Book Extract: Out of Sight by Anna Legat

Please help me to welcome Anna Legat to Novel Kicks and the blog tour for her novel, Out of Sight. 

On the morning after his thirtieth wedding anniversary Stewart Harding is found dead. He was an arrogant and thoroughly unpleasant man and there is no shortage of suspects, but all of them have firm alibis. In any case, everything points towards it being an opportunistic killing linked to a robbery.

Newly promoted DI Mark Webber is assigned as the SIO with Gillian Marsh overseeing the investigation. However, when her mother dies, she takes leave of absence and lets Webber continue on his own.

Webber is making good progress until his colleague – and secret lover – DC Erin Macfadyen disappears without trace. Webber’s world falls apart.

DCI Marsh cuts her bereavement leave short to take over the investigation into Stewart Harding’s death and to track down her missing officer.

There is no doubt that she will find Harding’s killer, but will she find Erin and are the two cases connected?

Anna has shared an extract from her novel, Out of Sight today. We hope you enjoy. 

*****beginning of extract*****

Webber glowed like a firefly. He reciprocated Erin’s soppy look, his eyebrow magnanimously elevated. How he fancied himself the god-father figure, the sod! These days he even looked like Marlon Brando’s version of Corleone with threads of grey highlights in his swept-back hair. It suited him, like the DI label. It would go with his expensive taste in clothes. Not to mention that at last he had been empowered to lead. He would be good at it. Gillian may just delegate some of her newly-acquired responsibilities to him – to let him have a go.

Their pies arrived along with Michael Almond. He smiled brightly, seemingly unruffled by the sudden change of location and the crowd of Gillian’s co-workers in attendance, including Erin. It was meant to be just the two of them, a rare chance to keep Gillian anchored in one place for more than ten minutes, a chance to have a conversation. It would never be that simple. He bent over Gillian in an attempt to kiss her – on the lips. As usual, she didn’t find that comfortable even though his moustache was consigned to history. She was bloody awkward about it normally, and even more so now because Michael was standing between her and her lunch. She told him to go and order his food, and to put it on their joint tab. She again, as she so often did when thrown out of her comfort zone, referred to him by his surname.

‘And I have another reason to celebrate,’ Webber announced mysteriously.

‘Oh? I hope it’s a real one this time. So what is it? Don’t keep us waiting – the food’s getting cold

‘The final decision has come from the Family Court. I’ve won custody of my girls! They can come and live with me!’

‘That’s grand, man!’ Riley gave Mark a lacklustre pat on the back. Not having children of his own, he had little understanding of parenthood.

 Erin threw her arms around Mark and squeezed his large frame in a bear hug.

 Gillian simply said, ‘That’s good news. You can pack up all that moping around once and for all.’

*****end of extract*****

About Anna Legat – 

Anna Legat is a Wiltshire-based author, best known for her DI Gillian Marsh murder mysteries.

Murder isn’t the only thing on her mind. She dabbles in a wide variety of genres, ranging from dark humour, through magic realism to dystopia. A globe-trotter and Jack-of-all-trades, Anna has been an attorney, legal adviser, a silver-service waitress, a school teacher and a librarian.

She has lived in far-flung places all over the world where she delighted in people-watching and collecting precious life experiences for her stories.

Anna writes, reads, lives and breathes books and can no longer tell the difference between fact and fiction.

Say hello to Anna via her website, Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. 

Click to buy Out of Sight on Amazon UK and Amazon US. 

by

Laura

I’m Laura. I started Novel Kicks in 2009. I wanted a place to post my writing as well as give other writers like me the opportunity to do the same. There is also a monthly book club, a writing room which features writing prompts, book reviews, competitions, author interviews and guest posts.

I grew up by the sea (my favourite place in the world) and I currently live in Hampshire. I am married to Chris, have a cat named Buddy and I would love to be a writer. I’m trying to write the novel I’ve talked so much about writing if only I could stop pressing delete. I’ve loved writing since creative writing classes in primary school. I have always wanted to see my teacher Miss Sayers again and thank her for the encouragement. When not trying to write the novel or writing snippets of stories on anything I can get my hands on, I love reading, dancing like a loon and singing to myself very badly. My current obsession is Once Upon a Time and I would be happy to live with magic in the enchanted forest surrounded by all those wonderful stories provided that world also included Harry Potter. I love reading chick lit. contemporary fiction and novels with mystery.