Publish and Be Killed — Anne Morice

'I don't give much for Baba's chances. Her days as an authoress must be numbered.'

It is well known that the celebrated playwright, Sheridan Seymour, had three children by his mistress. The copyright to his plays was left to his legitimate daughters, but over the years Baba, the youngest, has gained sole control.

Now Sheridan's work is enjoying a popular revival on the West End stage. Baba is rich and planning to write a biography of her father, promising salacious revelations.

When Tessa Crichton is asked to help prevent the biography's publication, she needs no encouragement. With all of her customary curiosity she burrows deep into the family secrets. But she is brought to a halt by the disappearance of a family member, identified as the body found in a burnt-out house - but who reappears from an impulsive visit overseas.

So who died in the fire?

Publish and be Killed was originally published in 1986. This new edition features an introduction and afterword by crime fiction historian Curtis Evans.

'A light hand, an engaging ease, and an inventive mind: all welcome qualities in the writing of crime novels.' Financial Times

'What makes her such good company - and the whole point of Miss Morice's book is to converse, as it were, with Tessa Crichton - is not her deductive skill but her shrewd eye and quick tongue for people and situations.' Daily Telegraph