Full Programme Announced for Final CrimeFest - Mark Gatiss and Chris Chibnall join line-up

The full programme for the final CrimeFest in Bristol, which takes place 15 – 18 May at Bristol’s Mercure Grand Hotel has been announced.

2025’s featured guest is icon of the genre, Lee Child, who will be in conversation with his brother and co-writer of the Reacher series, Andrew Child.

One of the UK’s leading crime fiction conventions supported by title sponsor, Specsavers, CrimeFest announced 2025 will be its final event after 16 years. Organisers have said they are putting all their energy into making the final event one to remember.

New authors announced for the final line-up include journalist, broadcaster, author and cultural historian and Doctor Who fan, Matthew Sweet. He’ll be joined by the actor, novelist, and screenwriter Mark Gattis to discuss Bookish, the upcoming TV series created by Gatiss. Set in post-WWII London Bookish follows a bookseller who uses books to help crack crime cases. A novelisation by Sweet is published by Quercus in July.

Gatiss is best known for his acting work and co-creating shows including The League of Gentleman and Sherlock, as well as writing for Doctor Who.

Also announced is TV writer Chris Chibnall, best known as the creator and writer of the award-winning TV drama, Broadchurch. He brings to CrimeFest his crime-writing debut Death at the White Hart, a whodunnit set in a small village with dark secrets.

A highlight of the event is the Ghost of Honour panel, which this year celebrates John le Carré, featuring his two sons, Simon Cornwell and Nick Harkaway.

A film producer, Simon Cornwell is behind adaptations of his father’s work, including The Night Manager for the BBC starring Tom Hiddleston and Olivia Colman. Author Nick Harkaway recently brought back his father’s famous literary creation - George Smiley - with his acclaimed novel, Karla’s Choice. His new book, Sleeper Beach, is out 10 April.

Adrian Muller, co-host and founder of CrimeFest, said:

“Programming CrimeFest for the past 16 years has been a labour of love. We’ve had the privilege of bringing together some of the best crime writers in the world, and the sense of community we’ve built is something truly special. While we’re saddened that this will be the final convention, we’re determined to make it one to remember—with an outstanding lineup of authors and panels to ensure CrimeFest goes out with a bang.”

As part of the celebrations the first 450 registered delegates will be gifted an advance copy of CrimeFest, Leaving the Scene, an anthology with 20 newly commissioned short stories from past (and present) attending authors. Contributors include Jeffery Deaver, Lindsey Davis, Simon Brett and many more.

The celebratory finale features a record number of Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) Diamond Dagger recipients in attendance. Alongside Lee Child, fellow Diamond Dagger recipients include Lindsey Davis, Martin Edwards, and John Harvey. Harvey has written over 100 books, including his series of jazz-influenced Charlie Resnick novels. They’ll appear on the panel: A Cluster of Diamonds: Diamond Dagger Winners in Conversation.

The CWA chair, author Vaseem Khan, will also feature as Toastmaster at the CrimeFest Awards night.

Panels include a focus on the adaption of crime fiction to film and TV, moderated by Lee Child with the award-winning Barbara Nadel, author of the much-loved Inspector Cetin Ikmen series, adapted for the BBC as The Turkish Detective starring Haluk Bilginer. The panel also welcomes Barry Ryan - managing director and creative director of TV production company Free@LastTV, best known for its flagship series for Sky TV, Agatha Raisin.

Free@LastTV is currently adapting the Cait Morgan Mysteries by Welsh Canadian author Cathy Ace, starring the Welsh actress, Eve Myles. Cathy returns to CrimeFest on a number of panels, including a discussion on mental health for writers: Keeping Yourself Sane in a Toxic World alongside the author, playwright and radio producer, Simon Brett, and author, Zoë Sharp.

Topics up for discussion include Evil Crimes in Foreign Climes with the author famed for his love of Greece, Jeffrey Siger, Michael Ridpath (writer of the Magnus Iceland Mysteries), the Danish-born author and journalist Heidi Amsinck, and Singapore’s acclaimed author, Ovidia Yu.

The Icelandic author known as the Queen of Nordic thrillers, Yrsa Sigurdardottir, takes part on numerous panel discussions exploring topics such as writing violence in crime fiction. She’ll also take part in 2008 Revisited with authors who attended the very first CrimeFest who are now taking part in the last, alongside authors Kevin Wignall and Steve Mosby. Mosby writes under the pen name Alex North. His book The Whisperer Man, is being filmed for Netflix starring Robert De Niro, Michelle Monaghan, and Adam Scott.

Author Donna Moore, co-host and founder of CrimeFest, said:

“It has been an absolute joy to organise CrimeFest over the years, and we are so grateful to everyone—authors, readers, and panellists—who have made it such a vibrant and welcoming event. While it’s bittersweet to say goodbye, we couldn’t be prouder of this final year’s programme, which promises to be one of our best yet. We’re going out in true CrimeFest style—with unforgettable discussions, brilliant talent, and plenty of surprises along the way.”

Other topics book lovers can delve include panels on historical fiction and high society, comedy in crime fiction, Brit Grit, and the evolving role of traditional publishing.

It also features regular favourites, including the Criminal Challenge Quiz, moderated by the author and publishing polyglot, Maxim Jakubowski, with the chance to win a pair of passes to 2025’s Iceland Noir.

CrimeFest was created following the hugely successful one-off visit to Bristol in 2006 of the American Left Coast Crime convention, and CrimeFest runs on the US model. The first CrimeFest was organised in June 2008.

Unlike other major crime fiction events in the UK, any commercially published author who signs up can feature on a panel. In this way, CrimeFest has provided many authors with a platform they would not have been offered elsewhere in the UK.

The convention also continues its Community Outreach Programme. In partnership with the independent Max Minerva’s Bookshop and participating publishers, CrimeFest gifts thousands of pounds of crime fiction books for children and young adults to school libraries.

With thanks to sponsor Specsavers, librarians, students, and those on benefits are offered significantly discounted tickets.

Full passes are now available, and individual entry is open on the door dependant on availability: https://www.crimefest.com/

Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival 2025 Programme Revealed

 

'STORIES AND STORYTELLERS’ CELBRATED AS PROGRAMME REVEALED FOR THEAKSTON OLD PECULIER CRIME WRITING FESTIVAL 2025

Festival Dates: 17 – 20 July 2025

www.harrogateinternationalfestivals.com

#TheakstonsCrime

Tuesday 1st April: Harrogate International Festivals today revealed the full programme for the 2025 Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, the globally renowned celebration of crime fiction, at a special reception at Hachette, Carmelite House in London.

