From the author of The Ashes of London, comes a new historical mystery set in the last days of WWII 'Ten out of ten' The Times 'A grand piece of work - a triumph and one of Taylor's best' MICK HERRON 'A wonderfully unique novel from the master of historical crime fiction. Beautiful, haunting, and quite brilliant' LAURA SHEPHERD-ROBINSON 'As good as I'd expect from a master of the craft' VAL MCDERMID 'A wonderful, subtle novel, set in a strange, enclosed world. Beautiful writing and a gloriously satisfying ending' ANN CLEEVES __________ England, May 1945 Monkshill Park School for Girls seems a world away from the violence that engulfed Europe during World War II. Yet its lonely, decaying grounds have witnessed a murder. Annabel Warnock, a teacher with a secretive past, left for the holidays and never came back. Both teachers and girls assume she simply walked out, but the truth is quite different. Her body tumbled from the Maiden's Leap, a viewpoint on the clifftop Gothic Walk, and was washed out to sea. But Annabel herself is still trapped at Monkshill, unable to move on.

As she haunts the grounds and school, she discovers a hidden world - students, staff and servants are riven with deadly rivalries and dangerous tensions. And one of them is her killer. Gold title * During WWII, a remote boarding school becomes the site of a murder * From the Sunday Times Bestselling author of THE ASHES OF LONDON and THE AMERICAN BOY comes a major historical standalone * Brilliantly atmospheric storytelling with a strong sense of place and period * Highly original slant on crime fiction narrative * Comps: THE WHALEBONE THEATRE by Joanna Quinn, 22K; THE SEVEN DEATHS OF EVELYN HARDCASTLE by Stuart Turton, 15K; THE SILENT COMPANIONS by Laura Purcell, 11K Competition: The;Whalebone Theatre;Seven Deaths of Evelyn Hardcastle;Silent Companions;Library Thief;Skeleton Key;fingersmith;Square of Sevens. Joanna Quinn;Stuart Turton;Laura Purcell;Kuchenga Shenje;Erin Kelly;Sarah Waters;Laura Shepherd-Robinson.