All of a Winter's Night (15) (Merrily Watkins Mysteries)

It begins in the fog, with a bleak village funeral. In the early hours of the following morning, Merrily Watkins and her daughter Jane are made aware that Aidan Lloyd, son of a wealthy farmer, will not be resting in peace. A rural tradition is displaying its sinister side as an old feud re-ignites. It's already a fraught time for Merrily, her future threatened by a bishop committed to restricting her role as deliverance consultant, or diocesan exorcist. Suddenly there are events she can't talk about as she and Jane find themselves potentially on the wrong side of the law. Meanwhile, DI Frannie Bliss, investigating a shooting, must confront the growth organized crime which is contaminating the countryside. On the Welsh border, the old ways are at war with the modern world. As the days shorten and the fog gives way to ice and snow, Merrily Watkins is drawn into a conflict centered on one of Britain's most famous medieval churches, its walls laden with ancient symbolism.

Booklist on To Dream of the Dead.

"What a captivating character Merrily Watkins turns out to be. . . . Reads like something that Agatha Christie and Jane Haddam might have collaborated on. "

Publishers Weekly on The Fabric of Sin.

"Rickman once again cleverly blends supernatural elements with a conventional whodunit plot. . . . The writing and characterizations are first-rate."

Daily Mail on the Merrily Watkins series.

"First rate crime with demons that go bump in the night."

Diana Gabaldon.

"I have a thing for long series with complex characters, moral ambiguity and evocative writing, and Rickman's Merrily Watkins series is one of the very best."

Kingdom Books, Mysteries Review Blog

"clear your schedule for page-turning reading"

Kingdom Books, Mysteries Review Blog

"I'm going to have to find the preceding 13 Merrily Watkins mysteries, ASAP."

Publishers Weekly Online

“Rickman makes suspension of disbelief easy in his combining of natural and supernatural phenomena.”

About the Author

Phil Rickman is the author of the Merrily Watkins series and the John Dee series. The second Merrily Watkins book Midwinter of the Spirit was made into a three-part TV drama, which Wall Street Journal called "impressively chilling."

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