Pickax's favorite columnist, James Qwilleran, is enjoying a brief holiday at the Nutcracker Inn in the nearby town of Black Creek - but his two Siamese, who prefer the spaciousness of their home, beg to differ. The blissful tranquility is soon interrupted by the discovery of a body floating down the creek - the body of a man who had been a guest at the inn. And a possible motive for his murder is suggested when several gold nuggets are found in his possession. Might he have been illegally prospecting for gold? If so, it seems he wasn't the only one in search of an easy fortune. And his competitor is far more determined to strike it rich...

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"Grave Mistake" is the fifth novel in this gritty, urban contemporary Liverpool mystery series featuring tough but loveable Private Eye/DJ Johnny Ace. With the help of his trusty dog, Roly, Johnny sets out to solve three cases.

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Ex-convict Shadow is drawn into a disturbing murder-solving journey across the States

When his wife, Laura, dies in a car crash, in horrific adulterous circumstances, Shadow is released early from prison. He encounters the enigmatic Mr Wednesday, who claims to be a former god and King of America. Together they embark on a strange and disturbing journey through the heart of the USA.

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`A good feel for understated humour, a nice ear for dialogue' The Times
`You'll soon be addicted' Woman and Home

Ann Granger - author of the acclaimed English village Mitchell & Markby mysteries shifts gear to the city with no problem in Risking It All, the latest outing; for young amateur sleuth, Fran Varady.

When Fran Varady is approached by Private Detective Clarence Duke, she nlistt-usts him on instinct. But she can't ignore what he has to say. Her mother, Eva, who walked out on Fran when she was only seven, has hired Clarence to find her daughter. And for good reason. Eva is dying. So Fran is reunited with the mother she hasn't seen for fifteen years, and is soon to lose again. But the biggest bombshell of all is still to come. Eva has another child -- a daughter she gave up soon after her birth -and she wants Fran to find her. It's not an easy task when her mother has sworn her to secrecy and the only clue Fran has is an out-of-date address. And matters aren't helped by the fact that slippery Clarence Duke seems intent on discovering what she's up to. But it's when he's found dead in his car outside Fran's home that the trouble really begins...

It is early 1989. In China, civil war is brewing. And archaeologist Dr Sally Parsons is about to discover a secret that could alter the course of history - if it doesn't kill her first...

Humphrey Hawksley has been a BBC correspondent specialising in Asia for over ten years and now lives in London.

`If Ian Rankin is the Robert Carlyle of Scottish crime writers, then Jardine is surely its Sean Connery' Glasgow Herald

Autographs In The Rain, Quintin Jardine's eleventh book in his bestselling crime series featuring the complex but immensely likeable policeman, Bob Skinner is published on July 5th. Thursday Legends, the last book in the series, reached No. 1 or, the Scottish bestseller list (actually ousting J K Rowling from the top slot),and was the 4th bestselling book in Scotland last year - in Scotland Quintin Jardine even outsells John Grisham.
In Scotland, the feeling has definitely been for a while that Jardine is going to be the next crime writer to break but then a couple of months ago, the Radio Times ran a cover feature on TV detectives and tipped Jardine's Skinner series as the next potential TV blockbusting franchise as well!

As Bob Skinner takes an evening stroll with a gorgeous filmstar on his arm, Surely the worst of hit worries is that back at Headquarters an ambitious new colleague is scheming to enlarge his territory at Skinner's expense. But when a frightening shotgun attack sends Skinner and his old flame Louise Banks diving for cover, it seems danger has zeroed in on him once again.
Returning to her native Scotland to shoot her latest film, Louise Banks is one of the country's most popular exports - except with-the stalker who seems determined to scare her witless - and maybe worse., For Skinner, tracking down her tormentor isn't just business now. It's very personal indeed.

Jardine began writing his series about 15 years ago when he read a really lousy book on holiday and announced to his wife that he could do better himself D.I. Skinner is Deputy Chief Constable of Police based in Edinburgh. He's a career detective, a highflyer who's already flown, and a very, very hard guy to boot. He was developed this way to differentiate him from other fictional cop 'tecs who seem invariably to be brilliant guys with problems which have held them in the middle ranks.
A former journalist, Jardine was an advisor to Ministers and Civil Servants for nine years and then moved into political PR before becoming an independent PR consultant. What he calls the "interface between Old Bill and journalism" has been useful in his writing career. "In the Scottish Office you have dealings with the Special Branch boys and in politics you meet some more.' I've been working alongside policemen all my life, so I understand how they operate".
Quintin now spends as much time as he can in his villa on the Costa Brava which is where he writes his books. "Mind you, I had problems last summer. I spent most of my time waiting for the plumber to turn up. And when he did, this nemesis of mine was called... (pausing for dramatic effect before revealing the name of his recalcitrant tradesman...) Rebus".

