A Song from Dead Lips: the first book in the gritty Breen & Tozer series

(Paperback)

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'A first-rate police thriller set amidst the seamy underside of the swinging sixties' C. J. Sansom

'A gripping story, impeccably researched' Guardian

The Runaway

A nameless young woman is found naked and strangled in an alley on Abbey Road.

The Reject

DS Cathal Breen, an outcast in the Marylebone CID, struggles to make sense of the case.

The Rookie

Until new recruit WPC Helen Tozer - the first woman to join the team - makes a breakthrough.

And as hippies slam doors in their face, and locals suspect the new African neighbours, Breen and Tozer tread down a perilous path, closing in on a cruel conspiracy that goes far beyond class, colour and creed.

Reviews

'A first-rate police thriller set amidst the seamy underside of the swinging sixties ... The totemic year of '68 will never seem the same again' C. J. Sansom. - C. J. Sansom

'Convincing atmosphere, lively dialogue and a fun cop duo unite Beatlemania, English racism and the Biafran war' The Times. - The Times

'Excellent ... authentic, often humorous ... The Sixties have been examined and presented every which way, but A Song From Dead Lips manages to be something fresh, both in this regard and as a detective novel' Killing Time Crime. - Killing Time Crime

'Excellent procedural ... A gripping story, with two appealing protagonists and impeccably researched period details deployed throughout' Laura Wilson, Guardian. - Guardian

'Superb characterisation, a vivid recreation of the era, its sights, sounds and prejudices make this a highly enjoyable and readable debut for the pairing, although with Tozer threatening to return to the West Country, a series seems a shade ambitious. I trust that Shaw, who is certainly a name to note for the future, has a plan to subvert this and we shall see this original and likeable couple again soon' Crime Review. - Crime Review

'Excellent' Mail on Sunday. - Mail on Sunday

'Shaw skilfully re-creates an era of social turmoil and class conflict ... against a vivid background of pop culture, casual racism and Britain's involvement in the bitter civil war in Nigeria' Sunday Times. - Sunday Times

Author Bio

William Shaw has been shortlisted for the CWA Historical Dagger, longlisted for the Theakstons Crime Novel of the Year and nominated for a Barry Award. A regular at festivals, he organises panel talks and CWA events across the south east.

Shaw is the author of the acclaimed Breen & Tozer crime series: A Song from Dead Lips, A House of Knives, A Book of Scars and Sympathy for the Devil; and the standalone bestseller The Birdwatcher. He is writing a new crime series starring the character DS Alexandra Cupidi from The Birdwatcher, the first of which is Salt Lane. He worked as a journalist for over twenty years and lives in Brighton.