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I Am Dust
by Louise BeechWhen iconic musical Dust is revived twenty years after the leading actress was murdered in her dressing room, a series of eerie events haunts the new cast, in a bewitching, beguiling, moving and terrifyingly dark psychological thriller…‘A delicate supernatural thriller of love, loss, murder and the dangers that come with getting what you wish for. Quite lovely in a dark, dark way’ Sarah Pinborough‘Ghost story, murder mystery, romance. This mesmerising and entertaining book has it all…’ Emma Curtis‘Haunting, provocative, and true to Beech’s style: packed with pain and heart’ Jack Jordan_________________________________A haunted theatreA murdered actressThree cursed teenagersA secret that devastates them all…The Dean Wilson Theatre is believed to be haunted by a long-dead actress, singing her last song, waiting for her final cue, looking for her killer…Now Dust, the iconic musical, is returning after twenty years. But who will be brave enough to take on the role of ghostly goddess Esme Black, last played by Morgan Miller, who was murdered in her dressing room?Theatre usher Chloe Dee is caught up in the spectacle. As the new actors arrive, including an unexpected face from her past, everything changes. Are the eerie sounds and sightings backstage real or just her imagination? Is someone playing games?Is the role of Esme Black cursed? Could witchcraft be at the heart of the tragedy? And are dark deeds from Chloe’s past about to catch up with her?Not all the drama takes place onstage. Sometimes murder, magic, obsession and the biggest of betrayals are real life. When you’re in the theatre shadows, you see everything.And Chloe has been watching…________‘A bold, original concept brilliantly executed … I adored it’ John Marrs‘A delicate and mesmerising thriller’ Matt Wesolowski‘Dark and haunting … further cements Louise Beech as one of the most original and exciting authors of the moment’ Claire Allan‘Loads of twists and turns as the tension ramps up to breaking point’ Gill Paul‘This book is about believing in yourself and finding out that you had the power all along’ Madeleine Black‘It kept me reading until my eyes hurt and kept me thinking about it long after I’d finished’ Fionnuala Kearney‘A work of almost tangible atmosphere and authenticity … poignant and layered’ S. E. Lynes‘This book works magically, emotionally and psychologically’ Carol Lovekin‘A floating, lyrical, almost mystical‘ Jen Med’s Book Reviews‘Atmospheric, haunting and sprinkled with magic’ Literary Elf‘Spooky, mysterious, chilling and emotional’ Off-the-Shelf Books‘Unnerving, scary, creepy and heartbreakingly sad’ Tales Before Bedtime‘Beautifully evocative’ Espresso Coco‘Sheer emotional brilliance’ The Tattooed Book Geek‘I’ll be surprised if I read anything as good as this in 2020’ TripFiction
Hinton Hollow Death Trip (Detective Sergeant Pace Series #3)
by Will CarverFive days in the history of a small rural town, visited and infected by darkness, are recounted by Evil itself. A stunning high-concept thriller from the bestselling author of Good Samaritans and Nothing Important Happened Today.‘Cements Carver as one of the most exciting authors in Britain. After this, he’ll have his own cult following’ Daily Express________________It’s a small story. A small town with small lives that you would never have heard about if none of this had happened.Hinton Hollow. Population 5,120.Little Henry Wallace was eight years old and one hundred miles from home before anyone talked to him. His mother placed him on a train with a label around his neck, asking for him to be kept safe for a week, kept away from Hinton Hollow.Because something was coming.Narrated by Evil itself, Hinton Hollow Death Trip recounts five days in the history of this small rural town, when darkness paid a visit and infected its residents. A visit that made them act in unnatural ways. Prodding at their insecurities. Nudging at their secrets and desires. Coaxing out the malevolence suppressed within them. Showing their true selves.Making them cheat.Making them steal.Making them kill.Detective Sergeant Pace had returned to his childhood home. To escape the things he had done in the city. To go back to something simple. But he was not alone. Evil had a plan. ________________Praise for Will Carver‘Weirdly page-turning’ Sunday Times‘Laying bare our 21st-century weaknesses and dilemmas, Carver has created a highly original state-of-the-nation novel’ Literary Review‘Arguably the most original crime novel published this year’ Independent‘At once fantastical and appallingly plausible … this mesmeric novel paints a thought-provoking if depressing picture of modern life’ Guardian‘This book is most memorable for its unrepentant darkness…’ Telegraph‘Unlike anything else you’ll read this year’ Heat‘Utterly mesmerising…’ Crime Monthly
Deity (Six Stories #5)
