A gripping, sweeping new epic from the critically-acclaimed #1 international bestselling author of We Begin At The End, Chris Whitaker. A missing persons mystery. A serial killer thriller. A love story. One of the must-read novels of the year.

Right. Wrong. Life is lived somewhere in between.

Duchess Day Radley is a thirteen-year-old self-proclaimed outlaw. Rules are for other people. She is the fierce protector of her five-year-old brother, Robin, and the parent to her mother, Star, a single mom incapable of taking care of herself, let alone her two kids.

Walk has never left the coastal California town where he and Star grew up. He may have become the chief of police, but he’s still trying to heal the old wound of having given the testimony that sent his best friend, Vincent King, to prison decades before. And he's in overdrive protecting Duchess and her brother.

Now, thirty years later, Vincent is being released. And Duchess and Walk must face the trouble that comes with his return. We Begin at the End is an extraordinary novel about two kinds of families―the ones we are born into and the ones we create.

*THE THEAKSTON'S OLD PECULIER CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR 2021* *WINNER OF THE CWA GOLD DAGGER FOR BEST CRIME NOVEL OF THE YEAR* *WINNER OF THE NED KELLY INTERNATIONAL AWARD* A GUARDIAN BEST THRILLER OF THE YEAR An EXPRESS BEST THRILLER OF THE YEAR An i BEST THRILLER OF THE YEAR A MIRROR BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR A WATERSTONES THRILLER OF THE MONTH READ THE BOOK EVERYONE IS CALLING A MASTERPIECE! 'A beautifully written mystery, packed with unforgettable characters' JANE HARPER 'Contender for thriller of the year' SUNDAY EXPRESS 'An accomplished and moving story of crime, punishment, love and redemption' GUARDIAN For fans of Jane Harper's The Dry comes a powerful novel about the lengths we will go to keep our family safe. This is a story about good and evil and how life is lived somewhere in between. Thirty years ago, Vincent King became a killer. Now, he's been released from prison and is back in his hometown of Cape Haven, California. Not everyone is pleased to see him. Like Star Radley, his ex-girlfriend, and sister of the girl he killed. Duchess Radley, Star's thirteen-year-old daughter, is part-carer, part-protector to her younger brother, Robin - and to her deeply troubled mother. But in trying to protect Star, Duchess inadvertently sets off a chain of events that will have tragic consequences not only for her family, but also the whole town. Murder, revenge, retribution. How far can we run from the past, when the past seems doomed to repeat itself? WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING ABOUT WE BEGIN AT THE END: 'Magnificent . . . an instant classic, a West Coast Where the Crawdads Sing . . . a special, vital novel. I'm grateful to have read it' A J FINN 'Surely destined to conquer the world' RUTH JONES 'A magnificent crime novel. It deserves to win a hatful of awards. A BIG hat. Consider me a major fan' MARK BILLINGHAM 'So beautifully written' LYNDA LA PLANTE 'Incredible writing, characters so brilliantly drawn they jump off the page. Outstanding' BA PARIS 'I LOVED this book . . . This is a book to be read and re-read and an author to be celebrated' LOUISE PENNY 'A stunning and heartbreaking book - will keep you gripped until the last moving page' CLAIRE MCGOWAN 'An exceptionally beautiful and accomplished crime novel' ALI LAND 'One of the best books I've ever read' FIONA CUMMINS 'An absolute masterclass in crime writing and story-telling' JO SPAIN 'One of the year's best crime reads' VASEEM KHAN 'One of my favourite books of all time' M. W. CRAVEN, winner of the CWA's Gold Dagger Award 'Breathtakingly beautiful. Another stunning story from the genius of Chris Whitaker' COMPULSIVE READERS 'A spellbinding masterclass in storytelling . . . one of the best books I have ever had the joy to read' ALEX J BOOKS BLOG 'A masterpiece . . . a contender for my top book of 2020' FOR WINTER NIGHTS BLOG 'I was totally seduced by this absolute masterpiece . . . took my breath away' SUIDI'S BOOK REVIEWS 'This book is bound to become a classic . . . Reader, Chris Whitaker's book made me cry . . . such is the power of this writing' LIVE AND DEADLY BLOG 'Utterly brilliant . . . This isn't just crime fiction, this is a masterclass' MELANIE READS BLOG 'A masterpiece of storytelling with clever twists and an ending to knock you sideways' CANDIS MAGAZINE 'This heart-rending story . . . is among the most powerful and moving I have read in years' DAILY MAIL 'Cements Whitaker's status as one of the most talented authors writing today' HEAT MAGAZINE 'Masterly novel' SUNDAY EXPRESS 'A dark yet painfully human tale that is impossible to forget' CRIME MONTHLY 'Beautifully written and deeply moving' SUNDAY TIMES CRIME CLUB 'A gorgeous, crystalline novel' JEANINE CUMMINS, author of AMERICAN DIRT 'Heartbreaking and profound, this is my thriller of the year' MIRROR