The Festival, which takes place at Harrogate’s Old Swan Hotel from 17-20 July, has been curated by 2025’s Programming Chair and bestselling author of the ‘Slough House’ spy thrillers, Mick Herron, and offers readers from around the world a unique opportunity to meet the superstar writers of today, discover the bestsellers of tomorrow and hear from innovators pushing the boundaries of the genre. From dark domestic noir to murder in far galaxies; from twisty missing persons investigations to the tangled webs of spies; from high-stake legal thrillers to gritty crime scene investigations, there is plenty to enthral and entertain at this year’s Festival.  

Acclaimed writers Reverend Richard Coles, Belinda Bauer, AA Dhand, Abigail Dean, Nick Harkaway, Janice Hallett, Abir Mukherjee, Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall and others join Special Guest headliners Lee Child and Andrew Child, Steph McGovern, Attica Locke, Kate Atkinson, Paula Hawkins, Kate Mosse, Val McDermid, Mark Billingham – and, making his Festival debut, Irvine Welsh – on the packed programme. Highlights include the prestigious Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award ceremony, and an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the hugely popular Slow Horses TV series with Mick Herron and Emmy award-winning showrunner Will Smith.

Celebrating the Festival’s mission to champion emerging talent, the Critics’ New Blood panel platforms four extraordinary debut novelists R.S. Burnett, A.E. Goldin, Daniel Aubrey and Kate Kemp selected by a panel of leading crime fiction critics; while four of New Blood’s most accomplished alumni, Fiona Cummins, Chris Hammer, Abir Mukherjee and Stuart Neville return for a special showcase event. For aspiring writers, Creative Thursday offers an immersive day of workshops and talks led by industry experts and authors including Vaseem Khan, Will Dean and Laura Shepherd-Robinson.

A Festival for all crime fiction readers, the iconic Late Night Quiz compèred by Val McDermid and Mark Billingham, and two murder mystery Author Dinners hosted by Ajay Chowdhury, Will Dean, C.L. Taylor, Chris Brookmyre, William Hussey, Emma Christie, Xaviere Musih Tedji, A.J. West and others, offer unmissable opportunities for fans to engage with authors at relaxed evening events.

 Mick Herron, bestselling author and 2025 Festival Programming Chair said:

“The first committee meeting for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival 2025 took place the day before the 2024 Festival began, so it’s been in the planning for a year and a day – a suitably storybook length of time. Because it's stories that we're celebrating – stories and storytellers – we’re looking forward to another long weekend of criminal inquiries, forensic examinations and manifold ways of laying bare the human heart without shedding a drop of blood. Or so we hope... The line-up is as varied as ever, and there are enough tales waiting to be told to fill a thousand and one nights. We don't guarantee fairy tale endings, but we do promise the very best in crime writing.”

Simon Theakston, Chairman of T&R Theakston Ltd, said:  

“We are delighted to support the world’s biggest and best crime writing Festival for an incredible twenty-second year and to welcome so many legends of the genre and exciting debut writers once again. It has been remarkable to see the Festival transform into a truly international event over the years, with authors and fans travelling from far and wide to become part of our global crime fiction community here in Harrogate.  I eagerly look forward to what promises to be another unforgettable Festival this July.’

Sharon Canavar, Chief Executive of Harrogate International Festivals, said:

“I am thrilled to reveal the full programme for this year’s Theakston Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival, curated by Mick Herron and the Programming Committee. With over 120 writers taking part and a fantastic mix of crime writing icons and talented new discoveries, behind-the-scenes exclusives, innovative panels and fun-filled evening events, there really is so much for every crime fiction and thriller fan to enjoy. We can’t wait to welcome everyone to Harrogate again this summer.” 

 PROGRAMME HIGHLIGHTS:

THURSDAY 17 JULY:

Creative Thursday: Crime Fiction Writing Workshops

An immersive day of workshops and talks for aspiring crime writers with bestselling authors including Vaseem Khan, Mick Herron, Will Dean, Laura Shepherd-Robinson, Greg Mosse and Lex Noteboom, and industry experts including N.J. Cooper, Sam Eades, Maddalena Cavaciuti, Ellen Gleeson, Manpreet Grewal, Ed Wood, and Theo Jones from the Society of Authors. 

Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award

A celebratory event as the winner of crime fiction’s most prestigious prize is announced, with the McDermid Award for debut fiction and the Outstanding Contribution to Crime Fiction Award also presented.

FRIDAY 18 JULY:

Special Guest: Attica Locke

Former ‘New Blood’ discovery, award-winning author and TV writer Attica Locke discusses her new novel Guide Me Home, a blistering portrayal of Trump’s America with journalist Matt Nixson.

Panel: Post Mortem Postcode Lottery

Authors Belinda Bauer, AA Dhand, Mel Pennant, Trisha Sakhlecha and Broadchurch creator Chris Chibnall explore the dark heart of crime fiction on a murderous journey around the UK, chaired by Simon Mayo.

Panel: Keeping It in The Family

Bestselling authors Claire Douglas, Andrea Mara, Sam Blake and Kia Abdullah discuss deadly domestic noir with journalist Lisa Howells.

Panel: The Writers Staying Out in the Cold

Masters of spy fiction Charles Cumming, Louise Doughty, Alan Judd and Nick Harkaway, son of John Le Carré, examine all things espionage with chair N.J. Cooper.   

Panel: On Behalf of My Client

Four lawyers-turned-novelists, Imran Mahmood, Abigail Dean, Douglas Bruce-Lockhart and Guy Morpuss plead the case for some famous fictional villains with chair Nicola Williams.

Special Guest: Mark Billingham

Celebrating his milestone twenty-fifth book – the highly-anticipated new Tom Thorne novel, What the Night Brings - and twenty-five years as a bestselling author, Mark Billingham will be in conversation with Mick Herron.

Author Dinner

A unique opportunity for crime fans to solve a murder mystery, written and presented by Mick Herron, with host crime writers D.V. Bishop, Angela Chadwick, Ajay Chowdhury, Emma Christie, Rebecca Collomosse, Will Dean, Carmel Harrington, Samantha Hayes, David Hewson, Ruth Mancini, A.J. McDine, Lesley McEvoy, L.K. Pang, Paula Sutton, Bridget Walsh, Sean Watkin, A.J. West, Clare Whitfield and Judith Woolf.