by Matt WesolowskiOnline investigative journalist Scott King investigates the death of a pop megastar, the subject of multiple accusations of sexual abuse and murder before his untimely demise in a fire … another episode of the startlingly original, award-winning Six Stories series.‘First-class plotting’ S Magazine‘A dazzling fictional mystery’ Foreword Reviews‘Readers of Kathleen Barber’s Are You Sleeping and fans of Ruth Ware will enjoy this slim but compelling novel’ Booklist––––––––––––––––––––––––A shamed pop starA devastating fireSix witnessesSix storiesWhich one is true?When pop megastar Zach Crystal dies in a fire at his remote mansion, his mysterious demise rips open the bitter divide between those who adored his music and his endless charity work, and those who viewed him as a despicable predator, who manipulated and abused young and vulnerable girls.Online journalist, Scott King, whose Six Stories podcasts have become an internet sensation, investigates the accusations of sexual abuse and murder that were levelled at Crystal before he died. But as Scott begins to ask questions and rake over old graves, some startling inconsistencies emerge: Was the fire at Crystal’s remote home really an accident? Are reports of a haunting really true? Why was he never officially charged?Dark, chillingly topical and deeply thought-provoking, Deity is both an explosive thriller and a startling look at how heroes can fall from grace and why we turn a blind eye to even the most heinous of crimes…––––––––––––––––––––––––Praise for the Six Stories series‘Matt Wesolowski brilliantly depicts a desperate and disturbed corner of north-east England in which paranoia reigns and goodness is thwarted … an exceptional storyteller' Andrew Michael Hurley‘Beautifully written, smart, compassionate – and scary as hell. Matt Wesolowski is one of the most exciting and original voices in crime fiction’ Alex North‘Insidiously terrifying, with possibly the creepiest woods since The Blair Witch Project … a genuine chiller with a whammy of an ending’ C J Tudor‘Endlessly inventive and with literary thrills a-plenty, Matt Wesolowski is boldly carving his own uniquely dark niche in fiction’ Benjamin Myers‘Frighteningly wonderful … one of the best books I’ve read in years’ Khurrum Rahman‘Disturbing, compelling and atmospheric, it will terrify and enthral you in equal measure’ M W Craven‘Bold, clever and genuinely chilling with a terrific twist that provides an explosive final punch’ Deidre O’Brien, Sunday Mirror‘A genuine genre-bending debut’ Carla McKay, Daily Mail'Impeccably crafted and gripping from start to finish’ Doug Johnstone, The Big Issue‘The very epitome of a must-read’ Heat‘Wonderfully horrifying … the suspense crackles’ James Oswald‘Original, inventive and dazzlingly clever’ Fiona Cummins‘A complex and subtle mystery, unfolding like dark origami to reveal the black heart inside’ Michael Marshall Smith‘Haunting, horrifying, and heartrending. Fans of Arthur Machen, whose unsettling tale The White People provides an epigraph, will want to check this one out’ Publishers Weekly‘Matt Wesolowski has just the formula to meet your self-scaring needs… ‘ Strong Words magazine‘A masterly piece of storytelling, very sinister, deliciously entertaining’ New Books Magazine
The Beresford
by Will CarverEverything stays the same for the tenants of The Beresford, a grand old apartment building just outside the city … until the doorbell rings… Will Carver returns with an eerie, deliciously and uncomfortably dark standalone thriller._______________Just outside the city – any city, every city – is a grand, spacious but affordable apartment building called The Beresford.There’s a routine at The Beresford.For Mrs May, every day’s the same: a cup of cold, black coffee in the morning, pruning roses, checking on her tenants, wine, prayer and an afternoon nap. She never leaves the building.Abe Schwartz also lives at The Beresford. His housemate, Sythe, no longer does. Because Abe just killed him. In exactly sixty seconds, Blair Conroy will ring the doorbell to her new home and Abe will answer the door. They will become friends. Perhaps lovers. And, when the time comes for one of them to die, as is always the case at The Beresford, there will be sixty seconds to move the body before the next unknowing soul arrives at the door.Because nothing changes at The Beresford, until the doorbell rings…Eerie, dark, superbly twisted and majestically plotted, The Beresford is the stunning standalone thriller from one of crime fiction’s most exciting names.
Demon (Six Stories #6)
by Matt WesolowskiScott King’s podcast investigates the 1995 cold case of a demon possession in a rural Yorkshire village, where a 12-year-old boy was murdered in cold blood by two children. Book six in the chilling, award-winning Six Stories series._______________________In 1995, the picture-perfect village of Ussalthwaite was the site of one of the most heinous crimes imaginable, in a case that shocked the world.Twelve-year-old Sidney Parsons was savagely murdered by two boys his own age. No reason was ever given for this terrible crime, and the ‘Demonic Duo’ who killed him were imprisoned until their release in 2002, when they were given new identities and lifetime anonymity.Elusive online journalist Scott King investigates the lead-up and aftermath of the killing, uncovering dark stories of demonic possession, and encountering a village torn apart by this unspeakable act.And, as episodes of his Six Stories podcast begin to air, and King himself becomes a target of media scrutiny and the public’s ire, it becomes clear that whatever drove those two boys to kill is still there, lurking, and the campaign of horror has just begun..._______________________
The Loss Of Some Detail
by Mandi MartinForget all you know, for all you know might well be false. That is how is often seems to asylum worker James Grey as he tends to the patients abandoned to Oculus Mentis, an austere asylum lost to the world. His day to day quite literally forgettable. Until now. Slowly the world around him starts to change. Plagued by lucid dreams, a haunting drawing and visions of a pleading female he feels his mind is dissolving. Aided by the enigmatic Silas and silent Marianne he seeks to solve the mysteries that are tormenting him.
