About No Mark Upon Her
• Hardcover: 384 pages
• Publisher: William Morrow; First Edition edition (February 7, 2012)
New York Times bestselling author Deborah Crombie makes her mark with this absorbing, finely hued tale of suspense—a deeply atmospheric and twisting mystery full of deadly secrets, salacious lies, and unexpected betrayals involving the mysterious drowning of a Met detective—an accomplished rower—on the Thames.
When a K9 search-and-rescue team discovers a woman’s body tangled up with debris in the river, Scotland Yard superintendent Duncan Kincaid finds himself heading an investigation fraught with complications. The victim, Rebecca Meredith, was a talented but difficult woman with many admirers—and just as many enemies. An Olympic contender on the verge of a controversial comeback, she was also a high-ranking detective with the Met—a fact that raises a host of political and ethical issues in an already sensitive case.
To further complicate the situation, a separate investigation, led by Detective Inspector Gemma James, Kincaid’s wife, soon reveals a disturbing—and possibly related—series of crimes, widening the field of suspects. But when someone tries to kill the search-and-rescue team member who found Rebecca’s body, the case becomes even more complex and dangerous, involving powerful interests with tentacles that reach deep into the heart of the Met itself.
Surrounded by enemies with friendly faces, pressured to find answers quickly while protecting the Yard at all costs, his career and reputation on the line, Kincaid must race to catch the killer before more innocent lives are lost—including his own.
About Deborah Crombie
Deborah Crombie was born in Dallas and grew up in Richardson, Texas, a suburb north of Dallas, the second child of Charlie and Mary Darden. A rather solitary childhood (brother Steve is ten years older) was blessed by her maternal grandmother, Lillian Dozier, a retired teacher who taught her to read very early. After a rather checkered educational career, which included dropping out of high school at sixteen, she graduated from Austin College in Sherman, Texas, with a degree in biology.
She then worked in advertising and newspapers, and attended the Rice University Publishing Program. A post-university trip to England, however, cemented a life-long passion for Britain, and she immigrated to the UK, living first in Edinburgh, Scotland, and then in Chester, England.
After returning to Dallas and working for several years in her family business (manufacturer’s reps for theater concessions) while raising her daughter Kayti, she wrote her first Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid/Sergeant Gemma James novel. A Share in Death (Scribner 1993), was subsequently given Agatha and Macavity nominations for Best First Novel of 1993. All Shall Be Well, Leave the Grave Green, and Mourn Not Your Dead followed. The fifth novel, Dreaming of the Bones (Scribner 1997), a New York Times Notable Book for 1997, was short-listed by Mystery Writers of America for the 1997 Edgar Award for Best Novel, and was voted by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association as one of the hundred best mysteries of the century. Her following seven novels have been received with critical acclaim and are widely read internationally, particularly in Germany.
Crombie’s novels are published in North America, Japan, Germany, Italy, France, Norway, the Netherlands, Czechoslovakia, Spain, Romania, Greece, Turkey, the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth countries.
Crombie divides her time between England and her home in McKinney, Texas, where she lives in an early Arts and Crafts bungalow with her husband, two German shepherds (Hallie and Neela), and three cats. Necessary as Blood, her thirteenth Kincaid/James novel debuts October 6th, 2009. She is currently working on the as yet untitled Book #15.
Visit Deborah at her website, connect with her on Facebook, and follow her on Twitter.
Deborah’s Tour Stops
Tuesday, February 12th: Jen’s Book Thoughts
Wednesday, February 13th: No More Grumpy Bookseller
Thursday, February 14th: Book Hooked Blog
Monday, February 18th: Peppermint PhD
Tuesday, February 19th: A Musing Reviews
Wednesday, February 20th: Lavish Bookshelf
Thursday, February 21st: Paperback Princess
Tuesday, February 26th: Between the Covers
Monday, March 4th: Short and Sweet Reviews
Tuesday, March 5th: Mockingbird Hill Cottage
Wednesday, March 6th: 5 Minutes for Books
TBD: Seaside Book Corner