A cyclist is knocked down in Richmond Park in an apparent hit-and-run. It soon becomes evident that this is a professional hit. And there’s a witness, who’s gone missing. The victim has links to a murdered African banker and is suspected of having information on a far-reaching corruption plot that goes all the way to the top of the billion-dollar oil industry – and beyond.

Rookie detective, Addie Lawrence, has realized her dream of becoming a police detective. She’s managed to put her violent past in South Africa behind her and has forged a new career with the London Met. She’s partnered with DI Rob Miller, famous for apprehending the Surrey Stalker, however, Rob has recently returned from compassionate leave after losing his family in the Manchester arena terror attack. Together, they must find the witness before the killers do, and prevent a catastrophe that could impact the world’s oil supply.

How this story came to be...

I was born and grew up in South Africa and saw the effects of the violence and gang warfare in some of the townships. I wanted to bring this into my main protagonist’s background somehow. My rookie detective, Addie Lawrence, is one of those people whose life has been irrevocably changed by violence – in this case, the murder of her mother. It shapes who she is as a person and is indirectly the reason she became a detective with the London Metropolitan Police.

Another huge problem facing Africa is the scale of corruption, so I brought this into the story in the case of my antagonist, known only as The Woman in Black, who is driven to kill by her traumatic past and her desire for vengeance against the people who destroyed her family and her village. Unfortunately, this is not a unique scenario in Africa, where so many lives are affected by warring tribes, political scuffles and rebel militia – which creates unstable governments and poverty on a scale you and I can only imagine. Born out of these circumstances, it’s no wonder people turn to crime in order to survive.

The terror attacks of the last few years have rocked Europe to its core, and Addie’s partner and mentor, DI Rob Miller, has felt it more than most for he lost his sister and niece in the Manchester Arena bombing. This threatens his core beliefs and he can’t help but wonder why he puts his life on the line every day to hunt down murdering scumbags when any random person could be a ‘lone wolf’ killer. He feels disillusioned and powerless, and it’s into this state of mind that he’s asked to take on the new, fresh-eyed detective and show her the ropes.

So this is a gripping thriller, set in London, but also explores wider themes as outlined above.