Me and The Monkey by Andy Darby

I'm delighted to be helping close the blog tour for Me and The Monkey by Andy Darby, possibly the most bonkers book I've ever read! Gloriously entertaining. Huge thanks to Rachel Gilbey at Rachel 's Random Resources for inviting me and to the publisher for the marvellous package I received (picture at the end of the post).

The Blurb

Well there’s this talking monkey who won me in a game of Othello in a coffee shop in Amsterdam. He came back to Cornwall with me and has become a prolific reader and dabbler in magic. He also has past life flash backs – the most prominent of which are the Nam special forces ones. We have partially deceased girlfriends who apparently eat dead bodies. The Monkey created a sort of black hole in the spare bedroom and now we have a team of nerds investigating it and trying to stop ‘things’ coming out of it. A bunch of Oriental hit men who appear to believe he is a god attempted to steal The Monkey’s magic lolly pop sticks, but he managed to blow them up in their caravan. We are off to Cambodia in search of a temple from which came a monkey faced pendant with glowing eyes and we seem to have upset an international cabal who are out to get us. Oh, and did I mention that The Monkey likes a cigar and we regularly get very drunk on Jack Daniels…

Me and The Monkey is published by Bad Press Ink and was released on 10th July 2021.


Purchase Link

http://getbook.at/MeandTheMonkey

My Review

I chose this book because the blurb sounded out-there bat shitbonkers, and who doesn't need a bit of that? Particularly at the moment. And you know what? This book absolutely delivers. I spent much of the time giggling and shaking my head in disbelief. 

The blurb gives you a good idea of what to expect - it's hard to expand on that information without giving things away. It's insane, in a good way. A cigar smoking, hard drinking, talking, intelligent Monkey, a slightly bemused but easy going guy (the unnamed Me), a couple of nerds, some undead girlfriends, a black hole in the spare room floor, Eastern assasins, shamen, sourcerers, Cambodia, Scotland and Wales all feature. And Cornwall. And Jack Daniels. Lots of Jack... And it's all told in a series of diary entries/blog posts I told you, it's madness! 

To give you a little flavour of it, this is the first time we meet The Monkey...

'At the moment The Monkey is sitting on the back of the sofa wearing a mask made of ham - he looks strangely like Justin Bieber...'

Darby had me with that line. Laughed out loud. And below is one of my favourite diary entries...

'The Monkey wants to know why they buried Richard III in a car park. He thinks it may be because he didn't return his supermarket trolley but just left it in one of the bays, so they killed him and buried him there as a warning to others. Ah drugs...'

As I mostly read crime and psychological thrillers, normally when I wonder what it's like in the mind of those authors it's because their subject matter is so dark. With Andy Darby, I can't even begin to imagine where these wild ideas came from! I 'm assuming they were fuelled by copious amounts of Jack Daniels...

Me and The Monkey is crude in places, violent in places, bloody in places, original and absolutely hilarious. I laughed out loud loads and quoted random lines at folk. Bonkers and brilliant, the work of a crazy genius, and I loved it. Can't wait for the follow up. 

The Author

Andy Darby, would-be Viking, and lover of the bizarre. Mission – infest the world with his strange creations. He is the author of Me and The Monkey.

Son of a WW2 Commando, growing up in 1970s Birmingham, as a teenager Andy became a fan of heavy metal, fronting several metal bands over the years. His passion for martial arts also began in the 70s and has continued to the present. Competing as a bodybuilder and playing American Football for the Birmingham Bulls took up much of his 20s.

Following a mixed career involving working in a jewellery factory, spraying cars, and office work, he finally managed to follow his other passion, art, and began a career as a designer. A marketing department honed his skills, and he became aware of the world of designing for live events, joining a small production company, and eventually becoming creative director of their larger parent company. Moving to Cornwall he decided it was time to go freelance setting up his own business focusing on motion graphic design.

In the late 1990s he began to get the urge to write and his laptop drive is littered with the unformed creations that have popped into his head. Me and The Monkey is his first novel, coming to life as an experiment in having the discipline to write something every day during a period when he was travelling extensively for work. The story was written during train journeys, flights, backstage at events, 2am in hotel rooms, even during stops at motorway service stations, and was often written on his phone or iPad.

Andy lives on the north coast of Cornwall with his artist wife, teenage daughter, cat, two ponies, and constantly growing library. He still secretly thinks he could be a big wave surfer regardless of what reality tells him.

