Thriller set WASHINGTON DC and WEST VIRGINIA
Crime mystery novel set in EASTBOURNE
21st November 2025
Don’t Swipe Right by L M Chilton, crime mystery novel set in EASTBOURNE.
Who knew Eastbourne was such a hotbed of criminal activity and boring men?
Gwen is on the App Connector, that is how she finds new dates in and around the town after things ended with Noah. Noah was a good egg, but here she is, stuck with a legacy mobile coffee van from the relationship – and she hates coffee. She has Charlie to help her out but she struggles to make a living.
She has quite a few first dates and discovers the diversity of the men in the area. They are all lacking in various different ways, ghastly and cringeworthy stereotypes of the male species who don’t merit a second chance. She is totally despondent. Her best friend Sarah, who herself is on the cusp of marriage to dull Richard, motivates her to keep on trying.
Then, the body of one of her dates turns up dead. And then another and it is clear that there is a pattern. Someone is taking out the men she has seen on a single date, and knowing this isn’t coincidence, she feels morally obliged to try and rescue the survivors before they, too, meet an untimely end. The police don’t particularly take her extrapolations seriously, so it is now down to her, although one cute policeman (someone she knew at school) is willing to hear what she has to say and engages with her.
The story is written tongue in cheek, with a nice level of quirky humour. The novel turns a little bonkers as it heads towards the denouement but if you are looking for a fun read, with a flawed sleuthing heroine, then this will fit the bill. It is compared to the TV series “You” and although there are hints of darker doings, it is a pretty big stretch. The story is essentially a satire of the dating scene, so it’s both funny and pretty depressing at times.
Eastbourne is recognisable, from the mini golf venue to the Eastbourne Eye Ferris Wheel, “a monstrous tourist trip built from white steel and bad ideas…almost exclusively for out-of-towners or terrible first dates”.
Tina for the TripFiction Team
Join team TripFiction on Social Media:
Twitter (@TripFiction), Facebook (@TripFiction.Literarywanderlust), YouTube (TripFiction #Literarywanderlust), Instagram (@TripFiction) and Pinterest (@TripFiction) and BlueSky(tripfiction.bsky.social) and Threads (@tripfiction)
Please wait...
