When Elspeth arrives at her ex-husband Richard’s LA mansion for his 50th birthday party, she’s expecting a crowd for the British film director.

Instead, there are just seven other guests and Richard’s pet octopus, Persephone, watching over them from her tank. Come morning, Richard is dead. In the weeks that follow, each of the guests come under suspicion: the school friend, the studio producer, the actress, the actor, the new boyfriend, the manager, the cinematographer and the ex-wife, Elspeth herself.

As stories of Richard’s past surface, colliding with Elspeth’s memories of their marriage, she begins to question not just who killed Richard, but why these eight guests were invited, and what sort of man would want to trap this mysterious, intelligent creature. From the LA hills to the Norfolk marshes, The Octopus is a stylish exploration of power: the power of memory, the power of perception, the power of one person over another.

Published in 2020 as The Octopus (Hodder & Stoughton, UK), and in 2021 as The Last Guest (Ballantine Books, PRH, North America) and The Ninth Guest (Hodder & Stoughton, UK).

Order in the UK from here or here; in the US from here or here; or at your local bookstore.