Media Bites October 2023_

The Royal Windsor Secret CHRISTINE WELLS

Traitors Gate JEFFREY ARCHER

Wreck the Halls TESSA BAILEY

Could she be the secret daughter of the Prince of Wales In this dazzling novel by the author of Sisters of the Resistance , a young woman seeks to discover the truth about her mysterious past. Perfect for readers of Shana Abe, Bryn Turnbull, and Marie Benedict. Cleo Davenport has heard the whispers: the murmured conversations that end abruptly the second she walks into a room. Told she was an orphan, she knows the rumor – that her father is none other than the Prince of Wales, heir to the British throne. And at her childhood home at Cairo’s Shepheard’s Hotel, where royals, rulers, and the wealthy live, they even called her “The Princess.” But her life is turned upside down when she turns seventeen. Sent to London under the chaperonage of her very proper aunt, she’s told it’s time to learn manners and make her debut. But Cleo’s life can’t be confined to a ballroom. She longs for independence and a career as a jewelry designer for Cartier, but she cannot move forward until she finds out about her past. Determined to unlock the truth, Cleo travels from London, back to Cairo, and then Paris, where her investigations take a shocking turn into the world of the Parisian demi-monde, and a high-class courtesan whose scandalous affair with the young Prince of Wales threatened to bring down the British monarchy long before anyone had heard of Wallis Simpson.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Tessa Bailey delivers a sexy, hilarious standalone holiday rom-com about the adult children of two former rock stars who team up to convince their estranged mothers to play a Christmas Eve concert... Melody Gallard may be the daughter of music royalty, but her world is far from glamorous. She spends her days restoring old books and avoiding the limelight (one awkward tabloid photo was enough, thanks). But when a producer offers her a lot of money to reunite her mother’s band on live tv, Mel begins to wonder if it’s time to rattle the cage, shake up her quiet life... and see him again. The only

24 hours to stop the crime of the century The race against time is about to begin…

THE TOWER OF LONDON… Impenetrable. Well protected.

Secure. Home to the most valuable jewels on earth. But once a year, the Metropolitan Police must execute the most secret operation in their armoury when they transport the Crown Jewels across London. SCOTLAND YARD… For four years, Chief Superindendent William Warwick – together with his second-in-command Inspector Ross Hogan – has been in charge of the operation. And for four years it’s run

christine-wells.com

Released: 04/10/23 TPB | 352pp AU $32.99 NZ $35.00 Imprint: HarperCollins

other person who could wrangle the rock and roll divas. Beat Dawkins, the lead singer’s son, is Melody’s opposite – the camera loves him, he could charm the pants off anyone, and his mom is not a potential cult leader. Still, they might have been best friends if not for the legendary feud that broke up the band. When they met as teenagers, Mel felt an instant spark, but it’s nothing compared to the wild, intense attraction that builds as they embark on a madcap mission to convince their mothers to perform one last show. While dealing with rock star shenanigans, a 24-hour film crew, brawling Santas, and mobs of adoring fans, Mel starts to step out of her comfort zone. With Beat by her side, cheering her on, she’s never felt so understood. But Christmas Eve is fast approaching, and a decades-old scandal is poised to wreck everything – the Steel Birds reunion, their relationships with their mothers, and their newfound love. Released: 04/10/23 B+P | 368pp AU $22.99 NZ $25.00 Imprint: Avon Books www.tessabailey.com

like clockwork. THE HEIST…

Hercule Poirot’s Silent Night: The New Hercule Poirot Mystery

AGATHA CHRISTIE & SOPHIE HANNAH

But this year, everything is about to change. Because master criminal Miles Faulkner has set his heart on pulling off the most outrageous theft in history – and with a man on the inside, the odds are in his favour. Unless Warwick and Hogan can stop him before it’s too late… An unputdownable new thriller from the master storyteller. Released: 04/10/23 CHB | 384pp www.jeffreyarcher.com

The world’s greatest detective, Hercule Poirot – legendary star of Agatha Christie’s Murder on the Orient Express , Death on the Nile and A Haunting in Venice – puts his little grey cells to work solving a baffling Christmas mystery. CAN HERCULE POIROT SOLVE A BAFFLING MURDER MYSTERY IN TIME FOR CHRISTMAS? It’s 19 December 1931. Hercule Poirot and Inspector Edward Catchpool are called to investigate the murder of a man in the apparent safe haven of a Norfolk hospital ward. Catchpool’s mother, the irrepressible Cynthia, insists that Poirot stays in a crumbling mansion by the coast, so that they can all be together for the festive period while Poirot solves the case. Cynthia’s friend Arnold is soon to be admitted to that same hospital and his wife is convinced he will be the killer’s next victim, though she refuses to explain why. Poirot has less than a week to solve the crime and prevent more murders, if he is to escape from this nightmare scenario and get home in time for Christmas. Meanwhile, someone else – someone utterly ruthless – also has ideas about what ought to happen to Hercule Poirot . . .

AU $39.99 NZ $45.00 Imprint: HarperCollins

www.agathachristie.com

Released: 04/10/23 TPB | 384pp AU $32.99 NZ $35.00 Imprint: HarperCollins

FICTION

FICTION