{"title":"Mark de Castrique","description":"\u003cp\u003eMark de Castrique crafts gripping crime and thriller novels that plunge readers into tense, shadowy worlds. With titles like \u003cem\u003eFatal Scores\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eMurder in Rat Alley\u003c\/em\u003e, his stories weave intricate mysteries filled with suspense and unexpected twists.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eExpect dark atmospheres and complex characters whose secret lives unfold amid danger and intrigue. De Castrique’s work is perfect for those who appreciate a clever, fast-paced narrative that keeps the stakes high until the final page.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"fatal-scores-by-mark-de-castrique-9781464213151","title":"Fatal Scores","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhen legacies aren't as steadfast as they seem to be, two P.I.'s will be pulled into a world of deceit to stop a town from crumbling.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA river gives up its dead, but not its secrets...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSam Blackman and Nakayla Robertson, private investigators in Asheville, North Carolina, are hired when a local environmentalist dies while monitoring water quality in the nearby Pigeon River. With no soil or water samples found near the body, his widow doesn't believe his death was an accident.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn fact, witnesses reported a public altercation between the environmentalist and local mill heir Luke Kirkpatrick just two days prior. Could Luke or his father, Ted, have committed murder to secure their proposed business expansion? Meanwhile, preparations for a local festival suffer violent setbacks, and the investigators worry the events are related. Can Sam and Nakayla identify the killer and serve justice before Asheville is threatened once again?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe eighth book featuring Private Investigators Blackman and Robertson, \u003cem\u003eFatal Scores\u003c\/em\u003e, is a timely mystery perfect for fans of private eyes and anyone with a taste for regional history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46674326388972,"sku":"9781464213151","price":35.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/8526403482709.jpg?v=1752907957"},{"product_id":"murder-in-rat-alley-by-mark-de-castrique-9781492699385","title":"Murder in Rat Alley","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA murder from the past comes creeping into the present, as two private eyes open up a cold case to find a killer, or risk becoming the next targets.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eTucked away in the mountains of North Carolina lies a remnant of one of the greatest scientific achievements of the twentieth century—putting a man on the moon. This isolated site exists today as the Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBut past and present collide when skeletal remains are unearthed on the complex, and DNA testing confirms the identity of a scientist who disappeared during the Apollo 15 mission. The niece of the murdered man implores Asheville detectives Sam Blackman and Nakayla Robertson to take the case.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs Sam and Nakayla dig into the events of the past, they discover the trail leads to a murder in Asheville's Rat Alley, proving that a killer from the past still stalks the present. And Sam and Nakayla now top the assassin's list.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eMurder in Rat Alley\u003c\/em\u003e by Mark de Castrique is a gripping tale of suspense, intertwining history with present-day danger.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46674614092012,"sku":"9781492699385","price":55.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/12530843482719.jpg?v=1752916244"},{"product_id":"murder-in-rat-alley-by-mark-de-castrique-9781492699392","title":"Murder in Rat Alley","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA murder from the past comes creeping into the present, as two private eyes open up a cold case to find a killer, or risk becoming the next targets.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn this unusual spin on the classic spy novel, murder strikes from our wartime pasts...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIraq War veteran Sam Blackman, with his prosthetic leg, and his no-nonsense private eye partner Nakayla Robertson love their investigations, which always carry a thread from the past—and they love each other. An interracial couple in the New South, the Asheville, NC, pair has surrounded themselves with a terrific support team, including an unorthodox lawyer and a veteran cop. They deploy humour both to bind them together and to deflect insults. Plus, it helps deal with the tragedies their work uncovers.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSuch a tragedy interrupts a meeting between the PIs and the neighbouring law office when a body is unearthed from the grounds of the nearby Pisgah Astronomical Research Institute. During the Cold War, it monitored developing space programs. Today it plays a vital role in gathering weather and climate data. The body has been in the ground for a long time. Why would its discovery spark off a new murder in Asheville's mountain music scene, with the victim found amid the garbage of dark, dank Rat Alley?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eShe was the fiancée of the man murdered long ago. But surely this case is more than a domestic drama playing out over time...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe Blackman Agency Investigations excel at merging past and present, bringing little-known history to light, and are perfect for fans of James Lee Burke, Stephen Mack Jones, Margaret Maron, and Robert B. Parker.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46674615337196,"sku":"9781492699392","price":35.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/12530913482719.jpg?v=1752916363"},{"product_id":"secret-lives-by-mark-de-castrique-9781728258300","title":"Secret Lives","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSeventy-five-year-old Ethel Crestwater isn't a threat to anyone. Until a murderer targets her government agent boarding house.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eEverybody has something to hide\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAt 75-years-old, Ethel Fiona Crestwater is used to being underestimated. She looks like someone's grandma, though she's never married or had children; petite and a bit frail, she's not a threat to anyone. Or is she...? Ethel runs a boarding house for government agents, and when someone murders one of her boarders, she springs into action—much to the surprise of her distant cousin Jesse, who has recently come to stay with her while he attends university.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs he watches her photograph the crime scene, conceal evidence, and speed-dial the Secret Service Director, Jesse realizes that there's much more to Ethel than appearances suggest.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBut when Jesse is assaulted and the gym bag full of cash Ethel had hidden is stolen from the basement, the pair decides it's time to launch their own unofficial investigation. With no one to trust but each other, these double-first-cousins-twice-removed form an unlikely bond, and learn that the only thing truly worth risking your life for is family.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47603138035948,"sku":"9781728258300","price":37.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781728258300-secret-lives.jpg?v=1778056038"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookhero.pro\/collections\/mark-de-castrique.oembed","provider":"Book Hero","version":"1.0","type":"link"}