Congratulations to Amy Licence, whose absorbing Tudor saga, False Mistress, is out now!
False Mistress is the third book in the Marwood Family Tudor Saga Series.
1528
Thomasin Marwood is one of Queen Catherine’s ladies-in-waiting at the court of Henry VIII, and she does not trust Lady Anne Boleyn.
But when an accident forces Thomasin and her family to take refuge at the Boleyn family home at Hever Castle, Thomasin is entrusted with an unexpected mission by Anne’s mother.
At court, Catherine’s attempts to regain the attentions of her husband are rebuffed, with his sights clearly set on a new queen.
And with Thomasin’s own heart in turmoil with the reappearance of a former love, she struggles to find a way to fulfil her obligation to Lady Boleyn without betraying Queen Catherine.
In despair, Catherine’s allies launch a desperate plot to distract the king. A false mistress is chosen from among her circle, to draw Henry away from Anne and lead her back to the Queen.
It is a dangerous task, to beguile the king into bed and incur Anne’s wrath. Not every woman could do it.
Will Thomasin find herself caught up in the plot? Can she retain her position at court?
Or will she be forced to change her allegiances…?
Congratulations to Daniel Colter, whose absorbing historical adventure, Fortress of Crows, is out now!
Fortress of Crows is the second book in the Knights Templar Thriller series: action-packed, Crusader military novels set during the Medieval era.
The Judean Desert, 1186
Finn of Struan, a Templar knight, has orders to find the Copper Scroll, a relic describing where priceless treasures from Solomon’s Temple were hidden away.
He is also charged with protecting a relic hunter, one who procures religious relics, as she unravels the tangled web of clues held in the ancient text.
But rival relic hunters also hunt the scroll. And their leader, Le Scélérat, the Evildoer, will stop at nothing to get it.
Greed rules the hearts of many, turns friend against friend, and Finn’s quest soon becomes a bloody fight filled with deceit and death.
Will he and his loyal Brothers survive murderous enemies? Can Finn complete his quest? Or will Templar bones rot in the bleak wastes of the Judean?
Congratulations to Neil Denby, whose Roman military adventure, Decanus, is out now!
Decanus is the second book in the Quintus Roman Thrillers series.
Julius Quintus Quirinius and his cohort sail to the mysterious land of Britannia. They have been sent on a mission to scout out the savage country and battle the local tribesman to pave the way for their emperor.
But before they can land, a violent storm scatters their ships, separating Quintus, newly promoted to Decanus, from some of his comrades. In seeking them, he encounters Britons who may be friend or foe.
Betrayal is in the air when he discovers the missing legionaries have been captured by a local tribe. And the tribesmen are not willing to release the Romans alive.
Quintus is prepared to rescue his men or die in the attempt. His oath demands it. But can the legionary training of the Roman soldiers defeat the fierce foreign tribesmen?
Or will Quintus’ first foreign mission be his last?
Congratulations to Graham Brack, whose darkly humorous murder mystery, Murder in Maastricht, is published today!
Murder in Maastricht is the seventh historical murder investigation in the Master Mercurius Mystery series: atmospheric crime thrillers set in seventeenth-century Europe.
1686, The Netherlands
After getting Master Mercurius jailed and nearly put to death with one of his schemes, the Stadhouder, William of Orange, has finally left Mercurius in peace.
But Mercurius is not able to remain in Leiden for long. A friendly debate on the sin of witchcraft has been proposed between the University of Leiden and the University of Leuven. And the scholars are to meet part-way in the city of Maastricht.
When researching the local witch trials from 70 years ago, Mercurius comes across astonishing charges that could not possibly be true.
But the opposing side brings forth a witch-finder as a witness who is adamant that the women he charges bear the signs of the devil.
Before the debate can continue, the witch-finder is found brutally murdered. His body was left inside the library, locked from the inside with no other available exit.
Could this be the work of Satan? His wrath provoked by the investigation into local witch trials?
Or is the culprit someone grounded much more in reality…?
Congratulations to Jane Cable, whose captivating time-shift romance, The Lost Heir, is published today!
The Lost Heir is the second book in the Cornish Echoes Dual Timeline Mystery series.
Cornwall, 2020
Teacher Carla Burgess is using her time in solitude to revaluate her life. She loves living on the beautiful Cornish coast, but she no longer enjoys her job, and it’s certainly time to kick her on-off boyfriend, Kitto, into touch.
With lockdowns forcing her to spend most of her days indoors at her parents’ family farm, she joins her father in researching their family history, and she discovers the first Burgess to farm Koll Hendra was actually a smuggler. And when Carla finds a locked Georgian tea caddy in the barn, the secrets of the past start to encroach on the present…
Cornwall, 1810
Harriet Lemon’s position as companion to Lady Frances Basset has been the ideal cover for their clandestine romantic relationship. But when Frances is raped and falls pregnant, their perfect happiness is shattered. The lovers are desperate to remain together, but they will need to conceal Frances’s baby.
They hope to hide the pregnancy and place the baby with adoptive family, but the only person who may be able to help them is Frances’s childhood friend, William Burgess, a notorious smuggler. William has secrets of his own he needs to protect. Will he be willing to risk his own neck for the sake of the two lovers?
Congratulations to D. R. Bailey, whose page-turning World War II adventure, A Fool’s Errand, is published today!
A Fool’s Errand is the second book in the Spitfire Mavericks Thrillers series: action-packed aviation adventures set during the second world war and featuring a team of vigilante pilots.
1941
The Battle of Britain is over, and RAF Fighter Command turns its attention to France.
Flying Officer Angus Mackennelly and the rest of ‘Maverick’ Squadron 696 are engaged in tactics to lure the Luftwaffe into battle.
But Angus has grave misgivings about the orders he has been given, which are justified when he loses a brand-new pilot on their first incursion.
And the squadron is dealt another blow when one of their pilot officers is discovered dead in the hangar.
The inquest rules the death a suicide, but Angus is certain something more sinister has happened.
In between bouts of furious dogfights in the skies, Angus and his good friend Flying Officer Tomas Jezek work tirelessly to investigate the murder.
While they risk their lives fighting a deadly foe, could the real threat be coming from an enemy within? Are the Spitfire Mavericks being targeted by someone who is supposed to be on their side…?
Congratulations to David Field, whose thrilling maritime adventure, Beyond The Setting Sun, is published today!
Beyond The Setting Sun is the second Tudor novel in The New World Nautical Saga Series – historical adventures set during the reign of Elizabeth I and beyond.
England, 1580
Walter Raleigh dreams of the unknown lands that lie over the distant western horizon. He had grown up believing that if you journey too far you risk falling off the side of the earth. But now, intrepid mariners are telling stories of new lands, blessed with limitless riches that await those bold enough to claim them.
Raleigh’s patron, Queen Elizabeth is easily seduced by the prospect of amassing a great fortune for her war chest and agrees to finance his quest.
But the seas are unpredictable, and when his first attempt fails, he fears his adventuring days may be over.
Weaving tales of the legendary land of El Dorado, city of gold, Raleigh successfully persuades Elizabeth to grant him a charter to explore a passage through the Americas to the South Seas.
