British Mysteries

His Majesty’s Prison BlackRock is where Evil is sent to die. None of the killers imprisoned on the island prison, 30 miles off the coast of Scotland, will ever leave. When Scottish billionaire, social philanthropist, and prison reformer, Ethan Mackay, is murdered during a VIP visit to the island, it becomes dangerously clear that not all the murderers are behind bars. Cut off from the mainland during a ferocious winter storm, the rest of the VIP tour take refuge in the Governor’s residence and patiently wait for the storm to pass. But what secrets lurk beneath the surface? What ...

‘A man does not leave school at fourteen, make a fortune by forty and go on to become a skilful and powerful politician without ruthlessness.’ Hugh Mason was the kind of man it was very easy to hate, if you were not susceptible to his particular kind of charm. He had of necessity hurt a lot of people on his way up. Taciturn and enigmatic, his extended family did not really know him well. At a weekend gathering for his 60th birthday, it slowly becomes apparent that Hugh plans to give substantial funding and support to a new right-wing political group called the Freemen. The next morning ...

Scotland Yard Detective Superintendent Duncan Kincaid and his wife, Detective Inspector Gemma James, have been invited for a relaxing weekend in the tranquil Cotswolds, one of Britain’s most beautiful and historic regions. A centerpiece of this glorious fall getaway is a posh charity luncheon catered by up-and-coming chef Viv Holland. But a tragic car accident followed by a series of mysterious deaths could ruin her ascent. Each piece of information that surfaces makes it clear that the killer had a connection with Viv’s pub - and perhaps with Beck House itself.

Bounder: n. Old-fashioned British slang a morally reprehensible person, unscrupulous, a cad. In this latest volume of Murder Tales, H. N. Lloyd turns his attention to those killers who used charm and good manners to ensnare their victims in intricate webs of lies, deceit, broken promises, bigamous marriages all eventually leading to some of the most bloody murders in the annals of crime. Murder Tales: The Bounders, examines ten chilling true tales of murder, including: George Joseph Smith: The infamous brides in the bath murderer, whose mesmeric charm led to his drowning three wives on ...

Deborah and Simon St. James have taken a holiday in the winter landscape of Lancastershire, hoping to heal the growing rift in their marriage. But in the barren countryside awaits bleak news: The vicar of Wimslough, the man they had come to see, is dead - a victim of accidental poisoning. Unsatisfied with the inquest ruling and unsettled by the close association between the investigating constable and the woman who served the deadly meal, Simon calls in his old friend Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley. Together they uncover dark, complex relationships in this rural village.

Jaimie can’t breathe. Jaimie can’t speak. Other patients are sick. Other patients can’t help him. On his chest struts a raven who says ‘the devil is coming’. Doctors say he is delusional after weeks spent lying in the Intensive Care Unit of his local hospital, having survived Covid-19. Next night he sees the bird’s prophecy come true: someone dressed in full PPE and crow-mask attacks a young woman called Ivona in the bed opposite… When Detective Sergeant Alison Ellis arrives to search the wards, she finds no violent intruder. Surely Jaimie’s superstitious talk of crime and ...

What kind of woman would leave her husband, her children, and her home to live behind the Iron Curtain and work for the KGB? From the brilliant Oxford graduate who understands the espionage game better than her male colleagues, to the beguiling woman who uses her charm and brains to deceive everyone around her, Fiona Samson presents a complex puzzle. She is by no means alone.

The body of a missing boy is dredged from the seabed off the Sussex coast, missing vital organs. Soon after, two more bodies are found . . . A teenager in Brighton will die if she does not receive an urgent transplant. When the health system threatens to let her down her mother takes drastic action and goes to an online broker in black-market organs. The broker can provide what she wants, but it will come at a price. As Roy Grace investigates the recovered bodies, he unearths a gang of child traffickers operating from Eastern Europe.

In 1950s Dublin, Rosa Jacobs, a young history scholar, is found dead in her car. Renowned pathologist Dr. Quirke and DI St. John Strafford begin to investigate the death as a murder, but it’s the victim’s older sister Molly, an established journalist, who discovers a lead that could crack open the case. One of Rosa’s friends, it turns out, is from a powerful German family that arrived in Ireland under mysterious circumstances shortly after World War II. But as Quirke and Strafford close in, their personal lives may put the case—and everyone involved—in peril, including Quirke’s own daughter.

When famed mystery author Imelda Bywater turns up dead during her annual seaside writing retreat, recently retired police detective Mike Atwell can't resist the chance to solve one more case. Teaming up with his quirky ex-wife, Sharon, and genius teen hacker, Dexter, Mike finds himself pulled into the glitzy world of writers, agents, and obsessive fans on the hunt for Imelda's killer. Everyone's a suspect—from Imelda's cuckolded publisher husband, the kooky married writers next door, and even the arrogant guest upstairs. The list keeps growing as secrets and lies unravel.