Miss Blaine's Prefect and the Weird Sisters
by Olga WojtasFifty-something librarian Shona is a proud former pupil of the Marcia Blaine School for Girls, but has a deep loathing for The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie, which she thinks gives her alma mater a bad name. Impeccably educated and an accomplished martial artist, linguist and musician, Shona is selected by Marcia Blaine herself to travel back in time for a crucial mission involving Macbeth, the weird sisters and a black cat.Unsure which version of history she’s in, Shona tries to figure out who she’s here to save. But between playing the Fool and being turned into a mouse, things don’t always go her way. Shona’s expertise in martial arts is put to the test as family tensions rise and fingers are pointed for murder. Can Shona unravel the mystery in time to complete her mission?Never underestimate a librarian!
Go Back at Once
by Robert AickmanCompleted by Robert Aickman in 1975; but never before published in the USA; Go Back at Once is a delicious; delirious comic fantasy about the joys and terrors experienced by two young women seeking to escape the degradations of our technological and conformist age by fleeing to a chaotic; poet-ruled utopia.
Bad Eminence
by James GreerMeet Vanessa Salomon, a privileged and misanthropic French-American translator hailing from a wealthy Parisian family. Her twin sister is a famous movie star, which Vanessa resents deeply and daily. The only man Vanessa ever loved recently killed himself by jumping off the roof of her building. It’s a full life.Vanessa has just started working on an English translation of a titillating, experimental thriller by a dead author when she’s offered a more prominent gig: translating the latest book by an Extremely Famous French Writer who is not in any way based on Michel Houellebecq. As soon as she agrees to meet this writer, however, her other, more obscure project begins to fight back – leading Vanessa down into a literary hell of traps and con games and sadism and doppelgangers and mystic visions and strange assignations and, finally, the secret of life itself.Peppered with ‘sponsored content’ providing cocktail recipes utilizing a brand of liquor imported by the film director Steven Soderbergh, and with a cameo from the actress Juno Temple, Bad Eminence is at once a sexy, old-school literary satire in the mode of Vladimir Nabokov, as well as a jolly thumb in the eyes of contemporary screen-life and digital celebrity.
Fifty Forgotten Books
by R. B. RussellFifty Forgotten Books is a very special sort of book about books, by a great bibliophile and for book-lovers of all ages and levels of experience. Not quite literary criticism, not quite an autobiography, it is at once a guided tour through the dusty backrooms of long vanished used bookstores, a love letter to bookshops and bookselling, and a browser’s dream wish list of often overlooked and unloved novels, short story collections, poetry collections and works of nonfiction. In these pages, R. B. Russell, publisher of Tartarus Press, doesn’t only discuss the books of his life, but explains what they have meant to him over time, charting his progress as a writer and publisher for over thirty years, and a bibliophile for many more. Here is living proof of how literature, books, and book collecting can be an intrinsic part of one’s personal, professional and imaginative life, and as not only a solitary act, but a social one, resulting in treasured friendships, experiences, and loves one might never, otherwise, have enjoyed. Filled with a lively nostalgia for the era when finding strange new books meant pounding the pavement and not just searching booksellers’ websites, Fifty Forgotten Books is for anyone who wishes they could still browse the dusty bookshelves of their youth, and who can't wait to get back out into the world in quest of the next text liable to change their life.
Screams & Nightmares: The Films of Wes Craven
by Brian J RobbIn a remarkable career that spanned more than forty years, writer, producer, and director Wes Craven successfully tapped into the horror vein to create scary, funny, cutting-edge thrillers that have become classics in the genre. His films have been both critical and commercial successes, most notably A Nightmare on Elm Street, which spawned a series of sequels and made Craven (and his creation, Freddy Krueger) an international sensation. He then created a second indelible horror movie series with Scream. In Screams & Nightmares, Brian J. Robb examines Craven’s entire career, from his low-budget beginnings to his most recent box office hits, from the banned thriller The Last House on the Left and the cult classic The Hills Have Eyes to the outrageous Shocker and The People Under the Stairs . Through exclusive interviews with Craven, Robb provides in-depth accounts of the making of each of the films – including the final instalments of the Scream series – Craven’s foray into writing novels, and his numerous television projects, charting the rich tapestry of his life and career until his death in 2015.
The Black Vampyre: A Legend of St. Domingo
by Uriah Derick D'ArcyWARNING! Contains moderate bloody violence against slavers and plantation owners!This pioneer vampire tale from 1819 spills revenge-cold blood as its narrator leads us through high gothic terror to radical outrage on the subject of slavery, reaching a blood-soaked conclusion dripping with 'biting' polemic vilifying the bankers who caused the economic recession of that same year.An anti-capitalist horror fable from 200 years ago, The Black Vampyre vilified the worst financial predation the capitalist world would ever see, decades before Karl Marx ― the enslavement of Africans in the New World.One dead man said no! And this is his story.The Black Vampyre; A Legend of St. Domingo tells the affrighting tale of a slave who is resurrected as a vampire after being killed by his owner; the slave seeks revenge by stealing the owner's son and marrying the owner's wife. The anonymous writer D'Arcy sets the story against the conditions that led to the Haitian Revolution.First published in chapbook form in New York in 1819, this emancipatory tale from literary New York in the 1810s arguably dates the birth of horror as know it!This edition features a new introduction as well as extensive notes and a guide to literary allusions.
