Envoy of the Black Pine

April 1808: A storm sweeps across the islands of the Baltic Sea, destroying the village of Lower Slaughter as it goes. Into this ruined land comes missing-persons finder Whilbert Stroop, on the trail of a lost miniature library and its protector. Almost crossing his path is Griselda Liit, a refugee from Lower Slaughter, carrying her father s secrets back to the island of her birth. Behind Griselda, in the shadows, a strange figure follows for a very different reason. Stroop s investigation will lead him from the flooded valley to sinister printworks, and to the strange island archipelago of Saaremaa in the Baltic Sea. Once there, he must unravel the increasingly tangled strands of past and present that surround the islands, and delve into a mysterious world of ancient Brotherhoods, insurrection, piracy, and death.

“'Just as bloody as The Da Vinci Code ... however, much better written'”

- Scotsman

Just as bloody as The Da Vinci Code ... however, much better written - Scotsman

Clio Gray is a master of atmosphere and sensuousness. She combines historical realism with the bizarre, whimsy with the macabre. Reading her is like being at a sumptuous feast in a palace, just before it is stormed - Alan Bissett

Clio Gray was born in Yorkshire, brought up in Devon and now lives in Scotland where she works in her local library. She has won prizes for many of her short stories, including the prestigious 2006 Scotsman & Orange Short Story Award for 'I Should Have Listened Harder', which can be downloaded from the Scotsman website.

April 1808: A storm sweeps across the islands of the Baltic Sea, destroying the village of Lower Slaughter as it goes . Into this ruined land comes missing-persons finder Whilbert Stroop, on the trail of a lost miniature library and its protector. Almost crossing his path is Griselda Liit, a refugee from Lower Slaughter, carrying her father s secrets back to the island of her birth. Behind Griselda, in the shadows, a strange figure follows for a very different reason. Stroop s investigation will lead him from the flooded valley to sinister printworks, and to the strange island archipelago of Saaremaa in the Baltic Sea. Once there, he must unravel the increasingly tangled strands of past and present that surround the islands, and delve into a mysterious world of ancient Brotherhoods, insurrection, piracy, and death.

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