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139 ratings | 62 reviews | avg rating:4.76

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William Shaw

Goodreads Author

Born

in The United Kingdom

Website

http://williamshaw.com

Twitter

william1shaw

Genre

Crime, Mystery, Historical Fiction

Member Since

August 2008

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I'm a crime writer and write the Eden Driscoll series set in South Devon, the Alex Cupidi series set in Dungeness, Kent and the Breen & Tozer series set in London in 1968-9.

My most recent book is The Red Shore, the first I the Eden Driscoll series, set in Teignmouth, Devon.

My non-fiction books include Westsiders , an account of several young would-be rappers struggling to establish themselves against a backdrop of poverty and violence in South Central Los Angeles, Superhero For Hire , a compilation and of the Small Ads columns I wrote for the Observer Magazine, and Spying In Guru Land , in which I joined several British religious cults to write about them.

A Song From Dead Lips was the first in a trilogy of books set in London ...more

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William Shaw’s books

Average rating: 4.09 · 20,870 ratings · 2,525 reviews · 21 distinct works • Similar authors

	The Birdwatcher (DS Alexandra Cupidi #0/prequel) 4.03 avg rating — 4,693 ratings — published 2016 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Salt Lane (DS Alexandra Cupidi #1) really liked it 4.00 avg rating — 3,689 ratings — published 2018 — 13 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Deadland (DS Alexandra Cupidi #2) 4.25 avg rating — 2,042 ratings — published 2019 — 7 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Grave's End (DS Alexandra Cupidi #3) 4.27 avg rating — 1,652 ratings — published 2020 — 9 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Trawlerman (DS Alexandra Cupidi, #4) 4.26 avg rating — 1,517 ratings — published 2021 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Song From Dead Lips (Breen and Tozer, #1) 3.78 avg rating — 1,639 ratings — published 2013 — 6 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Red Shore 4.22 avg rating — 1,158 ratings — published 2025 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Wild Swimmers (DS Alexandra Cupidi, #5) 4.21 avg rating — 1,050 ratings — published 2024 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A House of Knives (Breen and Tozer, #2) 3.97 avg rating — 1,051 ratings — published 2014 — 20 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Book of Scars (Breen and Tozer, #3) 4.07 avg rating — 842 ratings — published 2015 — 14 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by William Shaw…

20 posts
William Shaw's Blog

The Red Shore, July 3rd

On July 3 2025 I'm launching a new series with a book called The Red Shore: The gripping new Devon-set crime thriller mystery featuring detective Eden Driscoll. It's set in Devon, on a coastline I know very well, and it's really about a man struggling to cope with his responsibilities after he finds himself carer for his nine-year-old nephew. Plus murder, obviously! Read more of this blog post »

12 likes · Like • 8 comments • flag

Published on March 20, 2025 01:47 • Tags: crime, crimefiction, devon

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Series by William Shaw

DS Alexandra Cupidi (6 books)
by

William Shaw (Goodreads Author)

4.12 avg rating — 14,772 ratings

Breen and Tozer (4 books)
by

William Shaw (Goodreads Author)

3.95 avg rating — 4,406 ratings

William is Currently Reading

William Shaw is currently reading

The Hotel Guest

by Rosemary Hennigan (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

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Oct 04, 2026 01:27AM

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William’s Recent Updates

William Shaw rated a book it was amazing The Stepmother by Sheila Bugler (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 04, 2026 01:30AM · 3 likes · like
William Shaw finished reading Quantum of Menace (Q Mysteries, #1) by Vaseem Khan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 04, 2026 01:30AM · 1 like · like
William Shaw finished reading The Stepmother by Sheila Bugler (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 04, 2026 01:30AM · like
William Shaw finished reading Witch Trial by Harriet Tyce (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 04, 2026 01:29AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Witch Trial by Harriet Tyce. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Witch Trial by Harriet Tyce <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
William Shaw finished reading Deadly Evidence (Terry O'Brien, #2) by Marie Cassidy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 04, 2026 01:29AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Deadly Evidence by Marie Cassidy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Deadly Evidence by Marie Cassidy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
William Shaw started reading The Hotel Guest by Rosemary Hennigan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Oct 04, 2026 01:27AM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of The Hotel Guest by Rosemary Hennigan. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — The Hotel Guest by Rosemary Hennigan <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
William Shaw started reading The Stepmother by Sheila Bugler (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 27, 2026 01:03AM · like
William Shaw is currently reading Quantum of Menace (Q Mysteries, #1) by Vaseem Khan (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 27, 2026 01:01AM · like
William Shaw started reading Deadly Evidence (Terry O'Brien, #2) by Marie Cassidy	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 12, 2026 01:42PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of Deadly Evidence by Marie Cassidy. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — Deadly Evidence by Marie Cassidy <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">
William Shaw has read All of Them Lied: The page-turning new thriller from the bestselling author of The Night I Killed Him by Gill Perdue	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
Sep 12, 2026 01:39PM · like · preview book See a Problem? We’d love your help. Let us know what’s wrong with this preview of All of Them Lied by Gill Perdue. Problem: Details (if other): Thanks for telling us about the problem. Not the book you’re looking for? Preview — All of Them Lied by Gill Perdue <iframe sandbox id="wrongBookKindlePreviewScreen">

