How To Get Away With Murder by Rebecca Philipson #HowToGetAwayWithMurder @BeccaPhilipson @TransworldBooks #BookReview #SerialKiller

 

Denver Brady claims to be the most successful serial killer of our time – and that’s precisely why you’ve never heard of him.

But with the publication of How to Get Away With Murder, his manual for aspiring serial killers, that’s about to change.

When a copy of Denver's book is found at a crime scene, DI Samantha Hansen is given the job of tracking down the elusive author.

As Denver and Sam’s stories unfold and converge, it becomes clear that there’s more to both than meets the eye.

And once Denver’s book goes viral, the pressure to find and bring him to justice brings Sam to breaking point.

But in this dark and twisted tale, who is hunting whom?

How To Get Away With Murder by Rebecca Philipson is published on 12 March 2026 by Bantam. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review. 

How to Get Away with Murder by Rebecca Philipson is a dark, clever and hugely readable crime novel that kept me turning the pages late into the night. At around 350 pages, it’s the kind of thriller that’s very easy to get engrossed with, the chapters are short, the tension builds quickly and the premise is immediately intriguing.

The novel centres on Denver Brady, a man who claims to be the most successful serial killer of modern times, and this is because nobody has ever heard of him. When his book, How to Get Away With Murder, begins circulating online, it quickly attracts attention. But when a copy of the book turns up at a real-life crime scene, the situation becomes far more sinister. DI Samantha Hansen is tasked with finding the mysterious author before more lives are lost, and what follows is a gripping investigation that slowly reveals there is far more going on beneath the surface.

One of the most compelling aspects of the novel is the “book within a book” idea. Passages from Denver’s manual are woven into the story, and the way the fictional instructions echo the real crimes adds an extra layer of tension. It’s an ingenious premise and the author is very clever with her use of it, creating a sense that the killer is always one step ahead of the police.

The investigation is led by Samantha Hansen, a strong and complex protagonist who is returning to work after a difficult period away from the job. Her determination to prove herself again, while dealing with the pressure of a high-profile case, adds an emotional thread that runs throughout the story. She’s supported by an interesting team of colleagues, and their interactions help ground the darker elements of the plot.

The story moves at a steady pace, with plenty of twists and revelations along the way. I really enjoyed how the narrative alternates between different perspectives, gradually bringing the threads of the story together. Rebecca Philipson does a great job of keeping the reader guessing without making things overly complicated.

For me, it was the concept of the novel that really sold it. The idea of a killer openly publishing a guide to murder, and daring the police to catch them, is both chilling and incredibly compelling. It creates a tense, atmospheric read that crime fiction fans will find hard to resist.

Overall, How to Get Away with Murder is a smart and entertaining thriller with a memorable premise and a satisfying mystery at its core. It’s a solid, enjoyable crime novel with a difference,  and I’ll definitely be interested to see what Rebecca Philipson writes next.

Rebecca Philipson grew up in a mining town in County Durham, where she still lives. 

Educated in a small convent, she set up her own business at 21 and won both the North East Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award and the Artemis Award for inspirational women in business. 

Rebecca was inspired to write How to Get Away with Murder after starting a True-Crime blog during the pandemic, and becoming fascinated by the ways in which serial killers are treated like celebrities.

In her spare time, Rebecca enjoys all things book-related, netball, travelling and spending time with friends and family.

www.rebeccaphilipson.com

Instagram @rebeccajphilipson

X @BeccaPhilipson

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Saoirse by Charleen Hurtibuse BLOG TOUR #Saoirse @charleen_hurtibuse @bonnierbooks_uk @eriubooks @randomthingstours @RandomTTours #BookReview #IrishFiction

 

In the wilds of Donegal, Ireland, 1999, Saoirse is an artist living an outwardly idyllic life. Her tender husband Daithí and two beloved daughters are regular subjects for her work, and in them she has found the safe home that she has always longed for. She tends not to talk about her past, and those that love her have learned to accept that the full story is too painful for her to disclose.

When her Dublin exhibition unexpectedly wins a prestigious award that invites a swarm of publicity, Saoirse is left panic stricken. The unanticipated recognition threatens to expose a decade's worth of buried memories and past crimes. Because what her family and friends don't know is that Saoirse has been on the run since she was seventeen, she has stolen an identity to survive, and whilst Ireland might now be her home, it wasn't her first - and now her past life is poised to reclaim her.

