Dead Ground

Winner of the prestigious CWA IAN FLEMING STEEL DAGGER AWARD 2022Longlisted for the Theakston Old Peculiar Crime Novel of the Year 2022Heart-pounding, hilarious, sharp and shocking, Dead Ground is further proof that M.W. Craven never disappoints. Miss this series at your peril. Chris Whitaker Dark and entertaining, this is top rank crime fiction. Vaseem Khan, Author of the Malabar House series and the Baby Ganesh Agency seriesM. W. Craven is one of the best crime writers working today. Dead Ground is a cracking puzzle, beautifully written, with characters youll be behind every step of the way. Its his best yet. Stuart TurtonFantastic Martina ColeDark, sharp and compelling Peter JamesYou can taste the authenticity Daily MailDetective Sergeant Washington Poe is in court, fighting eviction from his beloved and isolated croft, when he is summoned to a backstreet brothel in Carlisle where a man has been beaten to death with a baseball bat. Poe is confused - he hunts serial killers and this appears to be a straightforward murder-by-pimp - but his attendance was requested personally, by the kind of people who prefer to remain in the shadows.As Poe and the socially awkward programmer Tilly Bradshaw delve deeper into the case, they are faced with seemingly unanswerable questions: despite being heavily vetted for a high-profile job, why does nothing in the victims background check out? Why was a small ornament left at the murder scene - and why did someone on the investigation team steal it? And what is the connection to a flawlessly executed bank heist three years earlier, a heist where nothing was taken . . .Praise for Dead Ground:Unmissable Sunday ExpressIve been following M.W. Cravens Poe/Tilly series from the very beginning, and it just gets better and better. Dead Ground is a fast-paced crime novel with as many twists and turns as a country lane. I cant wait for the next one. Peter Robinson Dead Ground is both entertaining and engaging with great characters and storyline. I loved this first dip into the world of Tilly and Poe! BA ParisPraise for M W Craven:A brutal and thrilling page turner Natasha Harding, The SunA thrilling curtain raiser for what looks set to be a great new series Mick HerronOne of the most engaging teams in crime fiction Daily Mail A powerful thriller from an explosive new talent. Tightly plotted, and not for the faint hearted!David MarkA gripping start to a much anticipated new series Vaseem KhanSatisfyingly twisty and clever and the flashes of humour work well to offer the reader respite from the thrill of the read. Michael J. MaloneNothing youve ever read will prepare you for the utterly unique Washington Poe Keith NixonBeware if you pick up a book by M.W. Craven. Your life will no longer belong to you. He will hold you spellbound. Lindas Book BagCravens understanding of the criminal world is obvious in this cracking read Womans WeeklyBreath-taking Random Things Through My Letterbox5 Stars... another fantastic literary experience and a welcome addition to the already brilliant Poe and Tilly series Female First An explosive plot, slippery twists and my fave new crime-busting duo...Fantastic! Peterborough Telegraph