STAR STRUCK
Val McDermid
HarperCollinsPublishers
1 London Bridge Street
London SE1 9GF
This ebook edition published by HarperCollinsPublishers 2019
First published in Great Britain by HarperCollinsPublishers 1998
Copyright © Val McDermid 1998
Cover design by Micaela Alcaino © HarperCollinsPublishers 2019
Cover photographs © Shutterstock.com
Val McDermid asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library
This is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author’s imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, down-loaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books
Source ISBN: 9780008344948
Ebook Edition © NOVEMBER 2019 ISBN: 9780007327584
Version: 2019-10-16
‘The queen of crime is still at the top of her game’
INDEPENDENT
‘No one can tell a story like she can’
DAILY EXPRESS
‘One of today’s most accomplished crime writers’
LITERARY REVIEW
‘McDermid remains unrivalled’
OBSERVER
‘Incredibly suspenseful’
SUNDAY MIRROR
‘This is crime writing of the very highest order’
THE TIMES
‘A gripping page-turner’
METRO
‘A terrific read’
DAILY TELEGRAPH
For Tessa and Peps, the Scylebert Twins
(aka Margaret & Nicky)
Thanks for all the laughter – we’ll
never feel the same about Isa.
Contents
Copyright
Praise for Val McDermid
Dedication
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Epilogue
Acknowledgements
Keep Reading …
About the Author
By Val McDermid
About the Publisher
Extract from the computer database of Dorothea Dawson, Seer to the Stars
Written in the Stars for Kate Brannigan, private investigator.
Born Oxford, UK, 4th September 1966.
* Sun in Virgo in the Fifth House
* Moon in Taurus in the Twelfth House
* Mercury in Virgo in the Fifth House
* Venus in Leo in the Fourth House
* Mars in Leo in the Fourth House
* Jupiter in Cancer in the Third House
* Saturn retrograde in Pisces in the Eleventh House
* Uranus in Virgo in the Fifth House
* Neptune in Scorpio in the Sixth House
* Pluto in Virgo in the Fifth House
* Chiron in Pisces in the Eleventh House
* Ascendant Sign: Gemini
SUN IN VIRGO IN THE 5TH HOUSE
On the positive side, can be ingenious, verbally skilled, diplomatic, tidy, methodical, discerning and dutiful. The negatives are fussiness, a critical manner, an obsessive attention to detail and a lack of self-confidence that can disguise itself as arrogance. In the 5th House, it indicates a player of games.
From Written in the Stars, by