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Miles Away
Set in 1970s Scotland, Miles Away is the story of Dacre, whose early life has been disturbed by phobias which now threaten his first relationship.
Dacre searches for the cause of his phobias, but the loss of a friend who found it all too much makes him understand the risks he is taking by exploring his subconscious. Shocking family secrets are exhumed, amongst them his own repressed memories of gruesome murders - crimes that remain unsolved and apparently unconnected.
Dacre searches for the cause of his phobias, but the loss of a friend who found it all too much makes him understand the risks he is taking by exploring his subconscious. Shocking family secrets are exhumed, amongst them his own repressed memories of gruesome murders - crimes that remain unsolved and apparently unconnected.
388 pages, Paperback
First published July 29, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
September 18, 2022
Nick Edmunds is a new author whose book was published this week. I read the book this weekend when I was housesitting. A good, quick read.
Set in and around Scotland in the seventies, Miles Away centres on a character – Dacre – who has just gone to university but is plagued by his fear of heights and nightmarish dreams which seem to be trying to tell him something. Scottish police forces at the time are just beginning to set up a National computer crime base so similarities between cases spread over the country haven’t been spotted yet but Dacre’s nightmares point to a connection between a series of murders involving mutilation in places as far afield as Perthshire, Fraserburgh and Inverness and as some occurred when he was a child, worry him greatly. Of course, he is regarded as deranged when he tries to tell his story and as he faints and throws up at the most inconvenient times he is not taken seriously. Dacre begins to use self hypnosis techniques initially to sleep better and cope with his fear of heights but this has the knock on effect of revealing onion-like layers of his knowledge of the crimes which happened in the past and seem to be connected to what is happening now.
Those of us who remember the seventies will find it a realistic and authentic portrayal of life at university then, when bus fares were 25p and librarians – both feared and revered – knew everything that we needed to find out. The crime details are well researched and the tale nips along at fast pace. Various characters annoy us, including Dacre, along the way but there is a satisfying ending for at least one of those. A great first novel.
Set in and around Scotland in the seventies, Miles Away centres on a character – Dacre – who has just gone to university but is plagued by his fear of heights and nightmarish dreams which seem to be trying to tell him something. Scottish police forces at the time are just beginning to set up a National computer crime base so similarities between cases spread over the country haven’t been spotted yet but Dacre’s nightmares point to a connection between a series of murders involving mutilation in places as far afield as Perthshire, Fraserburgh and Inverness and as some occurred when he was a child, worry him greatly. Of course, he is regarded as deranged when he tries to tell his story and as he faints and throws up at the most inconvenient times he is not taken seriously. Dacre begins to use self hypnosis techniques initially to sleep better and cope with his fear of heights but this has the knock on effect of revealing onion-like layers of his knowledge of the crimes which happened in the past and seem to be connected to what is happening now.
Those of us who remember the seventies will find it a realistic and authentic portrayal of life at university then, when bus fares were 25p and librarians – both feared and revered – knew everything that we needed to find out. The crime details are well researched and the tale nips along at fast pace. Various characters annoy us, including Dacre, along the way but there is a satisfying ending for at least one of those. A great first novel.
January 17, 2023
A really good novel, with the kind of plot that keeps the reader interested and guessing. Having not attended a physical university myself I found Dacre's (main character) experiences particularly fascinating as student life is vividly portrayed as a backdrop to the main theme. Highly recommend to anyone who likes thrillers.
December 1, 2025
Nick Edmunds proves himself a master of misdirection in this plot, which grabs and keeps the reader's attention throughout. This crime thriller maintains the suspense right to the end.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews