The season has turned in the UK and autumn is well and truly here. It’s getting colder… but the sun is still shining!
Publication day for The Man with the Golden Compass is fast approaching (October 22 in the UK; dates for the US and other markets have not yet been set – apologies!), and one of the reasons for posting today is to see if I can encourage you to pre-order the book.
You can find some some order options here
The Man with the Golden Compass is the second in the Q series, with Q from the James Bond franchise playing amateur detective in a small English town.
Dismissed from MI6’s Q Branch, Major Boothroyd (aka ‘Q’) has found a new lease of life in his sleepy hometown of Wickstone-on-Water. Fresh from successfully solving the murder of his childhood friend, Q is now hired by the police to re-examine the unsolved killing of Lawrence Noble, a tech millionaire turned online antique dealer.
Why was Noble tortured before his death? What is the significance of the circular golden object inscribed with mysterious runes found by his body?
As Q investigates, he soon finds himself dragged into a chilling conspiracy where past and present meet in a way he could not possibly have imagined…
As you can see it really is a beautiful hardback!
Pre-orders and first week orders are important!
The most important thing over the next two weeks are hardback sales. (Though I value each and every audio and digital version reader too, so if that’s your preference, go for it!). This is because hardback sales have a genuine knock-on effect. Retailers are more likely to sell a book that has pre-orders and good first week hardback sales as it shows strong interest from readers, supermarkets are more likely to stock the paperback when it comes out … and so on! Every sale really does make a difference.
And with Christmas coming up, it would make a great gift.
You can find some some order options here
Beautiful sprayed edge indie bookshop edition
There are a couple of different independent bookshop hardback editions. Most indie bookshops in the UK have the below edition with a compass on the sprayed edge. Do go in and order from your local indie bookshop – make sure to check that they have this sprayed edge edition before ordering.
Goldsboro Books in London have their own edition, in a beautiful teal colour with a magnificent gold Q on the black board underneath the dust jacket – practically a collector’s item!
You can order from Goldsboro here
Excellent early reviews
How about this for a great early review from a national English newspaper?
And some lovely words from crime writers I admire:
‘A FIVE-STAR BONDVERSE MYSTERY’ ~ JANICE HALLETT
‘COMPELLING, TIMELY AND LAUGH-OUT-LOUD FUNNY’ ~ CLARE MACKINTOSH
‘SMART AND STYLISH … WILL DELIGHT BOND AND CHRISTIE FANS ALIKE’ ~ TOM HINDLE
’I ALWAYS WONDER IF A SECOND IN SERIES WILL BE AS GOOD AS BOOK ONE AND I CAN CONFIRM THAT FOR ME THIS ONE WAS EVEN BETTER.’~ LYNDA’S BOOK REVIEWS
And if you haven’t read the first… feel free to catch up by also ordering QUANTUM OF MENACE
After Major Boothroyd (aka Q) is unexpectedly ousted from his role with British Intelligence developing technologies for MI6’s Double O agents, he is adrift, no longer sure of his place in the world. But when he learns that his childhood friend, renowned quantum computer scientist Peter Napier, has died in mysterious circumstances, Q is drawn back to his sleepy hometown of Wickstone-on-Water. Q soon discovers that Napier’s ground-breaking work may have attracted sinister forces . . . but can he decode the truth before danger closes in?
You can order Quantum of Menace here
A pre-order giveaway…
If you do decide to pre-order The Man with the Golden Compass hardback or buy it in the first week, you can enter the following giveaway. The prize for the giveaway is a trio of Agatha Christie inspired books: THE LAST DEATH OF THE YEAR by Sophie Hannah, the latest Poirot novel; THE AGATHA CHRISTIE CURE by Cathy Rentzenbrink, a memoir of hope; and THE OFFICIAL POIROT PUZZLE BOOK. One lucky winner will be selected at random from all the entries. Deadline for entering is midnight on 31 October 2026.
To enter click here and complete your details
Once again, thank you for all your support!
Here I am taking a moment out earlier this summer in the great English countryside. The perfect place to think about books, reading and the importance of literature. Thank you for supporting me in this endeavour.
The world needs books and without readers there can be no books!
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