My Book Post

A Lifetime Ago by Jim Ody

Today is my stop on the blog tour for A Lifetime Ago by Jim Ody. Thanks to Zoe-Lee O'Farrell at Zooloo Book Tours for inviting me and to the publisher for my review copy.

 

The Blurb

This is a tale about how the events of one day have such catastrophic consequences on the future.

Hudson Bell is a consultant for the police. A former DI, he spends his days helping to find missing children.

May and her son go on a road trip to celebrate his birthday; Robert and Nadia buy their dream house by the sea.

But as each look to enjoy a new life, none of them can shake off what happened on that fateful day. One of them blames the others and will stop at nothing to seek revenge.

One accident and five lives changed forever.

A Lifetime Ago was published by Question Mark Press on 13th March 2020 and is available to purchase on Amazon UK and Amazon US.

My Review

Hudson Bell is a haunted man. He has been deeply affected by something that took place four years earlier - he left his job in the police, his relationship ended, friendships were damaged and despite counselling and therapy sessions he rarely gets a good night's sleep. And he is driven to help the police find missing children. Little Darren has been missing for two months and Bell is determined to find him. But he never expects the trail to lead where it does.

I loved Hudson. His heartbreak and grief comes right off the page, you sense his brokenness. He has, perhaps, chosen his current work as he is seeking some kind of redemption. We feel his anguish when cases don't go the way they should. May is another character carrying the weight of grief and pain and it's damaged her and her relationship with her young son. She is beautifully described. Jez,on the other hand, is a bit of light relief and I couldn't help but smile at some of his moments. The story is quite dark and needs some light now and then. Jez provides this, as does Laura to a lesser extent.

I enjoyed seeing the story, and back story, unfold from different perspectives, it's a really effective way to build and add layers to the plot. I also liked moving between the past and present, it kept me on my toes! There's a good pace and Ody successfully weaves everything together reaching a tense and bittersweet denouement. I actually found it quite sad, but glad there was maybe a chink of light for Hudson. An easy, effective and enjoyable read. It's dark though, and due to the subject matter, it might not be for everyone, but I really liked it and think Ody successfully explores the butterfly effect, the ripples through time from one single event.

 

The Author

Jim writes dark psychological/thrillers, Horror and YA books that have endings you won’t see coming, and favours stories packed with wit. He has written over a dozen novels and many more short-stories spanning many genres.

 
Jim has a very strange sense of humour and is often considered a little odd. When not writing he will be found playing the drums, watching football and eating chocolate. He lives with his long-suffering wife, three beautiful children and two indignant cats in Swindon, Wiltshire UK.


Author Social Media Links

Facebook 
Instagram
Twitter 
Amazon 

Darkness Falls by Alex Knight

Gosh, I've been quiet for a while, haven't I? Apologies, life and all that, you know how it is. Anyway, I'm back with an absolute banger! Darkness Falls by Alex Knight is out today and I was lucky enough to get my hands on an early copy. And goodness, I fair raced through it - couldn't turn the pages fast enough! If that wasn't enough, I also caught up with Alex a few days back to chat about the book, and other things - find out more below.

The Blurb

Twenty years ago, her brother was murdered. Tonight, she's found his killer.

Thessaly Hanlon is four hours into a long drive home through the night when she pulls into a 24-hour roadside diner to take a break. She's exhausted, but when she hears a chillingly familiar voice from the next booth, she wonders if he'll ever sleep again.

The voice is unmistakable. It belongs to Casper Sturgis, the man who murdered Thessaly's brother two decades before, and then disappeared without a trace.

Thessaly makes the decision to follow the killer. As Thessaly begins to unravel the second life of Casper Sturgis, she finds that digging into the past can have deadly consequences...

Darkness Falls is published today by Orion.

My Review

This is the second book from Alex Knight following last year's Hunted, which I loved. They are both standalones so you don't need to worry which order you read them in but I would recommend you read them both.

Darkness Falls follows the fabulously named Thessaly Hanlon. Although 20 years have passed, she still remembers the night her brother as murdered as if it was yesterday. And she remembers the man who murdered him just as clearly. He disappeared after that might and has never been caught. On a dreadful night, with awful weather which reminded me of a wet Glasgow evening, she pulls off the road at a small rest stop diner to get dry and drink coffee. All that changes when she heard the voice of Casper Sturgis, the man who killed her brother. The police don't take an active interest, after all it's a twenty year old crime and only a brief sighting, but Thessaly can't let it lie and sets out to find Sturgis herself.