Panel: The Way We Lived Then

From the Elizabethan court to the dying days of WW1, gold fever Yukon to Victorian India, four bestselling historical crime writers Andrew Taylor, Beth Lewis, S.J. Parris and Shylashri Shankar discuss murder then – and now – with chair T.E. Tinsey.  

Special Guest: Irvine Welsh

Making his Festival debut, globally renowned Trainspotting author Irvine Welsh discusses Resolution, the final instalment in his ‘Crime’ trilogy, now a hit TV series, with Abir Mukherjee.  

Fun Lovin Crime Writers

Join crime fiction’s greatest super-band - Mark Billingham, Chris Brookmyre, Doug Johnstone, Val McDermid, Stuart Neville and Luca Veste - for some murder on the dance floor!

SATURDAY 19 JULY:

Special Guests in Conversation: Kate Mosse and Paula Hawkins

Join fan favourites Kate Mosse and The Girl on the Train author Paula Hawkins as they introduce their latest novels and reveal how they create compelling characters and craft riveting plots.

Panel event: True Grit

Crime scene experts turned writers, including forensic anthropologist Clea Koff, former murder detective Russell Wate, crime scene investigator Kate Bendelow and historian Hallie Rubenhold, separate the facts from the fiction, with lawyer and crime writer Nadine Matheson.

Critics’ New Blood

Showcasing the stars of tomorrow, four outstanding debut novelists R.S. Burnett, A.E. Goldin, Daniel Aubrey and Kate Kemp, selected this year by a panel of the UK’s top crime fiction critics, will be in conversation with Mick Herron.

Panel event: Gone But Not Forgotten

Four authors with missing persons investigations at the heart of their latest novels, Tariq Ashkanani, Simon Mason, Rob Parker and Icelandic writer Snæbjörn Arngrímsson discuss secrets, lies and twisty plots with Sarah Hilary.

Panel event: What Planet Are They On

Four extraordinary writers pushing the boundary of crime fiction, Ben Aaronovitch, Sarah Pinborough, Adam Oyebanji and Eve Smith discuss their innovative fiction with Doug Johnstone.

Mick Herron and Will Smith: Inside Slow Horses

An unmissable event for Slow Horses fans, as creator Mick Herron and Emmy award-winning showrunner Will Smith take an exclusive behind-the-scenes look at the popular TV series.  

Author Dinner

‘Who dunnit?’ A second chance for crime fiction fans to test their detective skills by solving a murder mystery written with authors A.K. Benedict, Chris Brookmyre, A.A. Chaudhuri, Nicci Cloke, R.N. Cogley, Kerry J. Donovan, Hannah Hendy, Tom Hindle, William Hussey, Jill Johnson, Ellie Keel, Ambrose Parry, Heidi Perks, Leah Pitt, David F. Ross, Bee Rowlatt, Lily Samson, C.L. Taylor and Xaviere Musih Tedji.  

Panel Event: Whatever Happened to the Likely Lads and Lasses

In celebration of New Blood’s incredible success as a launchpad for emerging talent, four of its most accomplished alumni, Fiona Cummins, Chris Hammer, Abir Mukherjee and Stuart Neville star in a special showcase event chaired by Val McDermid.

Special Guests: Lee and Andrew Child

Multi-million copy bestselling writing duo Lee Child and Andrew Child discuss their latest Jack Reacher thriller In Too Deep - and offer an exclusive preview of Exit Strategy the 30th Reacher novel ahead of its publication in November – with broadcaster Paddy O’Connell.

Late Night Quiz

Authors and readers go head-to-head in a battle of crime fiction wits with quizmasters Val McDermid and Mark Billingham.

SUNDAY 20 JULY:

Special Guest: Kate Atkinson

Globally bestselling literary crime novelist Kate Atkinson discusses her latest Jackson Brodie novel At the Sign of the Rook, a witty take on a classic murder mystery, with Lee Child.

It’s The Way You Tell ‘Em

Fiendish plotters John Finnemore, Janice Hallett, Antony Johnston and Cara Hunter reveal how they craft the twistiest mysteries and perfect puzzles, with chair Reverend Richard Coles. 

 Special Guests: Steph McGovern and Val McDermid

‘Queen of Crime’ Val McDermid teams up with TV presenter and avid crime fiction fan Steph McGovern, who launches her debut Deadline at the Festival.  

Full programme details are available here. 

Tickets for individual events are on general sale from Tuesday 8 April. Classic Weekend Break Packages, Author Dinners and tickets for Creative Thursday are on sale now. To book tickets, please call +44(0)1423 562 303 or email info@harrogate-festival.org.uk. More information about tickets and packages can be found here.  

Lynne McEwan on - How news photography prepared me for a life of crime.

Like many writers, I had a whole other life before I came to crime fiction. I’d already written my first published novel, In Dark Water, when a question at a festival event started me thinking just how much newspaper photography had influenced what I wrote. The answer was quite a lot and in ways I’m still discovering five books later.

I’d cut my teeth as a freelance photographer for The Glasgow Herald, straight out of college -very keen, very short – I’d cause amusement when, unable to elbow my way through a photocall scrum of big blokes I’d instead crawl to the front through their legs. It gave me a unique angle, as did the advice to always shoot a three or five picture series, a visual story, even if the job only called for just one. Little did I realise this created a subliminal narrative process that even now I find difficult to switch off. I see the world, and write my books, as a long series of images.

There were some big moments – the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the First Gulf War – but it was from working with crime reporters covering murders I learned the most about how people react when faced with the worst possible news. Some of the stories I covered faded quickly from the public consciousness, others did not.

The Pembrokeshire Murders, recently a three-part ITV drama staring Luke Evans, were a pair of double murders several years apart carried out in the national park in the 1980s. It took a cold case review in 2010 to convict the serial killer responsible by which time he’d also committed multiple burglaries, sexual assault, rape and an armed robbery. This wasn’t just down to the lack of forensic techniques. What I remember most was the fervent way the officers on the investigation stuck to the line of enquiry they’d formulated, that the crimes were so heinous they must have been carried out by an outsider, probably someone off the ships at the nearby tanker terminal at Milford Haven. They were wrong, the monster was among them and perhaps if they’d stress-tested their own narrative against the evidence, he’d have been caught sooner.

The murder in Cardiff of Karen Price, dubbed The Body in the Carpet was the first time a forensically reconstructed clay head was used to identify a victim, an example of creative thinking useful to crime writers ever since.

