Dandy Smith Books In Order

Publication Order of Standalone Novels

The website Tea and Cake For the Soul declared Dandy Smith’s novel, One Small Mistake, one of the “Best Murder Mystery, Psychological Thrillers & Crime Fiction Books of 2021/22”. One Small Mistake is the thrilling debut novel from Dandy Smith.

At 28 years old, Elodie is still seeking her parents’ approval and she hates herself for that. She has a possible book deal in the works but her mother keeps pushing her own agenda for Elodie’s life. Quit the coffee shop job and go back to the marketing company, find a handsome, rich man to marry like her sister, Ada, did, buy the perfect house in the perfect neighborhood like her sister did, and work on making babies like her sister is.

The constant comparison to her beautiful, perfect older sister is killing her. Elodie’s mother is so embarrassed she is working in a coffee shop that she tells everyone she is working from home for the marketing company she resigned from over a year ago. She tries not to let the hurt get to herself. She tries not to think her mother might be right.

Her life is an episode of Groundhog Day, opening and closing the coffee shop every day this week. Pouring coffee, sweeping floors and wiping down counters, she is holding her breath waiting for her big break in the publishing world.

Meanwhile, Elodie thinks she is being stalked. The guy isn’t even subtle about it. She sees him all over town, he follows her walking to and from work, and he’s been in the coffee shop four time this week and it’s only Wednesday.

He sits in the corner of the coffee shop and stares at her. His black rimmed glasses and dark hair make her think he’s a serial killer. In her imagination, she sees him calmly standing over a dead woman, usually her, cleaning blood splatter from his glasses.

Elodie is meeting with her best friend Margot. They get together occasionally and compare notes. Sometimes the notes are about work, other time boyfriends and sex. Elodie doesn’t want to talk about boyfriends.

Noah was killed by a hit-and-run driver a year ago but the pain is still too fresh. They were living together for a few years and she loved him so much. Jack is always there for her and obviously cares for her but she sees him as more like a brother to her; she doesn’t want to ruin a good friendship with sex with him.

While she and Margot are sipping their martinis, Margot suddenly blurts out “I’ve got a book deal!” Elodie’s head starts spinning. She knows she’s not hearing right. Margot is a wedding planner, not a writer. Being a writer is her thing, not Margot’s!

Margot explains it’s not actually her book, but she’s helping her mother write it. Her mother was a famous asian model for Chanel and there’s interest in her story. The book hasn’t even been written yet and she has a signed contract. Elodie wants to stand and scream until her throat is raw.

She’s drinking too much and Margot is pushing. Everyone is always pushing her. They have switched from drinking martinis to champagne to celebrate Margot’s fabulous news and now Elodie’s head is spinning and buzzing. She hears Margot ask “How did the meeting with your agent go?”

Afterward, Elodie feels like the biggest arsehole. Without directly saying so, she managed to let Margot think she got her book deal too. At least she gave herself an out. The contract hasn’t been signed and anything can happen before that.

The publisher wants true crime stories. Elodie has confessed to Jack her lies and all there other disasters in her life. There’s no book deal. The other ideas she pitched were rejected and her agent has dropped her. She was fired from her pathetic coffee shop job. She has finally hit bottom.

Her friend Jack has promised to make it all OK. When pressed to answer how he intends to do that he simply says for her not to worry, he’ll fix it all.

When Elodie is drugged and kidnapped she thinks her stalker has finally managed to get to her. She doesn’t realize that Jack’s solution to her problems is the beginning of her nightmare.

Growing up in Kettering, Northamptonshire, Dandy Smith has an undergrad and master’s degree in Creative Writing from Bath Spa University. She is partial to dark stories infused with deception and wit. Her writing is filled with the complex relationships between strong women.

Living in Frome in Somerset with her fiancé and cocker spaniel, Ms. Smith enjoys chocolate orange, true-crime stories, and practicing aerial fitness. Rainy days are a favorite and while she’s writing she’s working in a secondary school.

A favorite quote of Ms. Smith’s from One Small Mistake is “There are some moments in life you want to keep, to dip into over and over.”

Her second book, How Much Do You Love Me? will be published in November 2022.