As DCI Matilda Darke unravels a chilling cold case, she discovers some truths are deadly – and someone will stop at nothing to keep the past buried…

‘Matilda Darke is the perfect heroine’ Elly Griffiths

RUNNING FROM HER PAST

Leaving behind Sheffield, her friends and her job, a grieving DCI Matilda Darke finds solace in the wild, untamed beauty of the Lake District. But she can’t outrun her reputation.

A COLD CASE

PC Alison Pemberton is living in the shadow of her twin sisters, who were abducted thirty years ago. As the only witness, Alison has spent her life trying to remember the details of that fateful summer day and discover the truth about what happened to her sisters and why, a few months later, her father also disappeared.

A TRUTH THAT SHOULD HAVE STAYED BURIED

Matilda finds herself agreeing to try and unearth the truth about the Pemberton twins. With nothing left to lose, Matilda throws herself into the cold case, but someone doesn’t want her digging up the past and will do anything to keep the truth hidden…

Praise for Michael Wood

‘A master of horror and suspense’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'One of the best books ever, in one of the best series ever! It is THAT good!’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Wow what a book… I adore this series and every book is better and better’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘This book sets off at a hundred miles an hour and never lets off… this is my favourite detective series’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Exciting, tense and compelling… shocking and brilliant’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Wow! Wow! Wow! The twists keep on coming to the last page’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I don’t have words! Wow just wow! This blew me away. DCI Matilda Darke and her team are my favourite detectives’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘This book had a bit of everything… some crazy twists and turns’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Another cracking, nail-biting read’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

This up-coming sequel in the best-selling DCI Matilda Darke series is a testament to Michael Wood's mastery of the police procedural genre. The story, filled with thrilling twists and turns, cements his place as a top author in the world of hard-boiled mystery novels.

For fans of Angela Marsons (36 Hours), Marion Todd (Bridges to Burn), Ed James (Where the Bodies Lie), Tim Sullivan (The Dentist), and Jd Kirk (A Killer of Influence).

HarperCollins 2025

Worse Than Murder (DCI Matilda Darke Thriller, Book 13)

Worse Than Murder (DCI Matilda Darke Thriller, Book 13)