Simon Mason

Add to Calendar 20260710 20260710 Europe/London Simon Mason

Duration: up to 90 minutes

Tickets

£4 — £6

Full £6 | Concessions (advance only) £4

Location

The Acorn, Penzance

Dates

Fri 10th July, 2026
3:00 pm |
Duration: up to 90 minutes

About this event

Penzance Literary Festival presents 'The Dangerous Stranger' - in conversation with Rachel Viney

Simon Mason’s blistering fifth book in the Oxford-set DI Wilkins Mysteries, The Dangerous Stranger, sees the return of notorious oddball duo DIs Ryan and Ray Wilkins (no relation). The story opens with rioters outside a hotel full of asylum seekers, setting a young refugee on fire. Was the crime premeditated or was it spontaneous? Was it a far-right extremist? Could an ordinary person do such a terrible thing? Deploying their investigative skills (some standard, some unconventional and some, frankly, nuts) the Wilkinses – Thames Valley’s detective pantomime horse, one Oxford-educated, the other Oxford-trailer park – achieve what they always do: results with chaos

With a background initially in publishing and then YA novels, Simon’s crime writing has brought him widespread critical acclaim, including selection as Sunday Times Crime Book of the Month and shortlisting for the CWA Gold Dagger . He has also won plaudits from fellow writers-in-crime including Mick Herron, who states that Simon “has created crime fiction’s most entertaining double act in decades”, while Val McDermid simply said, “Move over Morse”

Rachel Viney, a LitFest trustee and member of the organising team, has a background in publishing, radio and television, and is the author of two non-fiction books

Concessions strictly for: under-18s, full-time students, those in receipt of working-age benefits or Pension Credit

Contact

01736 363 545 | https://www.theacornpenzance.com/events/the-dangerous-stranger/