Twenty

A nail-biting new crime novel from the author of the award winning thrillerThe Echo Man! ‘Some authors spook you. Some authors unnerve me. Very few authors frighten you — but very few authors are Sam Holland. The Twenty is smart and brooding, icepick-sharp and shadow-dark; best of all, though, it’s scary as hell. Think you’re tough? Pick up this novel and prove it’AJ Finn, author of The Woman in the Window ‘Fierce, frightening, twisted and addictive. The Twenty grips you by the throat and keeps on squeezing until the very end.’Chris Whitaker, author of We Begin at the End ‘So dark you almost have to look away yet so compelling you can't stop turning the next page’Tim Glister, author of Red Corona ‘Riveting reading … Packed with suspense, it is a story that horrifies and hypnotises at the same time’Daily Mail The countdown has begun. Who will die next? A shocking crime scene…DCI Adam Bishop has never seen anything like it. Five murder victims – all with numbers written above their bodies. And the spray-painted daubs reveal a horrific truth: the killer is counting down… A case that twists and turns…When Dr Romilly Cole learns of the murders, they trigger memories of a traumatic past she has tried hard to forget. But getting involved with the case is a bad idea. She and Bishop have history – and working together could never end well. A race against time to stop a killer…Adam and Romilly soon realise the truth lies in a decades-old case, and only Romilly holds the key. But they must act quickly, because with every passing day, there are more victims. And as the numbers edge toward zero, the murders get closer to home… * THE ECHO MAN won the Bronze Bat for Best Debut Thriller at the Netherlands Thriller Festival on 30 October 2022.

‘You’re in the hands of an author who’s in total control, who knows what she’s doing and exactly how far to take it’Stig Abell ‘A very bright new star in the dark crime writing firmament’Simon Toyne ‘Dark, twisted, and keeps you up all night’Jack Jordan ‘An outstanding thriller, relentless and muscular…A stone cold winner’Kate Simants ‘A chilling exploration of all the nooks and crannies of the disturbed human mind’Amanda Cassidy ‘Relentlessly shocking, visceral and brilliant’Cameron Ward ‘Fast and furious, Sam Holland doesn’t take her foot off the pedal for a second’Victoria Selman ‘Like its killer, The Twenty stalks readers as prey’Dominic Nolan ‘Superbly written, beautifully plotted’LV Matthews ‘A terrifying triumph’Heather Critchlow ‘Characters that leap off the page and more than enough murders to satisfy the most bloodthirsty – drawn with a careful hand’Rachael Blok ‘Sharp as a razor and jam packed with heart-in-mouth moments that’ll leave you reeling’Robert Scragg ‘A sharp, visceral, fast paced novel…not one for the faint hearted!’Niki Mackay ‘Holland delivers yet another high-energy serial killer novel, this time with a gruesome ticking clock’Russ Thomas ‘A wonderfully dark and gruesome serial killer story’Tariq Ashkanani ‘An absolute belter of a book that freaked me out in the best possible way…Compulsive, complex and utterly brilliant!’Marion Todd ‘Can you read a book while peeking through your fingers? When it’s as clever and addictive as this, you can’Jo Furniss ‘A twisted delight of a serial killer thriller. Prepare to be traumatised in the best possible way’Cressida McLaughlin ‘The characters are so real and well drawn you feel their pain and urgency as if it were your own’Steph Sowden ‘Winds its way to a thrilling completion with a final twist that is beautifully delivered’James Delargy ‘So dark, so compelling, so utterly enthralling…5*’Sarah Bonner

Having always been fascinated with the dark and macabre, Sam Holland studied psychology at university then spent the next few years working in HR, before quitting for a full-time career in writing. A self-confessed serial killer nerd, her debut novel, The Echo Man, shocked and enthralled readers and reviewers alike with its sinister depiction of a serial killer copying notorious real-life murderers of the past.Sam can be found on Twitter and Instagram at @samhollandbooks.