The truth is stranger than fiction for Albert Campion in this gripping mystery where murder, detective novels and the supernatural collide.
1946, London. The eagerly anticipated new detective novel from Albert Campion’s godsibling, bestselling author Evadne Childe, is proving to be another runaway success. Unfortunately, it has also caught the attention of Superintendent Stanislaus Oates for reasons that go beyond its superior plotting. The crime at the heart of
The Bottle Party Murder bears a number of striking similarities to a very real, recent and unsolved murder at the Grafton Club in Soho. Evadne wrote the book before the murder occurred, yet predicts it remarkably accurately – is it just a weird coincidence, is Evadne getting her information from ‘the other side’, or is something more sinister afoot? The repercussions of this extraordinary and complex case will reach out over the next fifteen years, drawing in three of Mr Campion’s favourite policemen – Oates, Yeo and Luke – before finally coming to its violent conclusion in 1962.
About the author
Mike Ripley is the author of the award-winning ‘Angel’ series of comedy thrillers which have twice won the CWA Last Laugh Award. Described as ‘England’s funniest crime writer’ (The Times), he is also a respected critic of crime fiction, writing for the Guardian, Daily Telegraph, The Times and Shots Magazine.
Ripley first learned of the final unfinished Campion novel when he was a guest speaker at the Margery Allingham Society’s annual convention. He offered – and received the Margery Allingham Society’s blessing – to complete the manuscript on the adventures of Albert Campion, who Ripley describes as ‘one of the brightest stars in the rich firmament of British crime writing’.