An author will reveal clues to a secret hidden in the Lakeland fells when his latest novel is launched in Ambleside this week.
Andrew Bibby will present his latest crime thriller, In the Cold of the Night, at a special event at the headquarters of the Langdale and Ambleside Mountain Rescue Team on Thursday (Nov 10) at 11 am.
The story features a mystery in the fells, and Bibby has hidden a secret message in a geocache, with a prize for the first walkers to find it.
Andrew Bibby hides the clue
But adventurers will need to read the book first, to find out the area where the alleged crime takes place.
The novel features an investigative journalist who is a fellrunner and a member of the local mountain rescue team. Bibby spent some time with rescuers researching details for the book, and is donating a percentage of all sales fees to the LAMRT.
The publishers (Gritstone Publishing) are also reissuing Bibby’s previous Lakeland crime novel in a companion volume, The Bad Step, another murder story set this time above the Langdale valley on the mountain ridge called the Crinkle Crags, which has to date been available only on Kindle. In that story, one of the runners in a championship fell race is found dead on the route.
The Bad Step on the Crinkle Crags, scene of a murder during a fell race in Bibby’s first crime thriller
Andrew Bibby is a professional writer and journalist, whose work has appeared in The Guardian, The Independent and other national papers. He is the author of several non-fiction books about northern England landscapes, including the walking guide The Backbone of England. He’s a fell runner and has completed many of the classic Lakeland fell races, and the Joss Naylor challenge.
He said: “Working with the mountain rescue team has been great fun, and I’m pleased to be supporting them.
“I set the mystery near the route of one of the Lakes’ classic fell races.”
He added that the geocache is hidden in rough mountainous terrain at over 1500 ft and therefore people looking for it need appropriate mountain experience and clothing, and need to take account of the weather… and that people look for it at their own risk.
The first person to find the cache wins dinner for two at Waterhead’s Regent Hotel.
northwestnewsandfeatures.wordpress.com 