Remember that book I sold in 2020? My agent pitched it with the title The Vanishing Act of Tempest Raj. Well, now it’s got an even more amazing final title: Under Lock & Skeleton Key!
Advance Reader Copies with this gorgeous cover have arrived, so it’s beginning to feel real. I’m so pleased that some of my favorite mystery authors read an early copy of the book and loved it enough to give it an endorsement.
With advance praise from Deanna Raybourn, Sujata Massey, Naomi Hirahara, Jenn McKinlay, Paige Shelton, and Ellie Alexander, I'm pinching myself!
“With dazzling sleight of hand, Gigi Pandian launches an enchanting new series . . . a must-read.” ―Deanna Raybourn
“A stand out mystery. The fast-reading, suspenseful tale delights, with dashes of international spice and a powerful new heroine.” ―Sujata Massey
“An absolute sparkling gem of a book! With masterful misdirection and literary slight of hand, Pandian has penned a delectable tale that kept me guessing.” ―Jenn McKinlay
“A perfect blend of adventure and mystery.” ―Paige Shelton
“A love letter to golden age mysteries . . . will keep readers guessing whodunit until the very end.” ―Ellie Alexander
“Pandian is this generation’s queen of the locked-room mystery!” ―Naomi Hirahara
Here's a bit more about the book from the Minotaur Books description of Under Lock & Skeleton Key:
An impossible crime. A family legacy. The intrigue of hidden rooms and secret staircases.
After a disastrous stage accident derails Tempest Raj’s career, and life, she heads back to her childhood home in California to comfort herself with her grandfather’s Indian home cooked meals. Though she resists, every day brings her closer to the inevitable: working for her father’s company. Secret Staircase Construction specializes in bringing the magic of childhood to all by transforming clients’ homes with sliding bookcases, intricate locks, backyard treehouses, and hidden reading nooks.
When Tempest visits her dad’s latest renovation project, her former stage double is discovered dead inside a wall that’s supposedly been sealed for more than a century. Fearing she was the intended victim, it’s up to Tempest to solve this seemingly impossible crime. But as she delves further into the mystery, Tempest can’t help but wonder if the Raj family curse that’s plagued her family for generations―something she used to swear didn’t exist―has finally come for her.
Gigi Pandian introduces her newest heroine, Tempest Raj, in a series debut that layers stunning architecture with mouthwatering food and is an ode to classic locked-room mysteries.