Ghostwriting
by John HerdmanA delicious study in paranoia from the master of the modern Scottish Gothic. Ghost-writer Leonard Balmain finds himself drawn into an unwanted complicity with the dark revelations unfolding within that of his subject ― the mysterious Torquil Tod. When Tod's tale turns into murder and sexual betrayal, Leonard realises he knows too much and is in danger of ending up on the very pages of Tod's turbulent history.Black magic, sacrificial murder and cannibalism collide in an uneasy voyage towards, and from beyond, the grave."A dark, cautionary tale, utterly compelling and charged with Herdman's unwavering sense of irony and his sharp satirical bite." Brian McCabe, The Scotsman."A story of deception and betrayal, of obsession and confused identities, but more importantly it is Herdman's best novel." Carl MacDougall, The HeraldBlack magic, sacrificial murder and cannibalism collide in an uneasy voyage towards, and from beyond, the grave.Brian McCabe, The Scotsman ."A powerful evocation of the uncanny psychological bonding between ghost biographer Leonard Balmain and his elusive and sinister subject, Torquil Tod..... Herdman captures very clearly the tone of the dramatic monologues of Hogg and Stevenson, while managing to maintain a contemporary resonance."Douglas Gifford, Books in Scotland"Hogg's and Stevenson's manic private memorists meet the postmodernist theories they anticipated. Cleverly, Ghostwriting investigates the paradoxes of narrative itself ... The novel wears its intellectual sophistication lightly."Gavin Wallace, Chapman
Little Apples
by Ricky Monahan BrownAn aspiring writer of gothic fiction and his wife move upstate when financial crisis hits New York City. Their destination ― a house that was once the height of modernity and the orchard that they establish there. As the couple begin a new life, crisis continues to stalk them. Astrid is slowly consumed by her beloved apple trees. The police are joined by the local community in investigating a headline missing person case, and nothing is quite as it seems. Then, when the pair seem to have established their own personal Eden, they must confront the ungodly powers gathering in the roots of the surrounding forests. Ricky Monahan Brown’s Little Apples has all the aromatic flavour of the modern Gothic: sharply tart amid rot and decay. This dark and wry tale explores some of the strangest manifestations ever to be found growing at the heart of a contemporary marriage.
Heaven Burns
by Jen McGregorHeaven Burns is a historical novella, dramatising one of the most barbarous practices prevalent in Restoration Scotland.It is 1662 and Scotland suffers a scourge of witches. What else could explain the wars, the plagues, the storms?Runaway housewife Isobel has a duty to do, acting as clerk to John Dixon, the finest witchpricker in the country. She’s sure it’s what God wants her to do. She’s sure she can keep her growing feelings for Dixon in check.When a stranger appears telling wild tales of stolen names and false identities, Isobel’s loyalty is put to the test. Is the stranger telling her of a great wrong to be put right, or sent from Hell to thwart the witch hunts?*The background to Heaven Burns is very real. Research estimates that between 1590 and 1622, around 1,000 women may have been executed in Scotland for witchcraft, and many more tried.In Scotland, under the second King Charles, and especially after the passing of the 1649 Witchcraft Act, local religious leaders began hunt and execute witches. Once a woman had been accused of witchcraft, all that was needed by the local minister was a confession. Instead of a confession however, women could be condemned through the use of witchpricking. Just as it sounds, witch pricking was a vicious practice, which involved pricking accused women with various needles in order to obtain proof of witchcraft.The cover and interior illustrations of Heaven Burns show an imaginative rendering of some of the witchpricker’s accoutrements and chattelsAs well as being brutally drawn in places, Heaven Burns is also a story of passion. It is excellently researched, for anyone interested in historical fiction, especially around the period of Scottish witch hunting.
Between the Virgin and the Sea
by Cath BartonCath Barton's melancholic novella Between The Virgin and the Sea is set in an unnamed city which has fallen off the map of the world, and is accessible now only by sea.Violence has broken out in the city and the people, fearing that the church is involved, pray instead at roadside shrines.The story tells the events of a day at the end of which the white statue of the Virgin which stands on a hill overlooking the city may ― or may not ― come to life to restore peace to its people. Central to the story and living in the barrios is a boy called Tag, the things of which he dreams and the maps he draws.Set in a surreal and changing city, in which pizza delivery is carried out by donkey, and nothing may be what it seems, Between the Virgin and the Sea explores themes of childhood and coming of age.A captivating blend of magical realism, tender comedy, and literary experimentation, Between the Virgin and the Sea is a captivating portrait of urban life quite unlike any other.
Chilling Cocktails: Classic Cocktails with a Horrifying Twist
by Jason WardDid Silence of the Lambs leave you reaching for a smooth bottle of dry red wine?After reading The Shining did you have an unaccountable urge to sip a red rum concoction?And did Bram Stoker's Dracula induce a craving for... well, perhaps the less said about that the better.If so, fear not – you are not alone! Chilling Cocktails is a creepy compendium of 50 drinks inspired by the most frightening horror stories ever written. Each delicious recipe is accompanied by dark and compelling facts and anecdotes about the inspiring story, certain to get you in the mood for a cool refreshment.What's more, if you can keep your appetite after reading the grisly details, a selection of complementary snack ideas are also sprinkled throughout. Try pairing 'Dracula's Kiss' with some 'Night of the Living Dead Cheddar Bites'. Or 'Carrie's Prom Punch' with 'Paranormal eggtivity Deviled Eggs'.The perfect gift for the horror and booze fan in your life, Chilling Cocktails is all you need to get the party started for your next horror movie night or Halloween party – just make sure the doors and windows are locked first!
