Phil Rickman - The Smile of a Ghost

The Ludlow ghost-walks are now devised and led by Stuart Liggins and Leon Bracelin, who has far deeper roots in the world of psychic studies than the unfortunate Jonathan Scole and showed me a few… openings.

Vince Bufton of the South Shropshire Journal was very helpful with crucial details, as were Sally Boyce, Mike Kreciala and Alun Lenny. Also Stanton Stephens and Mike Lloyd of the Castle Bookshop and my CWA colleagues Bernard Knight (forensics) and Rebecca Tope (post-mortem couture ). Nicky Carey and Lindy Reed, of Nevill Hall Hospital, Abergavenny, made the obstetrics work. Thanks also to Paul Devereux (Earth mysteries) and Merrily’s other spiritual consultant, Peter Brooks. The Powis Estate, owners of Ludlow Castle (where children, it’s worth emphasizing, must be accompanied by an adult), inadvertently supplied an interesting plot strand by refusing to help and suggesting that I change the location. Thank you, guys.

Thanks, finally, to the cool-headed but sensitive and encouraging editorial team of, in order of appearance, Peter Lavery, John Jarrold and Nick Austin.

As usual, however, before they saw any of it, The Smile of a Ghost was exhaustively edited, psychoanalysed, reoriented, sharpened and finally rescued from the abyss, over many weeks, by my wonderful wife, Carol, without whom…

PHIL RICKMAN was born in Lancashire and lives on the Welsh border. He is the author of the Merrily Watkins series and The Bones of Avalon . He has won awards for his TV and radio journalism and writes and presents the book programme Phil the Shelf for BBC Radio Wales.

THE MERRILY WATKINS SERIES

The Wine of Angels

Midwinter of the Spirit

A Crown of Lights

The Cure of Souls

The Lamp of the Wicked

The Prayer of the Night Shepherd

The Smile of a Ghost

The Remains of an Altar

The Fabric of Sin

To Dream of the Dead

The Secrets of Pain

THE JOHN DEE PAPERS

The Bones of Avalon

OTHER TITLES

Candlenight

Curfew

The Man in the Moss

December

The Chalice