Through these experiences I spent time with police officers and forensic scientists. I even had a memorable day with a police pathologist who, once the portrait I’d come for had been shot, allowed me to tag along to a couple of sudden deaths, and subsequently becoming the model for Professor Sue Kitchen in my books. No pictures could be taken at the crime scenes, but she explained with knowledge and compassion how much responsibility she felt to find answers for the deceased’s loved ones.

And it was the victim’s families and friends that really stayed with me. Often, taking the actual photographs would only last a few minutes in an hour-long interview but I’d sit and listen as people poured their hearts out. In the early days there were no family liaison officers, police delivered the news and left. Journalists were often the first people the bereaved encountered. If you did not have empathy and respect you wouldn’t get far. Leafing through albums to collect pictures of the dead was one of the most moving experiences of my life and many of those encounters are still with me.

When I worked at the Sunday Mirror, a reporter and I were the only journalists to visit Stephen Lawrence’s parents the morning after his murder. Seeing the impact that case has made and the way it continues to change attitudes is a testament to the fortitude of Stephen’s family.

As Val McDermid once commented about her time as a reporter, ‘it’s the sort of job that gives you a card index of memories that you can dip into for a character, an atmosphere, a look’. In my case, I’m often not aware I have them until they’re shaken lose from their dusty folder by a line from a scene, or the need to portray some action or emotion.

When I first wrote the character of DI Shona Oliver she’d been brewing in my mind for nearly thirty years. Early in my career I worked for the Western Mail and lived in Cardiff where I sailed with the yacht club. Penarth RNLI had a female crew member, which was unusual for the time. Sitting in the bar in atrocious weather, we’d watch the lifeboat go out when everyone else was running for cover. I wanted to shoot a feature with her, but for one reason and another it never happened. It was one of those stories that got away, so I was never able to ask my burning question – why would you voluntarily put yourself in danger to help a complete stranger? The DI Shona Oliver series has been my exploration of that question and making her also a police officer as well as an RNLI volunteer felt like the perfect fit.

I’d travelled to most parts of the UK in my career, but when it came to finding a setting for my crime series, the Solway coast jumped out at me. It’s a crossing place between England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, so if I run out of home-grown crimes I can easily import more. It helps me link the location and crime to a national and international issues. It’s also beautiful but dangerous place. There’s menace in the very landscape itself.

For the latest in the series, A Troubled Tide, I drew not only from murders but the bread-and-butter photographer’s jobs – community fund raisers, amateur sporting events. Shona witnesses the drowning of a fellow officer at a charity triathlon, and what at first appears an accident soon takes a darker turn.  As novelist and screen writer William Goldman once said, life is material.

Being a photojournalist allowed me a window on the world and gave me pictures in all their fascinating, tragic, joyous glory. I’m still telling the stories I think are important, only now it’s the words rather than the pictures that make it onto the page.

A Troubled Tide by Lynne McEwan (Canelo) Out Now

The threat has never been so close to home… DI Shona Oliver’s fellow officer PC Hayley Cameron drowns during a triathlon in the Solway Firth. The post-mortem reveals drugs in Hayley's system, perhaps self-administered performance enhancers. But a puncture wound in the back of her wetsuit suggests foul play. Shona and her colleagues investigate, but those closest to Hayley grapple with the truth and risk letting personal feelings cloud their judgement. Could the answers to Hayley’s death lie within Shona’s own ranks? As the case hits the buffers, Shona clashes with her daughter and also faces difficult questions about the murder of her old boss. Will Shona keep her head above the water long enough to see justice done, and what will it cost her if she does?

More information about Lynne McEwan and her books can be found on her website. She can also be found on Facebook, Threads and Instagram @lynnejmcewanwriter 

2025 Dove Award: Detective/Mystery Caucus of the Popular Culture Association

Congratulations to David Geherin who has been awarded the Dove Award by the Detective/Mystery Caucus of the Popular Culture Association. 

The Detective/Mystery Caucus of the Popular Culture Association announced its latest Dove Awardee: David Geherin, who is Professor Emeritus of English at Eastern Michigan University. He is also an Edgar nominee in the Best Critical/Biographical category this year for Organized Crime on Page and Screen: Portrayals in Hit Novels, Films, and Television Shows. 

He has also received earlier Edgar nominations for The Crime World of Michael Connelly: A Study of His Works and Their Adaptations (2022), Scene of the Crime: The Importance of Place in Crime and Mystery Fiction (2008); also nominated for a Macavity Award), and The American Private Eye: The Image in Fiction (1985). His other books include Carl Hiaasen: Sunshine State Satirist (2019), Funny Thing About Murder: Modes of Humour in Crime Fiction and Films (2017), Small Towns in Recent American Crime Fiction (2015), and Elmore Leonard (1989).

The Dove Award, is named for mystery-fiction scholar George N. Dove and is given to “individuals who have contributed to the serious study of mystery, detective, and crime fiction.”

Previous Dove honourees include Martin Edwards, Barry Forshaw, Douglas G. Greene, P.D. James, H.R.F. Keating, Margaret Kinsman, Elizabeth Foxwell, and Janet Rudolph. 

 

H/T Mystery Fanfare

Where True Crime Meets Jane Austen, by Jessica Bull

The Miss Austen Investigates series is my tribute to Jane Austen, telling the story of her life and work through the format of a murder mystery. I really wanted to capture the vibrant, witty, and joyfully irreverent woman I believe Austen was. I also wanted to tell her story, because it’s tempting to conflate Austen with her more privileged heroines and imagine her path to success was easy. 

All the things that stand in the way of her investigations are the same obstacles she faced in becoming a published author, and the unique qualities which enabled her genius in real life (such as her sense of justice, an innate understanding of human nature and a determination to succeed) allow her to solve the mysteries in my novels.

In this second instalment, a broken-hearted Jane Austen travels to Kent to look after her brother Neddy’s children and further her writing. She soon realizes it’s imperative she uncovers the true identity of a mysterious young woman claiming to be a shipwrecked foreign princess before the interloper can swindle Neddy’s adoptive mother out of her fortune and steal the much-anticipated inheritance all the Austen’s rely on.

As well Austen, there is another fascinating historical figure who inspired this novel. In 1817, a former servant girl, Mary Baker (née Willcocks), persuaded a Gloucester magistrate and his wife she was Princess Caraboo of the fictional island of Javasu in the Indian Ocean, and that she had been captured by pirates and escaped by jumping overboard in the Bristol Channel and swimming ashore.