Mademoiselle Maupin
by James FrostOnce a renowned opera Diva, lethal duellist and scandalous libertine, Julie d’Aubigny carries the vampiric contagion in her veins five decades after her apparent death. In a life of inhuman power and cruel sensuality, she navigates the occult intrigues of Europe with the aid of twin companions, facing down enemies both righteous and unholy. Arnold Brennan is a devout young clergyman who believes that all evil stems from mankind’s rebellion against God’s laws, and that so-called monsters are nought but pagan myth and fanciful superstition. But events set in motion by his father’s murder will lead him on a search for truth that brings him face to face with inhuman forces. As their paths cross, these very different individuals must contend with the deadly machinations of hostile occult societies and ancient, merciless predators.
River Clyde: The Word-of-mouth Bestseller (Chastity Riley #5)
by Simone BuchholzChastity Riley travels to Scotland to face the demons of her past, as Hamburg is hit by a major arson attack. Queen of Krimi, Simone Buchholz returns with the nail-biting fifth instalment in the electric Chastity Riley series … and this time things are personal…'Simone Buchholz writes with real authority and a pungent, noir-ish sense of time and space … a palpable hit' Independent'Reading Buchholz is like walking on firecrackers … a truly unique voice in crime fiction’ Graeme Macrae Burnet –––––––––––––––––––––––––––––Mired in grief after tragic recent events, state prosecutor Chastity Riley escapes to Scotland, lured to the birthplace of her great-great-grandfather by a mysterious letter suggesting she has inherited a house. In Glasgow, she meets Tom, the ex-lover of Chastity’s great aunt, who holds the keys to her own family secrets – painful stories of unexpected cruelty and loss that she’s never dared to confront. In Hamburg, Stepanovic and Calabretta investigate a major arson attack, while a group of property investors kicks off an explosion of violence that threatens everyone. As events in these two countries collide, Chastity prepares to face the inevitable, battling the ghosts of her past and the lost souls that could be her future and, perhaps, finally finding redemption for them all.Breathtakingly emotive, River Clyde is an electrifying, poignant and powerful story of damage and hope, and one woman’s fight for survival.–––––––––––––––––––––––––––––Praise for the Chastity Riley series‘[A] nerve-racking narrative … [with] a cunning climax that is shocking and deeply romantic’ The Times‘Modern noir, with taut storytelling, a hard-bitten heroine, and underlying melancholy peppered with wry humour … there’s a fizz, a poetry and a sense of coolness’ New Zealand Listener‘The coolest character in crime fiction … Darkly funny and written with a huge heart’ Big Issue‘Fierce enough to stab the heart’ Spectator‘A stylish, whip-smart thriller’ Herald Scotland‘Combines slick storytelling with substance … like a straight shot of top-shelf liquor: smooth yet fiery, packing a punch with no extraneous ingredients watering things down’ Mystery Scene'Caustic, incisive prose. A street-smart, gutsy heroine. A timely and staggeringly stylish thriller' Will Carver'With plenty of dry humour and a good old dash of despair, Simone Buchholz is an unconventional, refreshing new voice' Crime Fiction Lover'With brief, pacy chapters and fizzling dialogue, this almost feels like American procedural noir and not a translation' Maxim Jakubowski'There is a fantastic pace to the story which keeps you hooked from the first sentence all the way to the end a unique voice that delivers a stylish story' NB Magazine'A smart and witty book that shines a probing spotlight on society' CultureFly'Fans of Brookmyre could do worse than checking out Simone Buchholz, a star of the German crime lit scene who has been deftly translated into English by Rachel Ward' Goethe Institute'By turns lyrical and pithy, this adventure set in the melting pot of contemporary Hamburg has a plot and a sensibility that both owe something to mind-altering substances. Lots of fun' Sunday Times'Constantly surprising an original, firecracker of a read' LoveReading
The Daves Next Door - The shocking, explosive new thriller from cult bestselling author Will Carver
by Will CarverThe lives of five strangers collide on a London train carriage, as they become involved in an incident that will change them all forever. A shocking, intensely emotive and wildly original new thriller from Will Carver…‘Impossibly original, stylish, sinister and heartfelt. The Daves Next Door is so wildly fresh and unmatched, and once again proves that Will Carver has talent and creativity to burn’ Chris Whitaker‘Once again, Will bends and twists the genre with a novel that is astonishing, profound and hard-hitting’ David Jackson‘So clever, so dark, so utterly original. Where does Will Carver get his ideas?’ Victoria Selman‘Stirring. Ambitious. Irreverent. Compassionate. Completely devoid of giveable f*@ks’ Dominic Nolan________________________________A disillusioned nurse suddenly learns how to care.An injured young sportsman wakes up find that he can see only in black and white.A desperate old widower takes too many pills and believes that two angels have arrived to usher him through purgatory.Two agoraphobic men called Dave share the symptoms of a brain tumour, and frequently waken their neighbour with their ongoing rows.Separate lives, running in parallel, destined to collide and then explode.Like the suicide bomber, riding the Circle Line, day after day, waiting for the right time to detonate, waiting for answers to his questions: Am I God? Am I dead? Will I blow up this train?Shocking, intensely emotive and wildly original, Will Carver’s The Daves Next Door is an explosive existential thriller and a piercing examination of what it means to be human … or not. ________________________________‘Will Carver is a thought-provoking and masterful writer of gut-punching fiction ... a powerhouse of a novel. Think Ira Levin at his best’ Michael Wood‘Will has this uncanny knack of delving into your soul and revealing all the things you really think but are too scared to voice. Absolute GENIUS’ Lisa Hall‘Another ingenious genre-bender … provocative, twisted and mind-bendingly original’ Sarah SultoonPraise for Will Carver‘One of the most exciting authors in Britain. After this, he’ll have his own cult following’ Daily Express‘Unlike anything you’ll read this year’ Heat‘Move the hell over Brett Easton Ellis and Chuck Palahniuk … Will Carver is the new lit prince of 21st-century disenfranchised, pop darkness’ Stephen J. Golds‘Incredibly dark and very funny’ Harriet Tyce‘I fell in love with Carver's murderous Maeve. This is an Eleanor Oliphant for crime fans. Carver truly at his best’ Sarah Pinborough‘A darkly delicious page-turner’ S J Watson‘One of the most compelling and original voices in crime fiction’ Alex North‘Weirdly page-turning’ Sunday Times‘Laying bare our 21st-century weaknesses and dilemmas, Carver has created a highly original state-of-the-nation novel’ Literary Review‘Arguably the most original crime novel published this year’ Independent‘This mesmeric novel paints a thought-provoking if depressing picture of modern life’ Guardian‘This book is most memorable for its unrepentant darkness…’ Telegraph‘Utterly mesmerising…’ Crime Monthly‘Will Carver’s most exciting, original, hilarious and freaky outing yet’ Helen FitzGerald‘Vivid and engaging and completely unexpected’ Lia Middleton
The Bleeding: The dazzlingly dark gothic thriller that everyone is talking about…
by Johana GustawssonQueen of French Noir, Johana Gustawsson returns with a spell-binding, dazzlingly dark gothic thriller that swings from Belle Époque France to 21st-century Quebec, with an extraordinary mystery at its heart… FIRST in a bewitching new series‘Intriguingly dark and vivid, and so cleverly told through three different time frames’ Essie Fox‘A wonderfully dark, intricately woven historical thriller spanning three generations … it will have you hooked from the very first page’ B A Paris‘This novel is a whirlpool that draws you irresistibly into levels of darkness so much deeper than you can possibly be ready for’ Chris Brookmyre________________________________Three womenThree erasOne extraordinary mystery…1899, Belle Époque Paris. Lucienne’s two daughters are believed dead when her mansion burns to the ground, but she is certain that her girls are still alive and embarks on a journey into the depths of the spiritualist community to find them.1949, Post-War Québec. Teenager Lina’s father has died in the French Resistance, and as she struggles to fit in at school, her mother introduces her to an elderly woman at the asylum where she works, changing Lina’s life in the darkest way imaginable.2002, Quebec. A former schoolteacher is accused of brutally stabbing her husband – a famous university professor – to death. Detective Maxine Grant, who has recently lost her own husband and is parenting a teenager and a new baby single-handedly, takes on the investigation.Under enormous personal pressure, Maxine makes a series of macabre discoveries that link directly to historical cases involving black magic and murder, secret societies and spiritism … and women at breaking point, who will stop at nothing to protect the ones they love…_________________________________‘I found myself racing through the book, always wanting one more page, one more chapter. A wonderfully creepy, unsettling read, with a superb twist in its tail‘ James Oswald‘Gustawsson’s writing is so vivid, it’s electrifying. Utterly compelling’ Peter James‘I was hooked from the first page – a stunning and beautifully written gothic thriller full of atmosphere, intrigue and delight’ Alexandra Benedict‘What a brilliant, brilliant book … the last chapters knocked me sideways, and it’s a long time since that’s happened’ Lisa Hall‘Harrowing, compelling, haunting, vivid, twisty and shocking!’ Noelle Holten‘A powerful page-turner’ Livres Hebdo ‘Fluid, skilful, fearsome and breathtaking … the ending is horrifying’ La Marseillaise***NUMBER ONE BESTSELLER IN FRANCE***FOR FANS OF Laura Purcell, Elizabeth Macneal, Bridget Collins, Anna Mazzola, Ambrose Parry and Laura Shepherd-RobinsonPraise for Johana Gustawsson***Longlisted for the CWA International Dagger***‘A satisfying, full-fat mystery’ The Times‘Assured telling of a complex story’ Sunday Times ‘A real page-turner, I loved it’ Martina Cole‘Dark, oppressive and bloody, but it’s also thought-provoking, compelling and very moving’ Metro‘A bold and intelligent read’ Guardian‘Utterly compelling’ Woman’s Own‘Cleverly plotted, simply excellent’ Ragnar Jónasson‘A must-read’ Daily Express‘Bold and audacious’ R. J. Ellory‘Gritty, bone-chilling, and harrowing – it’s not for the faint of heart, and not to be missed’ Crime by the Book‘A relentless heart-stopping masterpiece' New York Journal of Books
