Including the CWA Short Story Award winner ‘Sins of Scarlet’, a story of sudden death in the Vatican, this compelling collection proves that, whether re-imagining the life of cultural icons or spying an opportunity for morbid crimes amidst events grand and domestic, Robert Barnard is the master of the short mystery story.
Robert Barnard was born in Essex. He was educated at Balliol College, Oxford, and after completing his degree he taught English at universities in Australia and Norway, where he completed his doctorate on Dickens. He returned to England to become a full-time writer and now lives in Leeds with his wife Louise, cat Durdles and dog Peggotty. He has been awarded both the prestigious CWA Cartier Diamond Dagger, in recognition of a lifetime’s achievement in crime writing, as well as the CWA prize for the best short story of the year.