Shot with Crimson (Josephine Tey Series #11)

by Nicola Upson

Overview

Violence finds its way to old Hollywood in the eleventh Josephine Tey mystery, perfect for fans of Rhys Bowen and Jacqueline Winspear.

September 1939, and the worries of war follow Josephine Tey to Hollywood, where a different sort of battle is raging on the set of Hitchcock’s Rebecca.

Then a shocking act of violence reawakens the shadows of the past, with consequences on both sides of the Atlantic, and Josephine and DCI Archie Penrose find themselves on a trail leading back to the house that inspired a young Daphne du Maurier - a trail that echoes Rebecca's timeless themes of obsession, jealousy, and murder.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781639102662
Publisher:	CROOKED LANE BOOKS
Publication date:	11/07/2023
Series:	Josephine Tey Series , #11
Pages:	336
Sales rank:	906,950
Product dimensions:	5.70(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Nicola Upson was born in Suffolk and read English at Downing College, Cambridge. She has worked in theatre and as a freelance journalist, and is the author of two non-fiction works and the recipient of an Escalator Award from the Arts Council England. Her debut novel, An Expert in Murder, was the first in a series of crime novels to feature Josephine Tey—one of the leading authors of Britain's age of crime-writing. Her research for the books has included many conversations with people who lived through the period and who knew Josephine Tey well, most notably Sir John Gielgud. The book was dramatised by BBC Scotland for Woman's Hour, and praised by PD James as marking "the arrival of a new and assured talent". Nicola lives with her partner in Cambridge and Cornwall.

Editorial Reviews

★ 09/04/2023

What’s the connection between Daphne du Maurier’s 1917 visit to the estate that inspired her to write Rebecca, a murder committed at that estate in 1939, and a miniatures designer working on Alfred Hitchcock’s Hollywood adaptation of Rebecca? That question animates Upson’s stellar 11th whodunit featuring real-life Scottish mystery author Josephine Tey (following 2022’s Dear Little Corpses). Josephine’s lover, Marta Fox, has travelled to California to help Hitchcock film Rebecca, and with German battleships about to curtail ocean travel, Josephine sails on the Queen Mary to join her, meeting Hitchcock’s wife, Alma, on board. Meanwhile, Josephine’s friend, Scotland Yard DCI Archie Penrose, has been dispatched to Milton Hall (du Maurier’s inspiration for Rebecca’s Manderley estate) to investigate a murder the British Army wants resolved discreetly so its use of the property as a training base can continue. Through Alma, Josephine learns information about a special effects professional on Rebecca that may be relevant to Archie’s case and also tied to a decades-old crime of passion that intersects with du Maurier’s childhood. Upson excels at misdirection, masterfully juggling subplots until they all click into place, and she imbues the novel’s violence with an uncommon depth of feeling. Golden age mystery fans will be in heaven. Agent: Grainne Fox, Fletcher & Co. (Nov.)

Publishers Weekly

Praise for Shot With Crimson:
“Upson excels at misdirection . . . Golden age mystery fans will be in heaven.”
—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“A fun, original, deftly crafted, and compelling read from start to finish.”
—Midwest Book Review

Praise for the Josephine Tey Mysteries:
“Outstanding . . . Upson makes all of her complex characters’ motivations, guilt, and lies understandable while subtly inserting clues into the ingeniously twisty plot. She has few peers, in any era, in imbuing fair-play whodunits with psychological depth.”
—Publishers Weekly, starred review

“Upson is a magical storyteller . . . Charming and intriguing.”
—Booklist, starred review

“A truly brilliant twist . . . yet, it is the quality of writing that makes this puppy novel not just for Christmas but for life.”
—The UK Times

“A challenging murder mystery…and a strong sense of place combine to make this a fascinating read.”
—Library Journal

“The writing is crisp and sharp, with the authentic feel of England lending credence to the tale. The plot twists and turns like a whirligig, taking the reader for an enjoyable ride. Heartily recommended.”
―Historical Novels Review

“Historical crime fiction at its very best.”
—Sunday Times

“A compelling mystery . . . Heartrending.”
—San Francisco Book Review

From the Publisher

2023-06-08
As war clouds gather over England, mystery writer Josephine Tey heads out to Hollywood. It’s not far enough to keep the shadows of crimes old and new from darkening her view.

Though she knows that her lover, screenwriter Marta Fox, is working with Alfred Hitchcock on Rebecca, his first American film, Josephine is surprised to meet Alma Reville, Hitchcock’s wife and collaborator, aboard the Queen Mary. Surprised and not altogether pleased, since the experience of having Hitchcock film her novel A Shilling for Candles under the title Young and Innocent has left memories nearly as painful as Daphne du Maurier’s consternation at what Hitchcock did to Jamaica Inn. Her journey done, Josephine settles in with Marta just as her friend DCI Archie Penrose of London’s Metropolitan Police is handed a delicate case: the fatal shooting of Evelyn Young, the housekeeper at Milton Hall, the stately manse du Maurier used as the model for Manderley. Archie’s days are more closely linked to Josephine’s than either one initially recognizes, for James Bartholomew, a member of the special effects team on Hitchcock’s film, fled England after smothering Marion Plummer, a vengeful mother who’d just told him she’d driven his love, her son, Matthew, to suicide back in 1917 during du Maurier’s childhood visit to Milton Hall. Yes, there’s more, much more. Upson does her best to juggle different crimes, scandals, time periods, subplots, crime writers, and incidental episodes from walk-on roles for Bob Hope and Clark Gable to a serious case of poison ivy, but in the end her edifice, unlike the doomed Manderley, collapses under its own weight.

Too much of a good thing. Less, please.

Kirkus Reviews