This week, I had to confess to some family friends that after fourteen years of living in the UK, I had yet to visit the famously stunning Lake District. Considering how much I love hiking and the outdoors there really is no logical reason for this oversight, but the fact remains that the closest I’ve come to exploring that landscape is through Martin Edwards’ Lake District mystery series.  Perhaps I could argue that having immersed myself in his books, and seeing as Edwards is so adept at evoking the atmosphere of the Lake District,  I feel as though I have actually been there. Or, alternatively, I could argue that given the sinister side to his crime novels, highlighting the darkness hidden amongst those rolling hills, I’ve subconsciously stayed away…

Whatever the reason, I was delighted to see that Martin Edwards is currently the Author of the Month on Crimesquad.com. The editor, Chris Simmons, eloquently describes how the eerie beauty and other-worldliness of the Lake District plays such central role in the books:  ‘Edwards  is spot on at conjuring atmosphere and instils an intense claustrophobia as the solid winter darkness falls and as the dense fog squeezes the life out of the day. Sometimes I felt that the small cast of characters in this book weren’t on the mainland, but marooned on an island, separated from the rest of humanity by the forces of nature. You can tell that Edwards loves this part of the UK, but is not averse to showing the unseemly side of it, either.’  (Read the five-star review of his latest release The Frozen Shroud and an interview with the author here.)

The mysterious landscape and small-knit communities of the Lake District certainly provide fertile ground for mystery writers and has also coaxed author Rebecca Tope (bestselling author of the Cotswold mystery series) to the area with her new crime series, starting with The Windermere Witness.

So now, I have even more reason to finally explore the region first-hand. If, of course, I dare…

Chiara Priorelli, Publicity & Online Marketing Manager