Second Strand

by Carolyn McCrae

Second Strand is an excellently written, well-plotted murder mystery and is the 7th novel from award-winning author Carolyn McCrae. Alex and Teri are on the verge of breaking up after 12 years together when their elderly neighbour is found dying and their plans are put on hold. Two days later Alex, the police’s only suspect in what is now a murder investigation, disappears without trace. Private investigators, hired by Teri, learn that Alex is the lost son of the victim but tracing the family’s history proves to be more difficult than it should have been. If they are to find Alex, and establish his innocence, they must identify the connections between this killing and one, still unsolved, which took place in the same town two years earlier. Carolyn McCrae, whose first novel The Last Dance won the prestigious David St John Thomas Prize for Self-Published Fiction, has cleverly created a tale of mystery that unravels the complexities of relationships forged and betrayals perpetrated through the Cold War. Second Strand shows how a man’s bitterness has ruined lives through more than half a century and will appeal to fans of fast-paced and intelligent mysteries.

Author news

Carolyn enjoys writing - sticking with it through the hard times because she has stories to tell.
Hostage to Fortune is Carolyn's eighth title and the fourth in a series of 'history mysteries' where modern day mysteries (murder, abduction, fraud) are solved through an understanding of families' histories. Investigation into a missing keeper of a safe house leads Skye and Fergal (our historical consultants) to preventing a psychopathic killer adding to his tally.
A Second Strand, her seventh title is Carolyn's second murder mystery (though all other books involve some degree of mystery of one sort or another).
The main suspect disappears two days after he discovers his dying neighbour and before DNA tests indicate the victim was his father.
Is he guilty? If so why? If not who is? And what, if any, are the links to a previous murder, perpetrated in the same small town (Yarmouth, Isle of Wight) two years earlier.

Her Parents' Daughter A woman is arrested, gun in hand, standing over a murder victim. Was she as guilty as she appeared to be or had she been set up? And if set up, why and by whom?

A Set of Lies was published to mark the Napoleonic bi-centenary in 2015 is an alternate historical mystery covering two hundred years of a family's history. It introduces Skye and Fergal who feature in her new soon-to-be-published A Second Strand

The Iniquities Trilogy; The Last Dance, Walking Alone and Runaways
Each book stands alone but as a trilogy the reader learns more about the extended Donaldson family than they ever knew themselves. This is now being reworked as one book to be available in the Spring of 2018. (Well... musicians re-record their earlier works...)

Highly Unsuitable Girl In which a northern girl, who moves south, finally understands who she is and what she wants from life, eventually growing up (at the age of forty something).

http://www.carolynmccrae.com

Press Coverage

Mystery People

Promoting Crime Fiction

Kent News

Books Monthly

That's Books and Entertainment

Female First

Book Reviews

Thoroughly enjoyed this suspense filled novel.. Fast paced, good character development and a new and interesting take on what we really know about the people we live with. I plan to go back and read more by this author.

by Margaret Holmes

A simple, useful guide. J an a writer and have more than the basic level of understanding but this book still had helpful and insightful tips that I have picked up and used. I would recommend this book to anyone looking for an entry level text on the subject.

by NetGalley review

About the Author

Carolyn McCrae

Carolyn McCrae is a northerner, born on the Wirral (Cheshire) in 1950.

After 35 years of moving around Kent, Berkshire, Cornwall, Worcestershire, Shropshire, the Isle of Wight and Devon she has now returned to Kent where she intends to settle. So much moving around has made it difficult to become a 'local author' anywhere but Kent has found its way into most of her books.

After teaching for 5 years and a further five in various office jobs in London in 1983 she set up her own marketing database management company. Now all but retired, she is developing her new career as an author.

Follow her on Twitter @Carolyn_McCrae She does not 'do' Facebook.

For more information check out her website: www.carolynmccrae.com

She closely follows the fortunes of Liverpool Football Club and the England (& Wales) cricket team - even attending the odd match.