And this time, he successfully sets up a colony in the New World.
Virginia is born, in honour of the great monarch who sanctioned its creation.
But what dangers are waiting the intrepid settlers? Will they find themselves in a new heaven – or a fresh Hell?
Congratulations to Laura Martin, whose absorbing Regency mystery, Last Impressions, is out now!
1796, Hampshire, England
After having her heart broken by the man she thought she was going to marry, Jane Austen is in desperate need of a distraction. So her sister, Cassandra, accepts every social invitation going, and one of them is to stay with a family friend at Melmont Hall.
Mrs Paulson welcomes them to her home and introduces them to the other guests who have arrived for a dinner party. But when they sit down to eat, Mr Paulson is nowhere to be found.
After discovering his study is locked, the guests break in and find a shocking scene. Mr Paulson is dead – and not of natural causes. Someone has stabbed him.
Jane has already helped solve one murder mystery and she is determined to put her skills to use to help her hostess get justice for her husband.
Everyone at the dinner party must be questioned as a suspect, as well as the servants at Melmont Hall.
But what had Mr Paulson done to provoke such anger? Why would someone want to kill him? Can Jane Austen use her quick wit to unmask the killer?
Congratulations to Natalie Kleinman, whose captivating Regency romance, Some Day My Prince Will Come, is published today!
England, 1819
Having suffered at the hands of an unscrupulous suitor during her first season in London, twenty-one-year-old Rebecca Ware has vowed to leave her ordeal in the past and is now embarking on her second season.
Though she is wary of opening her heart, Rebecca soon finds herself drawn to Comte Hugo du Berge, a handsome French nobleman who has recently arrived in London.
As the season progresses and Rebecca and Hugo find themselves thrown into closer proximity, their warm and easy friendship deepens.
However, with a long-buried family mystery to unravel, it seems that Hugo is not in a position to settle down. And when he prepares to return to France in search of answers, Rebecca begins to worry that she has lost her heart to a man she may never see again…
Congratulations to Adele Jordan, whose captivating espionage adventure, The Traitor Queen, is out now!
The Traitor Queen is the fifth book in the Kit Scarlett Tudor Mysteries Series.
1586
Female espionage agent, Kit Scarlett is stationed at Chartley Castle, where Mary Stuart, Queen of Scots, is under house arrest for plotting against the English Queen Elizabeth.
Kit helps Sir Francis Walsingham’s top codebreaker, Thomas Phelippes, as they intercept Mary Stuart’s communications with her conspiring supporters.
And when they have the proof that Mary Stuart has sanctioned Queen Elizabeth’s assassination, Kit races to deliver the message to Walsingham.
But before they can persuade Queen Elizabeth to sign Mary Stuart’s death warrant, the Scottish queen escapes.
And as Kit delves deeper into her mission, she finally discovers answers about her own past that shock her to her core.
With Queen Elizabeth’s life now in imminent jeopardy, can Kit find Mary Stuart and bring her to justice?
Even if Kit achieves her task, will she find the London she returns to is no longer the home she once thought it was…?
Congratulations to Linda Stratmann, whose atmospheric historical mystery, Sherlock Holmes and the Legend of the Great Auk, is published today!
Sherlock Holmes and the Legend of the Great Auk is the fifth Victorian crime thriller in the Early Casebook of Sherlock Holmes series.
London, 1877
The unveiling of a new specimen of the extinct Great Auk leads to accusations of fraud against the British Museum and a ferocious attack on the exhibit by ornithologist Charles Smith.
Sherlock Holmes is tasked with saving the reputation of the museum, but before long, Smith is found murdered.
Police think it was a random robbery gone wrong but when Holmes examines the crime scene, he is sure there is more to it.
Aided by his loyal friend Mr Stamford, Holmes is determined to discover if the museum has something to hide.
Is there more to the legend of the Great Auk? Why has this exhibit attracted so much controversy?
Could more lives be in danger…?
Congratulations to Daniel Colter, whose gripping historical adventure, Brotherhood of Wolves, is published today!
Brotherhood of Wolves is the first instalment of Knights Templar Thrillers series: action-packed Crusader novels set during the Medieval era.
Jerusalem, 1177
The Holy City is in Christian hands and the Sultan Saladin has vowed to retake her, whatever the cost.
Two faiths are warring over sacred ground. It is within this feverish hotbed that Finn of Struan, a young knight dedicated to the Templars, is stationed.
Finn’s world unravels when his mentor, Robert of Saint Albans, murders a brother in cold blood. Worse, Robert joins the Devil himself — Saladin.
The foul deeds stain the Templar name and Finn is tasked with killing Robert, a man with a mind sharper than any sword.
But as Finn slips into enemy territory, he finds the hunter has become the prey…
As Templar fights Templar for control of the Holy City, can Finn avenge his dead comrade? Will the Brotherhood prevail?
Or will Saladin’s army emerge victorious?
Congratulations to David Field, whose gripping nautical adventure, Pirates and Patriots, is out now!
Pirates and Patriots is the first novel in The New World Nautical Saga Series: historical adventures set during the reign of Elizabeth I and beyond.
England, 1554
Fifteen-year-old Francis Drake is realising his dream of sailing on the open seas. After training with his cousins William and John Hawkins in their naval business, he takes his first commission upon the Bonaventure.
But when disaster strikes the ship and Francis saves the men with his quick-thinking, he makes an enemy of the captain, who threatens to charge Francis with mutiny.
Francis must seek a new path to make his fortune and he joins with the Hawkins brothers to search for glory in foreign lands.
But trading on the world stage is already being dominated by Spanish and Portuguese explorers and so Francis must act quickly if he wishes to make his mark.
And as one Tudor queen makes way for another, and Spanish relations grow ever tenser, Francis Drake may soon be needed to help save his country from the threat of war…
Congratulations to C. P. Giuliani, whose absorbing espionage adventure, Death in Rheims, is published today!
Death in Rheims is the third book in the Tom Walsingham Mysteries series: spy thrillers set during the Elizabethan era in Tudor Europe.
France, 1585
Tom Walsingham has been sent to France by his spymaster cousin, Sir Francis.
One of Sir Francis’s French informers has recently died in suspicious circumstances and Tom has been dispatched to investigate the death.
The dead man’s daughter is sure her father’s death was quite natural – but this doesn’t mean there aren’t strange circumstances surrounding it.
The informer lived in Rheims, close to a local English college where Catholic exiles are known to train for forbidden priesthood, and Sir Francis’s current plant at the college – a fiery young poet named Kit Marley – claims at least one of the young men has been murdered.
With yet another bout of civil war looming over France, and everyone pursuing their own agenda, Tom has his work cut for him, with plenty of aliases, betrayals and lies to disentangle.
And with relations still tense between the French and English, he must be careful not to betray his true identity and end up as the next victim…
Was the English informer targeted? Is there a serial killer at large?
And can Tom prevent any more deaths in Rheims…?
Congratulations to Abraham Kawa, whose heart-pounding murder mystery, The Red Death, is published today!