The novel weaves between flashbacks to a complicated childhood in Michigan, and Saoirse's journey to and in Ireland to forge safety for herself.

Saoirse by Charleen Hurtubuse was published on 26 February 2026 by Eriu / Bonnier Books. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour 

I read and reviewed Charleen Hurtubuse's debut novel; The Polite Act of Drowning on Random Things back in July 2023. I loved that book and said at the time that I looked forward to reading more from the author. So here we are, with the much anticipated follow up; Saoirse - it's another winner for me! 

Saoirse is a quietly powerful novel that explores identity, survival, and the complicated space between reinvention and deception. Set largely in the rugged landscape of Donegal in 1999, this is a story that unfolds with a steady, thoughtful pace, revealing its emotional depth layer by layer.

Saoirse herself is a fascinating central character. An artist living what appears to be a peaceful life with her gentle husband Daithí and their two daughters, she seems to have found the stability and belonging she longed for. Her family are not only the centre of her world but also the focus of her art, and there’s a tenderness in these domestic scenes that grounds the novel beautifully. Yet from the beginning there is a quiet sense that Saoirse is holding something back. She avoids speaking about her past, and her family know not to ask questions, they do not push for more information. 

Saoirse has an art exhibition in Dublin which wins a prestigious award, and along with that comes publicity that begins to feel like a threat to her privacy.  The author handles this tension with great skill, gradually revealing why Saoirse lives with such caution. Through a series of flashbacks, the narrative moves between rural Ireland and Saoirse’s earlier life in Michigan, offering glimpses into a childhood and adolescence that shaped the woman she has become.

My mother was from Donegal and I spent every summer of my childhood there, so the setting was very familiar to me and the author has brought the place to life on the page, Donegal is wonderfully evoked. The wild, coastal landscape feels almost protective, yet also isolating, just like Saoirse’s own emotional state. It’s easy to imagine how someone seeking safety might choose such a place to disappear into, and the contrast between the quiet Irish community and the memories of America adds an extra layer of intrigue.

What stood out most for me was the complexity of Saoirse as a character. She is not always easy to understand, but she is entirely compelling. Her decisions, often made in moments of pressure or fear, reflect someone who has spent much of her life simply trying to survive.

This is an evocative and absorbing novel about the weight of the past and the fragile nature of the lives we build for ourselves. Thoughtful, unsettling at times, and deeply human, Saoirse is a memorable read that lingers long after the final page. I’d happily recommend.

Charleen Hurtubise has lived in Dublin, Ireland for over 25 years, having moved from
Michigan, USA. 

She is a teacher and artist as well as a writer, and her short fiction, essays and poetry have appeared in various publications. 

She holds an MFA Creative Writing from University College Dublin (UCD) where she has also facilitated creative writing modules.

Instagram @charleen_hurtubise

The Truth About Ruby Cooper by Liz Nugent #TheTruthAboutRubyCooper @liznugentwriter @penguinukbooks #BookReview

 

If my sister hadn’t been beautiful, none of it would have happened.

Ruby Cooper and her sister, Erin, live an idyllic life in their close-knit church community in Boston. But when Ruby is sixteen, she is involved in an incident that causes her family’s world to implode.

Across decades, the fallout leaves a wake of destruction behind Ruby in Dublin and Erin in Boston.

Not that Ruby wants to think about the past.

But it can’t stay a secret forever.

The Truth About Ruby Cooper by Liz Nugent is published on 12 March 2026 by Penguin. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review.
This review was also featured in the March edition of The Mature Times.

The Truth About Ruby Cooper is one of those quietly dazzling novels that creeps up on you, it’s beautifully written and structured, and full of emotional intelligence. From the opening pages, the author confidently guides the reader with elegance. It’s a book that needs to settle for a while. 

There is, undeniably, a central theme that could feel problematic in less careful hands. It touches on sensitive territory, the sort of subject matter that risks being mishandled, sensationalised, or even misunderstood. The author approaches the themes carefully and with empathy, giving Ruby a complexity that can be infuriating and also strangely compelling. It’s a delicate balancing act, and it’s done exceptionally well.

Ruby herself is a wonderfully vivid creation; flawed, layered, and despicable, yet ultimately human. The secondary characters enrich her world without ever overwhelming it, and the relationships between them feel tender, fraught, and real. The structure, too, is masterful: the story unfolds in a way that feels natural, each piece clicking gently into place.

