In Montana, a man attends the funeral of his parents, ostensibly killed in a car crash. In Los Angeles, a fifteen-year-old girl is abducted by a man assumed dead. These events are linked by the fact that in both there is something missing. As there is in so much of the world, for so much of the time. What's missing is a secret, something which strikes at the heart of what it is to be human. What it is that makes us this way. "Sarah tries to struggle, but the man holds her. The scream never makes it out of her throat… Sarah is the fifth girl to be abducted by this maniac. Her long hair will be hacked off and she will be tortured. She has about a week to live… Former LA homicide detective John Zandt has an inside track on the perpetrator — his own daughter was one of his victims. But the key to Sarah's whereabouts lies with Ward Hopkins, a man with a past so secret not even he knows about it. As he investigates his past. Ward finds himself drawn into the sinister world of the Straw Men — and into the desperate race to find Sarah, before her time runs out…" "Brilliantly written and scary as hell." Stephen King. Michael Marshall is a novelist and screenwriter. He has already established a successful writing career under the name Michael Marshall Smith. His groundbreaking first novel, Only Forward, won the Philip K. Dick and August Derleth awards; its critically-acclaimed successors. Spares and One of Us, have both been optioned for film. He lives in North London.

“Medieval mystery fans have cause for rejoicing with the return of Brother Athelstan” Booklist on Bloodstone January, 1381. Guests of the Regent, John of Gaunt, Brother Athelstan and Sir John Cranston have been attending a mystery play performed by the Straw Men, Gaunt’s personal acting troupe, when the evening’s entertainment is rudely interrupted by the sudden, violent deaths of two of Gaunt’s VIP guests, their severed heads left on stage. The Regent orders Athelstan to find out who committed such a heinous act, leading Athelstan to tackle his most baffling case yet.ReviewClose attention will reward readers with well-researched historical information, from the minutiae of everyday living to the public events in the lives of the rich and powerful. Mystery buffs, however, are likely to reach the answer before Athelstan.Kirkus Reviews on The Straw Men“Will appeal to John Dickson Carr fans. With dozens of books to his credit, Doherty continues to impress.”Publishers Weekly on The Straw MenAbout the AuthorPaul Doherty studied History at Liverpool and Oxford Universities, and is now headmaster of a school in Essex. He is the author of more than eighty historical mysteries including the Hugh Corbett, Mathilde of Westminster and Canterbury Tales medieval mystery series.

Review'Just when you think there's nothing new under the sun in the world of the suspense novel, along comes one hell of a nasty spider call The Straw Men. It's brilliantly written and scary as hell. Be the first on your block to stay up all night with this one; it's a masterpiece, reminding us that even paranoids really do have enemies.' STEPHEN KING 'A staggering, suspenseful journey through the darkness of American crime ! succeeds in revitalising the serial killer novel with assured gusto! A new beginning for a major British writer, whose crime debut instantly moves him into the Thomas Harris division' Guardian 'Brilliantly plotted, stunningly written ! I read this in one go ! if this isn't a hit, I am a monkey's uncle. And I don't think I am'. Independent on Sunday 'Marshall's descriptions of people and places are memorable and evocative and he has produced and absorbing mystery with a chilling denouement' Sunday Telegraph 'The Straw Men is a genuinely original thriller that combines the imagination and darkness of his previous work with bolts of nerve-screaming tension ! Think "The X-files" meets "Hannibal".' Time Out 'The crucial thing about Michael Marshall Smith is that he is enormously readable! once you have started reading one of his books, you won't want to stop until you have finished it! He's in a class of his own! A master of ad absurdum gags [and] enough sensationally good throwaway wisecracks to fill a car park full of skips! He has the talent to become the inspiration to a generation of writers' THE INDEPENDENT 'Humour, a cracking pace and fluid prose! Sizzling! Michael Marshall Smith has a Crichton-like knack of attracting film studios' THE TIMES 'Outstanding, highly original! fiercely funny, and hugely entertaining' THE LITERARY REVIEW 'As always with the fiercely inventive Smith, the rug of reality is exhilaratingly pulled from under the reader's feet' NEW SCIENTIST 'No one writes better than Smith about love: how it's won, how it's lost. No one writes better about being wasted -- by drugs, by drink, by time. Nigh-on unique' i-D 'A storytelling skill that can only be described as pure genius' VENUE Product DescriptionMichael Marshall's unique voice adds a chilling intensity to the serial-killer plot, combining dazzling narrative, a white-hot pace and a deeply disturbing backdrop of conspiracy. Sarah tries to struggle, but the man holds her. The scream never makes it out of her throat. 'Nobody watching,' the man says with hateful calm. 'I made it this way. I can walk where nobody sees.' The Straw Men. They kill people. Any people. And soon they'll get around to you. Sarah Becker is the fifth girl to be abducted by this maniac. Judging from the state of the bodies that have been found, her long hair will be hacked off and she will be tortured. She has about a week to live. Former LA homicide detective John Zandt has an inside track on the perpetrator -- his own daughter was one of his victims two years ago. But the key to Sarah's whereabouts lies with Ward Hopkins, a man with a past so secret not even he knows about it. His parents have just died in a car accident, but they leave Ward a very strange message that leads him to question everything he once believed to be true. As he begins to investigate his own past Ward finds himself drawn into the shadowy, sinister world of the Straw Men -- and into the desperate race to find Sarah, before her time runs out.