When The Devil Drives - Hardcover

Christopher Brookmyre

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 1408703416 ISBN 13: 9781408703410

Publisher: Little, Brown (7 Jun 2012), 2012

Synopsis

The second installment in Christopher Brookmyre’s new crime series, When the Devil Drives is an intensely gripping literary thriller that delves into the darkest reaches of the human psyche.

Actress turned private investigator Jasmine Sharp has become accustomed to clients looking for long-lost relatives, so when a woman hires her to find her younger sister Tessa Garrion, Jasmine presumes the case will be relatively straightforward. The assignment takes her back into the world of professional theater, where she is warned off more than once for probing too deeply into the past.

Meanwhile, Detective Superintendent and mother-of-two Catherine McLeod is called to the scene of a murder in the Highlands. Following a theatrical outdoor performance of A Midsummer Night's Dream at Cragruthes Castle, a prominent figure in the Scottish arts community is shot dead during a post-performance photo call. With her initial leads turning out to be red herrings, McLeod struggles to determine the killer’s motive.

Jasmine soon uncovers Tessa’s involvement in a drug-riddled Highlands estate retreat replete with occult rituals, which implicates more than a few people in the upper echelons of Scotland’s arts scene. Tessa’s disappearance in the summer of 1981 begins to look increasingly like murder, but the guilty will stop at nothing to keep the truth hidden. As Jasmine’s and McLeod’s investigations intertwine, it becomes evident that both cases are far more convoluted and dangerous than anticipated.

About this title

About the Author

Since his award-winning debut novel Quite Ugly One Morning, Christopher Brookmyre has established himself as one of Britain's leading crime novelists. He has worked as a journalist for several British newspapers and is the author of twelve novels, including Where the Bodies Are Buried, One Fine Day in The Middle of the Night, and Not The End of The World.

Review

The elements that have attracted readers to Brookmyre since his early efforts are abundantly present in his latest work: complex plots, deep examinations into those dark aspects of the human personality and psyche that are simultaneously fascinating and repellent, and, at the core, a puzzling and intelligent mystery or two. It is difficult to imagine what more one could ask for.” BookReporter

Brookmyre is a master at rendering ingenious, intertwining plots. Sharply drawn characters and an idyllic Scottish setting add further appeal to this engaging entry in which foul play’s the thing.” Booklist (starred review)

When the Devil Drives is a true pleasure for all detective fiction fans think Ian Rankin by way of Agatha Christie, by turns dark and delightful and always intriguing. Christopher Brookmyre’s strong prose and clever dialogue deliver on every page of this intricately plotted thriller, and I look forward to seeing what he does next.” Michael Koryta, winner of the Los Angeles Times Book Prize and New York Times bestselling author of The Prophet

When the Devil Drives is an engaging, well-written, Scottish-based crime thriller. . . . there is no disguising Brookmyre’s prose.” The Herald (Glasgow)

Brookmyre paints the workmanlike nature of private investigating with veracity and insight. . . . yet another accomplished, engaging, smart, and funny piece of crime writing, plotted and executed with no small amount of skill, style, and craft.” The Scotsman

Invigoratingly complex . . . cripplingly infectious.” Daily Mirror

Brookmyre at his chaotic, brilliant best.” Daily Record

Deftly plotted and believably characterized as ever, with a pleasing anti-establishment edge.” Marylebone Journal

About this edition

• Publisher: Little, Brown (7 Jun 2012)
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 1408703416
• ISBN 13: 9781408703410
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 368