The Red Death is the second police procedural crime novel in the Bates and Briant Investigations series — gritty, hard-boiled thrillers set in 1960s and 1970s London and Europe.
Rome, 1970
After a disturbing murder case left DI Chris Bates’ mental health shattered, he spent time recovering in an asylum before being released to a halfway house.
He receives a photo of police photographer Helen Briant in Rome along with a message to join him there, with a hint she’s in trouble. With nothing tying him to home, Chris decides to go.
In Rome, he discovers Helen in a desperate situation. She is caught in a web of blackmail, threats and violence.
And when some of those threatening her are murdered, Helen is hauled in for questioning.
Keen to clear Helen’s name, Chris is determined to get to the bottom of the mystery. But the further he delves into it, the more complicated it becomes.
And when more victims are found, the stakes become even higher…
Congratulations to D. R. Bailey, whose gripping military adventure, Dawn of Hope, is out now!
Dawn of Hope is the first book in the Spitfire Mavericks Thrillers series: action-packed aviation adventures set during the Second World War and featuring a team of vigilante pilots.
1940, England
After a series of run-ins with his superiors, Flying Officer Angus Mackennelly is posted to Squadron 696 – the Maverick unit full of misfits and outsiders.
Angus has just returned from gunning down enemy aircraft when he is given a shocking top-secret mission.
A spy is in their midst, feeding information to the Germans, and Angus is tasked with exposing him.
MI6 pin their suspicions on one of the squadron’s foreign pilots, but Angus is not convinced. He needs to get closer to the men in his unit to try and unravel their secrets.
As the fight in the skies intensifies, it is clear the Germans are anticipating their every move, putting the lives of the pilots in the Maverick squadron at a deadly risk.
Can Angus unmask the traitor? Will he save the men in his squadron?
Or will the enemy remain one step ahead…?
Congratulations to Natalie Kleinman, whose enchanting Regency romance, The Wishing Well, is published today!
England 1818
Ever since the deaths of her fiancé and her father, Harriet Lambert has thrown herself into the management of her family’s estate to cope with her grief. Though time has eased her sorrow, she has had little opportunity to once again pursue romance.
But when she is called on to accompany her younger sister, Amabel, to London for her introduction into respectable society, Harriet finds herself caught in a flurry of social engagements. And when she meets Major Brew Ware at a soirée, the two form an immediate connection.
Having experienced tragedy at an early age, Brew understands the significance of Harriet’s loss. With their shared interests and honest approach, their friendship continues to flourish as the season wears on.
Though no man has turned her head since she lost her fiancé, Harriet is aware that her affection for Brew is growing stronger. And as she tentatively considers her future, she must now decide whether she is prepared to take another chance on love…
Congratulations to Laura Martin, whose gripping historical murder mystery, Death of a Lady, is published today!
Death of a Lady is first book in the Jane Austen Investigation series: thrilling Regency-era murder mysteries with a tenacious literary heroine working as a female sleuth.
1795, Hampshire, England
Jane Austen and her family are delighted to be attending Lord Wentworth’s ball. The event has been at the centre of village gossip after it was announced Wentworth was holding a ball to celebrate the return of his brother, who went missing in India many years earlier and had been declared dead.
At the ball an old friend, Emma Roscoe, bumps into Jane and tells her she saw something she shouldn’t have. She asks Jane to meet her at ten o’clock in the library to discuss it.
Delayed by dancing with the charming Mr Tom Lefroy, Jane is late to meet to her friend.
But when she arrives, she finds the body of Emma Roscoe lying on the floor with a dagger sticking out of her chest.
Distraught and feeling horribly guilty, Jane is determined to help with the investigation into Emma’s murder.
Was it a coincidence that the murder happened on the night of Lord Wentworth’s brother being reintroduced to society? What did Emma see that was worth killing her over?
And could more people be in danger?
With the help of her sister Cassandra, Jane must use her wit and intelligence to get to the heart of the mystery.
Congratulations to Patrick Larsimont, whose thrilling World War II adventure, The Raiders and the Cross, is out now!
The Raiders and the Cross is the second book in the Jox McNabb Aviation Thrillers series: action-packed, authentic historical adventures following a young RAF pilot during the Second World War.
Winter, 1940
Enemy raiders are bombing Britain’s cities relentlessly. Casualties are high and morale is at an all-time low.
Jox McNabb and the rest of No.111 Squadron train to become night fighters to take on the raiders inflicting such carnage on Britain’s cities.
But then tragedy strikes and Jox is devastated by the loss of those close to him.
Scarred physically and emotionally, he recovers slowly. Seeking a fresh start, he volunteers to serve in the turbulent skies of besieged Malta.
But this new location quickly becomes just as dangerous as the last.
Can Jox forget the tragedy that haunts him? Will he survive the murderous assault of the Luftwaffe?
And can a desperate Malta withstand the relentless onslaught?
Congratulations to Richard Kurti, whose thrilling Renaissance murder mystery, Palette of Blood, is out now!
Palette of Blood is the second book in the Basilica Diaries Medieval Mysteries: historical thrillers set in fifteenth-century Rome and featuring a brother and sister investigative duo.
1503, Rome
Power has shifted among the great families, and a new Pope has been elected.
Julius II is determined to cement his place in history by redesigning the magnificent St Peter’s Basilica and he issues a challenge to the leading artists to submit their designs.
Aware that there are rich pickings to be had from such an ambitious project, Rome’s most powerful families each back different artists, hoping to get a monopoly on valuable building contracts.
But before a winner is picked, a shocking murder disrupts proceedings.
Prominent lawyer Antonio Ricardo is found brutally dismembered next to a magnificent work of art he commissioned.
And the killings don’t stop there…
Is one of the famously ruthless families behind the killings? Could it all be a dark campaign to scare off the rival bids?
Head of Security at the Vatican, Domenico Falchoni and his astute sister Cristina are determined to get to the bottom of the mystery.
But with the reputations of the most powerful families at stake, can they stop the deaths without putting their own lives on the line…?
Congratulations to Michael Fowler, whose fast-paced thriller, House of Death, is published today!
House of Death is the third crime novel in the Dr Hamlet Mottrell Investigations series: dark, gritty murder cases investigated by a forensic psychologist.
Forensic psychologist turned detective Dr Hamlet Mottrell and his crime-fighting partner Detective Sergeant Alix Rainbow have found themselves in hot water.
The serial murderer, The Wedding Killer, who they put in custody is pleading his innocence, alleging he has been framed by the two detectives.
And a series of letters, claiming to be from the real killer, back up his accusation.
Under the spotlight for mishandling the investigation, Hamlet and Alix are sent home on gardening leave while another force conducts a scrutiny of their investigation.
The pair are told not to interfere. But that is one order they must disobey.
Determined to discover the truth, they go against the rules, secretly embarking on a behind-the-scenes enquiry to discover who the Wedding Killer is, and they soon discover the disappearance of two women who might be linked.
The quest to discover who is behind their vanishing quickly becomes a dangerous exercise, putting not only Hamlet and Alix’s careers in jeopardy but also their lives…
Did they put the right killer behind bars? Can they clear their names?
