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Features

What it’s like writing that tricky second novel

From the Ashes

'Taut and gripping, with a pace that never slows, From The Ashes is a master-class in police procedurals.'

Andrea Mara, Sunday Times bestselling author of All Her Fault

'Pacy, intelligent and so so satisfying. Another brilliant outing for Eve Hunter who is fast becoming my favourite detective. I can't get enough of Deborah Masson's writing.'

'Unmissable and addictive, Masson delivers beautifully crafted punches and red hot twists. Neatly plotted with some stunning characterisations, this is belter of a book.'

'If you're a fan of Val McDermid or Stuart MacBride then you're going to love this new thriller ... This page-turning thriller sure won't let crime fans down.'

'It's clear that DI Eve Hunter in now one of Scotland's premier fictional detectives. Harrowing, absorbing - you won't put this down until the secret of the book's magic is revealed. A triumph for Deborah Masson.'

'Bodies in a basement are always a great attention grabber, and from then on it's twists, turns and tension all the way. Terrific stuff!'

'From The Ashes is a tense and intriguing mystery, expertly delving into the darker side of the Granite City, hooked from from the first page and kept me guessing to the very end!'

G. R. Halliday, author of From The Shadows

'I couldn't predict the ending of this tense thriller until nearly the last page.'

'A very readable page turner. Childhood memories feed the flames of murder.'

Hold Your Tongue is a tense debut in which the past and present collide with devastating consequences. I hope to read more of DI Eve Hunter.

With a twisty plot and dark, nuanced characters, Hold Your Tongue makes for compulsive reading. Not only is it a fantastic crime novel, but the start of an exciting new series.

Gritty, gruesome and NOT to be missed!! Hold Your Tongue is a shocking and brilliant debut by an author who has the rare talent to drag the reader right into the heart of the story and keep them on the edge of their seat until the very last page. I loved DI Eve Hunter's ability to be both fragile - emotionally and physically broken, and wracked with guilt - and at the same time 100% badass! She was an instantly likeable heroine and one I can't wait to read about again.

Expertly paced, intriguing and with a strong emotional kick - this is a great start to a fab new detective series.

If you like your crime novels blood-curdling, Deborah Masson's debut is terrifying, edge-of-your-seat stuff.

Emma Curtis, author of ONE LITTLE MISTAKE

DI Eve Hunter is a truly believable cop. This authenticity draws the reader into a plot that not only compels, but is a stinging social comment on those who have and have not in our society. You can smell, taste and feel the dramatic backdrop of Aberdeen. Not to be missed, edge-of-the-seat stuff from a genuine rising star.

Denzil Meyrick, author of FOR ANY OTHER TRUTH

Skilful plotting, a complex detective and utterly believable characters - this is first-class crime fiction.

Deborah Masson was born and bred in Aberdeen, Scotland. Always restless and fighting against being a responsible adult, she worked in several jobs including secretarial, marketing, reporting for the city's freebie newspaper and a stint as a postie – to name but a few. 
 
Through it all, she always read crime fiction and, when motherhood finally settled her into being an adult (maybe even a responsible one) she turned her hand to writing what she loved. Deborah started with short stories and flash fiction whilst her daughter napped and, when she later welcomed her son into the world, she decided to challenge her writing further through online courses with Professional Writing Academy and Faber Academy, where she wrote her award-winning debut novel Hold Your Tongue, the first in the DI Eve Hunter series. Her most recent book, From The Ashes, has been longlisted for the 2022 McIlvanney Prize for Best Scottish Crime Novel of the Year.

LONGLISTED FOR THE 2022 McILVANNEY PRIZE FOR BEST SCOTTISH CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR 
 
As the house burns, the hunt for a killer begins... 
 
In the dead of night someone starts a fire in a home for underprivileged children in Aberdeen. The flames spread quickly, and one person doesn't make it out alive. 
 
But the victim wasn't found in their bedroom; they were discovered locked inside a secret basement underground. As DI Eve Hunter and her team search the blackened ruins, the case takes them into even darker territory. 
 