Black Hearts (The Skelfs #4)
by Doug JohnstoneA faked death, an obsessive stalker, an old man claiming he’s being abused by the ghost of his late wife, and a devastating spectre from the past. The Skelfs are back in another explosive thriller, and this time things are more than personal…‘A new outing for the Skelfs deserves dancing in the streets of Edinburgh' Val McDermid‘Tense, funny and deeply moving’ Mark Billingham‘A total delight to be returned to the dark, funny, compulsive world of the Skelfs … Johnstone never fails to entertain whilst packing a serious emotional punch. Brilliant!’ Gytha Lodge________________________Death is just the beginning…The Skelf women live in the shadow of death every day, running the family funeral directors and private investigator business in Edinburgh. But now their own grief interwines with that of their clients, as they are left reeling by shocking past events.A fist-fight by an open grave leads Dorothy to investigate the possibility of a faked death, while a young woman’s obsession with Hannah threatens her relationship with Indy and puts them both in mortal danger. An elderly man claims he’s being abused by the ghost of his late wife, while ghosts of another kind come back to haunt Jenny from the grave … pushing her to breaking point.As the Skelfs struggle with increasingly unnerving cases and chilling danger lurks close to home, it becomes clear that grief, in all its forms, can be deadly…________________________‘The Skelfs keep getting better and better. Compelling and compassionate characters, with a dash of physics and philosophy thrown in’ Ambrose Parry‘Expertly written, with poise, insight and compassion’ Mary Paulson-Ellis’If you loved Iain Banks, you’ll devour the Skelfs series’ Erin Kelly‘Dynamic and poignant … Johnstone balances the cosmos, music, death and life, and wraps it all in a compelling mystery’ Marni Graff‘Just when you thought you couldn’t love the Skelfs more, Doug Johnstone finds a way to turn up the heat’ Live & DeadlyPraise for The Skelfs series***Shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Best Scottish Crime Book of the Year******Longlisted for Theakston’s Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year******Shortlisted for Amazon Publishing Capital Crime Thriller of the Year***‘An engrossing and beautifully written tale that bears all the Doug Johnstone hallmarks in its warmth and darkly comic undertones’ Herald Scotland‘Gripping and blackly humorous’ Observer‘A tense ride strong, believable characters’ Kerry Hudson, Big Issue‘The power of this book, though, lies in the warm personalities and dark humour of the Skelfs, and by the end readers will be just as interested in their relationships with each other as the mysteries they are trying to solve’ Scotsman‘Remarkable’ Sunday Times‘Keeps you hungry from page to page. A crime reader can’t ask anything more’ The Sun‘A thrilling, atmospheric book, set in the dark streets of Edinburgh. Move over Ian Rankin, Doug Johnstone is coming through!’ Kate Rhodes‘An unstoppable, thrilling, bullet train of a book that cleverly weaves in family and intrigue, and has real emotional impact. I totally loved it’ Helen Fields‘This enjoyable mystery is also a touching and often funny portrayal of grief ... more, please’ Guardian‘Wonderful characters: flawed, funny and brave’ Sunday Times‘Exceptional … a must for those seeking strong, authentic, intelligent female protagonists’ Publishers Weekly
Crow Moon: The atmospheric, chilling debut thriller that everyone is talking about … first in an addictive, enthralling series (A Martha Strangeways Investigation #1)
by Suzy AspleyFirst in a series: A Martha Strangeways InvestigationAn investigative reporter gives up her job when her young twins are killed in a fire, but when she stumbles across the body of a missing teenager, she’s thrust into a chilling investigation that will leave no one unscathed…Strathban, Scotland. A village steeped in folklore and impenetrable mists and a horrifying mystery…Martha Strangeways is struggling to find purpose in her life, after giving up her career as an investigative reporter when her young twins died in a house fire. Overwhelmed by guilt and grief, she carries their teeth in a matchbox wherever she goes...But her life changes when she stumbles across the body of a missing teenager – a tragedy that turns even more sinister when a poem about crows is discovered inked onto his back... When another teenager goes missing in the remote landscape, Martha is drawn into the investigation, teaming up with DI Derek Summers, as malevolent rumours begin to spread and paranoia grows. As darkness descends on the village of Strathban, it soon becomes clear that no one is safe, including Martha…Both a nerve-shattering, enthralling and atmospheric thriller and a moving tale of grief and psychological damage, Crow Moon is a staggeringly accomplished debut and the start of an addictive, unforgettable series.