Or will the two detectives end up as victims…?
Congratulations to David Field, whose absorbing historical saga, The Conscience of a King, is published today!
The Conscience of a King is the final instalment of The Medieval Saga Series – thrilling action-packed adventures set during and after the Norman Conquest.
England, 1229
After fighting in the Albigensian Crusade in France, Simon de Montfort – a landless nobleman – arrives at the court of Henry III, hoping to re-establish his family’s claim to the Earldom of Leicester.
In pursuit of his goal, Simon soon proves his value to Henry as a military leader and political advisor, becoming one of the king’s most trusted men.
But discontent is building within the English court. Frustrated by the king’s preference for foreign nobles and his extortionate taxes to fund wars abroad, the leading barons are constantly on the edge of rebellion.
As a man with a strong sense of justice, Simon is dismayed by Henry’s treatment of the common people and the corruptibility of the English legal system. And as the barons’ anger seems set to boil over into armed conflict, Simon must search his conscience and decide how far he is willing to go to bring about reform…
Can Simon restore his family’s fortunes? Can he help lead England into a new golden age while retaining the king’s favour?
Or will his principles cost him his life…?
Congratulations to Adele Jordan, whose gripping espionage adventure, The Lost Highlander, is out now!
The Lost Highlander is the fourth book in the Kit Scarlett Tudor Mysteries Series.
1586, London
Covert espionage agent, Kit Scarlett, is once again tasked with defending Queen Elizabeth against an assassination attempt.
With the attacks on the queen’s life mounting, Kit and spymaster Sir Francis Walsingham know they need to find a firm link between these deadly plots and Mary Queen of Scots.
But Kit is also keen to investigate a more personal matter. Her espionage partner, Iohmar Blackwood, did not return from his last mission set by Walsingham and has not been seen for a year.
When Kit is given a task by Queen Elizabeth to deliver a letter to Mary Queen of Scots, a letter not to be read by officials or any political figure, she takes advantage of the opportunity search for Iomhar and find out what happened to him.
But she soon finds herself trailed by Mary Stuart’s supporters and her journey becomes fraught with danger.
Can Kit complete her mission? Will she find out what happened to Iohmar?
Or will she become a victim in the fight to overthrow the queen of England…?
Congratulations to Neil Denby, whose action-packed military adventure, Legionary, is out now! Legionary is the first book in the Quintus Roman Thrillers series.
17 BC
Julius Quintus Quirinius, like many citizens in the years after Rome’s civil wars, must volunteer with the Roman army or be sold into slavery.
Keen to prove his worth, he becomes a member of the IXth Legion, but after only six months his cohort suffer a brutal defeat, the result of stupidity and cowardice.
Cowardice in a legionary carries a heavy punishment: the sentence of decimation – to live or die at the whim of the gods with the unlucky ones clubbed to death by their fellow soldiers.
Ursus, the man killed in Quintus’ group, lays a heavy charge on the youth, asking him to look after the remaining men and to take care of his family back in Rome.
Keen to fulfil Ursus’ last wishes, Quintus helps lead his cohort south to defeat the tribesmen skulking in the mountains in the hope that the IXth legion’s reputation will be restored.
But if they win the fight, their reward may not be the prize they had hoped for… And it soon seems as if returning to Rome is further out of reach than ever…
Congratulations to C V Chauhan, whose gritty urban thriller, Shattered Dreams, is published today! Shattered Dreams is the second book in the Inspector Sharma series.
When a body is found in Charnwood Forest in Leicestershire, Detective Inspector Rohan Sharma is called to the scene.
But before he can get there, a young woman arrives on his doorstep, saying she is scared for her life and asking for his help.
Before he can take down her details, she runs away.
And when Sharma reaches the crime scene, what he finds leaves him bewildered.
The prone body lying on the ground is of a man in full diving gear. He looks to have been dead for a while, but there is no obvious cause of death.
And before long, a second body is discovered, this time in the local river. It is a naked woman, with her head and hands missing.
Her build is similar to that of the mysterious woman on Sharma’s doorstep. But there is nothing to identify her.
Are the two deaths connected? Can Sharma and his team discover the identities of the two victims?
Or could they be about to unravel something even more disturbing…?
We are thrilled to be celebrating five years in business this month and we are incredibly grateful to all the writers, agents and literary estate holders who have helped us bring to market such a vibrant and diverse list of books.
Since launching Sapere Books in March 2018, our list has grown to include over six-hundred books by over one hundred authors. We have sold over 3 million books to date with 500 million pages read through Amazon’s Kindle Unlimited program.
In 2019, we employed our first full-time staff member, Natalie Linh Bolderston, who now holds the title of Assistant Editor, and in 2020, Matilda Richards and Helen Jennings both also joined our editorial team. They have all been essential to our ongoing success and we are over the moon that they are continuing the journey with us as we celebrate our first big milestone.
In 2020, we launched our non-fiction list, which includes classic works by authors such as E R Chamberlin, Sir Peter Gretton and John Bowle. And we are now pleased to announce that we are also hiring another staff member to help look after our burgeoning military history and military fiction list.
Since launching, we have focussed primarily on fiction, particularly historical fiction and crime fiction, and in 2021 we created our first historical writing contest, asking for entrants to submit a series outline loosely based on briefs we set. The response was so strong that as well as signing up five prize-winners we also signed ten more authors from the shortlisted entries.
We have always been keen to foster a community among our authors. In 2020, to combat some of the isolation due to the pandemic, we started running weekly Zooms for our authors to join and chat about their writing. These have become a valuable part of our ethos and we want to continue to make our authors feel welcomed, valued and part of the Sapere Books family.
We are also proud to announce that we have been certified Carbon Neutral since 2021 and we have created our own Sapere Books forest, planting a tree for every author that we work with.
We look forward to continuing to build strong relationships within the writing community and to publishing more brilliant genre fiction to capture the imagination of readers. Thank you again to everyone who has supported us and we hope you continue to love our books!
Amy, Richard and Caoimhe
Testimonials from four of the authors who launched with us in 2018:
David Field, author of the Medieval Saga series, the Tudor Saga series and many more
By one of life’s happy coincidences, I came across Amy Durant just when the publisher that had commissioned my first historical novel series decided to close down. Five years later I’ve published over twenty historical novels with Sapere, with ten more waiting to go.
When you become a member of the Sapere family, you’re all set for a rewarding writing career. If the quality’s right, you know that your latest ‘baby’ will be assured of a good home. They provide great editing, superb covers, expert marketing, regular royalty payments and guaranteed replies to your emails. Sapere authors have indeed been smiled upon by the patron saint of aspiring writers.
Keith Moray, author of the Inspector Torquil McKinnon series
Being published by Sapere Books has been a revelation for me as a writer. From the very first moment that Isabel Atherton, my agent at Creative Authors, arranged a chat with Amy Durant it has been a fabulous experience. Over the past five years, I have seen my backlist of fiction published along with five new novels, and I have three more under contract. Every aspect of book production from editing, cover design, publicity and marketing has been handled with flair and efficiency. On top of that, communication could not be easier or quicker, and Sapere Books have created a friendly atmosphere among all of the authors that makes me feel pleased to be part of the Sapere Books family. I could not be happier than I have been with Sapere Books, who are in my opinion without parallel in the publishing industry.
