Waxwork

“At once charming, chilling and convincing as if it had unfolded in the Police Intelligence column of April, 1888.” —TIME

London, 1888. Though the beautiful Miriam Cromer has confessed to the murder of her husband’s assistant, she is still confident of her acquittal. But then she is sentenced to hang. She blames her husband, but he has an alibi. Sergeant Cribb and Constable Thackeray must discover what really happened at Park Lodge on 12th March, 1888, and quickly.Crime Writers' Association Diamond Dagger for Lifetime Achievement Recipient
Mystery Writers of America 2018 Grandmaster

Praise for Waxwork

Winner of the CWA Silver Dagger for Best Crime Novel

“At once charming, chilling and convincing as if it had unfolded in the Police Intelligence column of April, 1888.”
—TIME

“Peter Lovesey triumphs again.”
—Sunday Express

“Marvelously authentic.”
—The Washington Post

“As good a crime entertainment as you could wish for.”
—The Times

“I couldn’t put it down. I read it at a sitting—or rather, a lying, for I was in the garden at the time and got so absorbed I didn’t notice the sun had burnt the skin off my back! Waxwork is quite the best novel of detection I have read for a long time.”
—Ruth Rendell

Praise for Peter Lovesey
 
“I have long loved Peter Lovesey’s books . . . A creative, courageous and gifted writer.”
—Louise Penny
 
“Lovesey is a master of the crime novel.”
—Sara Paretsky
 
“What'll it be today? A knotty puzzle mystery? A fast-paced police procedural? Something more high-toned, with a bit of wit? With the British author Peter Lovesey, there's no need to make those agonizing decisions, because his books have it all.”
—The New York Times Book Review
 
“Mr. Lovesey's narrative is swift, but he takes time out for local color and abundant humor, the latter springing from the book's quirky characters . . . Lovesey is a wizard at mixing character-driven comedy with realistic-to-grim suspense. And in a writing career spanning four decades, he has created a stylish and varied body of work.”
—The Wall Street Journal
 
“A treat . . . Lovesey’s restraint, wit, and charming cast ensure him a place in the winner’s circle.”
 —Entertainment Weekly
 
“Extremely stylish, lighter than air . . . utterly surprising.”
—NewsweekPeter Lovesey (1936–2025) was the author of more than forty highly praised mystery novels, including the Peter Diamond investigations and the Sergeant Cribb investigations. He was honored with the two highest awards in mystery fiction, Grand Master of the Mystery Writers of America and the Cartier Diamond Dagger of the Crime Writers’ Association, as well as many other international accolades. He lived in Shrewsbury, England.