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When the ripped and ravaged corpse of a second young women is found along a rural hiking trail, the local police know that they have a serial killer on their hands.Initial leads all point in the same direction - an Indian immigrant named Shivay Gupta. Detective Sergeant Diane Shields has serious doubts however. Will she have the courage to rebel against her superior? The determination to unravel the mystery before another body is found?Readers' comments: 'Absolutely loved reading this', 'engaging and enlightening', 'amazing book by all standards'The novel is set in 1986 in the fictional English county of Wynmouthshire. Though primarily a twisty, page-turning thriller, the story also explores the themes of racial prejudice and gender inequality.Length: 100,000 words (350-400 standard novel pages)Style: suspenseful, psychological depth, semi-literaryTarget audience: adultAbout the author: Wattys award winner (The Painted Altar, 2020). The Trail Killer is my fifth full-length novel on the site.…

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WATTYS WINNER 2020Two interconnected murders, 64 years apart. One woman's search for truth and identity.Readers' comments: 'a masterpiece', 'impeccably written', 'amazing', 'superbly crafted page-turner', 'hauntingly beautiful', 'tremendous plot and character development', 'one of a kind', 'fantastic story telling', 'loved this book', 'a wonderful read", 'absolutely beautiful', 'brought tears to my eyes' and many moreWattys judging panel: 'This is VERY good. We were HOOKED from the beginning, and the writing and plot hold up throughout. This is a very unique, polished, well-written and well-researched piece.'PlotSet partly in rural England, partly on the sun-kissed coast of southerm Italy, The Painted Altar is a murder mystery mixed with romantic and historical elements (World War Two). Given away at two days old, Mary Rice has spent her life in the shadows. When discovering the suspicious circumstances surrounding her biological mother's death, she embarks on a journey which will shine a light not only on the truth but also on her own identity.Brief extract Suddenly, the door had inched open, half a wrinkled face visible behind the tautened chain. "Hello. Who is it?" The words I was going to say had of course been well-rehearsed, repeated over and over in my mind like a mantra, but now that the moment had arrived I found myself struggling to remember them. "Mrs Harvey... I think that you might... well, that you might be..." The door closed, then slowly opened once more, the chain this time unlatched. And there she was before me - half a metre away, within arm's reach. Thin lips gradually crooking upwards at each corner like the slow beatific kindling of a summer's dawn. "Oh yes love, I know who you are."Length: 70,000 words About the author: Originally from England but for the last 16 years I've been living in Italy. I hope therefore that the Italian aspects of the novel will have a certain gloss of authenticity.…

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When all hope is lost. When there's no-one else left to call...Dudley the Labrador is a cadaver dog specifically trained to sniff out human remains. His handler, Jennifer, suffers from an unusual phobia which has left her socially isolated.When together they uncover the corpse of a missing child, Jennifer begins to feel a deep, personal connection to the case. Dissatisfied by the direction of the official police investigation, she resolves to unravel the mystery herself. In doing so, she must first unravel herself...Readers' comments (final chapter): 'great book', 'superb' 'wonderful, incredible, fantastic!' 'wow, just wow', 'wonderfully satisfying', 'I love this book'Status: completedGenre: mystery/suspenseTarget readership: adultsNarrative style: psychological depth, frequent twists, semi-literaryLength: 75,000 words (approximately 300 standard novel pages)Author: Michael D Smith, Wattys award winner (The Painted Altar, 2020, literary fiction)Extract:It was then that the barking came, somewhere a hundred or so metres off to my right. Not his usual playful response, but instead a focused, constant noise - a quick-fire volley of woofs like rounds from a machine gun. His 'found something' bark.My heart quickened along with my step, the flashlight boring through the darkness. The moist barks of the trees deflected against my outstretched hand; pernicious branches whipped at my thighs, my chest, my face."Stay there boy! You just stay right there."The barking was incessant, grew louder with each step. At last the thick maze of tree trunks relented and there he was, framed in the soft-edged beam of the torchlight in the centre of a small clearing. His tail swooshing manically, snout directed at the ground.Stooping myself down beside him, I slanted the flashlight to the earth, squinted in close examination. Nothing - just dirt, twigs and damp leaves.A shallow grave.The lifeless body of Meghan Shaw had been tossed into a shallow grave.…

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Sometimes the truth is just too terrible to ever be guessed...Readers' comments: 'Excellent story', 'gripping page-turner', 'marvellous read', 'great writing', 'simply remarkable', 'a fabulously emotional ride', 'wow', 'what a great book!', 'had me engaged right to the end'Wattys award-winning author (The Painted Altar, literary fiction 2020)When two British brothers are reported missing whilst on holiday in southern Italy, the local carabinieri turn to retired detective Jim Jacks for help. Still pained by a recent divorce, he has started a new life for himself as a small-scale wine producer. Along with commander Nuzzo, he will slowly unravel a mystery which is even darker than it had first seemed...Genre: murder mysteryLength: 75,000 words (300 novel pages)Target audience: adult, fans of crime fiction, anyone who likes mysteries full of twists and which are populated by three-dimensional charactersExtract:I stayed there at the holiday bungalow with Sarah and Olivia for the rest of the afternoon and evening. Would return again the following morning.An analyst would no doubt conclude that my actions weren't entirely selfless; that as a lonely old divorcee I found a nostalgic comfort in female company. And yes, this might have been part of it. But there was a very practical reason too for my more or less continued presence in the house. I just didn't want to leave them to themselves I suppose, was afraid of what might happen. Yes, the thing I remember most about that forty-eight hour period is the silence. There was something brooding to it. Something ominous, almost delicate, like if it cracked you feared it would explode. An edgy, precarious silence stretching on and on, minute after minute, hour after hour...About the author: I'm a 47-year-old English teacher who has lived in Italy for the last 15 years. I have two other novels on the site, The Painted Altar and Kill Who You Want…

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What if it came to the starkest of all choices: kill, or else suffer the loss of a loved one?Readers' comments: 'simply the best', 'one of the best books I've read', 'loved it', 'amazing', 'great reading', 'stumped me to the very end' and othersPlot: When a pregnant doctor is brutally murdered in her own kitchen, the husband claims to have some weeks earlier received an anonymous and darkly menacing letter. For the small town of Ravensby, it's just the start of a living nightmare - one in which nobody is spared from the murderous cross hairs, and which will drive Detective Inspector Kubič to the edge of his own sanity...Genre: suspense/thrillerStatus: completedLength: 70,000 words (approx. 275 standard novel pages)Target readership: Though aimed primarily at adults, the novel features several teenage characters and so may also appeal to a younger audienceExtract: "Warn you sir, not a pretty sight in there."Kubič took a deep, preparatory breath, his footsteps slow and leaden as he moved towards the kitchen door. Not for the first time over the years, he found himself wishing he'd chosen an entirely different sort of career. Paper-pushing, something out of doors. Anything at all. He'd always been reasonable enough at woodwork back at school, he recalled. Why hadn't he done that, he thought? Become a cabinet maker or some damn thing.A reluctant hand pushed open the door..."Oh dear Christ."The words escaped his mouth forcefully, involuntarily, like blood gushing from an open wound…