SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2018 CWA DEBUT DAGGER FOR UNPUBLISHED FIRST NOVEL She hasn't seen her brother in years. Now, he's dead. When Judi Westerholme finds out her estranged brother has been murdered, she assumes it's connected to his long term drug addiction. Returning home, she is shocked to discover he had been clean for years, had a wife – now missing – a child and led a respectable life. But if he had turned his life around, why was he killed in a drug deal shooting? And where is his wife? Desperate to know what really happened, Judi sets out to uncover the truth, even though it means confronting her own traumatic past. But she's not the only one looking for answers... With a gutsy, unapologetic protagonist, Trust Me, I'm Dead is a gritty and bold crime thriller that explores the sacrifices people will make for their families. 'Gripping and disturbing, Clark delves into dark places close to home.

There's nothing more dangerous than revenge. Judi Westerholme has been through it. Brave and strong-willed, she's just about coping in her new role as foster parent to her orphaned niece, taking a job at the local pub to help make ends meet. Then the pub's landlord and Judi's friend, army veteran Pete 'Macca' Maccasfield, is murdered, and her world is suddenly turned upside down. Despite warnings from the city police to keep out of it, Judi can't help but get involved in the search for Macca's killer. But she soon becomes deeply entangled with some ruthlessly dangerous men. She must act fast and think smart to work out what they want - before anyone else gets hurt... Long buried secrets resurface in Sherryl Clark's pacey crime novel that pushes Judi Westerholme to her limits to protect the people she loves most.

A dead employee. A missing child. Anonymous phone calls in the dead of night. Judi Westerholme's troubles aren't over... Already struggling to juggle co-running Candlebark's pub/bistro along with her new childcare responsibilities, what Judi doesn't need right now is more stress. Yet, as usual, it arrives in she starts receiving threatening, late night phone calls before discovering one of her best employees, Kate, shot dead in her bed. Once again, Judi finds herself at the center of a murder investigation, as well as the hunt for the Kate's fourteen year-old daughter who has been missing since the murder. Add in the uncertainty of her relationship with D.S. Heath and the fact that her estranged mother's nursing home keeps calling to urge her to visit, and Judi might finally be at breaking point.