Linda Stratmann, author of The Early Casebook of Sherlock Holmes and the Mina Scarletti Mysteries
Becoming a Sapere Books author is like joining a warm and welcoming family, dedicated to providing the best for authors and readers. An experienced and hardworking team offers a soundly professional service, always on hand for support and advice. The last five years has seen Sapere grow and flourish, but never losing that personal touch.
Elizabeth Bailey, author of the Lady Fan Mystery series
Working with Sapere has been the most enjoyable and rewarding publishing experience in all my thirty-odd years as an author. That my career is flourishing is testament to the care and attention given to every book. Authors are encouraged to interact and support each other, which makes me feel part of a family, parented by the nurturing and talented Sapere team. Long may they reign! Oh, and we all love our covers!
Congratulations to Ros Rendle, whose moving contemporary romance, Finding Happiness, is published today!
Finding Happiness is the third book in the Moondreams House Romance series.
Having lost her husband in a motorbike accident, forty-six-year-old Angela Ross has decided to start afresh in the small village of Waterthorpe. Along with her daughters — sixteen-year-old Grace and twenty-five-year-old Debs — she does her best to adjust to village life, supporting herself with her writing.
But when she meets Gilles Richard — the head gardener at Moondreams House, the large local estate — Angela’s heart is once again thrown into turmoil.
Torn between her loyalty to her deceased husband and her growing attraction to the kindly gardener, she is unsure whether she is ready to pursue a new relationship. And as she and Gilles become closer, she cannot shake the feeling that he has something to hide.
As long-buried secrets begin to unravel and family conflicts come to a head, Angela’s anxiety over the future increases. And with her painful past still weighing her down, she must decide whether she is finally ready to follow her heart…
Can Angela find a way to move forward? Will she and Gilles act on their feelings?
Or will their unresolved traumas keep them apart…?
Congratulations to Linda Stratmann, whose eerie historical mystery, Sherlock Holmes and the Persian Slipper, is published today!
Sherlock Holmes and the Persian Slipper is the fourth Victorian crime thriller in the Early Casebook of Sherlock Holmes series.
London, 1877
When medical student Mr Stamford is visited by his cousin, Lily, he is disturbed by the sinister tale she relates.
Lily’s friend, Una, has recently inherited an old country house and settled down to married life in Coldwell, a small Essex village. However, Una’s letters to Lily indicate that she is alarmed by her new husband’s secretive behaviour — especially when she discovers a gun in his drawer, tucked inside a Persian slipper. Fearing for her friend’s safety, Lily asks Stamford to pay Una a visit.
To his dismay, Stamford arrives in Coldwell to find that Una’s husband, John Clark, has been found dead, lying in bed with a gunshot wound in his chest. Close examination reveals that the bullet was fired from Clark’s own gun, through the toe of the slipper.
Stamford loses no time in alerting his acquaintance, Sherlock Holmes — an artful young sleuth — hoping that he can shed some light on Clark’s death.
As Holmes and Stamford begin to probe Clark’s past, it soon becomes obvious that he had plenty to hide. And when Holmes hears of further suspicious disappearances, he starts to search for the connection between the sinister mysteries…
Congratulations to Keith Moray, whose gripping Scottish mystery, Deep and Deadly, is out now!
Deep and Deadly is the seventh crime thriller in the detective series featuring Inspector Torquil McKinnon: an action-packed police procedural full of suspense.
West Uist, Scotland
It’s an usually busy day on the remote island of West Uist. The only transport on and off the island is the local ferry, and there is uproar when it is blocked by eco-rights activists, protesting against the shooting of seals by local fishermen.
While dealing with that disturbance, the police are amused to find a celebrity has disembarked from the ferry and is causing a stir among the locals.
But just as the demonstration is peaceably dispersed and actor and singer Declan O’Neil is escorted away from the crowds, Detective Inspector Torquil McKinnon is called to investigate a dead body.
Fisherman Arran MacCondrum, owner of the farm that is being protested against, has been found dead in one of his fish pens, seemingly by suicide.
But with a spate of threatening poison-pen letters making their rounds on the island, it soon becomes clear that Arran’s death was not by his own hands.
Was Arran attacked by a protestor? Or was there an ulterior motive?
Torquil must unravel the mystery before anyone else on the island comes to harm…
Congratulations to Richard Kurti, whose absorbing historical mystery, Omens of Death, is published today! Omens of Death is the first book in the Basilica Diaries Medieval Mysteries series, set in fifteenth-century Rome.
1497, Rome
Wealthy merchant’s daughter Cristina Falchoni has a vision: to create a magnificent cathedral in the heart of Rome. Europe is in desperate need of a powerful unifying symbol, and a great basilica, built over the tomb of St Peter, will be a rallying point for Western civilisation.
With the help of her brother Domenico, as Head of Security at the Vatican, Cristina manages to persuade Pope Alexander VI to cleanse his conscience by reviving a decades old plan to construct a new basilica as a celebration of God’s greatness. Whatever bribery, corruption, lechery, or assassination lay in the Borgia Pope’s past, all would be forgiven; he could atone through stone.
But when a prominent aristocrat is found brutally murdered in a grotesque parody of the martyrdom of St Peter, Pope Alexander fears it is a divine warning, a message from God not to tamper with the revered shrine.
Realising that their dream of a glorious new cathedral is in jeopardy, Cristina and Domenico urgently start to investigate the grisly murder.
But as more ominous events torment Rome, they soon realise that whoever is behind these strange portents will stop at nothing to get their own way — even if it means killing the Pope himself.
With the Pope’s life in danger, can Cristina and Domenico uncover the truth before it’s too late? Or are they about to become the killer’s next targets?
Congratulations to David Field, whose gripping historical saga, The Road to Runnymede, is out now!
The Road to Runnymede is the sixth historical novel in The Medieval Saga Series – thrilling action-packed adventures set during and after the Norman Conquest.
England, 1199
After the death of Richard the Lionheart, his brother, John takes the English throne with the support of his mother, Eleanor of Aquitaine.
But John has a rival in the person of young Arthur, Duke of Brittany, who Richard had acknowledged as his rightful heir.
Arthur’s claim is the superior one under Angevin law, and it is backed by the majority of the nobles in Maine and Anjou, supported by King Philip II of France, who is anxious to break up the Angevin Empire.
John’s preference for foreign favourites, his heavy taxation of the English nobility to fund his military failures, his brutal reaction to opposition and his belief in his divine right to rule provoke a powerful group of barons into a rebellion.
But when John agrees to sign the Magna Carta, a fragile peace is restored.
It doesn’t take long for John to renege on his word. And the barons respond by inviting the young Prince Louis of France to invade.
In the midst of all this chaos, Earl Hugh of Flint, together with his powerful cousin Earl Ranulf of Chester, find themselves reluctantly serving a king who is destroying their country from within.
