Underneath the Killing Tree

by Marijka Bright

The year is 1920 and Mary Loxley's sister has been hanged from a tree in the gardens of Loxley Hall. The authorities have ruled it a suicide, but Mary knows her sister was murdered, and she intends to hunt down the culprit. One hundred years later, John Quinn is discovered dead on the floor of his factory. Detective Inspector Andy Bliss, from New Scotland Yard CID, leads the murder investigation and as he delves deeper into the life of the victim, he discovers that there is much more to the Quinn family than meets the eye. Inspector Bliss follows the evidence to the outskirts of Sheffield, where Loxley Hall has stood towering for generations, and what he and his team uncover underneath the 'Killing Tree', will haunt them forever and horrify the entire nation. 'Underneath the Killing Tree' is the bone-chilling debut novel from exciting new author Marijka Bright. This wonderfully intriguing tale spirals between 1920 and the present day. Detective Inspector Andy Bliss and his team must unravel a mystery which has its roots embedded firmly in the past, while Mary Loxley tries frantically to piece together why her sister, Emlyn Quinn, was murdered and she must uncover the conspiracy whose web she had become inextricably entangled in.
The book is also available in Amazon.com - as a paperback and ebook.

298 pages, Paperback

Published May 28, 2017

About the author

Marijka Bright is originally from Australia; however, she considers herself a citizen of the world. She loves to travel and met her partner, who is originally from Berlin, during her many months spent travelling through India. She has degrees in Biomedical science, Psychology and Accounting and relinquished a very secure job at a large firm, to pursue her dream of becoming an author. ‘Underneath the Killing Tree’ is the first of two novels to be released this year, with her second novel – ‘The Never After’ in the final stages of editing. Marijka had her short story, ‘The Glooms’ published in ‘The Wild Word’ magazine at the beginning of 2017, and she has a collection of short stories which will be released at the end of 2018.

Reviews

[Carolyn Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was perfectly paced for me. The prose was strong and it was filled to the brim with suspense. The story kept pulling me along and I enjoyed the depth of the characters and the twisting timelines. It kept me guessing right up until the very end. A great debut novel and I am looking forward to reading the next one.

[Mark Briggs · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. I wasn't sure - given the unusual front cover that it would be my cup of tea - however I gave it a chance and I am certainly glad that I did. It is not just a mystery novel, it is a wonderfully constructed story with an intelligent narrative and an abundance of interesting and yet inherently flawed characters.
The way that the story flowed between the two timelines worked perfectly and I was drawn into wanting to know more about the conspiracy which haunted generations.
The multiple points of view, provided a deeper insight into each of the characters motivations and I found that with each scene, the suspense grew accordingly. For anyone who is a fan of Elizabeth George, I would certainly recommend this book. The author uses a similar style and I feel like this new team of detectives, led by Inspector Andy Bliss, will be around for many more books to come. I am looking forward to reading about their future cases and fortunes.

[Anja Siebert · Rating 5 out of 5]

Two stories, one place. 100 years may be a long time for a single person, but what if murders are linked through space and generations?
Inspector Bliss’ search for an answer to an unsolved crime in the present leads him not only to a strange place called Loxley Hall, but also right in the time of the Great War. At the end a shocking truth will connect past and present when the Killing Tree reveals it’s secret. I can’t say more without spoiling, but this book will be a great surprise for everyone who likes suspense and an intelligent storyline. Great writing. I really enjoyed it.

[Jennifer Tooker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Full disclosure – I was provided a copy of this short story by the author but have voluntarily chosen to write a review. All opinions are my own.

Family Secrets

On a sunny morning in 1920, Emlyn Quinn is found hanging from the linden tree on the lushly landscaped estate of Loxley Hall. Ruled as a suicide, her passing is dismissed by the local authorities and may have gone unnoticed had it not been for Mary. Mary Loxley, Emlyn’s kid sister has returned to Loxley Hall from Paris after receiving a cryptic message for Emlyn just days earlier. Convinced that Emlyn’s death was not a suicide but a murder, Mary is determined to uncover the truth.

In present day, Detective Inspector Andy Bliss is called to a gruesome crime scene in the industrial district. With the victim being the proverbial “one that got away” in the Detective’s history, he should be happy, but there is no closure. With John Quinn’s murder, the secrets of fifteen missing girls also dies with him. After Andy is abruptly pulled from the case, he takes an enforced vacation to a quiet country retreat outside of Sheffield to relax and recharge. When he comes face to face with the widow of his nemesis at the retreat followed a grisly discovery on the grounds of the property, Andy realizes that his enforced retreat may have led him to crack the case wide open.

Underneath the Killing Tree is the debut novel by Marijka Bright but don’t let that little detail put you off. The story is a very well-crafted tale of family secrets spanning generations and motivations. I love how Bright used the different storylines in each time line to not only further the current murder case, but also to provide the backstory for the overall picture. Each character in the story had a part to play and as the narrative unfolded, the intricacies of each storyline started to come together to result in an ending that, while not entirely unexpected, was unusual. While this book is a pretty typical police procedural, the uniqueness for me was how two seemingly unrelated storylines were connected. I have seen only a few books where the technique of taking two different time periods and characters to weave separate, yet parallel stories was used. Of those few books, only a handful managed to do it well. I can say without a doubt that Underneath the Killing Tree is worthy of being in the column of having accomplished this task. If you like a good period mystery, are a fan of police procedurals or both, I recommend giving this book a read. It’s a great first effort and I am looking forward to reading more Marijka Bright in the future.

[Tena · Rating 4 out of 5]

I won this in a GOODREADS giveaway.

[Susan]

I received a copy of this as a first reads! Thank you for that. I enjoy books that mix past and present. I did feel though that as a reader I wasn't being transported back to the 1920's. It seemed a bit sparse on description! Other than that I was interested in finding out what secrets lurked in Loxley Hall.I will look forward to this author's second novel.