It’s the perfect getaway. Until there’s no way out.

You have been dreaming of an unforgettable weekend escape, and Black Tarn Lodge seems to offer everything—a magnificent Gothic mansion with towering turrets nestled in the misty Lancashire hills.

Expecting elegant dinners, vintage wines and a screening of a legendary lost film in the private cinema, all seems perfect. Until night falls and a thick fog isolates you from the world. Your phones go missing. Guests start vanishing. And then you find the body.

Someone, it seems, fell from the roof. But you can’t help wondering if he was pushed. Totally cut off, you cannot leave or call for help. You don’t know these people. But you need to decide who you can trust soon. Because someone is going to be next—will it be you?

From Sunday Times bestseller Paul Finch comes a totally addictive thriller that will leave you utterly breathless as you race through the pages. Perfect for fans of Lucy Clarke, Ruth Ware and Lucy Foley.

Paul Finch is a number-one e-book bestseller and a top-ten Sunday Times bestseller. He first worked as a policeman in the north-west of England and then as a journalist.

His writing career commenced with episodes of the hit television drama The Bill, and since then, he has written extensively in the horror, fantasy, historical epic and sci-fi genres, including for Doctor Who. He is a two-time winner of the British Fantasy Award and a recipient of the International Horror Guild Award. However, Paul is probably best known for his dark crime thriller novels, including the Heckenburg and Clayburn series, and for his first novel with Thomas & Mercer, The Island. In his capacity as thriller writer, he has twice been shortlisted for the Crime Writers’ Association Dagger Awards.

The Lodge is Paul’s second novel for Thomas & Mercer, and, while firmly in murder-mystery territory, it draws on his love of Gothic fiction and classic horror movies. It also leans into the worlds of true crime, which he reads regularly, and so-called ‘dark tourism’, which he is both fascinated by and worried about in equal measure.

Paul lives in Lancashire with his wife and business partner, Cathy.