The Proving

A Sceptic Detective Novel

Synopsis

The Proving is a dark, detective novel set in Bristol and Portland in the UK. This an amateur detective novel with a brother and sister team. The brother is a neurodivergent, investigative reporter who’s socially awkward, doesn’t follow logic, and stumbles into danger.

His sister is a police officer who hasn’t come to terms with being attacked during a police raid gone wrong. Helping her ‘peg-leg’ brother is the escape she thinks she needs. But they’re going to find that those on the island have vested interests and will make this sibling pair suffer for exposing their hidden debauchery.

Warren’s a journalist at The Sceptic’s Handbook, a pop science magazine that reports on odd events. When it receives a picture of a dead baby and a clue to a location, against advice, he decides to investigate.

His partner desk bound, he persuades his sister, a PC off sick with PTSD, to go with him. In the isle of Portland, through interviews, record checks, scientific methods and dolls fitted with GPS trackers, they uncover a dark network of coercion, abuse, and cover-ups. They corner the murderers on a deserted beach at night, hoping to save another baby and themselves.

It's a little bit X-Files and a little bit Sherlock Holmes.



Background

The genesis of the story came from a visit to the B-Sides Festival in Portland a few years ago. This was a fun little festival that required a bit of walking (or busing) around Portland. Portland is sort of an island. It's connected to the mainland by a spit of land. It's both isolated and connected - a strange duality, like a new baby still connected to its mother.

As part of the festival I picked up a little booklet that told some of the dark history of the isle. It included a rather chilling reference to a period where their were a number of young children murdered. Perhaps luckily, there were few other details, so it gave my subconscious space to fill in the gaps and create a murder mystery.

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