Winner of the 2008 Agatha Award for Best First Novel
From deep in the heart of his eighteenth century English manor, millionaire Sir Adrian Beauclerk-Fisk writes mystery novels and torments his four spoiled children with threats of disinheritance. Tiring of this device, the portly patriarch decides to weave a malicious twist into his well-worn plot. Gathering them all together for a family dinner, he announces his latest blow--a secret elopement with the beautiful Violet...who was once suspected of murdering her husband.
Within hours, eldest son and appointed heir Ruthven is found cleaved to death by a medieval mace. Since Ruthven is generally hated, no one seems too surprised or upset--least of all his cold-blooded wife Lillian. When Detective Chief Inspector St. Just is brought in to investigate, he meets with a deadly calm that goes beyond the usual English reserve. And soon Sir Adrian himself is found slumped over his writing desk--an ornate knife thrust into his heart. Trapped amid leering gargoyles and stone walls, every member of the family is a likely suspect. Using a little Cornish brusqueness and brawn, can St. Just find the killer before the next-in-line to the family fortune ends up dead?
Death of a Cozy Writer was chosen by Kirkus Reviews as a Best Book of 2008, nominated for a Left Coast Crime award (the Hawaii Five-O for best police procedural), short-listed for the Macavity Award for Best First Mystery, nominated for the Anthony Award for Best First Novel and was a finalist for the David G. Sasher, Sr. Award for Best Mystery Novel.
Praise:
"Fans of English detective work will welcome Malliet's droll debut, the first in a new series."--Publishers Weekly
"Malliet's debut combines devices from Christie and Clue to keep you guessing until the dramatic denouement."--Kirkus Reviews
"Malliet's skillful debut demonstrates the sophistication one would expect of a much more established writer. I'm looking forward to her next genre-bender, Death and the Lit Chick."--Mystery Scene
"Almost every sentence is a polished, malicious gem, reminiscent of Robert Barnard...the book is perfect for the lover of the classical detective story or the fan of great sentences."--Deadly Pleasures
"In her series debut, Malliet, who won a Malice Domestic Grant to write this novel, lays the foundation for an Agatha Christie--like murder mystery."--Library Journal
"An affectionate homage to the Golden Age of British crime fiction by a skilled writer rapidly attracting attention."--The Sherbrook Record
"This tale cleverly adds modern touches to an Agatha Christie style classic house mystery."--Mystery Women Magazine
"Wicked, witty and full of treats!"--Peter Lovesey, recipient of Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Crime Writer's Association and Malice Domestic
"The traditional British cozy is alive and well. Delicious. I was hooked from the first paragraph."--Rhys Bowen, award-winning author of Her Royal Spyness
"Death of a Cozy Writer is a romp, a classic tale of family dysfunction in a moody and often humourous English country house setting."--Louise Penny, author of the award-winning Armand Gamache series of murder mysteries
"The connections made by St. Just are nothing short of Sherlock Holmes at his most coherent. A most excellent first mystery!"--Midwest Book Review
About the Author: G. M. Malliet's first St. Just mystery won the 2008 Agatha Award for Best First Novel, and was chosen by Kirkus Reviews as a best book of the year. It was nominated for several awards, including the Anthony, the Macavity and a Lefty Award for best police procedural. Her series from Minotaur featuring a former MI5 Agent turned vicar of a small English village debuted in Autumn of 2011. Of the fourth book in the series, Cleveland.com raved: "[Malliet] may be the best mystery author writing in English at the moment (along with Tana French). She's certainly the most entertaining." She attended graduate school in Cambridge and Oxford; she and her husband travel frequently to the UK, the setting for her books. Weycombe is her first book of dark suspense. You can visit her at www.GMMalliet.com.
