The Cursed Road

The second atmospheric crime mystery featuring DI Georgina Lennox and DI Richard Stewart, set in the Scottish highlands

Deep in the Scottish Highlands, the body of a young woman is discovered on a dirt road. Her death is initially thought an accident, but words carved into her arm link to an unsolved case from years ago.

Di Georgina Lennox and Di Richard Stewart are reluctantly paired together to investigate; after that last case, their friendship never recovered.

With the locals stalling their enquiries, George and Richie rush to track down the killer. As they learn of the bloody history of the cursed road, George and Richie discover decades-long family feuds and deadly secrets that someone is determined to keep buried.

Reviews

PRAISE FOR LAURA McCLUSKEY

‘The Wolf Tree is a stunning debut: a wild, vivid landscape and a propulsive mystery you simply have to know the answer to. It will have you on the edge of your seat’ – Leah Pitt

‘Laura McCluskey offers a powerful debut in this atmospheric thriller infused with unsettling folk horror tropes’ – Booklist

‘Atmospheric and immersive … creates a mounting chill that seeps into the bones’ – M. K. Murphy

‘An exciting new voice in crime fiction’ – Pip Drysdale

‘Absorbing, unsettling, and deeply accomplished’ – Dervla McTiernan

‘The Wolf Tree is an exquisitely executed tale. Laura McCluskey’s debut is a great gothic slow-burn that will keep you thinking and guessing even after you’ve reached the end’ – Louisa Luna

‘Laura McCluskey’s thrilling debut blends detective novel and folk horror to terrific effect’ – Jennifer Thorne

‘Mare of Easttown meets The Wickerman in Laura McCluskey’s deft, intricate, perfectly executed debut thriller’ – Nick Newman

‘THE WOLF TREE is a marvelous mystery, rich in atmosphere and quick in pace’ – Christina Alger

‘Congratulations to Laura on such an atmospheric story. I loved her writing style’ – Helen Cooper

‘An impressive crime debut dripping with atmosphere and threat, Laura McCluskey’s The Wolf Tree will take you to a chilling cliff-edge of suspense, then hold you there until the very last page’ – Hannah Richell

‘The Wolf Tree weaves a complex web of tradition, suspicion and murder … Tense and increasingly claustrophobic, The Wolf Tree is seething with atmosphere, intriguing relationships and a community determined to protect itself at all costs. Gripping’ – Heather Critchlow

‘McCluskey is masterful at building suspense around a sense of place and a feeling of otherness’ – Kirkus Reviews

About the author

Laura is a writer, editor and actor. As well as writing novels, she has penned several film and television projects for her production company Sibylline Films. Laura is also co-founder of Three Fates Theatre Company, and has performed across theatre, film, and television. She lives in Naarm/Melbourne.