Her ruse was eventually discovered but, rather than prosecute, Mary’s benefactress gave her some money to start afresh in America. Everyone who knew Mary said she loved to tell stories. It made me wonder, if Mary had been born into the class of women who were fortunate enough to receive an education, would she be remembered as another Jane Austen?

A Fortune Most Fatal will be published by Penguin Michael Joseph on 27 March 2025. Who are you, Miss Austen, but a young lady of little experience and no consequence?’ Welcome to Godmersham Park, 1797. Following many years apart, Jane Austen is set to spend the summer with her estranged brother, Neddy. As heir to wealthy widow Mrs Knight’s fortune, it is imperative that Neddy stays in his benefactor’s good graces. But upon arrival in Kent, Jane quickly realises Neddy is in dire need of her help. For a mysterious young woman named Eleanor currently resides with Mrs Knight – a stranger who threatens to swindle the inheritance for herself. Jane must uncover who Mrs Knight’s guest really is, to protect the fate of her entire family. When she discovers a series of threatening letters meant for Eleanor, her investigation takes an unexpected turn. Because the dangers aren’t just within the walls of Godmersham Park. Jane knows someone else is out there watching, waiting – but for what? Is this curious Eleanor friend, or foe? And can Jane solve the mystery, before danger comes for them all?

Jessica Bull lives in Southeast London with her husband and two daughters. A former librarian and communications consultant, she studied English literature at Bristol University and information science at City, University of London. A Fortune Most Fatal is the second novel in the Miss Austen Investigates series.

More information about Jessica Bull can be found on her website. You can also find her on Instagram @ jessicabullnovelist, on Facebook @JessicaBullAuthor and on Bluesky @jessicabull.bsky.social

Buy your copy: https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/a-fortune-most-fatal-jessica-bull/7703849?ean=9780241642115

Lefty Awards - Left Coast Crime 2025

 

Left Coast Crime, Denver, Colorado 

13th - 16th March 2025

The Lefty Awards were presented at Left Coast Crime 2025 on Saturday 15th March at the Westin Denver Downtown.

 

Lefty Award for Best Humorous Mystery Novel

Cirque du Slay by Rob Osler (Crooked Lane Books)

Lefty Award for Best Historical Mystery Novel (Bill Gottfried Memorial) for books covering events before 1970

Hall of Mirrors by John Copenhaver (Pegasus Crime)

Lefty Award for Best Debut Mystery Novel

Ghosts of Waikiki by Jennifer K. Morita (Crooked Lane Books)

Lefty Award for Best Mystery Novel (not in other categories)

Served Cold by James L’Etoile, (Level Best Books)

Congratulations to all the nominated authors and winners

 

 

Courtroom Theatrics by Guy Morpuss

The actor Philip Glenister (Life on Mars and Mad Dogs) advised his daughter: ‘If you want to be an actor and earn some money, become a barrister.’

With the state of legal aid, most criminal barristers would question the wisdom of that advice. It does however highlight the close links between acting and the law. Many barristers would like to make the opposite journey and be treading the boards in the West End.

A trial is rather like a play. We wear our costumes. We perform to the audience. And on a good day no one gets murdered.

That is the tag line for my new novel, A Trial in Three Acts, where the worlds of the theatre and law collide. An actress is murdered live on stage, her head chopped off with a guillotine. Suspicion falls on all cast members, but it is her ex-husband, Hollywood superstar Leo Lusk, who is charged with her murder. At his Old Bailey trial, he is defended by English barrister Charles Konig KC, and New York trial lawyer Yara Ortiz. They realise that the clues to the murder lie in the play itself, and that to save their client they need to identify the real murderer.

When, more than thirty years ago, I started out as a barrister, I thought that winning cases was about persuading the judge that you were right on the law. Over time, and particularly after I became a KC, I began to realise that the law has very little to do with the outcome of most trials. In truth barristers win cases by telling the judge a better story than the other side. Every trial is a one-off performance for an audience of one. Judges are human, and you win by showing the judge why they should want to decide in your client’s favour. To borrow from the US legal philosopher Jerome Frank, laws are merely the formal clothes in which judges dress up their decisions.

So, to be a good barrister you need to be a good actor: to be able to put on a performance, to convince the judge that you believe that your client is in the right.

Of course, there are differences between the stage and the courtroom. As barristers we cannot make things up; we have to work with the facts that we are given. And unlike theatre, there is no script. A trial is an improv performance where the underlying material is constantly changing. It is a play where your fellow ‘cast members’ (the witnesses, the judge, your own client) can suddenly start wandering off in unexpected directions or making up their own lines. I have seen trials lost with a single bad answer in cross-examination.

It was a film adaptation of an Agatha Christie play that inspired me to become a barrister: Witness for the Prosecution, starring Charles Loughton and Marlene Dietrich. I remember being transfixed by the skill with which Loughton, as the defence QC, held centre-stage in court, moulding the jury to his will. I wanted to do the same. Little did I realise that it was Loughton who was actually being manipulated by Dietrich.

An excellent new production of the play in London has blurred the lines between theatre and law. It is set as though in a courtroom, and members of the audience get to sit in the jury box and decide the fate of the accused. It is very cleverly done.

In writing A Trial in Three Acts I have tried to achieve a similar blurring of the lines between theatre and courtroom: my homage to the Queen of Crime. And like Christie, I have provided readers will all the same clues as are available to Charles Konig KC – buried, of course, amongst a multitude of red herrings. The book contains a number of scenes from the play in which the murder takes place. Study these scenes carefully, and you may spot the solution.

I will provide one further clue. Charles Konig KC solves the crime not by identifying the murderer, but by working out how the murder was carried out. Readers can do the same.

Happy hunting. Break a leg.

A Trial in Three Acts by Guy Morpuss (Viper Books) Out Now

A trial is rather like a play. We wear our costumes. We perform to the audience. And on a good day no-one gets murdered. Six nights a week the cast of the smash-hit play Daughter of the Revolution performs to a sold-out audience. A thrilling story of forbidden marriage and a secret love child, the critics say it'll run for years. That is until one night the third act ends not in applause but in death, when leading lady Alexandra Dyce is beheaded live on stage. Every cast member has a motive, but it is the dead woman's co-star - and ex-husband - Hollywood legend Leo Lusk who is charged with the crime. When defence barrister Charles Konig is brought in last minute, he knows this ought to be the case of a lifetime. But Charles would rather be on his holiday trekking up K2, and he isn't interested in celebrities, especially ones that seem to be mysteriously trying to derail their own defence. But as he and his co-counsel New York lawyer Yara Ortiz sift through the evidence, it becomes clear that clues may lie in the play itself. And that Charles's only chance of victory is to identify the real murderer...