What lingers is the humanity of the novel. It’s thoughtful, engaging, and astute in its understanding of how we tell stories about ourselves—and how those stories can both shield and expose us, and those connected to us. 

A beautifully crafted, yet controversial read that deserves to be talked about.

Before becoming a full-time writer, Liz Nugent worked in film, theatre and television.

Her five novels - 
Unravelling Oliver, Lying in Wait, Skin Deep, Our Little Cruelties and Strange Sally Diamond - have each been Number One bestsellers and she has won five Irish Book Awards, as well as the James Joyce Medal for Literature.

She lives in Dublin.

Instagram @liznugentwriter

www.liznugent.com

Tombstoning by Doug Johnstone BLOG TOUR #Tombstoning @doug_johnstone @writerdougj @orendabooks #20YearsofDougJohnstone #ScottishLiterature

 

Your best mate just fell off a cliff in mysterious circumstances. You

were the last person to see him alive. What do you do?

If you're David Lindsay from Arbroath, you leg it – and don’t go back. Not for fifteen years.

Then Nicola Cruickshank – yes, that Nicola, the girl you always fancied but never had the guts to speak to – gets in touch. She wants you back for a school reunion. At the very place it happened. Of course you say yes. Not to lay ghosts to rest, but because you still fancy Nicola.

The thing is, if you are David Lindsay, then returning to Arbroath isn’t going to bring closure. Because when someone else tumbles off the cliffs – an act the locals now call tombstoning – David has a choice: run away again, or finally find out why people around him keep dying...

Tombstoning by Doug Johnstone was published on 12 February 2026 by Orenda Books. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this Blog Tour 

I am a massive fan of Doug Johnstone's writing. His novel Breakers is my second favourite book of all time (coming second to the incredible The Handmaid's Tale).  His voice is unique; gritty and heart felt, compassionate and witty, sweary and relevant, and perfect. 

When I heard that Tombstoning was being reissued for its twentieth anniversary, complete with an introduction by Christopher Brookmyre, I wondered how this early novel would feel two decades on. I needn’t have worried. This is a five-star read all over again: darkly funny, sharply observed and quietly devastating.

At the heart of the novel is David Lindsay, who fled Arbroath fifteen years ago after his best friend Colin fell to his death from the cliffs. David was the last person to see him alive. Colin had everything to live for. He was walking in the opposite direction. None of it made sense. So David did the only thing he felt capable of doing; he ran.

Now living in Edinburgh and working as a web designer, David is lured back to his hometown for a school reunion by Nicola Cruickshank. Yes, that Nicola, the one he always fancied and never quite had the courage to approach, although he has a hazy memory of a New Year's Eve snog. His motivations for returning are quite self serving, and that’s one of the things I loved most about this story. David is flawed, often selfish, occasionally cowardly, but always utterly believable.

The author's writing is tight and purposeful; there are no wasted words, or scenes. The pacing is beautifully controlled, the tension building really subtly that I sometimes didn’t realise quite how anxious I’d become until another death at the cliffs; an act now known locally as “tombstoning" made me feel quite terrified. It's a though the past, and the present have collided.

As in all of this author's novels, there is an incredible sense of place. Arbroath is vividly depicted; the cliffs, the sea, the small-town claustrophobia and unexpected warmth. You can almost feel the salt in the air and the weight of shared history pressing down on everyone. It’s a picture of a town that David once dismissed as small and stifling, only to discover that perhaps he hasn’t escaped it, or his own past, quite as successfully as he imagined.

There’s also a tenderness here beneath the dark humour and creeping dread. This is a story about guilt, about the stories we tell ourselves to survive, and about the uneasy business of growing up.

As debuts go, Tombstoning is remarkably assured. Reading it now, you can see the seeds of the bold ideas and emotional depth that characterise the author's more recent work. Gripping, intelligent and emotionally resonant, this is a novel that stands the test of time, and one I wholeheartedly recommend.

Doug Johnstone is the author of nineteen novels, many of which have been bestsellers. 

The Space Between Us was chosen for BBC Two’s Between the Covers, while six of his books have been shortlisted or longlisted for the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year or the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Novel of the Year.
Doug has taught creative writing or been writer in residence at universities, schools, writing retreats, festivals, prisons and a funeral directors.
He’s also been an arts journalist for twenty-five years.
He is a songwriter and musician with ten albums released, and drummer for the Fun Lovin’ Crime Writers.
He’s also co-founder of the Scotland Writers Football Club. 

