Mike Ripley

An original spin on the crime novel in which the race to gain the rights to an author''s backlist proves to be more head-scratching - and deadly! - than the plots in his books. The Librarian It''s been two decades since mystery writer Duncan Torrens was last published. I should know, I was his editor. So why a blogger would turn up asking questions about the rights to his books is beyond me . . . The Reader That librarian Roly is a bit odd. You''d think he''d be happy with my blog''s research into a largely forgotten author, but he''s . . . resistant. If I can get into Duncan''s home - and his mysterious garden shed - I know I''ll find what I''m looking for . . . The Publisher Torrens'' books are crying out for a revival. I just need that blogger, Jacon, to work out who holds the rights to his backlist. Then I can acquire them before Duncan''s old publishing house realizes they''ve missed a trick! The Editor I never worked directly with Duncan before he died, but if someone is sniffing round, there must be money involved. I just need to find out what''s happened to the rights before they do . . . The Writer After twenty years, will the sudden interest in this author''s forgotten mysteries reveal a dark - and deadly - twist? Told from the point of view of five unreliable narrators, none of whom can be trusted - The Librarian, The Reader, The Publisher, The Editor and The Writer - this amusing and darkly intriguing novel is a refreshingly fun, subversive take on the crime fiction genre.

The Campions are snowed in at Christmas, but just when they think it can''t get any colder, their holidays take an even chillier turn.1962, Norfolk. Boxing Day looks set to be a quiet affair for the Campions when they are snowed in at their remote farmhouse, Carterers ? until a charabanc full of ?pilgrims? travelling from London to the Shrine of Our Lady in nearby Walsingham crashes into their imposing granite gateposts and the family unexpectedly find themselves playing host to the eccentric passengers.But any lingering festive cheer is in short supply when a shocking discovery is made the following day, while a terrifying twist reveals that some of the guests are not who they seem. Which ? if any ? can they trust? Suddenly hostage to events, the Campions are drawn into a fiendish web of espionage as the Cold War comes chillingly close to home.