M.W. Craven on The Killer's Mark Plus the Kindle That Saved a Life in Barcelona

Philippa opens with a genuinely unbelievable true story — how a friend trapped in a locked Barcelona hotel toilet used her Kindle to prise the door open and escape. Reading saves lives, people.

Then it's three book reviews and a brilliant listener Q&A with crime fiction favourite M.W. Craven, talking about book eight in the Washington Poe series, The Killer's Mark, out 13th August.

📚 Book Reviews

The Midnight Train – Matt Haig

A beautiful, emotionally rich audiobook about love, regret, and the moments that matter. Uplifting rather than sad, and perfect for fans of Matt Haig's reflective style.

Octagon – C.J. Merritt

A fast-paced spy thriller following former MI6 agent Stella McCrae and ex-SAS operator Tommy Kane as they race to stop a devastating plot against the West. Cinematic and action-packed.

Rivals – Jilly Cooper

Philippa picked this up after the TV series left her on an emotional cliffhanger with five months until part two. 720 pages later, she has both more and fewer answers than she started with. Enjoyable — especially at the beginning — but perhaps a lesson in patience.

🎙️ Author Interview: M.W. Craven on The Killer's Mark

Poe and Tilly are back — this time as private investigators, drawn into a case that begins with a young American woman who has seen her supposedly dead mother in a porn film. Darker than some recent entries in the series, but with the trademark humour firmly intact.

Mike and Philippa discuss:

• Why this book starts smaller and more personal than previous Poe adventures
• The deliberate shift in the Poe/Tilly dynamic across the series — and who relies on whom now
• A new teenage character and the questions only a 15-year-old will ask directly
• The Martin Clunes passage that made Philippa nearly choke on her coffee (no spoilers, but it's brilliant)
• His favourite in the series (The Mercy Chair) and the underrated Black Summer
• Lessons learned writing a James Bond children's book — including deaf sensitivity readers, footnotes in place of deleted chapters, and why you can't spend three chapters setting up a single joke
• Poe's Croft: completely fictional, despite what several convinced readers insist
• Listener questions from the Quick Book Reviews Facebook group — including whether Tilly's mum is okay, who Poe's Croft is based on, and Mike's fantasy convention costume (spoiler: Gimli)
• What he's reading: The Man with the Golden Compass by Vaseem Khan and the Vinyl Detective series by Andrew Cartmel
• The biscuit answer: chocolate-covered Battenberg, fig rolls and Jammie Dodgers from Castle Chocolates in Carlisle — links in the show notes

The Killer's Mark is out 13th August — pre-orders matter!

🍫 Castle Chocolates, Carlisle

📚 📚 Pre-order The Killer's Mark by M.W. Craven at Waterstones

💬 Get in touch

Quick Book Reviews Facebook Group | Instagram | quickbookreviews@outlook.com

Quick Book Reviews: author interviews and book reviews with no spoilers.

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