It's a fantastic opening and the pace never lets up. This is a cat and mouse chase with a difference - here the mouse is chasing the cat, and taking all kinds of risks to do so. I loved Thessaly. She's strong, intelligent and determined to get justice for her brother. She doesn't always make good choices, but who does? She's really well written, believable. One thing I love about this book is that it's populated by strong women. In fact, men, with one notable exception, don't come out of this well at all. As well as Thessaly, there is Casey, a scared wife who wants to do right by her son, Washington, a dogged police officer who becomes involved, even Kayla, a young waitress who goes out of her way to help Thessaly. All beautifully written, perfectly rounded characters. To be fair, all the guys are brilliant characters too, just not necessarily one's I'd want to share a beer with...

I don't want to say too much about the plot for fear of spoilers. I'll just say that tracking down Sturgis is not a simple task, and Thessaly puts herself in peril more than once. The whole thing has a tense claustrophobic feel about it. This comes, partly, I think, from the incredibly exciting denouement, and partly because the number of key players is so small.

Darkness Falls is a tense, exciting, intelligent, fast paced, action filled crime thriller populated by well rounded characters. As I said in my opener, it's an absolute banger! Highly recommend this one.


The Author

Alex Knight was born in Glasgow and studied English at the University of Stirling. He works as a systems administrator by day, and writes thrillers by night. Alex lives near Glasgow with his wife and three children.


Author Chat

I caught up with Alex a couple of days ago for coffee and a chat.

Darkness Falls was his lockdown project and, as he says in the acknowledgements, he thinks that probably influenced his writing a little, changing the setting for the ending amongst other things. As I mentioned above, I certainly thought it had a claustrophobic feel about it. I commented on the fact that the majority of the key characters are women, and well written ones at that. For Alex, the important thing is getting the character right, so it almost shouldn't matter what gender they are. In fact, Thessaly was originally going be a guy - I wonder what his name would've been?! Talking of which, I asked Alex about coming up with names. He told me some come easily, some are inspired by something he's seen or read and often he'll use placeholder names for the early drafts, only slotting in the final choices later.

I'm always interested in the research authors do. I know, from previous conversations, that Alex is a big fan of good old Google for this, although for this book he also did some background reading for one or two elements of the storyline. I asked him, if he had to disappear, really disappear like Casper Sturgis did, where in the US would he go? The answer was North California, with its beautiful mountains and forests, but generally better weather than here in Scotland! Did he think he would change his name to stay hidden? Possibly. But given Facebook notifies his other alter ego (Mason Cross) whenever he posts a picture under his real name because it thinks he's an imposter he might not have to! My favourite story of the morning.

I also want to know what authors have been listening to, what was on the Spotify playlist. Alex chooses mainly film scores, without lyrics to distract him, and has found an excellent Australian radio station that plays just that. Much of Darkness Falls was written in his back garden in the good weather we had over lockdown and as a result Taylor Swift made it into the playlist too. Alex felt she had the right vibe for the book as you will see when I asked him to name three songs or pieces of music that would be on the Darkness Falls soundtrack. They are:

- Darkness on the Edge of Town by Bruce Springsteen (this was the working title of the book)
- Mornin' Glory by Bobbi Gentry (plays in the book)
- Exile by Taylor Swift

Finally, I asked Alex what he's currently working on and he got all secretive! 

'I'm working on a couple of things but nothing I can talk about', which all sounds super exciting. He also has a side project on which he's committed to write at least a hundred words a day for the whole year. He's usually writing between 5000 and 6000 words a month on this so it's growing quite quickly. I do know a teeny bit about this one and am fairly certain you won't be disappointed when it finally comes to be.

Actually, there was one other question. Alex is a big comic fan, would he like to write a graphic novel?
'Would love to! Just need DC or Marvel to ask me.' You heard it here first.

 

Thanks so much to Alex for taking the time to catch up and answer these and many other questions. If you're heading to Stirling this weekend for Bloody Scotland, Alex is taking part in the 'Shocking Twists and Big Reveals' panel on Friday evening. If you're not heading through in person but would still like tot attend, online tickets are available for individual events or for the whole weekend, and it's a cracking line up this year. More information is available from the Bloody Scotland website.