The Fascination: The Instant Sunday Times Bestseller ... This Year's Most Bewitching, Beguiling Victorian Gothic Novel
by Essie FoxThe estranged grandson of a wealthy collector of human curiosities becomes fascinated with teenaged twin sisters, leading them into a web of dark obsessions. A dazzlingly dark gothic novel from the bestselling author of The Sonambulist‘Mysterious, sometimes shocking, full of surprises and twists … brimming with Victorian wonders!’ Sean Lusk‘Essie Fox follows in the footsteps of Angela Carter and AS Byatt with an adult fairy tale that delves into the darkest compulsions of human nature … an opium trance of a novel, a vivid fantasmagoria’ Noel O’Reilly‘An enthralling tale about deception, love and loss, and what it means to be different. Macabre and shocking, beautiful and tender, it had me spellbound’Louisa Treger_________________Victorian England. A world of rural fairgrounds and glamorous London theatres. A world of dark secrets and deadly obsessions…Twin sisters Keziah and Tilly Lovell are identical in every way, except that Tilly hasn't grown a single inch since she was five. Coerced into promoting their father's quack elixir as they tour the country fairgrounds, at the age of fifteen the girls are sold to a mysterious Italian known as ‘Captain’.Theo is an orphan, raised by his grandfather, Lord Seabrook, a man who has a dark interest in anatomical freaks and other curiosities … particularly the human kind. Resenting his grandson for his mother’s death in childbirth, when Seabrook remarries and a new heir is produced, Theo is forced to leave home without a penny to his name.Theo finds employment in Dr Summerwell’s Museum of Anatomy in London, and here he meets Captain and his theatrical ‘family’ of performers, freaks and outcasts.But it is Theo’s fascination with Tilly and Keziah that will lead all of them into a web of deceits, exposing the darkest secrets and threatening everything they know…Exploring universal themes of love and loss, the power of redemption and what it means to be unique, The Fascination is an evocative, glittering and bewitching gothic novel that brings alive Victorian London – and darkness and deception that lies beneath…________________‘Elixirs, fairgrounds, fairies in jars. Twins and monsters and outcasts. Essie Fox’s fascinating and immersive tale is, at its heart, about acceptance of difference. I loved it’ Anna Mazzola‘A beautiful, haunting tale peopled by a thrilling set of living, breathing characters. This is very fine historical fiction’Emma Carrol‘Beautifully controlled … This is exceptional storytelling, exquisitely told’ Nydia Hetherington‘Beautifully researched, full of horrors and delights … a chilling, thrilling slice of Victorian gothic’ Bridget Walsh‘So inventive and surprising … beautiful writing, unforgettable characters and some wicked humour, too’ Juliet West‘A sumptuous, gothic treat that will reel you in and not let you go until the final page. Bravo!’ Caroline Green‘Essie Fox is the mistress of gothic Victoriana … utterly beguiling and rendered in exquisite detail. This is a wonderful, captivating carnival of a novel’ Elizabeth Fremantle‘Wonderfully vivid and touching … extraordinary’ Adele Geras‘I loved this story of a group of wonderful “others” fighting to find their place and purpose in a glittering, but unforgiving, Victorian England’ Marika Cobbold’Atmospheric, gripping and ultimately uplifting, it’s a tale of cruelty and depravity, but also love, friendship and acceptance’ Karen Coles‘A kaleidoscopic, twisting, devilish novel guaranteed to dazzle and delight. I was utterly beguiled by this wonder of a novel’ Dan Bassett, Bookseller
So Pretty
by Ronnie TurnerA young man arrives in a small town, hoping to leave his past behind him, but everything changes when he takes a job in a peculiar old shop, and meets a lonely single mother … A chillingly hypnotic gothic thriller and a Mesmerising study of identity and obsession.‘This chilling gothic tale explores the dark corners of identity … beautifully written and a real page-turner' C J Cooke'Dark, lyrical and intriguing' Fiona Cummins‘Like Stephen King on crack … the most accomplished book I’ve read this year. Dark, gothic as hell, and genuinely scary, Turner has managed to portray loneliness, obsession, and monster-worship in one neat little package. I dare you to open it’ M W Craven–––––––––––––––––––––––––––Fear blisters through this town like a fever…When Teddy Colne arrives in the small town of Rye, he believes he will be able to settle down and leave his past behind him. Little does he know that fear blisters through the streets like a fever. The locals tell him to stay away from an establishment known only as Berry & Vincent, that those who rub too closely to its proprietor risk a bad end. Despite their warnings, Teddy is desperate to understand why Rye has come to fear this one man, and to see what really hides behind the doors of his shop.Ada moved to Rye with her young son to escape a damaged childhood and years of never fitting in, but she’s lonely, and ostracised by the community. Ada is ripe for affection and friendship, and everyone knows it.As old secrets bleed out into this town, so too will a mystery about a family who vanished fifty years earlier, and a community living on a knife edge.Teddy looks for answers, thinking he is safe, but some truths are better left undisturbed, and his past will find him here, just as it has always found him before. And before long, it will find Ada too.––––––––––––––––––––––‘An utterly chilling psychological horror of modern-day witchcraft, possession, murder and madness’ Essie Fox‘Twisted, toxic and deeply dark, this gives off Needful Things vibes – and that ending is just *perfect*’ Lisa Hall‘This book sucks you in from the first spine-tingling chapter and weaves a dark, twisted and compelling sense of foreboding' Claire Allan‘I’m shook. This book is a force … a masterpiece’ Emerald Reviews‘As delightful as it is dark, with beautiful turns of phrase that can be at once both buttery soft and sharp as a knife’ Rheannah, Bookseller ‘An intense, creepy and utterly chilling read’ Book Review Café ‘A story that will creep under your skin and leave you desperately unnerved' Emma, Bookseller ‘Startling and incredibly intense’ Live & Deadly‘Exactly what I look for in a gothic thriller!’ From Belgium with Booklove