More information about the author and his books can be found on his website.  He can also be found on 'X' @guymorpuss.

2025 ITW Thriller Award Nominees

Congratulations the finalists of the 2025 ITW Thriller Awards have been announced.

BEST STANDALONE THRILLER NOVEL

The Paris Widow by Kimberly S. Belle

The Chamber by Will Dean

Worst Case Scenario by L.J. Newman, 

The Last One at the Wedding by Jason Rekulak, 

The Truth about the Devlins by Lisa Scottoline, 

BEST STANDALONE MYSTERY NOVEL

Negative Girl by Libby Cudmore, 

The Night We lost Him by Laura Dave

Missing White Woman by Kellye Garrett, 

The Life and Death of Rose Doucette by Harry Hunsicker, 

What Happened to Nina? by Dervla McTiernan, 

Lake County by Lori Roy

BEST SERIES NOVEL

To Die For by David Baldacci, 

The Last Few Miles of the Road by Eric Beetner, 

The Dark Wives by Ann Cleeves, 

Shadowheart by Meg Gardiner, 

Flashback by Iris Johansen and Roy Johansen, 

A Forgotten Kill by Isabella Maldonado, 

BEST FIRST NOVEL 

Rabbit Hole by Kate Brody, 

After Image by Jaime deBlanc, 

The Astrology House by Carinn Jade,

Blood in the Cut by Alejandro Nodarse, 

Deadly Animals by Marie Tierney

BEST AUDIOBOOK 

Darling Girls by Sally Hepworth, Narrated by Jessica Clarke

Hollywood Hustle by Jon Lindstrom, Narrated by Jon Lindstrom

No One Can Know by Kate Alice Marshall, Narrated by Karissa Vacker

Beyond All Doubt by Hilton Reed, Narrated by George Newbern

Listeen for the Lie by Amy Tintera, Narrated by January LaVoy and Will Damron

BEST YOUNG ADULT NOVEL

Influencer by Adam Cesare, 

The Other Lola by Ripley Jones, 

Darkly by Marisha Pessl, 

49 Miles Alone by Natalie D. Richards, 

Girls Like Her by Melanie Sumrow, 

BEST SHORT STORY 

Not a Dinner Party Person by Stefanie Leder, 

Double Parked by Twist Phelan, 

Jackrabbit Skin by Ivy Pochoda, 

The Doll's House by Lisa Unger, 

And Now, an Inspiring Story of Tragedy Overcome by Joseph S. Walker,

Congratulations t all the nominated authors - Winners will be announced at ThrillerFest XX on Saturday, June 21, 2025 at the New York Hilton Midtown, New York City. 

CFP Neo-Victorian Criminalities, Detection, and Punishment

CFP Neo-Victorian Criminalities, Detection, 

and Punishment

University of Wolverhampton, 23rd-24th June 2025

Keynote speakers: Professor Claire Nally, Lee Jackson, and Nat Reeve

Organisers: Dr Helen Davies, University of Wolverhampton, and Dr Maria Isabel Romero-Ruiz, University of Malaga

The contemporary fascination with Victorian criminalities and the popularity of the detection genre within Neo-Victorianism necessitates close critical attention. In particular, neo-Victorian literary and visual representations of criminals, murderers, serial killers, etc. as well as of sleuths raises ethical issues connected with the avidity of audiences for sensation and drama.

The neo-Victorian city becomes the scenario both of petty crimes and dreadful killings that are shaped by current perceptions of the Victorians and our own cultural context. The city is the place where identities become changeable, and choices can have deadly consequences. In this context, the question of ethics comes to the fore as revealing the identity of criminals and victims and dealing with issues connected with the dark side of society can be questionable and exploitative, especially when discussing the Victorian past.

At the same time, we need to explore the intersection of crime and detective fiction in connection with gender, ethnicity, class and disability, together with the LGTBQI+ community; certain groups were more likely to be criminalised in the Victorian era, with a troubling legacy in terms of contemporary social and cultural attitudes. Therefore, establishing the boundaries between historical crime and fictional crime and identity politics in neo-Victorianism become essential in the representation of both criminals and victims as well as sleuths in popular genres such as crime fiction and detection.

This event will run over two days, with public engagement events on 24th featuring Lee Jackson and Nat Reeve.

We invite contributions that include but are not limited to the following topics in relation to Neo-Victorian representations of crime:

-Historical crime versus fictional crime

-Neo-Victorian sensationalism and detection

-The aesthetics and ethics of crime 

-Detection, crime and identity politics

-Gender and detection

-Crime and ethnicity

-Crime and class 

-Crime and Disability

-LBTBQI+ sleuth identities

-LBTBQI+ criminals and victims

-Neo-Victorian remediations of past crimes

Please send a c. 250 word abstract for 20 min papers and c. 100 word biography toneovictoriancrimes@gmail.com by 14th March 2025.

March Books from Bookouture

Meet Ally McKinley: dog lover, guesthouse owner and accidental detective, as she tackles her next case in the beautiful Scottish Highlands! Recent retiree Ally McKinley has stepped out with her puppy Flora for a walk by the loch in the tiny village of Locharran, taking a break from running the cosiest little guesthouse in the Highlands. But Ally’s peace and quiet is sunk when she and Flora find the body of a mysterious woman floating in the water… Before she knows it, Ally finds herself wading into the middle of a new investigation. Who was the mystery woman and why was she killed? Her enquiries take her all over the village: from the corner shop and the nearby hotel to the turreted castle, home of local earl Hamish Sinclair where preparations are underway for his upcoming – and much gossiped about – wedding. The body in the loch soon has the rumour mills buzzing. But then Elena, the earl’s new bride, is also found poisoned to death the morning after her marriage! With two deaths to investigate, the police appear to suspect almost everyone in Locharran, even Ally herself… Determined to uncover the truth and clear her name, Ally finds poison at the home of one of her suspects and thinks she might be on the right path to solving both murders. But with a killer on the loose in the Scottish Highlands, can Ally unravel the clues before the next person in a watery grave is her? Murder at the Loch is by Dee MacDonald.

