The Attercop, a clever adversary who is good with disguises, starts to spin a web of lies and deceit to get Declan for his very own. And as the two detectives look into a break-in where nothing is taken, and a random beating at a gay bar, their perfect partnership begins to unravel.
Will Charlie be able to stop the worst from happening, or will The Attercop get his wish and take Declan away from Charlie forever?
The money had come as a great surprise because his father had heartily disapproved of him. Not so much because he was gay—although his father had loudly carped that a queer son wouldn’t produce another generation to carry on the family name. No, the expansive parent–child chasm had grown out of his father’s determination that his son was weak and useless, just like his mother, who had run off with another man. He’d never met the other guy, but he had, after all, only been five when it had happened.
His father had further declared that his son “had no gumption” and that if he didn’t prove he could make something out of himself by the time he was thirty, he would be cut out of his father’s will. In the end it didn’t matter. Fate had intervened and the old man had died just a few days before his son’s thirtieth birthday.
The year surrounding that event had been filled with unexpected surprises, such as the reappearance of his mother. She’d said that she’d been watching him from afar and wanted to help him establish himself. She had used her connections to land him a decent job in a small, financially stable firm. He was all set for success. It looked as if he was going to prove his father wrong after all. But no matter how hard he tried, things never seemed to go his way, especially in his search for love, because nobody really liked him. Every time he thought he’d found ‘Mr Right’, it always turned into ‘Mr Right-Now-But-Never-Again’.
At first, he couldn’t understand why. He was good-looking and intelligent. He was certain he was good in bed. His major flaw, from what he could see, was that he fell in love too easily, and that was something he couldn’t help. He was a giver and, to those he fell for, he gave everything. He became infatuated with them. And what did he get in return? Another view of the curb he’d been kicked to—again and again.
Well, he’d had it with that. He was done with being ‘Mr Nice Guy’. He took another swig of his drink and lay on the carpet by the window. A small spider made its way along the floor and crawled up his naked body, past his carefully groomed pubic hair, slowly working its way toward his navel. He put his hand on his stomach to block its path, but it simply crawled up onto his fingers. Nothing was going to stand in its way.
He held the spider up to his face and watched its tiny legs working in precise synchronicity as it traversed the back of his hand. It was persistent. It had gumption.
Many people would have thrown the spider to the floor or squashed it where it stood. Spiders were repulsive to most—things to be feared, to be reviled. But he liked spiders. They were patient and meticulous and never gave up. Even when people tore down their webs, they started again. He needed to become more like a spider. He needed to decide what he wanted and go after it. And if anyone stood in his way, he would show them what a spider could do. Like the ones in his favourite book The Hobbit, he would ensnare his enemies, keep what he wanted, and make the others feel pain and suffering. ‘Attercop’ was what the character Bilbo had called the spiders. A term that meant ‘poison head’ in old English. It was intended to be an insult, but he liked the description.
He gently lifted his hand to his face. It was time for he and the spider to become as one. He set it on the end of his tongue and swallowed. He knew what his purpose was. It was time to become The Attercop, spinning his web. And soon, he would pounce. He would snare the thing that he wanted most and if anyone got in his way, he’d suck them dry and discard their empty husks. And there was one person in particular he yearned to snare. Declan Hunt would be his.
The investigation takes them from the dark alleys, gay bars and bath houses of Calgary, to the richest parts of the city during the world-famous Calgary Stampede.
The investigation takes them from the dark alleys, gay bars and bath houses of Calgary, to the richest parts of the city during the world-famous Calgary Stampede.
But will they be able to discover who the killer is before another life is lost? And will Declan be able to solve the mystery of his relationship with Charlie who is clearly attracted to him — especially since it is evident that the attraction is becoming mutual?
Declan Hunt and Charlie Watts are called into action and make their way to the mysterious Hoodoo House nestled on the edge of the Badlands of Alberta. Soon they are embroiled in a case involving blackmail, gay tricks and possibly even murder.
As the secrets of Hoodoo House come to light, Charlie discovers that his boss has been keeping a few secrets of his own, secrets that could impact their romantic relationship outside of the office. And before this investigation is done, Charlie will have to get to the truth, even if it means this might be his final case for Declan Hunt Investigations.
While Charlie investigates a threatening note that appears to be from a boy who mysteriously disappeared ten years ago, Declan tries to find the meaning behind the final words of a man who was brutally murdered. As Declan and Charlie work to solve these mysteries, secrets from the past are exposed, Charlie is haunted by ghostly dreams, and Declan is forced to confront some terrible truths from a hidden past.
Ultimately, the truth will be revealed, but at what cost? And will Declan and Charlie be able to solve the mystery of where they want to go next with their relationship before things at work take a terrible turn?
Following the success of the first book, Pride Publishing/Entwined Publishing released The Declan Hunt Mysteries series which includes Mann Hunt (nominated for a Goodreads M/M Romance Readers’ Choice Award and translated into German, Italian and Spanish), Hoodoo House, (also a Goodreads M/M Romance Readers’ Choice Award nominee and now available in Italian and Spanish), and The Burnt which came out in August of 2025 in English, Italian and Spanish with Entwined Publishing. The Burnt was also nominated for a Goodreads M/M Romance Readers' Choice Award in the Mystery/Whodunnit category. The fourth and final novel in the series - The Attercop - was released in August of 2026.
2024 also saw the release of the critically acclaimed teen novella Not Not Normal, published by Lorimer Press. This book was also nominated for a Goodreads M/M Romance Readers' Choice Award.
Peter's previous work was focused on writing for the stage, with award-winning productions of The Giant’s Garden, Newfoundland Mary, Bemused, and The Detective Disappears being produced across the country.
All of his novels are proudly set in Canada and are filled with humour and heart.
He spent many years working in palaeontology in remote locations including the Canadian Rockies, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
Peter lives in Toronto, Canada with his partner of twenty-five years, Scott White. At heart, he is an incredible romantic.