Tales From The Coffee Pot by Jim Ody

Welcome to my stop on the opening day of the blog tour for Tales From The Coffee Pot by Jim Ody, my second read in a row from Question Mark Press after last week's Ouija. Jim is a new author to me but based on this collection of short stories I'm sure I'll be reading more from him. I'm fact, I'm reviewing A Lifetime Ago next month. But back to this month and to Tales From The Coffee Pot! Many thanks to Zoé-Lee O'Farrell at Zooloo's Book Tours for the invitation and to the publisher for my review copy.

The Blurb

For the first time, the best of Jim Ody’s published short stories are together in one anthology, which also includes four previously unreleased ones. Twelve twisted tales that touch on psychological/thriller, horror and YA, including: A detective sent to a travelling circus to find a missing boy; A guy with a mysterious trunk must meet a stranger at a motel to survive; A doll turns up and becomes a little girl’s best friend. Then things turn strange; A surprise birthday party is memorable, if only the birthday boy survives; and a group of orphans find the world is about to end…

1 The Reveal
2 A Moth in The Jar
3 The I-Scream Van
4 Teaching Tom
5 Boat Trip
6 The Trunk
7 The Day
8 A Doll Named Sasha
9 Surprise Party
10: The Orphans
11 Hide & Seek
12 Virgin Women From Outta Space


Purchase Links

Amazon UK 
Amazon US 

My Review

With a title like Tales From The Coffee Pot you could be forgiven for thinking this is a collection full of light hearted tales, the sort swapped around the water cooler at work. But look again at the strap line - the coffee in Jim's pot is blacker than night.

Tales From The Coffee Pot contains 12 short stories of varying lengths, often several chapters, interspersed throughout with short pieces of flash fiction and poetry. The first tale, The Reveal, about a private investigator looking for a missing youth was an uncomfortable and disconcerting read - I thought I was reading one thing and then it turned into a whole other thing, which completely threw me, as, of course, it was designed to do. And it was a good indicator of what was to come as all the stories, pretty much, did that to me.

The standouts for me were The I-Scream Van where children are going missing and rumours abound of a ghostly ice cream van, A Doll Named Sasha, because dolls with porcelain faces freak me out anyway, Hide & Seek about three friends playing a game in the woods at night - it broke my heart, and Virgin Women From Outta Space, a sci-fi tale, much lighter in tone than the rest of the collection (although Teaching Tom is also quite light) and lots of fun. I should also mention The Trunk, where a man is tasked with guarding a mysterious trunk - again it went on a completely unexpected direction.

There were a couple of zombie-esque stories that weren't for me - well written and cleverly done, but zombies just aren't my thing. And whilst I loved the concept of Surprise Party, it was a bit much for me.

The pieces of flash fiction and poetry also included follow the general dark mood of the main collection and many of them are really quite sad. From those, I loved It Only, about being lost in a book, was shocked by Sometimes It's Not Enough and wanted to know more in Burning Desire.

Tales From The Coffee Pot is a strong collection of original, quirky, entertaining, dark and twisted tales. Ody successfully toys with our emotions and takes us places where we never expected to go, knocks us off balance and makes us question ourselves and what we just read. Thoroughly enjoyed it.


The Author

Jim writes dark psychological/thrillers, Horror and YA books that have endings you won’t see coming, and favours stories packed with wit. He has written over a dozen novels and many more short-stories spanning many genres. 

Jim has a very strange sense of humour and is often considered a little odd.  When not writing he will be found playing the drums, watching football and eating chocolate. He lives with his long-suffering wife, three beautiful children and two indignant cats in Swindon, Wiltshire UK.

Author Social Media Links

Facebook 
Instagram 
Twitter 

Ouija by Zoé-Lee O'Farrell

I realise I've been quiet of late - sorry, just life and stuff, you know how it goes sometimes. But I'm back today for my stop on the Question Mark Horror tour for Camp Death by Jim Ody and Ouija by Zoé-Lee O'Farrell, which is what I'm reviewing here. I don't tend to read horror, or YA but I've got to know Zoé a little over the last wee while and couldn't miss out on a chance to review her debut novel! 

The Blurb

The only thing for certain is the deaths were no accident.

Rayner High School once a prestigious school stands in ruins after such a terrible event.

A year later, a group of friends return to the abandoned school and their nightmare begins.

Something wants to get out and won’t take NO for an answer…

Ouija is Book 2 in a new series brought to you by Question Mark Horror. For fans of Point Horror, Christopher Pike & Nicholas Pine.

