Sanctus and The Key

Conspiracy thrillers don’t come any bigger or better than SANCTUS and THE KEY – the first two books in Simon Toyne’s bestselling apocalyptic series: ‘Plenty of action, plenty of intrigue and wonderfully imaginative.’ Kate Mosse

SANCTUS: When a man leaps to his death from a mountainous citadel in the historic Turkish city of Ruin, the media ensures his act is witnessed by the world. For a select group, it’s the sign they’ve been waiting for. But the fanatics within the Citadel fear that it threatens everything they have built – and they will kill, torture and break every law to protect their secrets. For Liv Adamsen, New York crime reporter, it begins a journey into the heart of her own identity. And at that journey's end lies a discovery that will change everything…

THE KEY: Liv Adamsen now lies in an isolation ward in Ruin. She knows she entered the ancient Citadel, but remembers only darkness. A strange whisper within her says she is ‘the key’: but to what? Hunted across continents by those who would use her for their own ends or ensure her silence forever, Liv turns to the only person she can trust – charity worker Gabriel Mann. Together their paths lead to an explosive discovery – a secret with devastating consequences for them and all they hold dear…

Reviews

Praise for SANCTUS and THE KEY:

‘A cool, confident debut … with pace, grace and a keen eye for cinematic effect’ DAILY TELEGRAPH

‘Intriguing and engaging … Relentless pace. An exciting and interesting read. I look forward to returning to Ruin, where there are plenty of stories waiting to be told’ THE SUN

‘High concept, debut conspiracy thrillers don’t come with higher expectations than this. Hard to think of it as a debut, better to think of it as the beginning of a massive new adventure, and a so-long to Dan Brown’ MIRROR

'A fast moving, thoroughly enjoyable, adventure – plenty of action, plenty of intrigue and a wonderfully imaginative reinterpretation of a slice of religious history. The sort of novel to devour in one sitting' KATE MOSSE

‘Among the best current thrillers’ SUNDAY EXPRESS

About the author

In 2007 Simon Toyne quit his job and moved to France to fulfil a long-held desire to write a thriller. After a sleepless night crossing the channel, he and his family abandoned a planned eight-hour drive to their new home and limped instead to the city of Rouen. It was the sight of the sharp spire of Rouen Cathedral piercing the pre-dawn sky that gave birth to the fiction Citadel of SANCTUS and THE KEY.

SANCTUS and THE KEY became immediate bestsellers. To date they have been translated into 23 languages and published in 40 countries.