Death and the Conjuror

by Tom Mead · 2022

In 1936 London, famed psychiatrist Anselm Rees is found dead in a locked study, the murder weapon vanished and no one saw a killer enter or leave. Stumped, Inspector Flint turns to Joseph Spector, a retired stage magician whose career in illusion makes him uniquely suited to untangle impossible crimes. As Spector and the inspector sift through a colorful cast of patients, household staff, and society figures, they uncover a web of dark secrets and motives. Their investigation soon spirals into a second baffling death—this time in an impenetrable elevator—and an audacious theft that may be linked to the murders. Drawing on the elegance of Golden Age locked‑room mysteries, Tom Mead’s debut weaves atmospheric pre‑war London with clever sleuthing, delivering a tightly plotted, three‑crime puzzle that keeps readers guessing until the final reveal.