Dark Arts
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Dark Arts, the prequel to Fairest Creatures, sees grieving artist Rachel Matthews return home to Penzance in the winter of 2018, to find herself at the centre of a series of crimes connected to the Cornish arts community.
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DI Brandon Hammett, a Texan with Cornish roots, is leading the investigations. Both Rachel and Brandon seek recovery and purpose. Rachel uses work at a local school to help her heal. Recently widowed, Brandon looks to set the world to rights and protect his hometown. A town under attack. Violent county lines drugs runners compete with local dealers and smugglers, and the Penzance arts community is rocked to the core.
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Can DI Brandon Hammett steady the ship before it crashes?
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Dark Arts features many of the same characters as Fairest Creatures and provides further insights and intrigues into the rich cast of players.
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"This origin story for DI Brandon Hammett moves at a tremendous pace along a twisting and dark path. Karen Taylor proves once again that she is a master of gothic storytelling, using Cornish traditions and history to give a unique backdrop to her police procedurals. Five stars from me," Judi Daykin, author of the DS Sara Hirst novels.
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Fairest Creatures
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A serial killer's obsession with the preservation of beauty sees him return to stalk the streets of Penzance in the summer of 2019. It's 23 years since his first victims went missing, setting DI Brandon Hammett on the hunt for the Sleeping Beauty Killer.
A beautiful woman is being held captive in an unknown location. Although not physically injured, she is manacled to a chair in a darkened, sinister dining room. Her captor is polite but menacing.
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Her female companions silent spectators.
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When a glass box is found in Prussia Cove, containing a conch and the ear of a missing beauty, a murder investigation is launched.
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Is the Sleeping Beauty Killer back? Or is this a copycat killing?
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What's clear is an evasive, clever killer is at large, presenting DI Brandon Hammett with a deadly race against time.
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Praise for Fairest Creatures
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"Unpredictable, sometimes shocking, and with a hint of humour too. Recommended by me," Anne Cater, Random Things Tours
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"Not all crime thrillers can hold your attention from first page to last, but this is one of them," J.L. Dixon, John's Bookshelf.
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Dark Arts and Fairest Creatures are available to buy from Amazon, Waterstones, Leamington Books, The Edge of The World Bookshop, Penzance and other independent and major booksellers.
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IN THE PRESS
This origin story for DI Brandon Hammett moves at a tremendous pace along a twisting and dark path. Karen Taylor proves once again that she is a master of gothic storytelling, using Cornish traditions and history to give a unique backdrop to her police procedurals. Five stars from me.
JUDI DAYKIN
AUTHOR OF THE DS SARA HIRST NOVELS
A dark and sinister hunt for a serial killer had me hooked from the first page.
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DREDA SAY MITCHELL MBE
AUTHOR AND BROADCASTER
Superb! You must not miss this.
For anyone who wants a great read, not just crime thriller readers. I gave Fairest Creatures, by Karen Taylor, five stars, as if there was any doubt
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J.L. DIXON
JOHN'S BOOKSHELF
BIO
Karen is a UEA alumni crime writer whose latest novel Fairest Creatures was longlisted for the 2020 Crime Writers' Association Debut Dagger. The book features DI Brandon Hammett, a Texan detective with Cornish roots. Based in Penzance, Fairest Creatures covers the reappearance after 23 years of the Sleeping Beauty Serial killer, a murderer who macabrely 'immortalises' his beautiful victims.
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Born in London, Karen is also a journalist and editor with wide ranging experience, covering anything from business to lifestyle.
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An avid reader and film goer, Karen is loving the chance to create stories in the dramatic cinematic setting of Cornwall.
She spends her time between Penzance and London.
Dark Arts, the Prequel to CWA Debut Dagger Longlisted Fairest Creatures, is out now.
Available on Amazon in digital and paperback, and at independent bookshops, including The Edge of The World Bookshop in Penzance 01736 365607 and Books on the Rise, Richmond upon Thames 020 8948 1427