Their lives, their families and their estates are continually at risk as England turns on itself.
Who will emerge victorious? Will a new king bring stability?
Or is England doomed to once more be thrown into a period of turmoil…?
Congratulations to Tim Chant, whose page-turning nautical adventure, The War for Tripoli, is out now! The War for Tripoli is the third book in the Marcus Baxter Naval Thrillers series.
1911
Itinerant seaman Marcus Baxter has landed in Constantinople. Short of funds and lacking allegiance to any government, he is keen to sell his services to the highest bidder.
With Italy intent on capturing the Ottoman provinces of Tripolitania and Cyrenaica, it seems that war is on the horizon and fighting men will soon be in demand.
As a battle-hardened sailor, it isn’t long before Baxter is approached by Hiram Bogue, an American sea captain in league with the Committee of Union and Progress — an Ottoman revolutionary organisation.
Enticed by the amount of money on offer, Baxter agrees to train new recruits aboard the Residye, a proposed blockade runner, as well as overseeing the refit of the vessel.
With the growing threat of attack by the Italian navy, the assignment grows ever more dangerous.
And when war finally erupts, Baxter is forced to propel his inexperienced crew and ill-equipped vessel into action.
But with such a formidable enemy, will he survive long enough to claim his earnings…?
Congratulations to Elizabeth Bailey, whose fabulous historical mystery, The Vengeance Trail, is out now! The Vengeance Trail is the ninth book in the Lady Fan Mystery series.
1796, England
When Lady Ottilia Fanshawe finds herself launched into a river and fighting for her life, she becomes convinced someone pulled her under the water.
And when a dead body washes up on the riverbank, her theory becomes a certainty.
Lady Fan recognises the dead woman as someone connected to one of her past cases.
Had the woman been spying on her? Was she Lady Fan’s attacker? If so, why was she killed?
Lady Fan is desperate to unravel the mystery but her dedicated husband, Francis, is determined to keep her out of harm’s way.
She is devastated when cracks appear in her marriage, but she knows she cannot give up her sleuthing if she is to protect herself and her family.
Who is targeting her? And why? Can Lady Fan solve the mystery before everything she holds dear comes crumbling down around her…?
Congratulations to Adele Jordan, whose page-turning espionage adventure, A Spy at Hampton Court, is published today!
A Spy at Hampton Court is the third book in the Kit Scarlett Tudor Mysteries Series.
1585, London
Queen Elizabeth is gravely ill and her spymaster, Francis Walsingham, has received intelligence that there is a plot to assassinate her.
He sends his protégé Kit Scarlett and Scottish agent Iomhar Blackwood to gather information.
To their horror, they discover there is a plot to blow up Hampton Court Palace.
With Queen Elizabeth too unwell to be moved from the palace, it is imperative the plot is foiled as quickly as possible.
A search of Hampton Court is launched, with Iomhar leading the way, while Kit is given the task of guarding the queen.
Watching her queen fighting death and suspecting she has been poisoned, Kit soon realizes the threat could be within Hampton Court’s own walls…
Is there an enemy spy at the palace? Has gunpowder already been planted by an assassin? And is someone in Queen Elizabeth’s inner circle slowly poisoning her…?
Congratulations to Amy Licence, whose page-turning Tudor drama, Troubled Queen, is published today!
Troubled Queen is the second book in the Marwood Family Tudor Saga Series.
1528
Escaping from her family’s scandalous involvement with Anne Boleyn’s circle, Thomasin Marwood is beginning a new life in the service of Queen Catherine of Aragon.
Thomasin is trying to forget Rafe Danvers, the man who stole her heart and then betrayed her, and when a group of Venetians arrive at court, she is drawn to the sophisticated Nico.
But a great danger is lurking. The dreaded sweating sickness has returned, which claimed the life of Catherine’s first husband, Prince Arthur, many years ago.
Catherine and her ladies are forced to flee, and their shared isolation with King Henry brings the couple closer again.
But Anne Boleyn will not let herself be forgotten.
Thomasin finds herself torn between new friends and old loyalties as Rafe comes back into her life.
Who will win Thomasin’s heart? Will she survive the dreaded sickness?
And will Anne Boleyn become victorious in her quest for the throne?
Congratulations to Stephen Taylor, whose absorbing dual-timeline mystery, The Mystery of Rufford Abbey, is out now!
When historian Toby Wyatt receives a collection of chronicles written by Brother Roger of Hathern — a medieval monk who lived at Rufford Abbey — he is plunged into a nine-hundred-year-old mystery.
The monk tells the story of Margaret of Wellow, a fifteen-year-old girl who was accused of witchcraft after experiencing strange visions. After careful reading, Toby realises that Margaret seems to have been able to see into the future.
Back in the present day, a woman vanishes without a trace and the police are drawing a blank. Toby’s research takes a bizarre turn when he discovers a link between the woman’s disappearance and Margaret’s visions.
Faced with a seemingly impossible solution to the mystery, Toby begins to question his instincts. And as the past collides with the present, he must decide whether he can put his faith in a girl who has been dead for nine-hundred years…
Congratulations to Patrick Larsimont, whose thrilling wartime adventure, The Lightning and the Few, is published today!
The Lightning and the Few is the first book in the Jox McNabb Aviation Thrillers series: action-packed, authentic historical adventures following a RAF pilot during the second world war.
Scotland, 1939
When Jox McNabb is expelled from school he is forced to look to his future.
Inspired by the sight of a Hurricane flying over him, he becomes determined to join the RAF.
And after basic training, Jox is posted to RAF Montrose with the growing group of other recruits he has met along the way.
Battling the bleak Scottish elements and finding themselves immediately thrown in at the deep end, the lads struggle to keep up with the training.
Many are deemed unfit for service, and after tragedy strikes, Jox questions if he’s got what it takes.
Can Jox earn his wings to face Blitzkrieg and defend his country in its hour of need? Does he have the courage and skill to become one of The Few? Will he beat the odds to survive his first battle?
Congratulations to Ros Rendle, whose moving dual-timeline romance novel, Lost and Found, is out now! Lost and Found is the second book in the Moondreams House Romances series.
Having been adopted as a baby, twenty-four-year-old Natalie has started to wonder where she came from.
But when she finds out that she was abandoned in a doorway, her curiosity about her birth mother turns to hurt and anger.
Trying to forget her turmoil, Natalie throws herself into her new business venture: Tea and Sweet Dreams, a cosy teashop on the Moondreams House estate.
However, her resentment over her origins continues to simmer, putting pressure on her relationships.
With her love life hanging in the balance and her teashop requiring constant attention, Natalie soon begins to feel overwhelmed. Realising that she cannot move forward until she unravels her past, she becomes determined to find and confront the woman who left her…
Why did Natalie’s mother give her up? Will she find the answers she’s looking for? Or will her roots remain a mystery…?
Congratulations to Abraham Kawa, whose heart-pounding murder mystery, The Capricorn Murders, is published today! The Capricorn Muders is the first book in the Bates and Briant Investigations series.
