NEWS! Finally!

On the book that's been a 'secret' for over a year.

Hello Friends,

Today we announced A PUZZLING PURSUIT, the book I’ve been working on for over a year. I say in ‘secret’, but if we’ve had a conversation in that time, there’s a very good chance I’ve told you about it, whether you wanted me to or not. And if by some miracle I haven’t cornered you and yacked at length about word puzzles, cross country road trips and crimes, here it is!

DO YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES TO CATCH A MURDERER ON THE RUN?

The local community is left reeling after your colleague dies under suspicious circumstances at the small-town newspaper where you work. On your desk, you find a strange note with a riddle that seems to be from the killer. . . you are curious, to say the least. Who wouldn’t be?

Featuring 100 puzzles to solve over ten captivating cases, A Puzzling Pursuit takes you on an unforgettable yet treacherous road trip across Australia. From the Great Ocean Road to the East Coast’s iconic Big Things and through the Outback, you must do everything in your power to find this mysterious villain who always seems to be one step ahead of you.

Sharpen your pencils and your detective skills to outwit the killer before they strike again!

It’s a bit of a departure from previous books. There are no dragons, or leafy giants, or magical birds. But I am a woman of many interests! So there are murders, and mysteries, and a puzzle to solve on each page. And an adventurous trek round Australia!

Here’s what some brilliant people have said about it. And they’re all so clever, it must be true, right?

‘Perfect for everyone who loves murders and mind-teasers. A sheer delight!’
LYN YEOWART, author of The Hollow Man

'A tantalisingly tangled tale of top-tier twists.'
LIAM RUNNALLS, co-author of worldwide hit Minute Cryptic

An ingenious and entertaining murder-mystery challenging you to solve all kinds of visual and brain puzzles on the way. Clever, creative and beautifully imagined.

KELLY GARDINER , CO-AUTHOR OF MISS CAROLINE BINGLEY, PRIVATE DETECTIVE

If at all sounds tempting you can pre-order it here on the Penguin website.

It’s been such a joy working with the team at Penguin. And a dream of course to see that little logo next to my name! It gives me a little thrill every time. As you can tell…

So, long story short, do please go pre-order a copy if the book looks at all tempting. Pre-orders matter so much for the success of books. And it’s coming out just in time for Father’s Day! Just saying…

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In other news, there’s not a lot of other news! This has kept me pretty busy for the past year. But I am back on a reading jag again. I swore that e-readers weren’t for me, until I finally caved and got a Kobo. It will come as no surprise that most of the books I’ve been reading are cosy murder mysteries!

I’ve also entered the Blarney Books Biblio Art Prize again this year. If you are at all artistically inclined, you should definitely do the same! After you pay a small entry fee, Jo the Smalltown Bookseller will assign you a contemporary book to inspire your artwork submission. It’s a great opportunity for artists and emerging illustrators to gain experience in responding creatively to text, and contrastingly a great chance for experienced illustrators to have the freedom to do whatever they like! I was assigned Bernice Barry’s The Names of a Hare, which I LOVED. I’m so looking forward to dream up an artwork around it.

Okay, that’s enough from me. Do you have any news, or books you can recommend me to read? For now I’m off to try not to check my instagram every two minutes, now that the news is out.

Lorena x