British Detective Fiction

December 1940. With the Blitz devastating Britain’s cities, Lizzie Hayes and the women pilots of the Air Transport Authority are more crucial to the war effort than ever before. But when the relative peace of the village of Scotney is shattered by the disappearance of the Chief Inspector’s niece, it’s Lizzie’s training as a psychologist that draws her into another disturbing police case alongside DI Jonathan Kember.

When a young boy falls from a balcony in a block of flats, DS Grace Allendale witnesses the shocking aftermath of the tragic event. But strangely, no one will admit to seeing anything - and the parents will only tell the police that it was an accident. Determined to sort the truth from the lies, Grace is thrown into a case that takes her to the darkest corners of the criminal world - and strikes closer to home than she could have ever imagined.

A new breed of villain has risen, possessed of extraordinary intellect and violence. Only the brilliant mind and courage of Sexton Blake, scourge of the criminal world, can stop them, in these three classic stories, collected together in one volume for the first time. From the streets of London to the catacombs of Paris, join Blake as he pits his wits against bank robbers, impostors and kidnappers, duels with swords and pursues his foes by any means necessary.

How do you find the missing when there’s no trail to follow? DC Lucy Clayburn is having a tough time of it. Not only is her estranged father one of the North West’s toughest gangsters, but she is in the midst of one of the biggest police operations of her life.

Chief Inspector Brian Hooley has a plan, and it won't make him popular. He wants to bring back autistic detective Jonathan Roper. Currently suspended on misconduct charges, his condition, coupled with a relentless work ethic, makes Roper a unique investigator with observational skills that allow him to see what others miss. But he is also a complex man who doesn't get social boundaries, and plenty of his colleagues just don't like him. Hooley doesn't care about that. He knows Roper is the one to make a difference.

Spiritualism has captured the public’s imagination. Séances are all the rage, and Detective Ian Hamilton’s otherwise sensible aunt Lillian is not immune to their allure. But for Ian, indulging her superstitions has its limits. When members of Lillian’s circle of séance friends begin turning up dead, Ian doesn’t need a medium to tell him these aren’t freak accidents.

A series of disappearances are linked by one vital clue, and when a grave is uncovered in the woods, the sins of the past return with deadly consequences. A local community is devastated when dark secrets are revealed, and no one knows who to trust. Harriet Quinn will need all of her expertise to find a killer who hides in plain sight.

At the Central Criminal Court, an eager crowd awaits the trial of Victoria Lamartine, an active participant in the Resistance during the war. She is now employed at the Family Hotel in Soho, where Major Eric Thoseby has been found murdered. Thoseby is believed to have fathered Lamartine's child, and the prosecution insist that his death is revenge for his abandonment of Lamartine and her arrest by the Gestapo. A last-minute change in Lamartine's defence counsel grants solicitor Nap Rumbold just eight days to prove her innocence.

Mischievous 9-year-old twins, Panda and Poppy Wilcox are leaving New York City to stay with their titled Great Aunts in 1882 Tunbridge Wells, England. During the twin's journey from London, they encounter a disagreeable fellow by the name of Cheese Wedge. Little do the twins know, the laughable man they meet on a southbound train from London will create chaos and a mystery that only their uncle, a disinherited young aristocrat, and his two friends can solve.

Detective Chief Inspector John Shadow is doing his best to ignore the madness of York's annual Viking Festival when duty calls. The body of a wealthy businessman, who was playing the role of the Viking king, is found slain by his own ancient sword. The murder scene looks staged, but before Shadow can compile a list of people to question a second body is found. Shadow doesn't have to look far for suspects-the victims were by no means model citizens.

It's a rainy, uneventful evening in the Oddfellows' Arms until a man bursts into the pub, clearly unstable, and ranting about a body in Fennings' Mill. The police investigate and stumble upon a body-the face smeared with theatrical make-up and a false mustache pasted neatly over the lip. Once the national news descends, Inspector Faddiman calls in Inspector Littlejohn to help him uncover the dark, hidden secrets in this quiet, provincial town. Soon it becomes clear that a lot of people can't, and won't tell the truth.

Nick joins the Criminal Investigation Department to learn about the work of the detectives in civilian clothes. Asked to keep a watchful eye on a house thought to be used as a brothel, Nick quietly climbs the roof and sends a tile crashing through the window. When the woman inside and her five brothers attack the neighbors for causing the damage, the police turn out in force and arrest everybody. Meanwhile Nick lies low on the roof.

The 11th installment in the Aubrey/Maturin series. Captain Jack Aubrey, R.N., ashore after a successful cruise, is persuaded by a casual acquaintance to make certain investments in the City. This innocent decision ensnares him in the London criminal underground and in government...

An isolated beach on the island of Guernsey in the English Channel is the scene of the murder of Guy Brouard, one of Guernsey’s wealthiest inhabitants and its main benefactor. Forced as a child to flee the Nazis in Paris, Brouard was engaged in his latest project when he died: a museum in...

Nella sala di lettura del British Museum il professor Julius Arnell esala l’ultimo respiro. Sembrerebbe la classica morte per cause naturali. Ma quando dei confetti avvelenati vengono ritrovati nelle sue tasche, all’ispettore Shelley e al suo improbabile compagno di indagini non resterà che usare tutto il loro fiuto per scoprire l’identità del pericoloso omicida.

In un pacifico villaggio della costa della Cornovaglia, un magistrato viene ucciso con una pallottola in testa. Nessun indizio, una sola sospettata, la nipote del morto. Ma in aiuto della polizia giunge il più sorprendente degli investigatori... Il reverendo Dodd, vicario di Boscawen, tranquillo villaggio sulla costa della Cornovaglia, trascorre le sue serate leggendo storie poliziesche davanti al focolare – ma non sia mai che anche solo l’ombra di un vero crimine possa venire a turbare la serena routine della sua parrocchia sul mare!

Two skeletons are discovered in the grounds of St Mary's Choir School. This was not a centuries-old Christian burial. They are wearing modern-day clothes, and there is evidence of foul play. Consecrated land has been sadistically violated.

Detective Inspector Gilbert Markham is a rising talent of the Bromgrove police force. He is on the trail of the murderer when another life is brutally claimed. Who is the savage killer lurking in this innocent place?

"A pitch-perfect blend of the best of the old and the best of the new--all the traditional strengths and charms are here, with a fresh and relevant twenty first-century edge. I loved it."--Lee Child A taut and ambitious police procedural debut introducing Detective Sergeant Adam Tyler, a cold...

"Firewatching and Nighthawking are comparable with the best of Michael Connelly’s Bosch books and James Lee Burke’s Robicheaux novels, and – naturally – Ian Rankin; but there’s an elegiac quality here that reminds me of Kate Atkinson’s Jackson Brodie titles and the Dublin Murder...

A woman is slaughtered in vicious attack, and left in an abandoned building, handcuffed to a chair. Invited by a former colleague to join a new team in the South of England, DCI Jon Pilgrim takes on the case of the murdered young woman. Partnered with the captivating DS Kate O’Connell, they hunt for the killer. Jon must deal with gang bosses, jealous partners, and come to terms with his own tragic past to find the killer before the death toll rises. But as things escalate, Jon fears the past is about to repeat itself, and tear him apart.