When an aspiring crime journalist stumbles upon a self-portrait that completes a set of four unsettling paintings, the boundary between aesthetic object and lethal evidence begins to dissolve. Cynthia Murphy's Paint Me Like Your Dead Girls, published today by Penguin Random House Children's UK, draws readers into precisely this territory with the quiet assurance of a writer who understands the pleasures of genre done well.
The novel, which runs to 352 pages, follows Fliss Keller as she acquires a disturbing self-portrait at an estate sale. Paperwork hidden inside the frame implies that the artist was a serial killer whose victims were the women depicted in the other three works. Soon a fresh series of murders unfolds in which each victim is arranged in a pose that mirrors those earlier paintings. What begins as an intellectual puzzle quickly becomes a hunt for a copycat who may be drawing inspiration from something far darker.
A thriller that respects its readers
In an age when too much young adult fiction feels obliged to lecture, Murphy's book stands out for its commitment to rigorous plotting and the moral weight of individual choices. Fliss must navigate suspicion, danger and the seductive pull of artistic obsession without the narrative leaning on external ideologies to do its work. The result is an addictive killer-thriller that trusts its audience to engage with questions of agency, consequence and the thin line between art and life.
Murphy, already a bestselling voice in young adult thrillers with titles such as Win Lose Kill Die and Signed Sealed Dead, writes from her home in Manchester where she lives with her husband and rescue dog Loli. Her roots in the North-West give the story an authentic sense of place that British readers will recognise and appreciate.
Waterstones has produced an exclusive edition with sprayed edges, a detail that will please collectors. The publisher has also organised a launch event at Waterstones Deansgate in Manchester on 25 July featuring an interview with Katja Kaine, audience questions and a signing. Doors open at 14:30 for the 15:00 start; the occasion includes nibbles and refreshments and is open to those aged 16 and under only if accompanied by a parent or legal guardian.
At its core, the arrival of Paint Me Like Your Dead Girls reminds us why well-crafted genre fiction continues to matter. It offers escape without evasion, tension without sermonising, and characters who must bear the consequences of their decisions. In a publishing landscape sometimes tempted by didacticism, Murphy's work quietly reaffirms the common ground shared by storyteller and reader: the enduring human appetite for a tale well told.