Soon Eve unearths a horrific discovery at the heart of the property - one that turns the whole investigation on its head. Everyone in this home has something to hide, but who has a secret worth killing for? 
______________________________________ 
 
'Taut and gripping, with a pace that never slows, From The Ashes is a master-class in police procedurals.' Andrea Mara 
 
'Unmissable and addictive, Masson delivers beautifully crafted punches and red hot twists. Neatly plotted with some stunning characterisations, this is belter of a book.' Helen Fields 
 
'A well-plotted police procedural.' The Herald 
 
'It's clear that DI Eve Hunter is now one of Scotland's premier fictional detectives. Harrowing, absorbing - you won't put this down until the secret of the book's magic is revealed. A triumph for Deborah Masson.' Denzil Meyrick 
 
'Pacy, intelligent and so so satisfying. Another brilliant outing for Eve Hunter who is fast becoming my favourite detective. I can't get enough of Deborah Masson's writing.' Marion Todd 
 
'From The Ashes is a tense and intriguing mystery, expertly delving into the darker side of the Granite City, hooked from from the first page and kept me guessing to the very end!' G. R. Halliday

Out For Blood

The tense and addictive detective thriller set in Aberdeen

This time, revenge is a matter of life or death... DI Eve Hunter returns in the explosive second crime novel from Deborah Masson, author of the acclaimed Hold Your Tongue.

Brilliant. A great new voice in the police procedural world. Hooks you in from the first chapter and doesn't let up. Characters are real people you want to spend time with. Out For Blood has everything you need in a crime thriller and more.

Really enjoyed DI Eve Hunter's second outing. Out For Blood is every bit as good a page-turner as the first in the series.

A slickly plotted, fast paced read with a strong emotive core - I loved it.

A brilliant follow-up novel. DI Eve Hunter is truly a force to be reckoned with.

Another addictive DI Hunter read from Deborah Masson! She is the master of drip feeding clues and notching up tension. I raced through it! Masson is now officially my go to author for gripping police procedural reads.

Lauren North, author of THE PERFECT BETRAYAL

Denzil Meyrick, author of A BREATH ON DYING EMBERS

Another compulsive read from Deborah Masson! Out For Blood shines a light on exploitation and privilege in a twisty believable plot with characters you care about.

A pacy and absorbing police procedural.

DI Eve Hunter is back in the edge-of-your-seat new detective thriller from Deborah Masson, winning author of the Bloody Scotland Crime Debut of the Year 2020. 
 
A young man, the son of an influential businessman, is discovered dead in his central Aberdeen apartment. 
 
Hours later, a teenaged girl with no identification is found hanged in a suspected suicide. 
 
As DI Eve Hunter and her team investigate the two cases, they find themselves in a tug-of-war between privilege and poverty; between the elite and those on the fringes of society. 
 
Then an unexpected breakthrough leads them to the shocking conclusion: that those in power have been at the top for too long - and now, someone is going to desperate lengths to bring them down... 
 
Can they stop someone who is dead set on revenge, no matter the cost? 
 
***** 
 
READERS ARE OBSESSED WITH THE DI EVE HUNTER SERIES 
 
'One of the best books I've ever read!' 
'I loved DI Eve Hunter and her team' 
'Without a doubt the best police procedural I have read in a long time' 
'I cannot wait to see what else is to come in the DI Eve Hunter series' 
'You won't want to stop reading this addictive crime novel' 
'Fantastic characters that you'll fall in love with - I really couldn't put this book down!' 
'Can't wait for the next one . . . and the next one . . . and the next one!' 
 
'Out For Blood has everything you need in a crime thriller and more' Rebecca Bradley 
'DI Eve Hunter is truly a force to be reckoned with' David Jackson 
'This is first-class crime fiction' Marion Todd 
'Not to be missed, edge-of-the-seat stuff from a genuine rising star' Denzil Meyrick

Hold Your Tongue

The award-winning crime debut of the year

He'll silence them all - unless she can stop him . . . The first novel in an exhilarating new Aberdeen-based detective series from a fresh talent in crime writing.

Gritty and close to the bone, HOLD YOUR TONGUE is a compelling, addictive read that I devoured in one sitting. With complex, layered characters and a tension-fuelled plot, this is one of my favourite debuts of the year.

Emma Curtis, bestselling author of ONE LITTLE MISTAKE

Gritty, gruesome and NOT to be missed!! Hold Your Tongue is a shocking and brilliant debut by an author who has the rare talent to drag the reader right into the heart of the story and keep them on the edge of their seat until the very last page. I loved DI Eve Hunter’s ability to be both fragile - emotionally and physically broken, and wracked with guilt - and at the same time 100% badass! She was an instantly likeable heroine and one I can’t wait to read about again.

