Anne Rice, on top form, returns to the mesmerizing storytelling that has captivated readers for more than three decades in a dark gothic novel of suspense about assassins and angels, set in worlds past - the first in a new series called The Songs of the Seraphim.

' W hen I found Rice's work I absolutely loved how she took that genre and (...) made it feel so contemporary and relevant' Sarah Pinborough, bestselling author of Behind Her Eyes

' Rice wrote in the great tradition of the gothic' Ramsey Campbell, bestselling author of The Hungry Moon

Toby O'Dare - Lucky the Fox - is a contract killer of underground fame. In his youth Lucky had dreamt of being a priest, instead he fell into a life danger and violence.

Living under a series of aliases he long ago lost any sense of his true self, becoming a pawn to 'The Right Man, a contractor of dark and unknown allegiances.

Lucky has one place where he can be without disguise, but his latest assignment is at this sanctuary, The Mission Inn. And it is an order to kill. Into this nightmarish world of lone and lethal missions, comes a mysterious stranger, a seraph, who offers him a chance to save lives, rather than destroy them. Now he has his chance to repair the damage of his past.