complex, harrowing and highly enjoyable’ DAILY EXPRESS

‘Marvellous, vivid . . . breathtakingly dark’ JANET ELLIS

‘Jem Flockhart books are the best I’ve read in years’ KIRSTY LOGAN

‘A marvel . . . thoroughly engrossing’ MARY PAULSON ELLIS

Christmas 1939. In Europe the Phoney War hides carnage to come. In Ireland Detective Inspector Stefan Gillespie keeps tabs on Irishmen joining the British Forces. It’s unpleasant work, but when an IRA raid on a military arsenal sends Garda Special Branch in search of guns and explosives, Stefan is soon convinced his boss, Superintendent Terry Gregory, is working for the IRA.

At home for Christmas, Stefan is abruptly called to Laragh, an isolated mountain town. A postman has disappeared, believed killed, and Laragh’s Guards are hiding something. Stefan is the nearest Special Branch detective, yet is he only there because Gregory wants him out of the way?

Laragh is close to the lake where Stefan’s wife Maeve drowned years earlier, and when events expose a connection between the missing postman and her death, Stefan realises it wasn’t an accident, but murder. And it will be a difficult, dangerous journey where Stefan has to finally confront the ghosts of the past not only in the mountains of Wicklow, but in Spain in the aftermath of its bloody Civil War, before he can return to Dublin to find the truth.

For more than 80 years H. P. Lovecraft has inspired writers of horror and supernatural fiction with his dark vision of humankind’s insignificant place in a vast, uncaring cosmos. At the time of his death in 1937, Lovecraft was virtually unknown, but from early cult status his readership expanded exponentially; his nightmarish visions laying down roots in the collective imagination of his readers. Now this master of the macabre is accepted as part of the literary mainstream, as an American author of note, and the impact of his work on modern popular culture – in literature, film, television, music, the graphic arts, gaming and theatre – has been profound. As Stephen King wrote in Danse Macabre, the shadow of H. P. Lovecraft ‘underlies almost all of the important horror fiction that has come since.’

Today, Lovecraft’s themes of cosmic indifference, the utter insignificance of humankind, minds invaded by the alien, and the horrors of history remain not only viable motifs for modern speculative fiction, but are more relevant than ever as we explore the mysteries of a universe in which our planet is infinitesimal.

This outstanding anthology of original stories – from both established award-winning authors and exciting new voices – collects tales of cosmic horror inspired by Lovecraft from authors who do not merely imitate, but reimagine, re-energize, and renew the best of his concepts in ways relevant to today’s readers, to create fresh new fiction that explores our modern fears and nightmares. From the depths of R’lyeh to the heights of the Mountains of Madness, some of today’s best weird fiction writers traverse terrain created by Lovecraft and create new eldritch geographies to explore . . .

With stories by: Laird Barron, Nadia Bulkin, Amanda Downum, Ruthanna Emrys, Richard Gavin, Lois H. Gresh, Lisa L. Hannett, Brian Hodge, Caitlín R. Kiernan, John Langan, Yoon Ha Lee, Usman T. Malik, Helen Marshall, Silvia Moreno, Norman Partridge, W. H. Pugmire, Veronica Schanoes, Michael Shea, John Shirley, Simon Strantzas, Sandra McDonald, Damien Angelica Walters, Don Webb, Michael Wehunt and A.C. Wise


Praise for the editor:
‘For fans of Lovecraftian fiction and well-wrought horror’ – Library Journal

‘Guran smartly selects stories that evoke the spirit of Lovecraft’s work without mimicking its style.’ – Publishers Weekly

‘It’s a pretty impressive line-up, with nary a clunker to be found. . . . You don’t have to be a Lovecraft fan to enjoy this anthology… You’ll find alienation, inhumanity, desperation, cruelty, insanity, hopelessness and despair, all set against the backdrop of a vast, unknowable universe filled with vile, indifferent monstrosities. You’ll also find beauty, hope, redemption, and the struggle for survival. What more can you ask for?’ – Tor.com

‘I highly recommend this collection… If you have even the slightest interest in contemporary horror fiction, you’ll want to try this one on for size!’ – BookGuide

Willows, waterlilies, gliding sailboats . . . the Norfolk Broads in summer seem the perfect place for novelist Stella Rushton to recover her equilibrium after being agonisingly and humiliatingly jilted. An aquaintance, the elegant, musical-comedy writer Simon, who has a house full of visiting theatre folk, lends Stella his riverside cottage and a boat; but it is Keith, one of Simon’s house-guests, who best restores Stella’s shattered pride.

Keith, young, vulnerable and awkward, falls instantly in love with Stella, watching her with tongue-tied yearnings as their boat skims up the sunlit Broad, and swimming alone down the dark waters to catch a glimpse of her at midnight. Stella remains cool and amused, but Keith’s uncontrollable passion is a balm to her wounded heart.