I can see her through the glass door. She’s smaller in real life than I expected. She looks the exact opposite of the type of woman that might murder her husband.  Everyone’s heard of Simone Fischer. The young mother accused of killing her husband in cold blood, one sunny afternoon, while their son played in the room next door. So when journalist Esme secures an exclusive interview with her it feels like the opportunity of a lifetime. Simone has remained silent since her husband’s death but after a decade in prison, she is willing to talk to Esme. And Esme, recently freed from her own toxic marriage, is confident she can get Simone to open up.  At their first meeting, when Esme sees Simone sitting across the table from her in jeans and a lemon tunic top, she is stuck by her ordinariness. Then Simone begins to tell her story of an abusive relationship where she was a prisoner in her own home, and Esme decides that the truth needs to come out.  But not everyone is pleased that Esme is telling Simone’s story. And when Esme’s beloved sister is left for dead in a nearby wood, Esme’s life begins to unravel. Forced to question what Simone has told her, she can’t help but wonder if murder was the only way out of Simone’s marriage. Why has it taken Simone so long to tell the world the truth? And will the consequences be devastating for Esme?  The Evidence is by K L Slater.

Make Yourself at Home is by Wendy Clarke. ‘You don’t really know your husband,’ my sister-in-law whispers, and a chill runs down my spine. ‘Can you really trust the man you married?’ Gary and I have always been happy. Our fridge is covered in the love notes I leave him every morning, we always start the day on the doorstep with a goodbye kiss, and I make sure we never, ever fight. But since Gary’s sister Lisa moved in, things have been different… The day Lisa arrived at the school where I work, asking for help, I knew we had to welcome her into our home. Gary hasn’t spoken to his parents in years, and his childhood was far from perfect. But now every time Lisa enters a room, I watch him sneak out the door. He’s no longer home for dinners, spending longer hours at the office. It’s me who’s chatting to Lisa all night as we cook. Learning more and more about the family Gary told me nothing about. And then I spot them through the front window on my way home from work. Arguing. Shouting. Gary thrusts an envelope into Lisa’s hand. He looks nothing like the man I love. Lisa won’t tell me what’s going on, but she whispers to me that I shouldn’t trust the man I married. When I met Gary, I thought I was finally safe. But Lisa’s arrival in Victoria Avenue is forcing my husband’s secrets to surface. She thinks I’m innocent, that my own past is picture-perfect, but she has no idea how far I’ll go to protect the ones I love.

A Village Murder is by Katie Gayle. There’s nothing quite like a night at the theatre. But Julia Bird is expecting a night of sweeping drama, not an onstage murder! At the end of Berrywick’s amateur theatre’s latest production, a shot rings out amongst the rapturous applause. But when Julia Bird peeks through the curtain, she sees lead actor Graham is lying still on the stage, his co-actor Oscar looking down at his prop gun in shock. She knows that Graham has been murdered, but with nearly everyone in the village helping with the play, anyone could have tampered with the props. And why was a beloved family man the target? Graham’s wife Jane collapses in a puddle of tears as Oscar is comforted and led away from the stage. But days later when Julia spots prim and proper Jane kissing Oscar, she wonders if the grieving widow’s tears were fake. Graham served Jane divorce papers the day of the tragedy – was he killed before he could spill the beans on his wife’s affair, and sully her perfect reputation? Meanwhile, the aptly named director, Roger Grave, wants the show to go on. The play is up for a local award, and this might just be Roger’s big break. But when failed actor Hector is not assigned the lead role he assumed he’d get, the mood among the cast quickly turns sour. Could Hector have killed Graham out of jealously for the leading role, Julia wonders? Then another member of the crew is found dead and Julia discovers there’s a dark secret at the heart of Berrywick’s local theatre society. But who would kill to protect it? Can Julia find the murderer before it’s curtains for another victim?

The first lie got him in trouble. Our romantic date night was meant to fix us. But when my husband grabs my hand and says he needs to tell me something, I can tell from the look in his eyes that our marriage is in deep trouble. The second lie ruined our marriage. We’ve been here before. I wonder who she is. Is she younger than me? For a moment I wonder if I’ll forgive him. But I always do. It’s the only way to keep our family together.  But before I can say anything, my daughter calls, terrified. “Mom, I need you to come home. Please!” The third lie could get someone killed. Flashing police cars light up the nightmare that’s unfolding in my beautiful home. Blood is found in our garage and in an instant, I know what my husband has done.  I hold my children close as our perfect life shatters before my eyes. But as he is dragged away from us in handcuffs, something snaps inside of me. I’ve stopped at nothing to get the life we have. And even if my husband is a killer, I will do whatever it takes to keep my family together. Three Little Lies is by Danielle Stewart

Then She Vanished is by Carla Kovach. It’s dark as the young woman leaves work. Crossing the empty car park alone, she thinks about the warmth of her little house. But she doesn’t make it home that night. Or ever again… Thirty years ago, Ruth Pritchard’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Elissa, went missing. Police were called, neighbours were interviewed, and even Ruth’s own husband was investigated, but the case went unsolved. Elissa disappeared forever. Now, Ruth watches the local news and hears about another girl gone from the same streets where her beloved daughter was last seen, and her heart races. A distinctive red scarf was found at a crime scene, and she recognises it instantly. It belonged to Elissa. After Ruth alerts the police, they rush to speak to her, but nobody answers the door. Her small home stands eerily quiet. Just like her daughter before her, Ruth has vanished into thin air. Friends say that Ruth suspected someone close to home took Elissa. Others say she never trusted her husband again after he was questioned by police. Did she finally discover the truth behind her daughter’s disappearance? And will her friends and family ever see her again?

