Jolyon Wolfin

On Wednesday 24th September 1851, with her parents at market, Sarah Watts was alone at Battle Farm. Sometime during the afternoon, an intruder battered, raped and brutally murdered her.

As the case gripped the nation, a London Detective was sent to investigate. The result was three local men - all notorious felons with previous convictions - were arrested and charged; but with a huge reward on offer, were they really guilty or just hapless victims of others’ greed?

When they did stand trial, it set in motion a series of riveting events that culminated a decade later in a sensational confession; but was this confessor’s sanity to be questioned and were they even in the country at the time of the murder?

A trio of short stories from bestseller Mark Billingham.

Dancing Towards the Blade: They are waiting for the boy on his way home, the racist thugs. For Vincent, it is the latest in a string of violent events his family has faced since moving to England. But Vincent has in him the spirit of his father

Stroke of Luck: During a summer cricket match, Alan meets Rachel, and they start a relationship - but soon Alan discovers Rachel is married to an abusive husband. Alan vows to protect her - but her husband is not the only one who is a threat...

The Walls: When Chris spots a beautiful woman across a crowded restaurant on his business trip to Texas, he never imagines that she would be interested in him, let alone be waiting for him when he returns to his hotel later that evening…

CONTENT WARNING: contains scenes of violence and racial language