Sharks by Simone Buchholz BLOG TOUR #Sharks #SimoneBuchholz @OrendaBooks @FwdTranslations #BookReview #ChastityRileyReloaded

 

In Wilhelmsburg, Hamburg’s so-called ‘problem area’, an American couple is found brutally murdered in a derelict villa.

Prosecutor Chastity Riley is assigned the case, and quickly finds herself waist-deep in a murky tangle of city planners, shady investors and vanishing officials. The gentrification machine is rolling on, and someone is sending a very clear message.

As November fog settles over the city, Chastity is coughing up blood, her personal life is a slow-motion disaster, and her former colleague, Faller, won’t stop interfering. But nothing’s going to stop her from cutting through the lies – not even the sharks circling ever closer.

Dark, caustic and piercing, Sharks is a searing investigation into greed, power, and the price of resistance in a city devouring itself, from one of Germany’s finest, most original crime writers.

Sharks by Simone Buchholz is published today; 26 February 2026 by Orenda Books and is translated by Rachel Ward. It is Volume 3 in the Chastity Reloaded series. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this Blog Tour. 

I love crime fiction, I adore a series and I am really very fond of translated literature. Simone Buchholz's Chastity Riley books are some of my favourites. Quirky, original and always compelling Sharks may just be one of her sharpest yet. 

Set in Wilhelmsburg, Hamburg’s so-called ‘problem area’, the novel opens with the brutal murder of an American couple in a derelict villa. It’s a really unsettling beginning; all peeling paint, damp air and the trauma of violence. Prosecutor Chastity Riley is drawn into a case that reaches far beyond a single crime scene. Developers circle. Investors hover. Officials vanish. The gentrification machine grinds on, it seems to be unstoppable.

Chastity, of course, is the perfect guide through this murky plot. Smart-mouthed and sharp-eyed, she narrates in this author's trademark staccato style: short chapters, shorter sentences. Punchy. Wry. Often very funny. Underneath it all, though, there’s always heart.

In Sharks, she’s physically struggling. She's coughing, unwell, absolutely refusing to slow down. She smokes when she shouldn’t. Works when she ought to rest. Ignores advice from colleagues and friends. That stubborn streak is infuriating and entirely in character. Chastity doesn’t just prosecute cases; she lives in them. The corruption she uncovers; city planners in bed with investors, profit before people, communities carved up and sold off, really hits her hard. This isn’t just about solving a murder. It’s about who gets to own a city. Who gets pushed out. Who profits.

Her team are, as ever, a delight. Calabretta’s steady presence balances Chastity’s volatility, and the Faller has returned and is now inconveniently operating outside official structures, this adds friction and spark. There’s history there. And irritation. And perhaps something else.

What I really really love about this series is the way Simone Buchholz winds together personal and political. Chastity’s private life is never neat and tidy, and here it’s fraying at the edges. Yet those friendships, with football and late-night conversations give the novel warmth against the chill of November fog. Hamburg itself feels vivid: damp, tense, shifting beneath the pressure of money and ambition.

I have to mention the translation by Rachel Ward. As ever, it is superb. The author’s voice is distinctive, caustic, rhythmic, razor-edged, and the translation captures it perfectly. The humour is there. The melancholy is there. 

Although part of the Chastity Reloaded strand of the series, Sharks stands beautifully on its own. 

I read it in a single, greedy sitting. It’s lean, fierce and utterly compelling, a crime novel that exposes the predators in sharp suits as clearly as any killer in the shadows.

Highly recommended. Long live Chastity Riley.

Simone Buchholz was born in Hanau in 1972. 

At university, she studied Philosophy and Literature, worked as a waitress and a columnist, and trained to be a journalist at the prestigious Henri-Nannen-School in Hamburg.
In 2016, Simone Buchholz was awarded the Crime Cologne Award as well as runner-up in the German Crime Fiction Prize for Blue Night, which was number one on the Krimi ZEIT Best of Crime List for months.
The critically acclaimed Beton Rouge, Mexico Street, Hotel Cartagena and River Clyde all followed in the Chastity Riley series.
Hotel Cartagena won the CWA Crime in Translation Dagger in 2022.
The Acapulco (2023) marked the beginning of the Chastity Reloaded series, with The Kitchen out in 2024.
She lives in Sankt Pauli, in the heart of Hamburg, with her husband and son.