What would you do if you knew the world was going to be destroyed by a huge asteroid in one month? The mesmerising YA debut from the winner of the CWA Gold Dagger Award for Best Crime Novel 2021 and the New York Times Bestselling author of We Begin at the End. They knew the end was coming. They saw it ten years back, when it was far enough away in space and time and meaning. The changes were gradual, and then sudden. For Mae and her friends, it means navigating a life where action and consequence are no longer related. Where the popular are both trophies and targets. And where petty grudges turn deadlier with each passing day. So, did Abi Manton jump off the cliff or was she pushed? Her death is just the beginning of the end. With teachers losing control of their students and themselves, and the end rushing toward all of them, it leaves everyone facing the answer to one, simple question... What would you do if you could get away with anything?

***FROM THE AUTHOR OF WE BEGIN AT THE END, 2020's MOST CAPTIVATING AND UNFORGETTABLE READ, DESCRIBED BY RUTH JONES AS 'SURELY DESTINED TO CONQUER THE WORLD'*** 'Noir has an anarchic new voice' SARAH HILARY 'A brilliant, beautiful, sad, funny book . . . also made me cry more than any other book I've read this year' EMMA FLINT ISN'T IT ABOUT TIME THAT YOU MADE A DATE TO VISIT TALL OAKS? Tall Oaks is an idyllic small town, until the disappearance of a young child throws the tight-knit community into crisis. Jess Monroe, the boy's distraught mother, is simultaneously leading the search and battling her own grief and self-destructive behaviour. Her neighbours watch on, their sympathy masking a string of dark secrets. This is a small town where nothing is as it seems, and everyone has something to hide. And as the investigation draws towards a climax, prepare for a devastating final twist . . . Dark, full of suspense and packed with twists, this brilliant new thriller is like nothing you've read before. SEE WHAT THE WORLD IS ALREADY SAYING ABOUT THIS BRILLIANT DEBUT NOVEL 'An absolute delight . . . Highly original' LAURA WILSON, GUARDIAN 'Completely blew me away' LISA HALL 'One of the best books I've read this year' JO SPAIN 'Chris Whitaker builds an entire town in the reader's head and masterfully inhabits it with comic, poignant, gripping life. Tall Oaks becomes a part of you' DAVID WHITEHOUSE 'It's rare that a novel can be both brilliantly comic and tragic, and balance the two so effortlessly' SUN 'A gripping debut' MAIL ON SUNDAY

What would you do if you knew the world was going to be destroyed by a huge asteroid in one month? The mesmerising YA debut from the winner of the CWA Gold Dagger Award for Best Crime Novel 2021 and the New York Times bestselling author of We Begin at the End. They knew the end was coming. They saw it ten years back, when it was far enough away in space and time and meaning. The changes were gradual, and then sudden. For Mae and her friends, it means navigating a life where action and consequence are no longer related. Where the popular are both trophies and targets. And where petty grudges turn deadlier with each passing day. So, did Abi Manton jump off the cliff or was she pushed? Her death is just the beginning of the end. With teachers losing control of their students and themselves, and the end rushing toward all of them, it leaves everyone facing the answer to one, simple question... What would you do if you could get away with anything?

What would you do if you knew the world was going to be destroyed by a huge asteroid in one month? The mesmerising YA debut from the winner of the CWA Gold Dagger Award for Best Crime Novel 2021 and the New York Times Bestselling author of We Begin at the End. They knew the end was coming. They saw it ten years back, when it was far enough away in space and time and meaning. The changes were gradual, and then sudden. For Mae and her friends, it means navigating a life where action and consequence are no longer related. Where the popular are both trophies and targets. And where petty grudges turn deadlier with each passing day. So, did Abi Manton jump off the cliff or was she pushed? Her death is just the beginning of the end. With teachers losing control of their students and themselves, and the end rushing toward all of them, it leaves everyone facing the answer to one, simple question... What would you do if you could get away with anything?