In Conversation with Matt Cain & A J West

Matt Cain is the brains behind the new publishing house Pansy, as well as the author of bestsellers including The Madonna of Bolton, Becoming Ted and his newest novel, The Castle of Stories.

AJ West is the bestselling author of The Betrayal of Thomas True and How Queer Bookshops Saved the World, and he’s here to share his latest book, The Deadly Inheritance of Everest MacDonald

Join us at 7.00pm on Friday 2nd October to hear Matt and AJ talk about their books. There’ll be an opportunity to ask your questions and get your books signed as well!

You won’t get a physical ticket, we’ll add your name to our list and let you in on the night!

The Castle of Stories – Matt Cain

When 45-year-old Adam inherits a rundown farmhouse and castle in Tuscany from a great uncle he didn’t know existed, he quits his job in Manchester to renovate the property.

He’s thrilled his boyfriend of two years, newly divorced and out-of-the-closet Theo, is joining him. But at the last minute, Theo’s children have to come too. And they’re hostile to Adam, immune to the beauty of the rural location – and scared of the resident lizards.

As Adam explores the crumbling walls of the castle and sorts through his uncle’s possessions, he discovers some dark family secrets. But could they finally allow him to break free from the pain of the past, start building a new family and open up a life of queer joy?

The Deadly Inheritance of Everest MacDonald

As the Great War rages on the continent, Everest Macdonald is summoned to her father’s deathbed and entrusted with a final urgent request: she must uncover the truth behind the murder of her uncle, the celebrated Victorian actor William Terriss, a crime that has haunted her family for twenty years. In 1897, Terriss was stabbed to death outside London’s Adelphi Theatre, a killing that shocked Victorian society.

The murderer was swiftly arrested and confined to Broadmoor, the case declared closed. Yet years later, a sealed package of evidence passed to Everest by her dying father casts doubt on the official verdict and the haste with which it was reached. Drawn back to wartime London, with her husband and children left behind, Everest begins her investigation, following a trail that leads her into the world of late-Victorian theatre, where fame and fortune mask obsession, envy and cruelty.

With time running out and her father’s strength failing, Everest must uncover what really happened on the night Terriss died, and shed light on the unsettling legacy he left behind.