London. Spring 1943. While Europe continues to suffer under the iron fist of Nazi occupation, Britain remains battered but unbowed.

DCI Frank Merlin, already contending with a booming wartime crime wave in the capital, is confronted with a baffling the brutal murder of a respected doctor.

Following a puzzling trail that leads him into the hidden corners of clubland—and which appears to be linked to the disappearance of both British and American officers—Merlin must untangle a dark web of shocking secrets.

Winner of the Cob and Pen Literary Award for Crime Fiction at the inaugural Bloody Barnes Book Festival 2026