Shot with Crimson
An evocative murder mystery plays out on the set of Hitchcock's Rebecca
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4.7 • 3 Ratings
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- £8.99
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- £8.99
Publisher Description
'Always a delight.' Sunday Times
I will never understand why murder is considered such a lowbrow speciality in Hollywood.
September, 1939, and the worries of war follow Josephine Tey to Hollywood, where a different sort of battle is raging on the set of Hitchcock's Rebecca.
Then a shocking act of violence reawakens the shadows of the past, with consequences on both sides of the Atlantic, and Josephine and DCI Archie Penrose find themselves on a trail leading back to the house that inspired a young Daphne du Maurier - a trail that echoes Rebecca's timeless themes of obsession, jealousy and murder.
Readers love Nicola Upson
'Oh my, what a delight to read this was. An author absolutely in command of her craft.' ***** reader review
'I felt like I knew the Hitchcocks personally. The talent to make that feel likely is really Upson's draw for me. She never misses a beat.' ***** reader review
'One of my favourite things about this author is the detail she brings to the pages and the way she can build tension and truly keep you gripped.' ***** reader review
'What's not to like about a story of Hollywood and murder? . . . She writes in a way that the story flows effortlessly and makes reading easy and a joy.' ***** reader review
Praise for the Josephine Tey series
'[A] splendid series.' The Times
'There's a wonderful golden age feel . . . containing wonderful twists and turns which single out Upson as a talented author of historical crime.' Scotland on Sunday
'If Josephine Tey were alive, she would be the first to welcome a major talent.' Daily Mail
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
What's the connection between Daphne du Maurier's 1917 visit to the estate that inspired her to write Rebecca, a murder committed at that estate in 1939, and a miniatures designer working on Alfred Hitchcock's Hollywood adaptation of Rebecca? That question animates Upson's stellar 11th whodunit featuring real-life Scottish mystery author Josephine Tey (following 2022's Dear Little Corpses). Josephine's lover, Marta Fox, has travelled to California to help Hitchcock film Rebecca, and with German battleships about to curtail ocean travel, Josephine sails on the Queen Mary to join her, meeting Hitchcock's wife, Alma, on board. Meanwhile, Josephine's friend, Scotland Yard DCI Archie Penrose, has been dispatched to Milton Hall (du Maurier's inspiration for Rebecca's Manderley estate) to investigate a murder the British Army wants resolved discreetly so its use of the property as a training base can continue. Through Alma, Josephine learns information about a special effects professional on Rebecca that may be relevant to Archie's case and also tied to a decades-old crime of passion that intersects with du Maurier's childhood. Upson excels at misdirection, masterfully juggling subplots until they all click into place, and she imbues the novel's violence with an uncommon depth of feeling. Golden age mystery fans will be in heaven.
