Gallows Court (Rachel Savernake Golden Age Mysteries, 1) - Softcover

Edwards, Martin

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1492699284 ISBN 13: 9781492699286

Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press, 2019

Synopsis

"Superb―a pitch-perfect blend of Golden Age charm and sinister modern suspense, with a main character to die for. This is the book Edwards was born to write." ―Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author

London, 1930

Sooty, sulphurous, and malign: no woman should be out on a night like this. A spate of violent deaths―the details too foul to print―has horrified the capital and the smog-bound streets are deserted. But Rachel Savernake―the enigmatic daughter of a notorious hanging judge―is no ordinary woman. To Scotland Yard's embarrassment, she solved the Chorus Girl Murder, and now she's on the trail of another killer.

Jacob Flint, a young newspaperman temporarily manning The Clarion's crime desk, is looking for the scoop that will make his name. He's certain there is more to the Miss Savernake's amateur sleuthing than meets the eye. He's not the only one.

Flint's pursuit of Rachel Savernake will draw him ever-deeper into a labyrinth of deception and corruption. Murder-by-murder, he'll be swept ever-closer to its dark heart―an ancient place of execution. Twisted family relationships add to a trust-no-one narrative positively reeking with atmosphere.

About this title

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?'

Review

"Exceptional series launch from Edgar–winner Edwards...The labyrinthine plot is one of Edwards's best, and he does a masterly job of maintaining suspense, besides getting the reader to invest in the fate of the two main characters. Fans of Edgar Wallace's classic Four Just Men won't want to miss this one.
" - Publishers Weekly - STARRED review

"Highly atmospheric, spine-tingling fun...the way that Edwards keeps deepening the creepiness of this mystery until the very end is utterly stunning." - Booklist, STARRED Review

"Martin Edwards crafts vivid descriptions of both character and setting that embed the reader into the scene in a way few writers can achieve." - New York Journal of Books

"A heroine called Rachel Savernake had better live up to that dangerous-sounding name, and in Martin Edwards's Gallows Court, she does...Is Rachel a female Moriarty? A lucky dilettante? An avenging angel? Edwards keeps the reader guessing deep into the lively narrative...a clever pastiche of the golden-age mystery." - Air Mail

"Martin Edwards's GALLOWS COURT seems awfully bloodthirsty for a traditionally designed mystery set in foggy old London in 1930... Fans of clean-cut heroes will be rooting for Jacob, although some of us would rather see devilish Rachel clean his clock. Either that or commit a clever, more refined murder of her own." - The New York Times Book Review

"Superb-a pitch-perfect blend of Golden Age charm and sinister modern suspense, with a main character to die for. This is the book Edwards was born to write." - Lee Child, #1 New York Times bestselling author

About this edition

• Publisher: Poisoned Pen Press
• Publication date: 2019
• ISBN 10: 1492699284
• ISBN 13: 9781492699286
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 368