Semi-finalist, Publisher's Weekly Booklife Prize Can a conspiracy be uncovered before the Death Count rises? Forensic accountant Kat Munro fights corporate fraud during the day and kickboxes her demons at night while trying to ignore the nightmares that have plagued her since a car accident changed her life forever. DS Adam Jackson is haunted by the mysterious disappearance of a friend two years ago. When the partner of a successful London Investment fund dies in suspicious circumstances, Kat joins forces with Adam to investigate the firm. As they gather evidence of a crime with ...

Detective Sergeant Ashley McCoy is about to face her most challenging case yet, when her own brother is accused of the callous murder of a young woman. Though desperate to prove his innocence, Ashley is prevented from investigating the case. Instead, she is sent to solve a strikingly similar murder. As she struggles with the immense pressures of work, her own personal life starts to implode when her partner abandons her. Just as things can’t seem to get any worse, a past case comes back to haunt her. Sometimes it takes the pain of the past to uncover the mysteries of the present…

Christmas with the family? Penny Küfer is quite surprised when she is invited to a fancy celebration with her estranged mother, of all people. Waldenstein Castle, the party location and home to Penny's latest stepfather, turns out to be a palace right out of a fairy tale. The assembled guests, however, seem rather eccentric, and what's more, one of them is a ruthless killer. But he hadn’t reckoned with Penny....

It seems like the answer to their prayers: a cash-in-hand residential job in a part of the country where no-one knows them – and no-one can find them.To single mother Bridget Sweeny and her daughter, Rospetroc House means sanctuary and a fresh start, with new names and new hope for the future. But the isolated manor on Bodmin Moor guards its own secrets: a history of high staff turnover and a disturbing reputation in the village. Strange things begin to happen: furniture moves by itself, Bridget hears whispers and footsteps in the empty corridors, and often has an eerie feeling that she ...

An enigmatic message from an old school friend takes Phil to Blackpool where he must walk the night-time promenade, night after night, and await a meeting and an explanation. During the dark nights of covid lockdown, however, danger lurks round every corner and, step by step, Phil is drawn into a terrifying nightmare world of conspiracy and crime where he can trust nobody, not even his one-time friend. And on that trust, and the choices he makes, many lives will depend.

Meet DCI Lesley Clarke. She’s a straight-talking city copper who doesn’t suffer fools gladly… and she’s been transferred to rural Dorset. After being injured in a bomb attack, Lesley is presented with a choice — early retirement, or a period of respite in a calmer location. But things don’t stay calm for long. Before she’s even started her new job, Lesley is dragged into investigating a murder at one of England’s most iconic landmarks, the imposing Corfe Castle.

October 1891. A stranger is discovered hanging from a tree in the Malvern Hills. Detective Inspector Ravenscroft and Constable Crabb are called in to investigate. But how can they solve the murder if no one can identify the victim? Whoever killed the man must have really wanted him dead—they strung him up and watched as he suffocated. This may be the most dangerous case Ravenscroft has ever worked. Will the Herefordshire Hangmen ever be brought to justice?

1940. It's been a month since rector's daughter Billie Harkness left her rural village to make a fresh start in the northern city of Hull. Now she has a new home and an exciting new job as one of only two female police constables in the whole city. But Hull still feels like a foreign country, and some people are less than impressed by the idea of a woman doing a "man's job". But determined to do her bit for the war effort, Billie throws herself into her work. The chance to prove her worth comes during a search for a missing air raid shelter inspector, when Billie makes a shocking discovery.

When Clara Whitlock's grandfather dies, she returns home to find that his death was less than natural. A brand new series starter from debut author, Emily Parks.In 1870's London, being a divorced is a scandalous thing for a society woman, but that’s exactly what Clara Whitlock is—after her husband leaves her. When she receives a telegram that John Whitlock, her grandfather, is ill, she immediately travels home with her reputation in tatters, only to find out that her beloved Poppa has already died. But…rumors swirl in her small circle that he may not have died from natural causes. ...

A classic English murder fiction novel set in the rural village of Peakshire during the early 1920s. Step into the mysterious world of Bellingham, a seemingly serene country village where quiet lanes and picturesque countryside hide dark secrets and twisted plots. Follow Dennis Skubal, a keen criminologist and writer, as he unravels the chilling web of deceit surrounding the sudden and brutal murder of Sir Marcus Alexander. *Dark Waters* unfolds in the hauntingly beautiful yet eerie landscape of Peakshire, where every character harbors a secret, and nothing is quite as it seems. Trouble ...