London, 1969
When two dead women are discovered in a peat bog, Murder Squad DI Chris Bates is joined on the scene by police photographer Helen Briant, with whom he has a thorny relationship.
Fingerprints identify the women as Maddy Lynn, a glamour model-turned-prostitute, and Gillian Loder, long-missing daughter of former Junior Cabinet Minister Anthony Loder.
While unrelated and murdered years apart, both girls were killed in ways evocative of druidic rituals.
Intrigued by the gap between the murders, Chris starts looking at other unsolved similar cases.
And he soon discovers more potential victims who were lost young people like Gillian and Maddy.
Meanwhile, Helen has become obsessed with the case, filling her studio with photos of the victims and attempting to connect them through a visual reconstruction of their lives.
Their methods complementing each other, Bates and Briant find themselves drawn into an uneasy collaboration as they seek to unravel the mystery…
Justin Fox is the author of the Jack Pembroke Naval Thriller series: authentic British Navy war stories set during the Second World War.
I grew up around boats and the sea has always been an important part of my life and my writing. Our family spent holidays in an old house in Simon’s Town, the former Royal Navy base in South Africa, and from an early age I knocked about in anything that floats: rowing boats, sailing dinghies, windsurfers and yachts. My reading as a boy was also nautically orientated, particularly naval yarns by the likes of Douglas Reeman, Patrick O’Brian, Nicholas Monsarrat and CS Forester.
Midshipman Justin Fox, aged 17.
After leaving school, my two years of national service in the South African Defence Force were spent in the navy, based in Simon’s Town. During that period, I had six months at sea on a replica medieval caravel sailing down the Atlantic from Portugal to South Africa in a re-enactment of the voyage of Bartholomew Dias in 1487. The first book I ever wrote (never published) was the story of that voyage.
When I later joined Getaway travel magazine as a photojournalist, I volunteered for any boating assignment: sailing a brigantine around the Seychelles, a felucca down the Nile, a pirogue to Timbuktu, island-hopping by catamaran around Madagascar, taking the mail ship to St Helena Island and sailing a dhow up the Kenyan coast (which provided material for my Somali pirate novel, Whoever Fears the Sea, published by Sapere).
My Jack Pembroke series is inspired by my love of history and the sea, but I also aimed to bring to the fore a theatre of World War II that is not well known and is little written about: the fighting off the South African coast that resulted in the loss of more than 150 Allied ships.
View from Justin’s flat in Cape Town.
I live in a flat in Cape Town and my desk overlooks the city’s anchorage. Watching the ships come and go each day, I often think of the war years when thousands of vessels were routed around the Cape. When a convoy was in town, Table Bay would be crammed with more than fifty ships, all of them needing protection. In place of today’s yachts and pleasure craft puttering jauntily out of the V&A Waterfront, minesweepers and anti-submarine vessels would make their daily round of the bay.
During the war, the Cape of Good Hope became a vital strategic point on the sea route around the continent and was particularly important during the North African campaign. Once Italy entered the war in 1940, the Mediterranean became too dangerous for Allied convoys, and most were diverted around the Cape. Much preparation was needed before Nazi warships made their way to Africa’s southern tip. The Royal Navy base in Simon’s Town had to be expanded and reinforced, and a fledgling South African Navy created almost from scratch.
First came the German surface raiders, then the U-boats. They attacked within sight of the coast and near the entrance to the harbours of Cape Town and Durban. There are incredible stories of heroism and cloak-and-dagger raids around our coast. For instance, one U-boat slipped into Table Bay and its captain allowed his crew on deck to see the bright lights of Sea Point (of course, all German cities were blacked out at the time). There are many apocryphal stories that surfaced in the folklore of coastal towns, such as German sailors coming ashore and playing soccer with Nazi-sympathising locals, spies passing on information about Allied ship movements and farmers replenishing U-boats around Cape Agulhas.
Cape Town minesweepers during WWII.
Like many South African children of my generation, I had a fascination with World War II. I built model ships and aeroplanes, played war games in our suburban garden and devoured books about the great campaigns. But I was always mildly disappointed that most of the stories were about the North, and that South Africa seldom featured in the accounts.
During my time in the navy, I began to learn a little bit about the battles fought in local waters and became interested in the exploits of South Africa’s ‘little ships’. If the actions of raiders, U-boats and convoys were soon forgotten by the general public after the war, the exploits of minesweepers and anti-submarine vessels hardly received mention at all. Yet the industrious, daily patrols by these ships kept South African ports open and took the fight to the U-boat wolf packs. It is that story that forms the backdrop to the first two Jack Pembroke adventure novels, The Cape Raider and The Wolf Hunt.
Congratulations to David Field, whose gripping historical saga, The Absentee King, is published today! The Absentee King is the fifth book in the Medieval Saga series.
England, 1189
Richard the Lionheart has been crowned King of England.
But his obsession with fighting in the Third Crusade sends him off to foreign lands.
The nation is left in a perilous state, with high public offices sold off, and trusted favourites left to rule during Richard’s absence.
Richard’s dissolute and envious younger brother John feels humiliated, not least when Richard declares his four-year-old nephew Prince Arthur to be his heir, and he causes unrest throughout the nation by enforcing harsh laws designed to keep the population under his iron fist.
Chief Justice, Earl William of Repton, is ordered to investigate the possibility that John is seeking to undermine his brother Richard’s rule.
And when news reaches England that King Richard has been captured, and is being ransomed by Henry VI of Germany, William becomes convinced that John is plotting to seize the English crown.
Will Richard be released? Will he return to claim his throne?
Or will John succeed in his mission to overthrow the absentee king…?
Congratulations to Justin Fox, whose thrilling wartime adventure, The Wolf Hunt, is out now! The Wolf Hunt is the second book in the Jack Pembroke Naval Thriller series.
1941
Lieutenant Jack Pembroke has found a new home and new love at the Cape, but it will all hang in the balance with the arrival of the enemy in South African waters.
With the Mediterranean all but closed to maritime traffic, and Rommel’s forces rampaging through North Africa, this sea route is vital to supplying the Allied forces in Egypt.
But German U-boats have been sent by Admiral Donitz from their bases on the west coast of France to cripple the convoy route.
Jack is put in command of a small anti-submarine flotilla in the Royal Navy base of Simon’s Town, South Africa.
But he has very little time to train his officers and men, and prepare his ships, for the arrival of the Nazi wolf packs.
With the Cape under attack, Jack has to escort a vital convoy from Cape Town to Durban.
But with the enemy U-boats lying in wait in the storm-ravaged waters, he’ll be luck to make it out alive…
Congratulations to Adele Jordan, whose thrilling Tudor adventure, The Royal Assassin, is published today! The Royal Assassin is the second book in the Kit Scarlett Tudor Mysteries series.
1584, London
When Sir Francis Walsingham, spymaster to the Tudor Queen Elizabeth, learns of a Jesuit assassin landing on England’s shores, he’s determined to go to any lengths to protect his Protestant Queen.
His protégé, Kit Scarlett, discovers a letter revealing the name of the assassin – Gregorio Luca. Together with Scottish agent, Iomhar Blackwood, Walsingham sends them on a mission to track Luca down.
