Underscore — Andrew Cartmel

The Vinyl Detective plunges into the world of Italian movie soundtrack music in his eighth adventure that is sure to delight those who love whimsical British cosy crime. Expect laughs, LPs, cats and the return of fan favourites, Nevada, Tinkler, Stinky Stanmer and more.

Some of the greatest (and grooviest) music ever committed to vinyl has come out of Italy in the form of soundtracks -- especially for that variety of lurid thriller known as a giallo. The maestros who composed these masterpieces include Ennio Morricone, Piero Piccioni, Armand Trovajoli… And Loretto Loconsole.

No one disputes that Loconsole was a genius, but was he also a murderer?

When his mistress was brutally killed in 1969, on location in Cool Britannia for a giallo called Murder in London, there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute him. But Loconsole died in the shadow of disgrace. Now, his granddaughter Chloë has come back to England to hire the Vinyl Detective. She wants him to find an immaculate vinyl copy of Murder in London…

And to clear her grandfather's name.

Can the Vinyl Detective and the gang -- Nevada, Tinkler and Agatha -- find out the truth of what happened in Swinging London more than half a century ago? And can they stay alive when there's someone out there who'd prefer the secrets of the past to remain buried -- and is more than willing to kill to keep it that way?