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Quotes by William Shaw (?)

“They are usually asking quite ordinary questions, like why am I here, why are some people rich and others poor, what happens when I die, why doesn’t anybody like me, and so on. The real question is, how come they’re coming up with such weird answers?”
― William Shaw, Spying in Guru Land: A Journey into the Strange World of Religious Cults

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“Later the FBI would talk of ‘bunkers’ built under the compound.”
― William Shaw, Spying in Guru Land: A Journey into the Strange World of Religious Cults

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“In the Hare Krishna movement, everything Indian acquires a holiness. Many disciples not only adopt the clothes, but adopt a sort of odd body language too. Spurning the plastic spoons offered, they scoop up their prasadam with their fingers, and thank the servers with palms pressed together. Some even acquire twitchy pseudo-Indian neck movements.”
― William Shaw, Spying in Guru Land: A Journey into the Strange World of Religious Cults

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Polls

Voting for July 2019 - published in 2016

Magpie Murders by Anthony Horowitz

9 votes, 30.0%

The Girl in the Ice by Robert Bryndza

5 votes, 16.7%

Blood on the Tracks by Barbara Nickless

3 votes, 10.0%

A Man With One of Those Faces by Caimh McDonnell

3 votes, 10.0%

Tell the Truth, Shame the Devil by Melina Marchetta

3 votes, 10.0%

The Rules of Backyard Cricket by Jock Serong

2 votes, 6.7%

Behind Closed Doors by B.A. Paris

2 votes, 6.7%

The Bookseller's Tale by Ann Swinfen

1 vote, 3.3%

The Birdwatcher by William Shaw

1 vote, 3.3%

A Proposal to Die For by Vivian Conroy

1 vote, 3.3%

Crime on the Fens by Joy Ellis

0 votes, 0.0%

30 total votes

2 comments

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Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The History Book ...: JILL'S 50 BOOKS READ IN 2016	210	195	Dec 18, 2016 09:58AM
All About Books: 2016 Bingo Challenge	309	419	Jan 13, 2017 12:15PM
The Seasonal Read...: Completed Tasks: PLEASE DO NOT DELETE ANY POST IN THIS THREAD	2991	415	Aug 31, 2018 09:00PM
The Bookworm Chal...: Mystery, Thriller, Suspense	25	42	Apr 12, 2019 11:44AM

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William’s Quotes

“Adams grew up in the sixties, and the Beatles “planted a seed in my head that made it explode. Every nine months there’d be a new album which would be an earth-shattering development from where they were before. We were so obsessed by them that when ‘Penny Lane’ came out and we hadn’t heard it on the radio, we beat up this boy who had heard it until he hummed the tune to us. People now ask if Oasis are as good as the Beatles. I don’t think they are as good as the Rutles.”
― Douglas Adams, The Salmon of Doubt

7 likes

“It was one of those times when the unsatisfactory complexity of the world fades far enough into the distance for the moment to become a thing in itself.”
― William Shaw

1 likes

William’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-3) post a comment »

date

newest »

message 3: by Susan

Jun 03, 2015 10:52PM

Good luck with the book release today!

reply | flag

message 2: by William

Apr 28, 2015 04:23AM

Has it? News to me! Can I get you a copy then, Susan?

reply | flag

message 1: by Susan

Apr 28, 2015 02:55AM

I see a new book has appeared on NetGalley - very exciting!

reply | flag

William’s Year In Books

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20 posts
William Shaw's Blog

The Red Shore, July 3rd

Series by William Shaw

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William Shaw’s Followers (572)

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See a Problem?

Preview — Witch Trial by Harriet Tyce

See a Problem?

Preview — Deadly Evidence by Marie Cassidy

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Preview — The Hotel Guest by Rosemary Hennigan

See a Problem?

Preview — Deadly Evidence by Marie Cassidy

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Preview — All of Them Lied by Gill Perdue

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