Thursday 28 July 2016

The Devil You Know


Looking at release in early October or possibly before, cross fingers and touch wood!  It's just taken off on its last proof/test read.....

Every killer is someone's son, husband or boyfriend...

The Devil You Know is a psychological drama/thriller/murder mystery.  A move sideways for me, rather than a complete change in genre, because it's still very much character-driven and based on close human relationships.

So what's it about?  There's a serial killer at large in my fictional town of Lyndford in south Lincolnshire, and five people fear that he might be someone close to them.  One of them is right....


It's not a detective or police procedural novel and doesn't centre around the solving of a crime, but is still a 'whodunnit', beause the killer's identity is a mystery until late in the book.  A few chapters are told through the eyes of the victims, with snapshots from the points of view of the detectives, but, essentially, the story centres around these five:

Juliet wonders where her controlling, violent husband goes at night, and when a TV crime expert lists the characteristics of your average multiple murderer, she realises they could be describing the man she's been married to for twenty-four years.

Steve has been friends with Dan since childhood, but a new friend has brought out the worst in him.  Is 'the worst' more terrifying that Steve dares to imagine?


Tamsin is in love with her colleague on the local newspaper.  When Jake rejects her, she begins to look at him with new eyes.

Maisie loathes her mother's new boyfriend.  Her best friend teases her that Gary is the Lyndford Strangler, but could her joke have hit the nail on the head?


Dorothy loves her son, Orlando, more than life itself ~ which makes her suspicions about his secret life so heartbreaking that she fears for her sanity.

Fun version done with some Vincent Van Gogh stylee thing - makes it look like a horror novel!

I'm aiming to get it out in early October (possibly September), cross fingers.  Thanks for reading :)

 

16 comments:

  1. Excellent..I'm hoping to get 4th one of mine out in Sept, so we won't 'cross'

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds brilliant. When is it available? Would love to read, Terry. Could I review independently?

    ReplyDelete
  3. Interesting choice of name for your town. Lynford is one of my Norfolk family names. Very much looking forward to reading this book.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Ooh love the sound of all the intrigue and red herrings, looking forward to the new book.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Sounds fab! Looking forward to it :)

    ReplyDelete
  6. Glad you've gone in for murder, Terry, I'm sure you'll be good at it, and keen to read. By the way, not meant literally!

    ReplyDelete
  7. Sounds very intriguing, Ms T! I shall look forward to that!

    ReplyDelete
  8. It sounds fantastic, I agree. Keep me posted, Terry!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Sounds great, Terry. Looking forward to reading this one.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Terry it sounds awesome! Please come on my blog and promote it x

    ReplyDelete
  11. Very exciting, and as someone who read You Wish I'm very intrigued indeed! Looking forward to a nice - if a bit unnerving - autumn read, then! :)

    ReplyDelete
  12. Sounds like an intriguing twist on the traditional mystery! I love Elizabeth George's novels because she focuses on characters more than the actual who-done-it.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I proofread this book, and believe me, it's great. I did not guess the identity of the killer until the second that the name was revealed, even though I thought I had an idea who it was (I was wrong!). Bear in mind I've known Terry all her life so I might be expected to know how her mind works.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Dear Carol, Judith, Liz, Rosie, Emma, Joanne, Shelley, paragirl48, Geoff, Olga, Val, Alison, Georgia and Cathy ~ thank you! I have now found a way to comment on my blog again (ie, by logging in from another browser thingy) :)

    ReplyDelete