Her detachment, however, is brought to an appaling end when a tragedy occurs on the Broad. It is compounded by the realisation soon afterwards that what happened was not a accident.
As Stella, horrified, comes reluctantly to suspect the one person she likes, she has no one to turn to for advice but the big, quiet, pipe smoking man who sits fishing on a houseboat moored nearby. Chief Superintendent George Gently, though on holiday and incognito, finds once again that crime seeks him out . . .

Endless summer days and vast wilderness: Norway is an outdoor paradise almost too good to be true. Andrew Stevenson’s affectionate luminous account reveals the magical appeal of this Scandinavian wonderland as he walks and cycles (and gets stuck in the odd snowdrift) across the country from Oslo to Bergen Staying at clifftop farms, climbing the country’s highest mountains or taking a side trip far to the north of the Arctic circle, Andrew gets under Scandinavia’s skin as only someone who has lived there and speaks the language can. As he introduces a land he loves to the new love of his life, he comes to peace with a country of light-and darkness.

The definitive scientific icon of the twentieth century, Albert Einstein is remember for one equation, E=mc², and the image of a white-haired, pipe-smoking professor who didn’t wear socks. But the equation comes from a time when all of his great work was done. The real Albert Einstein ­– the high school drop-out who won the Nobel Prize along with the hearts of so many young women – was young, handsome, dark haired and a natty dresser. And his greatest piece of work was so poorly understood at the time that the Nobel Committee, who couldn’t understand it, but in a panic felt they ought to give him a prize for something, honoured him for something else.

An introduction, afterword and clear chronological table place Einstein’s work in the context of the development of scientific knowledge.

Preston, 1741. The drowning of drunken publican Antony Egan is no surprise – even if it comes as unpleasant shock to coroner Titus Cragg, whose wife is the old man’s niece. But he does his duty to the letter, and the inquest’s verdict is accidental death.

But Cragg’s close friend Luke Fidelis finds evidence to cast doubt on the events leading up to Egan’s demise. Soon, suspicions are roused still further when a well-to-do farmer collapses and it appears he was in town on political business. Is there a conspiracy afoot? With the help of Fidelis’s scientific ingenuity he sets about bringing the true criminals to light…

A statue, unearthed in ancient Babylon during the course of an archaeological dig, is transported to London. Once there, it quickly exerts an evil influence over those with whom it comes into contact; an influence which threatens to spread throughout London and beyond, and which pits the living against the dead in a battle for all mankind . . .

Praise for Jonathan Aycliffe:

‘Aycliffe has a fine touch’ Independent

‘Aycliffe conjures up a feeling of dread that deepens with each unsettling incident’ Time Out

‘Naomi’s Room must rank among the finest of English ghost stories . . . They certainly don’t come more dark or fearsome.’ Newcastle Evening Chronicle

In the countryside of Victorian England, Edward Atherton, rector of Thornham St. Stephen, has taken on the arduous task of restoring the ancient church. But he should never have meddled with the tomb that lay beneath the church’s crumbling walls. The moment the workman raised the tomb lid, an unspeakable horror escaped. At a loss to explain the unsettling noises and frightening visions that begin to plague the church, Atherton calls upon fellow antiquarian and Cambridge professor Richard Asquith to help investigate the strange events that began in the wake of the tomb’s disturbance.

The two discover tantalizing hints of whom and what may have been laid to rest in the tomb, but the unforeseen circumstances force Asquith to give up his inquiries and leave the small village of Thornham behind. Asquith tries to put the frightening experiences behind him and focus on his new wife and family. But death and disappearances abound, and Asquith soon has no choice but to confront the darkness that has followed him from that ancient church into his own home.

Praise for Jonathan Aycliffe:

‘Aycliffe has a fine touch’ Independent

‘Aycliffe conjures up a feeling of dread that deepens with each unsettling incident’ Time Out

‘Naomi’s Room must rank among the finest of English ghost stories . . . They certainly don’t come more dark or fearsome.’ Newcastle Evening Chronicle

Peter and Sarah’s marriage has reached an impasse; their holiday in beautiful Cornwall is chosen to mend old wounds and bandage past pain. The house they go to has space – space for their writing, their painting, and their reconciliation. It has space too for its own memories and its own unforgettable horrors… but they are not to know that.

When the locals are less than friendly than they might be and when the house sighs with its secrets, the sands of their marriage shift… and then Sarah vanishes and Peter is left alone. Or is he?
Praise for Jonathan Aycliffe:

‘Aycliffe has a fine touch’ Independent

‘Aycliffe conjures up a feeling of dread that deepens with each unsettling incident’ Time Out

‘Naomi’s Room must rank among the finest of English ghost stories… They certainly don’t come more dark or fearsome.’ Newcastle Evening Chronicle