**"A solid gold, suspenseful, immersive and intriguing story."--Lee Child **

**"A solid gold, suspenseful, immersive and intriguing story."--Lee Child **

"One of the most enjoyable novels I've read in ages . . . utterly distinctive and totally addictive."--Paula Hawkins

"The gift of The Impossible Thing is the pure joy of reading."--Val McDermid

From the exceptionally original mind of CWA Gold Dagger Award winner and Booker longlisted author Belinda Bauer, a sweeping tale of obsession, greed, ambition, and a crime that has remained unsolved for a hundred years

• How do you find something that doesn't exist?*1926. On the cliffs of Yorkshire, men are lowered on ropes to steal the eggs of the sea birds who nest there. The most beautiful are sold for large sums. A small girl--penniless and neglected by her family--retrieves one such treasure. Its discovery will forever alter the course of her life.

A century later. In a remote cottage in Wales, Patrick Fort finds his friend, Nick, and his mother tied up and robbed. The only thing missing: a carved case containing an incredible scarlet egg. Doggedly attempting to retrieve it, Patrick and Nick discover the cruel world of egg trafficking, and soon find themselves on the trail of a priceless collection of eggs lost to history. Until now.

A taut, wonderfully imagined novel brimming with skullduggery at every turn,* The Impossible Thing * is a blazing testament to Belinda Bauer's status as one of our greatest living crime writers.