Elusive online investigative journalist Scott King investigates the
case of Arla Macleod, who bludgeoned her family to death, in another
episode of the chilling, award-winning Six Stories series.
'Bold, clever and genuinely chilling with a terrific twist that provides
an explosive final punch' Deidre O'Brien, Sunday Mirror
'A genuine genre-bending debut' Carla McKay, Daily Mail
'Impeccably crafted and gripping from start to finish' Doug Johnstone,
The Big Issue
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A family massacre
A deluded murderess
Five witnesses
Six stories
Which one is true?
One cold November night in 2014, in a small town in the north west of
England, 21-year-old Arla Macleod bludgeoned her mother, father and
younger sister to death with a hammer, in an unprovoked attack known as
the Macleod Massacre.
Now incarcerated at a medium-security mental-health institution, Arla
will speak to no one but Scott King, an investigative journalist, whose
Six Stories podcasts have become an internet sensation.
King finds himself immersed in an increasingly complex case,
interviewing five witnesses and Arla herself, as he questions whether
Arla's responsibility for the massacre was a diminished as her legal
team made out.
As he unpicks the stories, he finds himself thrust into a world of
deadly forbidden 'games', online trolls, and the mysterious black-eyed
kids, whose presence seems to extend far beyond the delusions of a
murderess...
Dark, chilling and gripping, Hydra is both a classic murder mystery
and an up-to-the-minute, startling thriller, that shines light in places
you may never, ever want to see again.
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Praise for the Six Stories series
Matt Wesolowski brilliantly depicts a desperate and disturbed corner of
north-east England in which paranoia reigns and goodness is thwarted ...
an exceptional storyteller' Andrew Michael Hurley
'Beautifully written, smart, compassionate - and scary as hell. Matt
Wesolowski is one of the most exciting and original voices in crime
fiction' Alex North
'Wonderfully horrifying ... the suspense crackles' James Oswald
'Original, inventive and dazzlingly clever' Fiona Cummins
'A complex and subtle mystery, unfolding like dark origami to reveal the
black heart inside' Michael Marshall Smith
'Endlessly inventive and with literary thrills a-plenty, Matt Wesolowski
is boldly carving his own uniquely dark niche in fiction' Benjamin
Myers
'Disturbing, compelling and atmospheric, it will terrify and enthral you
in equal measure' M W Craven
'Readers of Kathleen Barber's Are You Sleeping and fans of Ruth Ware
will enjoy this slim but compelling novel' Booklist
'A relentless and original work of modern rural noir which beguiles and
unnerves in equal measure. Matt Wesolowski is a major talent' Eva
Dolan
'The very epitome of a must-read' Heat
'Haunting, horrifying, and heartrending. Fans of Arthur Machen, whose
unsettling tale The White People provides an epigraph, will want to
check this one out' Publishers Weekly
'For those who like the book they curl up with in their favourite
slipper socks to generate a powerful sense of unease, and impel them to
check all doors are locked and as many lights turned on as possible,
Matt Wesolowski has just the formula to meet your self-scaring needs...
' Strong Words