Rachel Ward is a freelance translator of literary and creative texts from German and
French to English.
Having always been an avid reader and enjoyed word games and puzzles, she discovered a flair for languages at school and went on to study modern languages at the University of East Anglia.
She spent the third year working as a language assistant at two grammar schools in Saaebrücken, Germany.
During her final year, she realised that she wanted to put these skills and passions to use professionally and applied for UEA’s MA in Literary Translation, which she completed in 2002.
Her published translations include Traitor by Gudrun Pausewang and Red Rage by Brigitte Blobel, and she is a Member of the Institute of Translation and Interpreting.

 Follow Rachel on Twitter @FwdTranslations,  and on her website www.forwardtranslations.co.uk

Catherine by Essie Fox BLOG TOUR #Catherine @essiefox @OrendaBooks #WutheringHeights #HistoricalFiction #Retelling

 

The greatest tragic love story ever told – but this time, Catherine tells it herself. In Catherine, Essie Fox breathes new life into Wuthering Heights, transforming a gothic masterpiece into a haunting confession of obsession, madness and love that even death cannot end.

With a nature as wild as the moors she loves to roam, Catherine Earnshaw grows up alongside Heathcliff, a foundling her father rescued from the streets of Liverpool. Their fierce, untamed bond deepens as they grow – until Mr Earnshaw’s death leaves Hindley, Catherine’s brutal brother, in control and Heathcliff reduced to servitude.

Desperate to protect him, Catherine turns to Edgar Linton, the handsome heir to Thrushcross Grange. She believes his wealth might free Heathcliff from cruelty – but her choice is fatally misunderstood, and their lives spiral into a storm of passion, jealousy and revenge.

Now, eighteen years later, Catherine rises from her grave to tell her story – and seek redemption.

Essie Fox’s Catherine reimagines Wuthering Heights with beauty and intensity – a haunting, atmospheric retelling that brings new life to a timeless classic and lays bare the dark heart of an immortal love.

Catherine by Essie Fox was published on 12 February 2026 by Orenda Books in hardback. The paperback will be published in October. My thanks to the publisher who sent my copy for review as part of this Blog Tour. 

I have read every book that Essie Fox has written, beginning with her debut back in 2011. I love her writing, it's dark and gothic, full of incredibly quirky characters and always plotted to perfection. When I heard that she was writing a re-telling of Wuthering Heights, from Cathy's point of view, I was intrigued and a little excited. 

This year, so far, has been the year of Wuthering Heights. With the release of the latest screen adaptation, the novel has had something of a re-birth. I expect many people will have read it for the first time and some may have re-visited the original novel too. I have never seen Wuthering Heights as a 'romance' - despite some labelling it that. Whilst there is, without doubt, a toxic love story at its heart, I have always thought of it as a gothic tragedy, and Essie Fox's re-telling is the perfect accompaniment to the original text. 

I closed Catherine with that delicious shiver that only the very best gothic fiction can deliver. Dark, intoxicating and gloriously atmospheric, this is a novel that seeps into your bones and lingers there long after the final page.

From the wild, windswept Yorkshire moors to the brooding isolation of Wuthering Heights and the refined elegance of Thrushcross Grange, the setting is everything you would hope for. It is bleak, beautiful and utterly immersive. You can almost feel the bite of the wind and hear it howling across the heath. The author captures that gothic atmosphere perfectly.

Catherine Earnshaw is as wild and untamed as the landscape she adores. Growing up alongside the mysterious foundling Heathcliff, who was brought to the Heights by her father from the streets of Liverpool, their bond is fierce, consuming and impossible to define. It is childhood friendship, a passion and something darker all at once. When Mr Earnshaw dies and Catherine's brother Hindley takes control, reducing Heathcliff to servitude, the shift in power changes everything. The cruelty, the misunderstandings, the impossible choices, all of it builds with an almost unbearable intensity.

Essie Fox allows us inside Catherine’s mind in a way that feels really fresh, yet a little bit bold. She details Cathy's decision to concentrate on Edgar Linton, the polished, privileged heir to Thrushcross Grange, instead of Heathcliff very well. 