Purchase Links

Amazon UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0997CPK3J/

Amazon US - https://www.amazon.com/Ouija-Zo%C3%A9-Lee-OFarrell-ebook/dp/B0997CPK3J

 

My Review

I am such a wuss. As mentioned above, I don't tend to read horror books because they scare the bejeezus out of me. Seriously, I'm spooked by the smallest thing. So I was slightly hesitant going into Ouija. It's a slim volume, coming in at just over 150 pages, and took me a couple of hours to read. I foolishly started it lying in my bed at night. I got to, I think, 17% of the way through when I knew I needed to read the rest in the daytime. Wuss. 

The book opens with an horrific, and graphic, scene in a high school - one of those scenes when you forget to breathe. We then jump forward twelve months and meet a group of six teenage friends who decide to visit the now abandoned school at night. With a ouija board. Almost immediately things begin to get dark. And seriously creepy. 

There is a lot going on in these 150 odd pages. We jump between the present day and the terrible events of a year previously so little by little we start to understand what might have happened then and now. It's fair to say the teenagers open a Pandora's Box of nightmares which will affect them for the rest of their lives. O'Farrell is not scared to be explicit with the horror aspect of the story and fair packs a punch. But there is plenty of subtlety too - the relationships between the teenagers are handled well. 

I had my heart in my mouth from that terrifying opening scene right up until the frightening and heartbreaking final scenes. I'm not going to tell you what happens in between, that's for you to discover, if you're brave enough! I will say though that it's a warning that we really shouldn't mess with what we don't understand. And I'll never look at porcelain dolls the same way again! A great debut novel from O'Farrell. 
 

The Author

Zoé O’Farrell grew up in Watford but left the town life to live by the sea down at the White Cliffs of Dover. She spends her days working with numbers before escaping in the evening to the world of words and movies. Her go-to relaxation is watching a scary movie or reading a terrifying book!

She is a book blogger and tour organiser just to keep her extra busy. When she is not reading or writing, you can usually find her watching Watford FC or at a gig. Failing that she can be found rolling her eyes at her husband as he acts the same age as her spitfire of a Mini-Me whilst separating her two cats.

Ouija is her debut novel.


Author Social Media Links

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/zoelee.anthony
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/zooloosbookdiary/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/zooloo2008
Website: https://zooloosbookdiary.co.uk/


Check out Book 1 in the series, Camp Death by Jim Ody

Amazon UK - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Camp-Death-Question-Mark-Horror-ebook/dp/B0999JVT1F

Amazon US - https://www.amazon.com/Camp-Death-Question-Mark-Horror-ebook/dp/B0999JVT1F/

Looking For Lulu by Carl Granger

Today is my stop on the blog tour for Looking For Lulu by Carl Granger. Thanks to Heather Fitt at Overview Media for my invitation.

For today's stop I was asked to do an author spotlight. But it turns out that the author is a top secret international man of mystery! So here is the little I'm allowed to tell you - any more and I'd have to kill you!


The Author

Carl Granger is an investigative journalist with a military background. When not working he writes from his small, isolated cottage in the wilds of the East Midlands, where he lives alone with a one- eyed cat called Crippin.

I can tell you a bit about his new book, Looking for Lulu, though.

The Blurb

You could be sitting next to him in a pub. You’d never notice him. But he would see you.

None of his victims had ever noticed him, sitting there, glancing occasionally at them. Even if they had, they would have seen no cause for alarm.

Bland. Uninteresting. A civil servant going home to his equally bland wife and children at the end of another working day.
Anonymous. Invisible. Faceless.

That’s what they had all thought. But they were all wrong.
Now only the ever-growing spinney of trees bears testimony that they had once existed.

Is hard-bitten ex-Military Police captain, Detective Inspector Oscar Smith up to the task of tracking him down?

And as you turn the pages to meet the killer, will you ever find sleep again?

***** One of the darkest stories I have ever read ..pitch dark storytelling
***** What an astonishing first thriller!
***** It's weird and gory, but keeps you wanting more
***** OMFG this book….where do I begin! It is dark and disturbing and will most certainly make you squirm.

I know, like me, many of the regular visitors to this blog like their crime on the darker side. If so, this may be one for you. Enjoy! 