Fear prickles her skin. “Noah?” Photos and trinkets from their simple but perfect life together litter the carpet. The coffee table is cracked, blood along its edges. She should be taking in details, but her heart is racing too fast. A strangled cry works its way from Josie’s chest. Where is her husband? Detective Josie Quinn’s world shatters when she returns home to find her house ransacked, and her husband, Noah, missing. When she kissed him goodbye hours earlier, called to the discovery of a woman’s body at a protest, they were putting the finishing touches to a nursery for their first adopted child. But now the house is empty, Noah’s bloodied handprints trailing the walls. Every fiber of Josie’s being screams to investigate. But her team warn her to keep her distance as they follow a connection to a recent robbery in Denton. But Josie can’t quiet the voice telling her the handprints Noah left are leading her somewhere, and the trail ends at an upturned box of her long-dead abusive mother’s possessions: faded photos, jewelry, a lock of hair, and a few old newspaper clippings. Beside herself with worry for Noah, and unexpectedly confronted by the trauma of her past, Josie throws herself into work. The woman’s body found during a demonstration outside a children’s hospital belongs to Gina Phelan, daughter of the powerful and influential Phelan family. Trawling the CCTV is a welcome distraction, but everything changes the moment fingerprints from the knife that wounded Gina match to prints found in Josie’s own home. Her head spinning as the two cases collide, Josie’s only option is to delve into the life of the monster who terrorized her as a child. The key to everything is hidden in the box of her mother’s mementoes. But is Josie strong enough and fast enough to find it in time? And at what devastating cost to those she loves most? Husband Missing is by Lisa Regan 

Fear For Her Life is by D K Hood. She stumbles over knotted roots as she races through the dark, unforgiving forest. Her legs ache and her teeth chatter from the biting cold. She hears a branch snap behind her. Her worst nightmare is about to begin. They have found her… As Sheriff Jenna Alton and her deputy David Kane rush into the remote pine forest surrounding Black Rock Falls, Jenna’s pulse races when she sees the glint of metal behind a line of trees: a prison bus, the lifeless body of its driver slumped over the steering wheel, and its four prisoners escaped into the wilderness… Jenna’s heart pounds at the thought of the violent murders each of the fugitives committed, among them the The Ice Pick Killer who drove women to remote locations before taking their innocent young lives. And worse, female warden, Amy Clark, is missing from the bus. Amy is new to the job, and her family have been calling for news on the lost van for hours. Jenna scans the acres of dangerous woodland around her, vowing to search every inch to bring Amy back to her family. Nearby gunshots put Jenna on the killers’ trail, but as she descends on a small cabin, it’s clear from the deadly silence that the men have already moved on, leaving behind the body of an innocent old man. Jenna screams his granddaughter’s name into the woodland. But Serena has vanished, just like Amy. As night draws in, Jenna fears the murderers are on a direct path toward Black Rock Falls, and she dreads to think what could happen if they made it to the quiet small town. Pushed to her limit chasing four twisted killers, will she catch them in time to save the lives of the two missing girls?

I look at the wedding photo on the wall and my heart freezes as I recognise the groom. I spent the night with him, just a few days ago. I had no idea he was married. And now he is dead… I feel my new friend Harper’s eyes on me as I try and make myself comfortable in her living room while our little boys play together. But when she leaves the room to get cupcakes out of the oven, I let out the breath I’ve been holding. Does Harper know who I am? That I’m the woman who spent the night with her husband? The last person to see him alive? She was so excited to invite me and my son Dex over. I thought it was because of our boys. But now I wonder… How much does she know about me and my past? How long have I been in her sights? And did she plan for me to meet her husband, the night he was murdered? The Last One to See Him is by Kathryn Croft.

The Secret Detective Agency is by Helena Dixon. Meet Miss Jane Treen – the coffee-drinking cat lover dressed head to toe in tweed, who just happens to be a secret super sleuth! London, 1941: Miss Jane Treen is at her desk, strong black coffee in hand and fluffy ginger cat by her side, when her top-secret government work is interrupted by an urgent call to Devon. A woman has been found dead in a lake in a place where she shouldn’t have been. Jane needs to gather the clues and find the killer before someone else from the agency gets hurt… Shy and handsome code-breaker Arthur Cilento is bewildered by the arrival of the efficient Miss Treen and her cat Marmaduke. She bursts into his life unexpectedly, forcing him out of his comfort zone. The reluctant colleagues huddle near the warmth of a crackling fire in Arthur's country home, working to piece together the murderous puzzle at hand. In the sleepy Devon village, someone is hiding something: but is it the busybody vicar and his sister, the dutiful housekeeper and her secretive son, the stern librarian, or someone else altogether? And who were the people with the woman in the lake on the day she died? No sooner have Arthur and Jane have drawn up a list of suspects, than a parcel reveals a clue that sends them in hot pursuit of a coded diary stashed in a village church. But as the heavy wooden door slams behind them and a key turns in the lock, one thing is sure: they need to unravel the truth and crack this code before the killer decides their number is up… But if they can catch the culprit in time, might this unusual pair become the finest crime-solving partnership since Holmes and Watson hung up their hats…?

My Husband's Mistress is by Willow Rose. Should I believe the woman who ruined my life, or protect the husband who’s already betrayed me? I walk past rows of immaculate white roses into the Kane family’s picture-perfect home, thinking that I’d never guess what’s happened behind closed doors. The woman standing with my colleagues in handcuffs looks so innocent in her blue, silk dress. But they say she’s killed her husband. When I see her face, I recognise her immediately. She’s my own husband Bradley’s mistress… She was found beside the body with blood on her hands. But in a quiet voice, with tears streaming down her face, she says Bradley was the one who did it. A chill goes down my spine. I’ve hated this woman since the day I saw her through the window of that little Parisian restaurant, holding hands with Bradley. I know my husband wouldn’t kill anyone. He’s a good father, a respected lawyer… But then, I never thought he’d have an affair. She mustn’t share her theories with anyone else. As the cop working the case, I need to make her trust me, and only me. Because she and Bradley thought they could lie to me. But one of them is a murderer. And they have no idea how far I’ll go to keep my children safe…

A Recipe for Murder is by Verity Bright. Cream cakes, cucumber sandwiches, apple tarts and… poison? Lady Swift is trying to plan the menu for her wedding, until murder strikes in kitchens across the village! Lady Eleanor Swift’s marriage to dashing Chief Inspector Hugh Seldon is just days away. There’s a lot to organise from the dress to the catering, including, of course, the all-important wedding cake. But Eleanor is heartbroken when their chef, apple-cheeked Annie Tibetts, dies of poisoning. And as the doctor confirms her death wasn’t an accident, accusations fly around the whole community. With more of the village struck down by the poison, Eleanor must unmask a killer who seems intent on spreading chaos amongst her nearest and dearest. Everyone is accusing their neighbour… and Eleanor is in a pickle as the seating plans for the wedding fall apart. But she soon has bigger fish to fry when the source of the poison is traced to a trusted establishment in town. Eleanor is certain they are being framed and that sabotage is afoot… And when a sample of poisoned wedding cake is delivered anonymously to Hugh working at his station miles away in Oxford, Eleanor realises that while she has been planning for the future, her past has been catching up with her. Eleanor must race across the countryside to save her love from certain death. Can Eleanor find the proof in the pudding and save Hugh in time? And will the poisoner finally get their just desserts?