The characters are vivid and compelling. Heathcliff remains magnetic and dangerous; Edgar is more than just a  contrast; and Catherine herself is gloriously flawed, passionate and achingly human. Every relationship feels intense, and so very raw.

What I particularly loved is how the author honours the feel and the spirit of the original novel, while giving Catherine her own voice, she is fierce, wounded and unforgettable. 

Beautifully written, steeped in gothic drama and brimming with emotion, Catherine is a haunting tale of obsession, madness and love that refuses to die.

An absolute triumph, and highly recommended by me. 

Essie Fox is the Sunday Times bestselling author of seven historical novels, including The Somnambulist, shortlisted for the National Book Awards, and The Fascination, an instant Sunday Times bestseller. 

Her work has twice been selected as The Times Historical Book of the Month, most recently for her gothic mystery Dangerous. 

She appears regularly at literary festivals and cultural institutions and is the host of the podcast Talking the Gothic. 

She lives in Windsor.

Rivennia :A Game of Wagers by Jaime Urencio BLOG TOUR #Rivennia #sarpress @sunriseandrooster @randomttours @randomthingstours #BookExtract

 

EVOLUTION IS NO LONGER NATURAL - IT'S POLITICAL

When Gren Moritz is elected head of the global government of Rivennia, he is ridiculed and isolated by others in power for his stance against the rise in genetic engineering.

Following his inauguration, Gren is lured into the dark shadows of the Liffdom Lodges, a covert gambling syndicate that controls Rivennia. 

The Lodgers promise political backing, but it comes at a price – Gren must partake in a macabre wager. 

His fellow players are anxious analyst Samuel Rosendale and sharp-tongued supermodel Primula Zhang. 

As the stakes rise and the Lodgers’ true motives come to light, the rivals form an unlikely alliance, forced to navigate a treacherous web of power. 

The future of civilisation hinges on the choices they make.

Rivennia : A Game of Wagers by Jaime Urencio was published on 14 February by Sunrise & Rooster Press. As part of this #RandomThingsTours Blog Tour I am delighted to share an extract from the book with you today. 

Extract from Rivennia by Jaime Urencio 

PROLOGUE

GREN

Sixth Day of Month Ten, Year 500

The queen had asked for the anaesthetic to be administered before leaving the Royal Palace. I pictured her lying there, serene as the drug spread through her bloodstream, her eyes, once so fierce, slowly closing for the last time.

The bell marked eleven hours as I sat on the official dais,every muscle tensed to hide even the slightest sign of discomfort. Sweat beaded on my skin, and I once again clung to the dogma: The greatest good for the greatest number.

The screens came to life at half past. Twenty of them formed a ring along the middle tier of the arena. There was no way the audience could watch all of them at once. Ironic, since the only person at the centre of the stage would be unconscious.

Pigeons were everywhere – dirty, grey, purring and fluttering. They moved in waves, oblivious to the occasion. A flashing circle on the otherwise blank screens accompanied the queen’s pulse, broadcast for all to hear.

Dum-dum.

Dum-dum.

She was no longer awake, but her heart continued its labour. Startled by the noise, the pigeons took off in chaotic flocks, only to settle back moments later, feathers scattering dust. I let out the breath I had been holding and managed to draw in another one. My wife Lorelei squeezed my hand, her touch barely registering.

At a quarter to twelve, the queen was brought in, her body lying flat on the floating platform. Her distinctive bun was unravelled, and the long white hair fell over her gaunt frame. My eyes were fixed on that hair, and a chill passed through me as visions of the Lodgers’ wigs surfaced in my mind.

Slowly, the stretcher moved, coming to a stop above the pile of logs. The gap between each beat was so deep, I feared even the sound of my breath would disturb it.

Dum-dum.

Dum-dum.

It started with a spark. A flick of flint beneath the tree stumps. The crackling came before the flames, a wisp of smoke spiralling to where the queen lay above. I glanced at the crowd; some people were looking down, unable to face it, while others stared, eager to absorb every detail of the spectacle. No one but me knew, however, the reason behind her decision to go.

I turned my gaze back to the stage – to look away felt like a betrayal. It was her will to die here in front of all of us, and I owed it to her to watch, to bear witness.

Jaime Urencio was born in Mexico City.  

After working in several countries, he has long made London his home. 

His career has been in corporate finance, primarily in the biotechnology sector. 

Rivennia is his debut novel.