Slowly she opened her eyes and he rewarded her with one of his softest smiles, brushing her wet, sticky hair off her face, using the edge of her coat sleeve to wipe away the slime around her nose and lips. 'I don't want to,' she whispered, trembling as she gazed at him. 'I don't want to ' She couldn't finish the sentence. Die. Die with me. Be with me forever. That's what he said.' You could find your new best friend on the net or discover your worst nightmare. For fifteen-year-old Gemma, it's already too late. Her body was found in the nave of the parish church in Ealing. For D.I Mark Tartaglia and the murder squad at Barnes, it's just a matter of time before the tragedy repeats itself. For Elena Forbes, it's a cracking start to her new career as a crime writer.

A very well-written, cleverly plotted first novel - The Literary Review The troubled Tartaglia is an interesting creation and the plot shifts and swerves in unexpected but pleasurable ways - The Observer This is a fast-moving novel, in which Forbes offers an original and compelling portrait of a murderer - Times

Elena Forbes has lived most of her life in London. After reading Modern Languages at Bristol University she worked as a portfolio manager for international investment banks. She now writes full time and lives in Notting Hill with her husband and two children. The first chapter and synopsis of Die With Me was shortlisted for a debut dagger in 2005.