Warwickshire, 1934

Deep in a hamlet in the Warwickshire countryside, Red Hollow Hall is a male-only sanatorium run by the charismatic psychiatrist Dr Moon. However, all is not well, and Dr Moon’s patients are leaving Red Hollow in droves.

Recent disturbances, which originally appeared to be pranks, have descended into something more sinister, and now the men believe they have a malevolent visitor – the mermaid of Red Hollow. The ghost of a murdered girl, they believe the mermaid wreaks bloody revenge on unsuspecting men each time the hamlet floods.

When private enquiry agent, William Garrett, and freshly minted detective, Phyll Hall, are called in to uncover the identity of the intruder, they become trapped in a world of madness, the occult, and grisly murder. A world where William must use all his strength to differentiate between the real-life monster haunting Red Hollow Hall and the monsters of the mind.

The Red Hollow is the follow-up to Natalie Marlow’s critically acclaimed debut, Needless Alley.

‘As full of atmosphere as the author’s critically acclaimed debut’ Prima

‘A truly splendid, wicked gem of a book. I loved it’ Tom Mead, author of Death and the Conjuror

‘The Red Hollow is a swirling, Gothic fever-dream of a novel that cements Marlow’s place at the very top of the historical crime writing tree’ Mark Wightman, author of Waking the Tiger

BIRMINGHAM, 1933.

Private enquiry agent William Garrett facilitates divorces for the city’s male elite. With the help of his best friend – charming, out-of-work actor Ronnie Edgerton – William sets up honey traps. But photographing unsuspecting women in flagrante plagues his conscience and William heaves up his guts with remorse after every job.

William’s life changes when he meets the beautiful Clara Morton and falls in love. Little does he know she is the wife of a client – a leading fascist with a dangerous obsession. Soon, what should have been another straightforward job turns into something far more deadly.

Drenched in evocative period atmosphere and starring an unforgettable cast of characters, Needless Alley takes the reader from seedy canal-side pubs, to crumbling Warwickshire manor houses, and into the hidden spaces of Birmingham’s Queer, bohemian society.

‘Needless Alley makes for a gripping read that any Peaky Blinder fan is sure to love’ Susan Stokes-Chapman, author of Pandora

‘A great sense of period and place…creates an atmosphere of mounting menace and dread’ The Times

BIRMINGHAM, 1933.

Private enquiry agent William Garrett, a man damaged by a dark childhood spent on Birmingham’s canals, specialises in facilitating divorces for the city’s male elite. With the help of his best friend – charming, out-of-work actor Ronnie Edgerton – William sets up honey traps. But photographing unsuspecting women in flagrante plagues his conscience and William heaves up his guts with remorse after every job.

However, William’s life changes when he accidentally meets the beautiful Clara Morton and falls in love. Little does he know she is the wife of a client – a leading fascist with a dangerous obsession. And what should have been another straightforward job turns into something far more deadly.

Drenched in evocative period atmosphere and starring an unforgettable cast of characters, Needless Alley takes the reader from seedy canal-side pubs, to crumbling Warwickshire manor houses, and into the hidden spaces of Birmingham’s Queer, bohemian society.

MORE PRAISE FOR NEEDLESS ALLEY:

‘Marlow’s very engaging protagonist may herald the birth of a new genre: Midlands Noir’ Financial Times

‘This is pulp fiction of the highest quality, marking the arrival of a fabulous new thriller writer’ Matthew d’Ancona, Tortoise

‘Crafted with all the style and elegance of classic hardboiled fiction, lovingly splashed in the grubbiness and grime of interwar Birmingham’s cuts, alleys and back streets. A smart, ripping yarn (with) some shocking and moving revelations.’ Dominic Nolan, author of Vine Street

‘An exceptionally well-written first novel that whets the appetite for many sequels’ Irish Times

‘Needless Alley not only evokes 1930s Birmingham in all its dark glory – it introduces characters that are impossible to forget. Read it.’ Alan Parks, author of Bloody January

‘1930s Birmingham is brought expertly to life in this atmospheric crime noir where corruption and seedy entanglements lurk down every darkly lit street. Compelling and clever, Needless Alley makes for a gripping read that any Peaky Blinder fan is sure to love.’ Susan Stokes-Chapman, author of Pandora

‘An elegantly written, meticulously researched 1930s noir thriller, with a twisting, turning plot and vivid characters both utterly of their time and powerfully resonant of our own.’ Robbie Morrison, author of Edge of the Grave

‘Hardboiled thriller with a hint of Peaky Blinders about it’ Sun