In this acclaimed psychological mystery, Jinx Kingsley, a prominent photographer and millionaire’s daughter, wakes up in an exclusive hospital suffering from amnesia. Not only can she not remember the car accident that caused her memory loss, but she doesn’t remember that her impending wedding has been called off or that her former fiancé and his girlfriend have been brutally murdered in the same way her first husband had been ten years before. Now she must try to piece together her memories in order to determine her innocence. With deft psychological explorations and shocking twists, Walters brings the story to an awe-inspiring conclusion. “A wily psychological thriller.” — Los Angeles Times “Engrossing. . . . Walters cleverly inserts small twists and new suspects at every turn, cranking up the tension.” — San Francisco Chronicle “A cauldron of suspense.” — The Denver Post “Engaging. . . . A page-turner.” — People The broadcast of the brilliant film adaptations of her novels on Showcase has crowned Minette Walters the new queen of British mystery writers. Her career has been little short of astonishing: With her debut novel, The Ice House , she won the British Crime Writers' Association John Creasey Award for the best first crime novel of 1992. Her second mystery, The Sculptress , won the U.S. Edgar Allan Poe Award for the best crime novel published in 1993. In 1994, she achieved a unique triple when The Scold's Bridle was awarded the CWA Gold Dagger for the best crime novel of the year. Her fourth novel, The Dark Room , received further critical acclaim when it appeared in 1995. The Echo , her fifth novel, was said by many reviewers to be her best, most intriguing mystery to date. Her sixth novel, The Breaker , was similarly praised and her seventh, The Shape of Snakes , was published to rave reviews. Minette Walters lives in Dorset, England. www.minettewalters.co.uk 1She clung to sleep tenaciously, wrapped in beguiling dreams. It was explained to her afterwards that they weren't dreams at all, only reality breaking through the days of confusion as she rose from deep unconsciousness to full awareness, but she found that difficult to accept. Reality was too depressing to give birth to such contentment. Her awakening was painful. They propped her on pillows and she caught glimpses of herself from time to time in the dressing table mirror, a waxen-faced effigy with shaven head and bandaged eye--hardly recognizable--and she had an instinctive desire to withdraw from it and leave it to play its part alone. It wasn't her. A huge bear of a man with close-cropped hair and close-cropped beard leaned over her and told her she'd been in a car accident. But he didn't tell her where or when. You're a lucky young woman, he said. She remembered that. Forgot everything else. She had a sense of time passing, of people talking to her, but she preferred to drowse in sleep where dreams beguiled.She was aware. She saw. She heard. And she felt safe with the pleasant female voices that smoothed and soothed and petted. She answered them in her head but never out loud, for she clung to the spurious protection of intellectual absence. "Are you with us today?" the nurses asked, pressing their faces up to hers. I've been with you all along. "Here's your mother to see you, dear." I don't have a mother. I have a stepmother. "Come on, love, your eye is open. We know you can hear us, so when are you going to talk to us?" When I'm ready . . . when I'm ready . . . when I want to remember . . .Read Traffic Accident: Reported 21.45 approx, 13.6.94PCs Gregg & Hardy on scene at 20.04Location: Unused airfield, Stonery Bassett, HantsOne vehicle involved. Black Rover Cabriolet automaticReg No: JIN IX - vehicle written offDriver: Miss Jane Imogen Nicola KingsleyUnconscious & in need of emergency treatmentDriving licence gives date of birth: 26.09.59 ®istered address: 12 Glenavon Gdns, Richmond, SurreyProperty Tycoon's Daughter in Mystery PileupIt was reported late last night that Jane Kingsley, 34, the fashion photographer and only daughter of Adam Kingsley, 66, millionaire chairman of Franchise Holdings Ltd., was found unconscious following a mystery car crash on the disused airfield at Stoney Bassett, 15 miles south of Salisbury. Mr. Andrew Wilson, 23, and his girlfriend, Miss Jenny Ragg, 19, happened upon the scene by chance at 9:45 p.m. and immediately summoned assistance for the unconscious woman."The car was a write-off," said Mr. Wilson. "Miss Kingsley's very lucky to be alive. If she'd been in it when it hit the concrete pillar, she'd have been crushed to death in the wreck. I'm glad we were able to help." Police describe Miss Kingsley's escape as a miracle. The car, a black Rover Cabriolet automatic, had collided head-on with a solid concrete stanchion, which was once the corner support for a hangar. Police believe Miss Kingsley was thrown through the open door of her car shortly before impact."That pillar is the only structur