Nicola Upson blends biography and fiction, excitement and menace, and a touch of Alfred Hitchcock in Fear in the Sunlight , a mystery starring real-life writer Josephine Tey. Summer, 1936: Josephine Tey joins her friends in the resort village of Portmeirion to celebrate her fortieth birthday. Alfred Hitchcock and his wife, Alma Reville, are there to sign a deal to film Josephine’s novel, A Shilling for Candles , and Alfred Hitchcock has one or two tricks up his sleeve to keep the holiday party entertained—and expose their deepest fears. But things get out of hand when one of Hollywood’s leading actresses is brutally slashed to death in a cemetery near the village. The following day, fear and suspicion take over in a setting where nothing—and no one—is quite what it seems. Based in part on the life of Josephine Tey—one of the most popular, best-loved crime writers of the Golden Age, Nicola Upson’s Fear in the Sunlight features legendary film director Alfred Hitchcock as a prominent character—and features the  classic suspense and psychological tension that fans of Hitchcock films love. In Upson’s fourth Josephine Tey mystery, starring the real-life mystery author, the lead character is less sleuth than featured player. To celebrate her fortieth birthday in 1936, Tey, along with her good friend Scotland Yard Chief Inspector Archie Penrose, goes to the fairytale-like Welsh resort of Portmeirion at the same time Alfred Hitchcock and his film company are there. Here Tey meets Alma Reville, Hitch’s wife, and agrees to the filming of her novel A Shilling for Candles. But sunny Portmeirion turns dark, even gothic, as the tangle of blood and emotional relationships between characters leads to the murders of two women, one of whom is film star Bella Hutton. Her death is followed by the presumed suicide (interpreted as a confession) of actor Leyton Turnbull. These events are bracketed by scenes from 1945, as the retiring Penrose learns the truth about what happened in 1936 and acknowledges, once again, that Hitchcock is a master of suspense. A deft and agreeably darker addition to the series featuring Tey, who is an underappreciated author in the eyes of Upson. --Michele Leber “A well-crafted, suspenseful homage to the great Tey.” - Linda Fairstein “Lovely. . . . For fans of the British puzzle mystery, there’s a murder in a locked room, a secret passageway, a surfeit of clues, red herrings, and hidden identities.” - Boston Globe “Nicola Upson has . . . given us a highly original and elegantly written novel.” - P.D. James “No classic detective fiction aficionado will want to miss Upson’s compelling sequel to 2008’s An Expert in Murder. . . . The subtle prose succeeds both at evoking the quiet splendor of the Cornish landscape and in capturing the tragedy and torment that plague many of the characters. The psychological sophistication will resonate with Charles Todd fans.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review) “Excellent. . . . Upson upsets readers’ expectations with a surprise that keeps the suspense high to the satisfying conclusion. Puzzle fans as well as admirers of psychologically rich crime authors such as Ruth Rendell will find a lot to savor.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review) “A deft and agreeably darker addition to the series.” - Booklist “Upson surpasses herself with her mesmerizing and psychologically complex fourth whodunit featuring real-life mystery writer Josephine Tey. . . . The melancholy tone and pitch-perfect prose add depth to the sinister plot.” - Publishers Weekly (starred review) “A smart, playful pleasure in an increasingly adventurous series.” - Financial Times (London) Summer 1936. Mystery writer Josephine Tey joins her friends in the resort village of Portmeirion, Wales, to celebrate her fortieth birthday. Alfred Hitchcock and his wife, Alma Reville, are there to sign a deal to film Josephine's novel, A Shilling for Candles . But things get out of hand when one of Hollywood's leading actresses is brutally slashed to death in a cemetery near the village. The following day, as fear and suspicion take over in a setting where nothing—and no one—is quite what it seems, Chief Inspector Archie Penrose becomes increasingly unsatisfied with the way the investigation is ultimately resolved. Several years later, another horrif ic murder, again linked to a Hitchcock movie, drives Penrose back to the scene of the original crime to uncover the shocking truth. Nicola Upson is the author of five previous Josephine Tey mysteries, including An Expert in Murder , and two works of nonfiction. She has worked in theater and as a freelance journalist. A recipient of an Escalator Award from the Arts Council England, she splits her time between Cambridge  and  Cornwall.