Detective Peter Decker's latest case.
For the Deckers, Rina and her detective husband Peter, the vandalising of their synagogue is profoundly shocking. Daubed swastikas testify to a hatred beyond understanding. But Decker soon realises this is not the work of an organised group and, before long, a 17-year-old is in custody, confessing to the mental horrors that drove his actions. Ernesto clearly needs psychiatric help though when his parents opt for a camp specialising in unorthodox wilderness therapy Decker is sceptical. Then all hope is shattered. Ernesto and the camp leader are found murdered and the leader's wife has vanished. But the apparent tragic love triangle looks quite different when Dee's body is discovered. Decker realises he has a much more complex case to handle, one that links to hate groups, revolutionary therapists and the twisted world of the ultra-rich who deny any obstacle in the way of their personal gratification - even their children...

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Doctor Eric Kensing is living in fear that he is about to be indicted for the death of a patient. That patient was his boss, Tim Markham. But Kensing and Markham aren't just connected by work - Kensing's wife is one of Markham's many lovers. It's not looking good for Kensing, so he enlists the help of lawyer Dismas Hardy. Some say Kensing is not worth saving, although others say that Kensing is a special doctor, prepared to do anything to save a patient's life, even defying proper medical procedure. Despite all the damning evidence, Hardy becomes increasingly sure that Kensing is innocent. Against mounting pressure for an arrest, Hardy knows that the only way to save Kensing is to find the real murderer. And like Kensing, he seems to be working within a system that is set up to thwart him and any attempt at real justice...

To Bath in its Georgian heyday come colourful visitors. Not the least curious is Colonel Sir James Delabole - wealthy, gouty and seeking to make amends for a disreputable past. His daughter, Caroline, has been brought up by her stern grandfather, who seems less inclined to forgive the past than Caroline herself. When flamboyant Sir James is found poisoned, Robert Fairfax, tutor and amateur sleuth, is engaged by the local magistrate to unmask the culprit. He soon discovers there is no shortage of suspects - from the handsome young officer whom the Colonel publicly befriended only to humiliate him most cruelly, to his browbeaten second wife. Investigating the mystery surrounding Sir James's death, Fairfax enters a murky world of greed, scandal and deception - and he soon finds that the elegant spa is not such a healthy place to be.

Praise for Hannah March's Mysteries:
'March has created a felicitously realised Georgian mystery, and setting a detective novel in the age of Moll Flanders is a masterstroke' The Times
'She is particularly successful in displaying the attitudes and mores of the period' Sunday Telegraph

A man's body is found by the Bosphorus. His identity card names him as Rifat Berisha, an Albanian. The family is impenetrable. When Inspector Ikmen, consults his cousin, he's left in little doubt that Berisha's death is likely to be the result of a fis, a blood feud beteen rival Albanian families.

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Ronnie Kray was one half of London's-most notorious gangster duo. He and his brother Reggie ruled the East End of the l950's, and the duo's crimes and vendettas, showdowns and rivalries, have become the stuff of legend. Just before his death in 1995, Ronnie asked childhood friend Laurie O'Leary to tell his true story, drawing on his personal collection of thousands of unpublished letters, poems and photographs amassed over the years.

In Ronnie Kray - A Man Among Men natural raconteur, Laurie O'Leary, recalls the behind-the-scenes stories of his wild ties in the Krays gang and describes the colourful characters who made up the ever changing circle of friends and enemies. He also reveals the the private side of this complex and troubled man - how he reacted to being certified insane after a nervous breakdown in. 1958, and how be coped with being a homosexual in a hard man's world.

Book editor Katie is in love with poet, Matt Harrison. He seems to share her feelings, but his refusal to talk about his past makes her suspicious. All she knows is that Matt was once married. One evening, he suddenly ends their relationship, leaving Katie devastated. A few days later, he sends her a notebook that he promises will explain everything. Katie opens the book to find it is the diary that Matt's wife, Suzanne, wrote for their baby son. It tells the story of her love for Matt and...

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The new William Monk novel from the master storyteller of Victorian society

….has a totally contemporary feel and is admirably well-written' Guardian
'Painstakingly researched and redolent of vanished moral certainties' Times
'A complex plot supported by superb storytelling' Scotland On Sunday
'Give her a good murder and a shameful murder and Anne Perry can write a Victorian mystery that would make Dickens' eyes pop out' New York Times
'Perry's narrative is as stately and elegant as a royal barge on the Thames' Washington Post

When Hester Monk's brother, Charles, suddenly arrives on her doorstep one cold October evening she is shocked. Since her marriage to Monk, Charles and his elegant wife, Imogen, have kept their distance. But now, driven to discover what has caused his wife's recent volatile behaviour, Charles seeks Hester's help. Imogen must surely be having an affair, Charles believes. But before Hester is able to renew her friendship with Imogen, a greater tragedy occurs.....