It is clear Luca is only coming with one task in mind – to kill. But is his target the English queen?
Kit and Iomhar must scour the coast, keeping an eye on the beaches and searching for priest holes to stop Luca before he gets any further.
But when Kit is attacked, they realise they are the ones in grave danger…
Why is Kit being targeted? Does Luca know they are tracking him?
And can he be stopped before he completes his deadly mission…?
Congratulations to Simon Michael, whose page-turning gangland thriller, Nothing But The Truth, is published today! Nothing But The Truth is the eighth book in the Charles Holborne Legal Thrillers series.
London, 1967
The psychopathic Kray twins rule London’s underworld, aided by their government connections, corrupt police and extreme violence.
Finally, Detective Superintendent “Nipper” Read’s taskforce has a chance to take them down.
The catch: Read needs barrister Charles Holborne to testify against them, while the Krays have evidence against him which would end his career and send him to prison.
Caught in the middle, and with his pregnant partner’s life and his career at stake, this time Charles has no choices left.
Can Charles put his past behind him once and for all? Will the Krays twins’ criminal hold over London finally be put to an end?
Or will everything come crashing down for Charles Holborne…?
Congratulations to C. P. Giuliani, whose absorbing Tudor espionage novel, A Treasonous Path, is out now!
England, 1583
Tom Walsingham is back in London, being groomed for intelligence work by his spymaster cousin, Sir Francis.
An anonymous informer has started sending letters from the French ambassador’s residence, claiming to have bribed the man’s secretary to pass on information.
The informer has discovered messages between the French and Mary, Queen of Scots, which could harm the English Queen Elizabeth.
When someone who works for the French Ambassador is killed in suspicious circumstances, Sir Francis sends Tom to investigate the matter – and to uncover the identity of the informer.
Tom must find a way into the French Ambassador’s good graces and make friends within his retinue without giving himself away.
And as the news from Scotland grow more and more alarming, it becomes imperative that Tom unveils the identity of the secret informer and exposes the intrigues at play.
Can Tom unravel the mystery and protect the Queen? Will he unmask the killer?
Or could he find himself the target of a deadly plot…?
Congratulations to J. C. Briggs, whose thrilling Dickensian adventure, The Jaggard Case, is published today!
The Jaggard Case is the tenth urban mystery in J. C. Briggs’ literary historical series, the Charles Dickens investigations, a traditional British detective series set in Victorian London.
London, 1851
With Superintendent Sam Jones away in Southampton on the trail of missing murderer Martin Jaggard, his wife, Elizabeth, enlists the help of Charles Dickens when her beloved servant, Posy, goes missing.
Meanwhile, Jones apprehends Jaggard’s mistress, Cora Davies, who is in possession of stolen jewels belonging to Jaggard’s murder victim, Sir William Pell.
But Jones is no closer to finding the man himself, so he returns to London where he believes Jaggard may be hiding.
Dickens and Jones discover that their separate cases both have links to Clerkenwell – a notorious haunt for criminals and forgers.
And when they suspect they are being followed, they realise Jaggard may be onto them.
Was Jaggard behind Posy’s abduction? Is the servant girl still alive?
Or will more victims be found dead in the mysterious Jaggard Case…?
Congratulations to Phillipa Vincent-Connolly, whose fabulous Tudor adventure, The Anne Boleyn Cypher, is out now!
The Anne Boleyn Cypher is the first book in the Timeless Falcon Dual Timeline series, a timeslip alternative history novel with a time-travelling protagonist set between the modern day and the Tudor period.
When twenty-year-old history student, Beth Wickers starts her second year of university, she has no idea that her whole world is about to be turned upside down.
Beth’s favourite lecturer gives Beth a box of books on Tudor history to borrow, and nestled among them is an ornate cypher ring with the letters ‘AB’ inscribed onto it.
When Beth tries the ring on, the unimaginable happens.
It carries her back through time to Hever Castle in 1521. And she is no longer in her professor’s office, but in the bedroom of none other than Lady Anne Boleyn.
Beth quickly becomes enchanted by Tudor England and is captivated by Anne. But she knows she can’t leave her loved ones behind forever.
Tormented by the knowledge of what will happen to Anne in the future, can Beth stop herself from intervening and rewriting history? Can she use the cypher ring to return home?
Or will Tudor life be too hard to leave behind…?
Congratulations to Keith Moray, whose gripping historical thriller, Death of a Poet, is published today!
Death of a Poet is the first book in the Ancient Egypt Mystery series.
275 BC, Alexandria
Hanufer of Crocodilopolis, newly appointed Overseer of the Police in Alexandria, is keen to prove himself worthy to both the citizens of the city and to the Pharaoh, Ptolemy Philadelphus.
When an altar is desecrated with a poem intended to insult the Pharaoh and his wife, Queen Arsinoe, Hanufer and his trusted sergeant Sabu are tasked with discovering who committed the outrage.
As the poet himself, Sotades the Obscene, was recently executed, Hanufer sets about finding out who else is familiar with his poetry.
Before long another poet is found murdered – a poem by Sotades left near the corpse as a macabre calling card.
With a growing number of murders to be investigated, Hanufer must make his mark and solve the mysteries.
But just where — and how high up — will the clues lead him?
Did Sotades really drown? Is there a serial killer on the loose in Alexandria?
And can Hanufer appease both the Pharoah and the gods?
Congratulations to Ros Rendle, whose gorgeous contemporary romance, Rhythms of the Heart, is published today! Rhythms of the Heart is the first book in the Moondreams House series.
Having been widowed for eighteen months, 39-year-old Annie Ellis is searching for a way to support herself.
When she runs into Harry Moon — an old flame from her teenage years — her life takes a direction she never expected.
Separated from his wife and now working as a concierge at Moondreams House — a large local estate — Harry understands what it is like to feel alone. As their friendship progresses, Annie confides her ambition to run a dance school. Admiring her vision, Harry encourages her to rent the ballroom of Moondreams House for her new venture.
Happy with her career path, Annie’s grief over her late husband slowly eases. Believing she is ready for romance, she begins to look for someone to share her new beginning…
Will Annie make a success of her dance school? Is love on the horizon?
Or will the pain of the past hold her back…?
Congratulations to Graham Ley, whose captivating French Revolution saga, Heir to the Manor, is out now!
Devon and Brittany, 1796
As the conflict in France rages on, the Wentworth family — Anglo-French aristocrats — must find their place in a changing world.
Staying with friends in Cornwall and Plymouth, young Amelia is widening her social circles at soirees and assemblies. Finding herself in the company of several eligible gentlemen, she begins to wonder whether romance is on the horizon.
After fighting in France, Justin has married Amelia’s friend Arabella and the two have settled down at Chittesleigh Manor, his Devonshire estate. However, Arabella still feels responsible for Amelia and vows to find a way to protect her from unscrupulous suitors.
Hailing from Brittany, Sempronie — Amelia and Justin’s mother — feels her birthplace calling her home, despite the dangers of returning. What’s more, there is a long-buried family secret that she must put right before it’s too late…
