Jon Spicer

Second book in the critically-acclaimed Jon Spicer series, also includes the opening of the third novel in the series, Savage MoonReviews

'I'll be downloading more of Chris Simms' books ASAP. I feel like I've found a hidden gem.' (Amazon Reader Review - Pecking Order)

Chris Simms has been quietly building one of the best police procedural series in this country. (CATHOLIC HERALD)

Pacy, gripping and original storytelling (YORKSHIRE POST)

This highly polished study of madness and murder shows how well Simms' talent is maturing. (SHOTS MAGAZINE)

A must-read for those who like their crime fiction psychological (DEADLY PLEASURES MAGAZINE)

The story's dramatic events are drawn out, gradually building to a page-turning, heart-stopping - and totally unexpected - ending. (THE BOOK PLACE)

The novel's high-quality storytelling has an authentic, documentary feel' (CITY LIFE MAGAZINE)

Book description

'The Butcher of Belle Vue' has struck again. Like the first two victims, the third has been partially skinned and dumped on waste ground: muscles, tendons and ligaments exposed to view. Only this time, her face has also been removed.

Jon Spicer and his new partner, Rick Saville, are approached by a woman who insists she heard 'The Butcher' claiming his latest victim in the next-door room of a run-down hotel in Belle Vue. But all she has to back up her story is an escort's business card recovered from the empty room the following morning.

Jon's investigation takes him into the twilight world of Manchester's sex workers and the unscrupulous cosmetic surgery industry, eventually forcing him to confront the potential for violence within every man - even within himself.

About the Author

Chris Simms' acclaimed first novel in the DI Spicer series, KILLING THE BEASTS was selected as a Best Crime book for 2005 by SHOTS magazine. He was then selected as a Waterstone's Author for the Future, one of 25 writers tipped by publishers, editors and agents, to produce the most impressive body of work over the next quarter century. Since then he has been nominated several times for the THEAKSTON'S CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR and for CRIME WRITERS' ASSOCIATION DAGGERS. Chris lives in Manchester.

Find out more on his official web site, www.chrissimms.info or, for regular postings, see his Facebook page at www.facebook.com/AuthorChrisSimms