The Great Silence (The Skelfs Book 3) by Doug Johnstone

I have loved this series about the Skelf women, funeral directors and private investigators. I know it was originally planned as a trilogy, and this is the third book...but I remain hopeful of more. In the meantime, welcome to my review of The Great Silence by Doug Johnstone for my stop on the blog tour. Huge thanks to Anne Cater for inviting me and to Orenda Books for my review copy. Will definitely be buying myself a paperback copy to complete my collection.

The Blurb

Keeping on top of the family funeral directors’ and private investigation businesses is no easy task for the Skelf women, and when matriarch Dorothy discovers a human foot while walking the dog, a perplexing case presents itself.

Daughter Jenny and grand-daughter Hannah have their hands full too: the mysterious circumstances of a dying woman have led them into an unexpected family drama, Hannah’s new astrophysicist colleague claims he’s receiving messages from outer space, and the Skelfs’ teenaged lodger has a devastating experience.

Nothing is clear as the women are immersed ever deeper in their most challenging cases yet. But when the daughter of Jenny’s violent and fugitive ex-husband goes missing without trace and a wild animal is spotted roaming Edinburgh’s parks, real danger presents itself, and all three Skelfs are in peril.

Taut, dark, warmly funny and unafraid to ask big questions – of us all – The Great Silence is the much-anticipated third instalment in the addictive, unforgettable Skelfs series.

The Great Silence is published by Orenda Books. It came out as an eBook on 19th June 2021 and will be released in paperback on 19th August 2021.

My Review

Oh, where to start?! OK, I'll start with the simple stuff! As mentioned above The Great Silence is the third in the series about the Skelf women following A Dark Matter and The Big Chill. The Great Silence works well as a standalone but there are events that refer back to the previous books so you might want to check those out first. And it's such a great series you'll being doing yourself a massive favour! 

For those of you unfamiliar with the series, it features three generations of Skelf women who run a funeral directors and private investigators from matriarch Dorothy's kitchen table. They do take 'regular' cases but they also take on investigations they feel drawn to. As is the case with Dorothy and the human foot she finds. Granddaughter Hannah is the least involved in the businesses as she is a student but even she finds her own case after meeting the tutor for her forthcoming astrophysics PHD studies. 

Dorothy is fabulous. In her early 70s, she is feeling her age. But she's not your typical OAP. Aside from the unusual businesses she runs, she also drums and listens to music by bands with terrifying names. In other words, she's way more hip than me! And she has found a little bit of romance with long time friend Thomas. At one point, the number of women living in Dorothy's house swells to five, and she loves it. Johnstone describes her thoughts, worries and hopes so clearly, so vividly, it's wonderful. And through Dorothy, he gives us a beautiful description of love. 

Some of the minor characters come into the spotlight more in this book. My heart ached for Indy, Hannah's girlfriend in large parts of this book, and swelled with happiness for her at others. Teenager Abi, staying on the sofa bed in Dorothy's studio, sees and learns things no child should experience. And even shy, quiet employee Archie has his moment here. 

There are multiple storylines running through the book, all of which are fascinating. There are moments of tension, particularly towards the end, but each thread has an emotional core. Johnstone has the talent to take a crime story and make it so much more. And be in no doubt, more than one crime features in this book. But he manages to tug at our heartstrings, pull us in and ask us the big questions. This could be a sombre book, given the subject matter, and there are moments of real sadness and heartbreak. But this is a joyful book, full of characters you will care about. Really care about. 

Yes, The Big Silence is a crime story. But it is so much more. It talks about love, loss, family, grief, determination, sadness, hope and resilience. It's beautifully written and populated by a large cast of fully formed characters, some of whom will break your heart, at the centre of which are Dorothy, Jenny and Hannah, strong, independent women. If this is the end of the series, I'm sad, but what a glorious journey it's been. I'm sure this will be amongst my favourite books of the year and I can't wait to see what Johnstone brings us next. 

The Author

Photo by Duncan McGlynn

Doug Johnstone is the author of twelve previous novels, most recently The Big Chill (2020). Several of his books have been bestsellers and three, A Dark Matter (2020), Breakers (2019) and The Jump (2015), were shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year. He’s taught creative writing and been writer in residence at various institutions over the last decade – including at a funeral parlour ahead of writing A Dark Matter – and has been an arts journalist for over twenty years. Doug is a songwriter and musician with five albums and three solo EPs released, and he plays drums for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers, a band of crime writers. He’s also player-manager of the Scotland Writers Football Club. He lives in Edinburgh. Follow Doug on Twitter @doug_johnstone and visit his website: dougjohnstone.com.