Worst Case Scenario by Helen Fitzgerald

A deliciously dark, unapologetically funny, and nail-bitingly tense psychological thriller by the international bestselling author of The Cry.

`Shocking, gripping and laugh-out-loud hilarious from the first line to the last. Brilliant' Erin Kelly

`The main character is one of the most extraordinary you'll meet between the pages of a book' Ian Rankin 

Mary Shields is a moody, acerbic probation offer, dealing with some of Glasgow's worst cases, and her job is on the line. Liam Macdowall was imprisoned for murdering his wife, and he's published a series of letters to the dead woman, in a book that makes him an unlikely hero - and a poster boy for Men's Rights activists.

Liam is released on licence into Mary's care, but things are far from simple. Mary develops a poisonous obsession with Liam and his world, and when her son and Liam's daughter form a relationship, Mary will stop at nothing to impose her own brand of justice ... with devastating consequences.

A heart-pounding, relentless and chilling psychological thriller, rich with deliciously dark and unapologetic humour, Worst Case Scenario is also a perceptive, tragic and hugely relevant book by one of the most exciting names in crime fiction. `A scandalously rude comic masterpiece' Daily Telegraph `There are moments of high humour contrasted with others of dark perception as the story plays out. Readers won't be able to put it down' Mystery People `Laced with pitch-dark acerbic humour, the classic thriller gets a hell of a twist' Heat `This frenetic novel's strongest assets are its sheer verbal energy and the acerbic views of its heroine, who resembles a female Frankie Boyle' Sunday Times `This darkly, funny, shocking and surprisingly emotional thriller is unlike anything you've ever read before' Fabulous Mag `A wonderful, energetic, hard-hitting and deeply funny novel' The Big Issue `This novel is a funny, agonising account of one good woman's battle with rage, guilt, fear, duty and disaster' Literary Review `Simply stunning.

Dark, uncompromising, funny, and almost impossible to put down' Luca Veste `Dark humour and darker truths permeate a thrilling crime novel that is fabulously transgressive and completely unique ... nobody writes like Helen Fitzgerald' Mark Billingham `Very dark, very funny and very original. Helen Fitzgerald is one of a kind, and a welcome breath of fresh air in the world of off-beat but achingly relatable crime fiction' SJI Holliday `I'm convinced that Helen FitzGerald is some kind of genius.

It's dark, unsettling, shocking and brilliantly funny - often at the same time' Paul Burston `Totally gripping and so well written' Madeleine Black `A dark, comic masterpiece which manages to be both excruciatingly tense and laugh out loud funny at the same time. Great stuff!' Mark Edwards `Twisted & utterly contemporary, this is pure, unfiltered noir. From that killer opening line to the dark irony of its final scene.

You need to read this' Russel McLean `Mary is the absolute crowning glory of Worst Case Scenario. Mary is deeply flawed but all the more compelling for that. She is unhinged and uncontained by the conventions of normal society, and her menopausal raging at the stupidity of the world is an absolute wonder to behold.

She is a glorious hot mess and she is absolutely compelling company from start to finish in this wonderful, energetic, hard-hitting and deeply funny novel' The Big Issue