Magpie Murders

When editor Susan Ryeland receives the manuscript for bestselling author Alan Conway's newest mystery, she expects another dependable installment featuring his celebrated detective, Atticus Pünd. Having worked with the difficult crime novelist for years, Susan knows his formula well: an elegant English setting, a puzzling murder, and a brilliant detective unraveling secrets worthy of the great traditions of classic British crime fiction.

This time, Atticus is called to investigate a killing at Pye Hall, a grand country estate filled with suspicious residents and long-buried grudges. But as Susan becomes immersed in the story, she begins to suspect that the manuscript conceals more than a fictional mystery. Hidden between its pages are clues pointing to a far more dangerous tale—one rooted in real-life ambition, envy, deception, and murder.

Blending a classic whodunit with a contemporary psychological mystery, this clever, layered novel keeps readers questioning where fiction ends and reality begins.

A devious take on vintage English crime fiction in which the reader becomes the detective.