Sugar & Spice is a dark crime thriller set in the UK agaianst the backdrop of Britain's fragmented criminal justice system.
A child is abducted. the body is later found in a canal, with a calling card. As more children go missing the mother of the first-killed sets out to find the killer, aided by her journalist boyfriend, a first-year uni student and a truant schoolboy.
Alongside this runs the separate story of a doting father of six-year-old-twins, trying to find help as he realises he has a growing sexual interest in children.
As the two stories collide the reader is taken to places they would rather not go, as Sugar & Spice explores the darkest thoughts of those that would harm chidlren, and asks the chilling question, "When you think the unthinkable... Where do you turn?"
Genre: FICTION / Mystery & Detective / GeneralSugar & Spice has sold over a quarter million ebooks in the UK alone and was the eleventh best-selling ebook in the UK (and biggest selling indie title) in 2011, topping the charts on both Amazon UK and Waterstone's. It won the Red Adept Mystery of the Year award in 2011.
The French translation of this title has at last report sold over 50,000 hard-covers.
In November 2014 the Chinese translation of this book made history as the first indie title to reach #1 on Amazon China.
It hung just beneath the surface, suspended amid the sundry flotsam and jetsam that characterises an urban canal in old age. Oil slick rainbows on the water’s dark surface iridescent in the morning sun, added to the spectrum of colours the canal paraded, in the form of Coke cans, crisps packets and plastic shopping bags, drawn irresistibly to the water.
He climbed cautiously down the slime-laden metal rungs fixed to the lock wall and leant over the water, using an elder branch to bring it to him. It was an unconvincing replica for a dummy.
Far too pale, with a bloated, scaly appearance that reminded him of rotting fish.
He could see yellow fingernails, and for just a second he imagined he could see bone protruding from the elbow.
He hesitated, looking to his friend, then dismissed the thought with a sheepish grin, glad he had said nothing.
As the prize drew closer he had second thoughts, but curiosity won out. His friend looked on eagerly.
The arm had a waxen appearance beneath the slime, weed and the odd leech. He hesitated to use his hands. A Tesco carrier bag floated nearby, advertising to the denizens of the canal’s depths that Every Little Helps. He hooked it out with the branch, let the water drain, then draped it over the object before him, lifting it triumphantly, edging his way back up the rungs to firm ground.
The first boy sported an expression of disgust, fighting curiosity as his friend placed the bag on the ground and prepared to unveil the trophy. Without the water to envelop the stench, reality dawned slowly, visual and olfactory senses together drawing the unavoidable conclusion.
A limb.
A rotting limb, no larger than their own.
A child’s arm.
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Chinese
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Already translated.
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French
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Already translated.
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Spanish
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Already translated.
Translated by Consuelo Cardozo
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Author review: Excellent work. Great communications. |
