Winner of the 2008 Agatha Award for Best First Novel

From deep in the heart of his eighteenth century English manor, millionaire Sir Adrian Beauclerk-Fisk writes mystery novels and torments his four spoiled children with threats of disinheritance. Tiring of this device, the portly patriarch decides to weave a malicious twist into his well-worn plot. Gathering them all together for a family dinner, he announces his latest blow--a secret elopement with the beautiful Violet...who was once suspected of murdering her husband.

Within hours, eldest son and appointed heir Ruthven is found cleaved to death by a medieval mace. Since Ruthven is generally hated, no one seems too surprised or upset--least of all his cold-blooded wife Lillian. When Detective Chief Inspector St. Just is brought in to investigate, he meets with a deadly calm that goes beyond the usual English reserve. And soon Sir Adrian himself is found slumped over his writing desk--an ornate knife thrust into his heart. Trapped amid leering gargoyles and stone walls, every member of the family is a likely suspect. Using a little Cornish brusqueness and brawn, can St. Just find the killer before the next-in-line to the family fortune ends up dead?

Death of a Cozy Writer was chosen by Kirkus Reviews as a Best Book of 2008, nominated for a Left Coast Crime award (the Hawaii Five-O for best police procedural), short-listed for the Macavity Award for Best First Mystery, nominated for the Anthony Award for Best First Novel and was a finalist for the David G. Sasher, Sr. Award for Best Mystery Novel.

Praise:

"Fans of English detective work will welcome Malliet's droll debut, the first in a new series."--Publishers Weekly

"Malliet's debut combines devices from Christie and Clue to keep you guessing until the dramatic denouement."--Kirkus Reviews

"Malliet's skillful debut demonstrates the sophistication one would expect of a much more established writer. I'm looking forward to her next genre-bender, Death and the Lit Chick."--Mystery Scene

"Almost every sentence is a polished, malicious gem, reminiscent of Robert Barnard...the book is perfect for the lover of the classical detective story or the fan of great sentences."--Deadly Pleasures

"In her series debut, Malliet, who won a Malice Domestic Grant to write this novel, lays the foundation for an Agatha Christie--like murder mystery."--Library Journal

"An affectionate homage to the Golden Age of British crime fiction by a skilled writer rapidly attracting attention."--The Sherbrook Record

"This tale cleverly adds modern touches to an Agatha Christie style classic house mystery."--Mystery Women Magazine

"Wicked, witty and full of treats "--Peter Lovesey, recipient of Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Crime Writer's Association and Malice Domestic

"The traditional British cozy is alive and well. Delicious. I was hooked from the first paragraph."--Rhys Bowen, award-winning author of Her Royal Spyness

"Death of a Cozy Writer is a romp, a classic tale of family dysfunction in a moody and often humourous English country house setting."--Louise Penny, author of the award-winning Armand Gamache series of murder mysteries

"The connections made by St. Just are nothing short of Sherlock Holmes at his most coherent. A most excellent first mystery "--Midwest Book Review