Edwards skillfully weaves the strands together [in] this twisty whodunit. --Publishers Weekly
This atmospheric, fast-moving and intricate thriller features Harry Devlin, one of modern crime fiction's most memorable amateur detectives, in the deadliest case of his life.
A notice announcing that Harry Devlin died suddenly on Midsummer's Eve arrives at the office of his law firm one June day. Harry isn't happy to read it: Midsummer's Eve is less than a week away. His partner Jim Crusoe treats the message as a joke, but Harry isn't so sure.
Meanwhile, young women are being murdered in Harry's home city of Liverpool. When a friend who has asked to meet him becomes the latest victim, Harry becomes a suspect. He's soon fighting for survival on two fronts. Even as he unravels the shocking secret behind the murders, Harry must discover and confront the enemy who wants him dead if he is to live to see Midsummer's Day.
About the Author: Martin Edwards is an award-winning crime writer whose most recent novel, set in 1930, is Gallows Court. His seventh and most recent Lake District Mystery is The Dungeon House. Earlier books in the series are The Coffin Trail (short-listed for the Theakston's prize for best British crime novel of 2006), The Cipher Garden, The Arsenic Labyrinth (short-listed for the Lakeland Book of the Year award in 2008), The Serpent Pool, and The Hanging Wood.
Martin is a well-known crime fiction critic, and series consultant to the British Library's Crime Classics. His ground-breaking study of the genre between the wars, The Golden Age of Murder, was warmly reviewed around the world, and won the Edgar, Agatha, H.R.F. Keating and Macavity awards. His The Story of Classic Crime in 100 Books has been nominated for five awards.
A well-known commentator on crime fiction, he has edited 37 anthologies and published diverse non-fiction books, including a study of homicide investigation, Urge to Kill. An expert on crime fiction history, he is archivist of both the Crime Writers' Association and the Detection Club. He was elected eighth President of the Detection Club in 2015, is current Chair of the CWA, and posts regularly to his blog, 'Do You Write Under Your Own Name?'