Despite Thomas Pitt's success in the Whitechapel case, the secretive Inner Circle prevent his returning to Bow Street police as Superintendent. Pitt's next task for Special Branch is to investigate Charles Voisy - the corrupt Inner Circle man Pitt defeated in court - who is standing for election as a Tory MP. Pitt must obtain information to stop Voisy's climb to political power. Then Pitt is ordered to Southampton Row, scene of the hideous murder of a spiritual medium. As the link between the spiritualist and political figures is revealed, the whispers of scandal grow louder. And with Charlotte in hiding for safety, Pitt must turn to his sister-in-law, Emily, to help him solve one of his most high-profile cases yet...

Libertus finds himself in Londinium at the invitation of the Roman Governor when news arrives of the brutal murder of Caius Monnius, the chief corn-officer. Libertus is asked to investigate but his enquiries lead him in disparate directions. Who is the guilty one? The keeper of the granaries? The sinister Calyx and Glaucus, managers of the best chariotracing team? Or Fortunatus, the handsome charioteer whose relations with the dead man's wife were reputed to be less than honourable? Not until Libertus finds a second corpse does he begin to understand what lies behind the corruption surrounding the interests of Monnius and the chariots of Calyx.

'Stallwood is in the top rank of crime writers and can produce shivers even in a heatwavel Daily Telegraph
'Stallwood delves into chilling psychology' Independent
'Stallwood's speciality is adroit plotting set in a vividly realised Oxford locale' The Times
'Irresistibly readable' Financial Times
'Stallwood deserves to much better known among British crime writers... she can combine a lightness of touch with a genuine talent for making the flesh creep' Birmingham Post
'... absolutely compelling' The Scotsman

Writer Kate Ivory has new neighbours on either side of her terraced house. On one side lives Jeremy Wells, a retiring, charming Oxford Academic. On the other live the Fosters a couple living hedonistically in retirement. They all seem perfectly respectable so when the Fosters are shot in what looks like a contract killing, it's surely a case of mistaken identity.
Then Jeremy starts behaving increasingly oddly. When he asks Kate to help him go into hiding, it's clear there's more goi.ng on than meets the eye. If Jeremy has been leading a double life then perhaps the Fosters were too. With both of her neighbours out of the picture it's up to Kat to uncover the truth.

Hairdresser Bubbles Yablonsky is determined to turn her taste for gossip into a talent for journalism, and she knows a secret that could bring her big break. But she soon discovers that some people will do anything to keep her quiet.

.She may be a hairdresser with the body of a goddess and a fatal weakness for hot pants, but Bubbles Yablonsky is not just another dumb blonde. She's determined to turn her taste for gossip into a talent for journalism, and she knows a secret about the death of Laura Buchman that could be her Big Break. Plus, she gets to work with photographer Steve Stiletto - a dead ringer for Mel Gibson, and exactly the kind of mysterious, dangerous man her mother warned her against. But Bubbles soon discovers that while brazen bravado gets results, some people will do anything to keep her quiet...

Now that the medieval Glenstal Book of Prayer is topping the bestseller charts in Ireland, read Smoke In The Wind, the latest adventure of Sister Fidelma, nun and skilled detective as she sleuths in seventh century Ireland...

Smoke In Tbe Wind is the latest adventure of Sister Fidelma, the historical detective who sleuths in seventh-century Ireland - the legendary Golden Age of saints, kings and scholars. A qualified dalaigh, or advocate of the ancient law courts of Ireland, sister to the real (historical) King of Munster, nun and skilled detective, the good sister would put Brother Cadfael to shame as she shows an uncanny talent for treading the right path amid a myriad of false trails, dead ends and pitfalls.

The seventh-century in Ireland it seems was also very much the Golden Age for women. The perceived wisdom is that women had to wait until the latter stages of the twentieth century to achieve something like parity with men. Yet, it is a little-known f act that the ancient hish Brehon laws gave more rights and protection to women than any other western law code, then or since. Women could and did aspire to all offices and professions as the co-equal with men. They could be political leaders, command their people in battle as warriors, be physicians, local magistrates, poets, artisans, lawyers andjudges.
Women were protected by law against sexual harassment, against discrimination, against rape. They had right of divorce on equal terms from their husband, had equal property rights and the right of sickness benefits when ill or hospitalised. Seen from today's perspective, Brehon Laws helped to maintain an almost ideal environment for women.
In Fideh-na's world both sexes inhabited abbeys and monastic foundations - men and women living together raising children in Christ's service. And the concept of celibacy was by no means universal; the Celtic Church took years to abandon its anticelibacy attitudes and took a liberal attitude towards sexual relationships.
Unlike the Roman Church the Irish Church didn't have a system of 'confessors' who had authority to absolve sins either. Instead, people chose a soul friend out of clerics or laity with whom they discussed matters of emotional or spiritual well-being.
Sounds Utopian? Entering the world of Sister Fidehna, we might be left feeling like Ronan Bennett who said of one of Fidehna's earlier adventures, 'I left The Spidei's Web with a sense of satisfaction at a good story well told, but also speculating on what modem life might have been like had that civilisation survived.'