The Winter Guest
The perfect chilling, gripping mystery as the nights draw in
Will be published approx. on 6. January 2022
Book
Hardback
352 pages
978-1-83877-150-8 (ISBN)
Description
A gripping mystery with a classic feel, for fans of Agatha Christie
'Haunting and exquisitely written. Part intricate mystery and part ghost story. This book will stay with me for a long time' Anna Mazzola
The drive leads past the gate house and through the trees towards the big house, visible through the winter-bared branches. Its windows stare down at Harkin and the sea beyond . . .
January 1921. Though the Great War is over, in Ireland a new, civil war is raging. The once-grand Kilcolgan House, a crumbling bastion shrouded in sea-mist, lies half empty and filled with ghosts - both real and imagined - the Prendevilles, the noble family within, co-existing only as the balance of their secrets is kept.
Then, when an IRA ambush goes terribly wrong, Maud Prendeville, eldest daughter of Lord Kilcolgan, is killed, leaving the family reeling. Yet the IRA column insist they left her alive, that someone else must have been responsible for her terrible fate. Captain Tom Harkin, an IRA intelligence officer and Maud's former fiance, is sent to investigate, becoming an unwelcome guest in this strange, gloomy household.
Working undercover, Harkin must delve into the house's secrets - and discover where, in this fractured, embattled town, each family member's allegiances truly lie. But Harkin too is haunted by the ghosts of the past and by his terrible experiences on the battlefields. Can he find out the truth about Maud's death before the past - and his strange, unnerving surroundings - overwhelm him?
A haunting, atmospheric mystery set against the raw Irish landscape in a country divided, The Winter Guest is the perfect chilling read.
Praise for THE WINTER GUEST and W.C. Ryan
'A snowflake of a novel: intricate, exquisite, and unlike any other. If Sebastian Faulks and Laura Purcell were to join forces, they might produce a novel like this... yet I can't imagine anyone but WC Ryan shaping it with such imagination, or charging it with such intelligence, or gracing it with such heart' A.J. Finn, author of The Woman in the Window
'Haunting, gripping . . . hugely evocative' Elodie Harper
'Works superbly on several levels. This is a most welcome winter guest indeed, to be greeted by the fire with drink in hand' Irish Times
'Ryan evokes this moody, gothic atmosphere with convincing skill. Harkin is a sensitive, complex character and his quest to solve the mystery is deftly plotted. A treat' The Times
'A perfectly crafted mystery. Vivid, compelling and deeply moving, it is a triumph both as a crime novel and a work of historical fiction' Jane Casey
'A beautifully taut and evocative thriller' Sarah Hilary
'Superb . . . I could not put it down' Elizabeth Buchan
'Atmospheric and genuinely eerie, this is an ideal winter read' Sinead Crowley
'A terrifically atmospheric, gripping novel' Amanda Craig, The Golden Rule
'Haunting, beautifully crafted, and full of heart. Perfect reading for dark days' A.K. Benedict, author of The Christmas Murder Game
'Beautifully written, haunting and unmissable' Cass Green
'Excellent murder mystery/ghost story set during the Irish war of independence and as usual with W.C. Ryan, beautifully written' Liz Nugent
'Intriguing, haunting, romantic and beautifully written, I cared as much about the fate of the characters as about the gripping mystery' Laura Marshall
*longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger award 2023: 22/04/23 (https://thecwa.co.uk/awards-and-competitions/the-daggers/gold-dagger)
'Haunting and exquisitely written. Part intricate mystery and part ghost story. This book will stay with me for a long time' Anna Mazzola
The drive leads past the gate house and through the trees towards the big house, visible through the winter-bared branches. Its windows stare down at Harkin and the sea beyond . . .
January 1921. Though the Great War is over, in Ireland a new, civil war is raging. The once-grand Kilcolgan House, a crumbling bastion shrouded in sea-mist, lies half empty and filled with ghosts - both real and imagined - the Prendevilles, the noble family within, co-existing only as the balance of their secrets is kept.
