Collected Works Volume One
Three edge-of-your-seat psychological thrillers from the creator of the hit BBC crime series Luther and a “master of suspense” (Daily Mirror).
The PEN/Ackerley Prize–shortlisted author and creator of Luther starring Idris Elba, British novelist Neil Cross is “an astonishing writer—tautly lyrical, and able at a stroke to fill you with cold, dark fear of the malign forces at large in the world.” In this collection, he combines gritty, nail-biting suspense with a depth of characterization that surpasses most thrillers (Time Out London).
Captured: Diagnosed with late-stage brain cancer, Kenny Drummond is determined to make amends while there’s still time. But when he tries to contact an old schoolmate, Callie Barton, he finds she’s disappeared without a trace—and it seems her husband may have something to hide. With a ticking clock and a promise to keep, nothing’s going to stop Kenny from finding out what happened to Callie.
“Cross’s clear, precise style makes for a compelling, read-in-one-sitting thriller. Yet there is more to this novel—brooding questions of morality, mortality and responsibility.” —The Word
Holloway Falls: The paths of a cult leader, a precognitive man with a secret, and a detective with a troubled past intersect in this “compulsive tale of disappearance, abduction, coincidence, psychotic jealousy, and imaginative daring. . . . The plot is Vertigo on ketamine” (The Guardian).
“Neil Cross’s excellent third novel is an ingenious revenge thriller which draws you in with its spare, snappy prose, and then messes with your head.” —Time Out
Mr. In-Between: Jon Bennet is the perfect hitman: utterly reliable and completely detached. On the tight leash of the Tattooed Man, Jon kills and maims on order. But after bumping into old friends, he is drawn back into the normal world with its bonds of love and kindness, and finds himself changing back into the person he once was. The Tattooed Man, however, requires total servitude, and his wrath is more fearful than Jon could ever have expected.
“[A] thrilling tale of perverse redemption.” —The Literary Review