The Riddles of Epsilon - Tapa dura

The doorstep was black, shiny as glass. Through the layer of dead leaves, I found some symbols, and in English: WHERE –SILON DWELLS.

Spooky, sinister, enthralling, compelling – this astonishing debut novel from Christine Morton-Shaw will keep readers guessing until the final page.

Jess White, age 14, has been uprooted from her home and taken to live on a remote yet populated island, at the whim of her parents – Mum is an artist; Dad a photographer. While she is bemoaning her new (lack of) life to her best friend via a computer chatroom, they are interrupted by a third party – although only Jess is aware of the presence that calls itself ‘V’.

This is the start of a most extraordinary and creepy mystery as Jess finds herself caught up in a cycle of deadly occurences that have apparently happened before and seem intent on being re-enacted through her and her family. Unable to ignore or stop the process of events, Jess (and the reader) unravel the clues, guided only by the enigmatic Epsilon – who may or may not be real/mortal/"Good".

Christine Morton-Shaw lives in Sheffield with her husband and six children. She loves fishing, reading and diaries. Her main ambition is to catch a 20lb-plus carp. If she ever gets rich, she will buy a very big shoe and move her large family into it, as she often feels like the old woman in the nursery rhyme with so many children, she doesn't know what to do. Pub Quizzes help keep her sane, although she seldom wins any of them.

Christine has written many picture books for children and THE RIDDLES OF EPSILON is her first novel.