A Talent for Murder: An Everett Carr Mystery (1). Cet article n’est pas disponible.A Talent for Murder: An Everett Carr Mystery (1)

It is the mid-1930s in the English village of Vale Thorn. Sir James Ravenwood, a collector of macabre artefacts and an expert in the occult, is hosting a weekend party at his country house, Warlock's Gate, in order to celebrate the unveiling of his latest treasure-a ceremonial dagger said once to have slain a vampire. Amongst the invited guests is a rival collector, Sebastian Lynch, a man who has been receiving strange threats against his life, in the shape of wooden dolls with skulls for faces and twine nooses tied around their necks. On the night before the unveiling of the dagger, Lynch is stabbed to death in Ravenwood's private museum at Warlock's Gate, despite the fact that the doors and the windows to the museum are all locked, the only keys have been stolen, and the house itself has been secured.

It seems to be an impossible crime. One of the guests, Everett Carr, a retired judge haunted by a tragic past, has reason to suspect the truth, however, and he instigates his own investigation. When the killer strikes for a second time, Carr finds himself in a race against time to prove his theories and unmask the killer. His investigation will peel away the respectable veneer not only of the Ravenwood family but also of the houseguests, uncovering revenge, blackmail, illegitimacy, and personal tragedy, before the final secrets of Warlock's Gate are exposed.

As a lifelong aficionado and expert on Sherlock Holmes, Matthew Booth is the author of several books and short stories about the famous detective. He wrote a number of scripts for a Holmes radio series produced by Jim French Productions in Seattle, as well as creating his own series about a disgraced former barrister investigating crimes for the same production company. He is the creator of Everett Carr, an amateur sleuth in the traditional mould, who appears in his debut investigation in the book, A Talent for Murder, a traditional whodunit, which offers a contemporary twist on the format. An expert in crime and supernatural fiction, Matthew has provided a number of academic talks on such subjects as Sherlock Holmes, the works of Agatha Christie, crime fiction, Count Dracula, and the facts and theories concerning the crimes of Jack the Ripper. He is a member of the Crime Writers' Association and is the editor of its monthly magazine, Red Herrings. He lives with his wife in Manchester, England.