Clean Break

'Stunningly exciting, horrifyingly good'
Ruth Rendell

'This book has a sense of gravitas and intelligence utterly beyond lesser writers in the field'
Ian Rankin

'Terrific chiller from Manchester's answer to Thomas Harris'
Guardian

'A clever and exciting thriller'
Sunday Telegraph

'A compelling combination of sexual-political mischief and Jacobean psychological intensity'
Sunday Times (of The Wire in the Blood)

Praise for Val McDermid:

'No one rivals Val McDermid's skill at writing truly terrifying thrillers' Good Housekeeping

'The real mistress of psychological gripping thrillers' Daily Express

'McDermid's capacity to enter the warped mind of a deviant criminal is shiveringly convincing' The Times

'Val McDermid is undoubtedly the queen of British crime' Observer

'McDermid's expertly juggled plotlines and masterful handling of pace and tension tick all the best boxes' Guardian

'The queen of crime is still at the top of her game' Independent

'One of today's most accomplished crime writers' Literary Review

'Her writing is never less than excellent' Crime Time