For those of you who were wondering when and if I was ever going to write or publish another book, I have some news. A new historical mystery featuring investigating Pavel Pavovich Virginsky, with a cameo appearance from Porfiry Petrovich. It’s the second book in my Empire of Shadows series, but can be read as a standalone. It’s available now as an ebook on Amazon (free on Kindle Unlimited) with a paperback to follow in May 2023.
Spring 1880. St Petersburg.
While on an outing with his family in a leafy park, a retired general encounters a mysterious child dressed in red. The child leads him to a secluded spot. And a violent death.
The shocking crime, committed in broad daylight against a respected member of the establishment, strikes terror at the heart of the city.
It also draws the attention of the powers that be, who put pressure on magistrate Pavel Pavlovich Virginsky to solve the case quickly.
But with no witnesses, apart from a drunken fantasist who may or may not have seen the murderer making their escape, Virginsky faces one of the most challenging and bizarre cases of his career.
Then an unexpected confession brings a sudden breakthrough. Or does it? For Virginsky, it’s all a little too convenient.
Meanwhile the tsar’s trusted adviser, Count Loris-Melikov, pushes Virginsky to undertake a dangerous mission. He must find a way to infiltrate a group of disaffected reactionaries with whom the dead man was associated.
Could this shadowy group be behind the general’s murder? And what will they do to Virginsky if they find out he is there to spy on them?
As he closes in on the murderer, Virginsky uncovers a dark history in which the crimes of the past give rise to further crimes.
And the desire for revenge culminates in a devastating tragedy.
“R N Morris brings us another case for pre-Revolutionary St Petersburg magistrate Pavel Pavlovich Virginsky. The Crimson Child grips from the opening and its grasp on the reader only tightens as the strange and baffling case proceeds.”
Peter Tonkin, author of Shadow of Treason.
“A tense and atmospheric new thriller from a master of historical fiction.” Steven Veerapen, author of The Abbey Close.