Then, when an IRA ambush goes terribly wrong, Maud Prendeville, eldest daughter of Lord Kilcolgan, is killed, leaving the family reeling. Yet the IRA column insist they left her alive, that someone else must have been responsible for her terrible fate. Captain Tom Harkin, an IRA intelligence officer and Maud's former fiance, is sent to investigate, becoming an unwelcome guest in this strange, gloomy household.
Working undercover, Harkin must delve into the house's secrets - and discover where, in this fractured, embattled town, each family member's allegiances truly lie. But Harkin too is haunted by the ghosts of the past and by his terrible experiences on the battlefields. Can he find out the truth about Maud's death before the past - and his strange, unnerving surroundings - overwhelm him?
A haunting, atmospheric mystery set against the raw Irish landscape in a country divided, The Winter Guest is the perfect chilling read.
Praise for THE WINTER GUEST and W.C. Ryan
'A snowflake of a novel: intricate, exquisite, and unlike any other. If Sebastian Faulks and Laura Purcell were to join forces, they might produce a novel like this... yet I can't imagine anyone but WC Ryan shaping it with such imagination, or charging it with such intelligence, or gracing it with such heart' A.J. Finn, author of The Woman in the Window
'Haunting, gripping . . . hugely evocative' Elodie Harper
'Works superbly on several levels. This is a most welcome winter guest indeed, to be greeted by the fire with drink in hand' Irish Times
'Ryan evokes this moody, gothic atmosphere with convincing skill. Harkin is a sensitive, complex character and his quest to solve the mystery is deftly plotted. A treat' The Times
'A perfectly crafted mystery. Vivid, compelling and deeply moving, it is a triumph both as a crime novel and a work of historical fiction' Jane Casey
'A beautifully taut and evocative thriller' Sarah Hilary
'Superb . . . I could not put it down' Elizabeth Buchan
'Atmospheric and genuinely eerie, this is an ideal winter read' Sinead Crowley
'A terrifically atmospheric, gripping novel' Amanda Craig, The Golden Rule
'Haunting, beautifully crafted, and full of heart. Perfect reading for dark days' A.K. Benedict, author of The Christmas Murder Game
'Beautifully written, haunting and unmissable' Cass Green
'Excellent murder mystery/ghost story set during the Irish war of independence and as usual with W.C. Ryan, beautifully written' Liz Nugent
'Intriguing, haunting, romantic and beautifully written, I cared as much about the fate of the characters as about the gripping mystery' Laura Marshall
*longlisted for the CWA Gold Dagger award 2023: 22/04/23 (https://thecwa.co.uk/awards-and-competitions/the-daggers/gold-dagger)
Reviews / Votes
Ryan evokes this moody, gothic atmosphere with convincing skill. Harkin is a sensitive, complex character and his quest to solve the mystery is deftly plotted. A treat. * The Times * A haunting, gripping novel . . . hugely evocative, with some absolutely beautiful writing which captures the profound unease of the times and the bleak nature of the landscape. I really loved this book. * Elodie Harper, The Wolf Den * A terrifically atmospheric, gripping novel. * Amanda Craig, author of The Golden Rule * Ryan writes with precision and elegance... This is the best historical crime novel set in Ireland I have read. * Literary Review * In 2018, WC Ryan published A House Of Ghosts, a superb period mystery with spooky overtones, and now he returns with an equally engrossing read. A clever whodunnit with a bracing whiff of the supernatural. * Daily Express *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Dimensions
Height: 238 mm
Width: 158 mm
Thickness: 31 mm
Weight
548 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-83877-150-8 (9781838771508)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
W. C. Ryan is also known as William Ryan, author of The Constant Soldier and the Korolev series of historical crime novels. His books have been shortlisted for numerous awards, including the CWA's Steel, Historical and New Blood Daggers, the Irish Fiction Award and the Theakston's Crime Novel of the Year, as well as being published in 18 countries. William lives in London and teaches creative writing at City University.