Strangers at the Gate

August 15, 2019
Sometimes, some things really are too good to be true. It's the fulfillment of a dream when Paddy Lamb is offered a full partnership at a law firm in the tidy little Scottish town of Simmerton and Finn, his wife of about a year, scores a full-time deaconship at Simmerton Parish Church. They also get to live rent-free in the two-room gate lodge on the grounds of Widdershins, a crumbling old pile in the middle of a very dark and slightly foreboding pine tree "planting" owned by Tuft Dudgeon and her husband, Lovatt, Paddy's new law partner, who specializes in the adoption of special needs children, which is perfect, since Paddy is an adoptee himself. Finn gets a bad feeling when she first lays eyes on their new digs, but dinner with the utterly charming Dudgeons goes a long way toward dispelling her worries. Alas, the relief doesn't last long. After realizing they've left important papers at the Dudgeons' place, Finn and Paddy return to Widdershins only to find their recent hosts dead on the kitchen floor in what appears to be a very bloody murder/suicide. Finn and Paddy harbor a few secrets that preclude calling the police, but surely someone else will find the bodies soon. Paddy and Finn start their new jobs and try to act normal, and Finn even makes friends with their eccentric neighbor Shannon Mack. But when Paddy receives a fax supposedly from Lovatt, sent after the deaths, announcing a sudden trip to Brazil, the possibility of a murder/suicide begins to seem unlikely. McPherson (Go to My Grave, 2018, etc.) is a master of atmosphere, delivering a few nifty twists while weaving a creepy slow burner of a mystery that takes full advantage of its isolated setting. Narrator Finn is a pragmatic but quirky delight who will turn most folks' ideas of what a church deacon should be upside down, and readers will be enthralled as she unearths some shockingly dark deeds. Another unsettling and cleverly plotted winner from the enormously talented McPherson.

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August 26, 2019
From Agatha-winner McPherson (Go to My Grave) comes this atmospheric standalone set in Scotland, where Edinburgh attorney Paddy Lamb gets his dream job: a partnership in a small law firm in the quaint town of Simmmerton, along with the free use of a lodge owned by his new employer, Lovatt Dudgeon. Paddy’s wife, Finn, is even offered a plum job as a deacon in the local church. The dream rapidly sours as the city-bred Finn begins to hear voices and see lights moving through the dense woods surrounding their secluded new home. A full-fledged nightmare unfolds when Paddy and Finn stumble across the bloody bodies of Lovatt and his wife. With secrets of their own to hide, Paddy and Finn are in no position to alert the authorities; now they can only wait for someone else to discover the bodies. As the days creep by and the mysteries around her deepen, Finn comes to suspect the killer is the man she thought she knew best. McPherson spins a tense tale of murder and deception. Fans of Daphne du Maurier’s Rebecca will find much to like. Agent: Lisa Moylett, CMM Literary (U.K.).

September 1, 2019
It seems too good to be true. Paddy Lamb is hired to be a partner in a law firm in the small town of Simmerton, Scotland; his wife, Finnie, gets a full-time job as a deacon; his boss offers a gate lodge for them to live in; and they can rent their Edinburgh flat for a handsome rate. Even the obligatory dinner with Paddy's new bosses, Tuft and Lovatt Dudgeon, exceeds Finnie's expectations. But then Finnie forgets her handbag at the Dudgeons' house, and, when she and Paddy return, they find their hosts hacked to death on the kitchen floor. Because both of the Lambs have had past run-ins with the law, they're reluctant to call authorities, putting them in a quandary as events proceed. The deaths of Lovatt's first wife and two young children come into play, as does the adoption service operated by a local church, as secrets are gradually revealed but lies still abound. Finnie Lamb is a stalwart character who brings a quiet religious tone in the face of death to this enthralling stand-alone from McPherson, also the author of the Dandy Gilver series.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)

May 1, 2019

Two-time Anthony and Agatha winner and an Edgar finalist, McPherson crafts a stand-alone featuring the couple Paddy and Finn, happy to move to the small town where Paddy has made partner at the local law firm. They're grateful to be living in a gatehouse on the property of Paddy's new boss until the bloodied bodies of the boss and his wife are discovered, and the entire setting turns eerie.

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