Hold Your Tongue is a cracking police procedural with enough gruesome deaths to satisfy even the darkest appetite.

David Jackson, author of A TAPPING AT MY DOOR

WINNER OF THE BLOODY SCOTLAND SCOTTISH CRIME DEBUT OF THE YEAR 2020 
 
'Gritty and close to the bone, Hold Your Tongue is a compelling, addictive read that I devoured in one sitting.' Lisa Hall, bestselling author of Between You and Me 
 
In the run up to Christmas, a serial killer stalks the streets of Aberdeen . . . 
 
A brutal murder. 
A young woman's body is discovered with horrifying injuries, a recent newspaper cutting pinned to her clothing. 
A detective with everything to prove. 
This is her only chance to redeem herself. 
A serial killer with nothing to lose. 
He's waited years, and his reign of terror has only just begun . . . 
 
Introducing DI Eve Hunter, HOLD YOUR TONGUE is your new obsession. 
 
*** 
Readers can't stop talking about HOLD YOUR TONGUE: 
 
'Without a doubt the best police procedural I have read in a long time' 
'[Deborah Masson] has a long and bright future ahead if this book is anything to go by' 
'Hold Your Tongue is incredible . . . You're in for a treat!' 
'[Stuart] MacBride has some competition' 
'Wow, what a page-turner!' 
'I can't wait to read more of this series' 
'Addictive from the first page to the last [...] If you read only one book this year make it this one' 
 
*** 
 
'Tense, edge-of-your-seat stuff' Emma Curtis, bestselling author of The Night You Left 
 
'Expertly paced, intriguing and with a strong emotional kick - this is a great start to a fab new detective series' SJI Holliday, author of Violet 
 
'A tense debut in which the past and present collide with devastating consequences. I hope to read more of DI Eve Hunter' Mari Hannah, author of The Lost

Deborah Masson

Taut and gripping, with a pace that never slows.

Unmissable and addictive, Masson delivers beautifully crafted punches and red-hot twists.

My go-to author for gripping police procedurals.

If you're a fan of Val McDermid or Stuart MacBride, then you're going to love this new thriller.

Compelling and deliciously twisted, Deborah pulls you in page by gripping page.

Utterly compelling - I was on the edge of my seat the whole time. A proper page-turning thriller that showcases Masson at her very best, and Scottish crime fiction in all its glory!

Tense, twisted and visceral - this is an unputdownable gut-punch of a thriller. Jaw-droppingly clever, this incredibly dark story unfolds with an expert touch.

It's not often a book keeps me up all night to finish it, but this book was it. An original idea and a chilling, atmospheric read that will keep you looking over your shoulder for a long time after you've closed it.

I'll Be Watching You is dark and addictive. Masson pays surgical attention to plot and pace, unstitching a seemingly tangled web of flawed characters and secret motives and racing to a heart-wrenching finale.

He’s always watching you. 
 
He sees everything. As a CCTV operator, Casey can monitor the streets of Aberdeen and keep people safe, all from the comfort of his chair. 
 
He knows your secrets. 
 
You are one of his favourite people to follow. He keeps an eye on you even in your most private moments, when you think you’re alone. 
 
But now he wants more. 
 
There's a reason he’s learnt your routine like the back of his hand. Casey wants revenge. And when you know as much as he does, it’s easy to take advantage… 
 
Praise for Deborah Masson 
 
'Terrifying, edge-of-your-seat stuff' - Emma Curtis 
 
'A genuine rising star' - Denzil Meyrick 
 
'First-class crime fiction' - Marion Todd

Deborah Masson

Praise for I’ll Be Watching You

Praise for Deborah Masson:

Taut and gripping, with a pace that never slows.

A genuine rising star.

Praise for Deborah Masson:

Taut and gripping, with a pace that never slows.

A genuine rising star.

Praise for Deborah Masson:

Taut and gripping, with a pace that never slows.

A genuine rising star.

Books by Deborah Masson

Series by Deborah Masson

DI Eve Hunter

Articles featuring Deborah Masson

What it’s like writing that tricky second novel

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