John Creasey (New Blood) 2014

M J Carter
The Strangler Vine
shortlisted
Penguin Fig Tree

A fatal clash of cultures in this fast-moving narrative set in Victorian India at the time the East India Company held sway, supported by the power of the British Army. A naive young lieutenant sets out with a cynical, disillusioned agent and two Indian aides on a quest to find a missing writer, into the heart of Thuggee territory. This book is both a page-turning thriller and a meticulously researched and compelling narrative of deception, greed and betrayal.