Hannahs love life is in ruins, writers block hits, and her agent sends her to Sicily to finish her sequel. But when murder strikes, Hannahs life turns into the crime novel shes meant to write. Darkly funny, atmospheric, and full of twists, the second instalment in an addictive new series.
Hilarious, dark and whip-smart, Under the Blazing Sun confirms Madsen as a wonderful literary talent Doug Johnstone
The quintessential holiday read, funny and atmospheric. Hannah is the kind of heroine wed all love as a friend, and its also a brilliant evocation of the stunning island landscape of Sicily. My favourite read of the year so far! Kate Rhodes
A wild ride of murder and humour. The most fun Ive had reading a crime novel this year Will Carver
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Hannah is miserable. Her love life is in ruins, her contract demands a sequel to her bestselling crime debutand shes out of ideas. After a mortifying TV interview, her agent ships her off to a sun-drenched Sicilian villa with a simple order: finish the book. No distractions. No excuses.
But inspiration doesnt strikemurder does.
When a night out ends in murder, Hannah finds herself at the centre of a murder investigation again. The police want her out of the way, and the only person who seems to believe her is a young but charming Italian police officer. That is, until she doesnt.
Soon Hannah is chasing suspects, fleeing crime scenes, and doing whatever it takes to avoid becoming the next victim. She came to write a crime novel. Now shes trapped inside one.
Dark, sly and deliciously atmospheric, Under the Blazing Sun is the second novel in the award-winning series featuring accidental sleuth and disgruntled literary author Hannah, whose pursuit of plot twists keeps turning dangerously real.
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Praise for the MURDER BY THE BOOK series
Dark and atmospheric Hannah is a pitch-perfect depiction of the bombastic neurosis that we writers know so very well Harriet Tyce
An original and thoroughly enjoyable treat Guardian
Fantastic darkly funny, tense and a lot of poking fun at crime-writing Tariq Ashkanani
Dark and sharp a lot of fun Val McDermid
Witty, dark, meta, ingenious and hugely compelling Will Dean
Hilariously scathing. Satirises genre fiction while creating a first-class example of it, full of suspects, red herrings and twists wit and originality make it a joy to read Sunday Times
Such a clever, original twist on the Nordic Noir tradition, darkly humorous and utterly captivating Eva Björg Ægisdóttir
Delightfully dark Antti Tuomainen
So atmospheric Crime Monthly
An absolute gem a superb mix of humour and dark, twisty crime fiction with an added layer of contemplation regarding what makes books literary Not to be missed Yrsa Sigurðardóttir
Shades of Fargo and Twin Peaks and theres no higher praise than that. Absolutely brilliant! Rod Reynolds
A truly original thriller that perfectly balances humour and suspense Vogue
A hugely enjoyable read with thrills and laughs, as Hannah sticks her nose in where its not welcome Michael J. Malone
So satisfying a truly great read Lilja Sigurðardóttir
A skilful, witty mash-up really entertaining Aly Monroe
This reminded me somewhat of the more recent, meta efforts of the great Anthony Horowitz The Bookbag
What readers are saying
Laugh-out-loud funny Hannah is a brilliant creation Skewers the publishing industry in the best possible way Reminded me of Anthony Horowitz meta, sharp, funny but also so tense A crazy combination of destination thriller, Nordic Noir and dark comedy crime I loved it A new addition to my list of favourite authors! Full of clever twists and turns worthy of the hype Funny, gripping and so well paced Very much looking forward to a third book, please dont make me wait too long
