Underscore

#8 Vinyl Detective

Andrew Cartmel

$42.95 $36.33

Paperback

Forthcoming
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English

Titan Books Ltd
01 August 2025

Crime & Mystery

Series: The Vinyl Detective

The Vinyl Detective plunges into the world of Italian movie soundtrack music in his eighth adventure that is sure to delight those who love whimsical British cosy crime. Expect laughs, LPs, cats and the return of fan favourites, Nevada, Tinkler, Stinky Stanmer and more.

Some of the greatest (and grooviest) music ever committed to vinyl has come out of Italy.

And some of the greatest music to come out of Italy is the rich diversity of soundtracks composed for the indigenous film industry - particularly for gruesome thrillers known as 'gialli'. The maestros who composed for these include Ennio Morricone, Piero Piccioni, Armand Trovajoli...

And Valerius Passeri.

He was one of the finest composers of this genre and his original LPs from his 1960s heyday fetch a fortune from collectors.

No one disputes that Passeri was a genius...

The argument is whether or not he was a murderer.

Passeri's mistress was killed in London in the 1960s while he was here on location for a film shoot. There was never enough hard evidence to lead to a prosecution but the stink of scandal has never gone away.

Passeri's granddaughter Chloe has come to England to hire the Vinyl Detective. She wants him to negotiate for a collection of her father's LPs. The mastertapes of the albums have been destroyed and she needs immaculate vinyl copies to provide the source for a series of reissues

Chloe's mission is to preserve her grandfather's heritage. And also, it transpires, to clear his name.

So it turns out that the Vinyl Detective's real job will be to find out who actually committed a murder

over half a century ago, in Swinging London.

But the real killer is not enchanted with the notion of being exposed. And, having killed once before, they see no problem in doing so again.

By: Andrew Cartmel
Imprint: Titan Books Ltd
Country of Publication: United Kingdom
Dimensions: Height: 198mm, Width: 130mm,
ISBN: 9781803367989
ISBN 10: 1803367989
Series: The Vinyl Detective
Pages: 464
Publication Date: 01 August 2025
Audience: General/trade , ELT Advanced
Format: Paperback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming

Andrew Cartmel is a novelist, comics writer and screenwriter. His work includes a distinguished sojourn script editing Doctor Who for three years (search 'Cartmel masterplan'), co-writing the Rivers of London graphic novels and plays. As a crime novelist, Andrew created the Vinyl Detective while listening to a lot of music, most of it good. Most of it very good. Andrew Cartmel lives in London with too many books, too many records and just enough cats.

Reviews for Underscore (#8 Vinyl Detective)

"""The Vinyl Detective goes Scandi Noir? Yes please!"" - Ben Aaronovitch, author of the Rivers of London series. PRAISE FOR THE VINYL DETECTIVE ""Hilarious and thrilling."" - Ben Aaronovitch, author of the Rivers of London series. ""Cartmel has a gift for bringing you into his characters' world and making you want to stay there which simply makes this a joy to read."" - Blue Book Balloon Review ""Cartmel is getting a great tune out of the characters... Will have you chuckling out loud."" - SFBook Review ""Character is what Cartmel does well... An entertaining detective story with a slightly different vibe."" - The Dreamcage Review - ""An enthralling mystery with a wonderful gallery of grotesques."" Ben Aaronovitch - ""One of the most innovative concepts in crime fiction for many years. Once you are hooked into the world of the Vinyl Detective it is very difficult to leave."" Nev Fountain - Like an old 45rpm record, this book crackles with brilliance."" David Quantick - ""This tale of crime, cats and rock & roll unfolds with an authentic sense of the music scene then and now - and a mystery that will keep you guessing."" Stephen Gallagher ""An irresistible blend of murder, mystery and music... our protagonist seeks to find the rarest of records - and incidentally solve a murder, right a great historical injustice and, if he's very lucky, avoid dying in the process."" Ben Aaronovitch, bestselling author of Rivers of London ""The Vinyl Detective is one of the sharpest and most original characters I've seen for a long time."" David Quantick, Emmy Award-winning producer of VEEP ""Crime fiction as it should be, played loud through a valve amp and Quad speakers. No digital writing here, it's warm and rich. Every delicate pop and crackle adding character and flavour. Witty, charming and filled with exciting solos. Quite simply: groovy."" Guy Adams, critically acclaimed author of The Clown Service ""marvelously inventive and endlessly fascinating"" Publishers Weekly ""This charming mystery feels as companionable as a leisurely afternoon trawling the vintage shops with a good friend."" Booklist (starred review)"