Welcome

Peter Guttridge is a novelist, writing teacher, the Observer's crime fiction critic, a long-standing fiction prize judge and a chairperson/interviewer at a wide range of literature festivals and events.

Click through on the left for details of his prize-winning satirical crime novels featuring Nick Madrid.

Peter is also working on the non-comic Brighton Trilogy.

For details of the events he is chairing and workshops he is running, click "News/Workshops/Events" .

And for up-to-date news (more or less) click on "Blog".

What The UK Reviewers Say

"The funniest crime novel of the year" Publishing News

"Jokes are delivered with the speed and accuracy of a gatling gun" The Telegraph

"Sparkling volleys of one-liners - Romping good stuff" Daily Mail

"Brilliant one-liners, lightning action, lots of suspense and very funny - self-deprecating Nick Madrid is fast becoming my favourite hero" Good Housekeeping

"Few British crimewriters can match the outrageousness of their American counterparts but Peter Guttridge is well on his way - the satire is spot on." The Guardian

"Guttridge has demonstrated that he has precisely the kind of mordant wit and cold-eyed social observation to make his Nick Madrid mysteries de rigueur reading. The dialogue glitters with the sheen of a Billy Wilder screenplay and the plotting has a machine like precision that holds the reader with a glittering eye" The Good Book Guide

"Bringing intelligence and caustic wit to the hard-boiled genre has always been Guttridge's speciality" The Times

What Other Writers Say

"Wacky, hilarious, a great read," Minette Walters

"Has a lot of fun with the traditional English whodunit...I enjoyed the book immensely" Ian Rankin

"Made me laugh out loud and wince in sympathy both at the violence and the humiliation meted out to the narrator...enormous fun" Val McDermid

"A fast moving, laugh-a-line frolic...we gasp with amazement, excitement and amusement" Reginald Hill

"Guttridge writes like he's been smoking dodgy ectoplasm. This is a brilliant, devil-may-care-so-don't-let-him-catch-you romp through the dark side" Peter James

"Great fun. A comedy thriller with the quick-fire patter of a stand-up gig and twists enough to keep you guessing to the end" Deborah Moggach

"Original and highly readable...But a word of warning: never let this man house-sit if you value your pets" Lynne Truss

What The US Reviewers Say

"Guttridge's series is among the funniest and sharpest in the genre, with a level of intelligence often lacking in better-known fare." Baltimore Sun

"[The] Nick Madrid mysteries are nothing if not addictively, insanely entertaining - but what's really important is the mix of good suspense, fast-and-furious one-liners and impeccable slapstick." Ruminator

"Peter Guttridge is off to a rousing start - a serious contender in the mystery genre." Chicago Tribune