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Books > Fiction > Genre fiction > Crime & mystery > Historical mysteries
1923. Mary Russell Holmes and her husband, the retired Sherlock
Holmes, are enjoying the summer together on their Sussex estate
when they are visited by an old friend, Miss Dorothy Ruskin, an
archeologist just returned from Palestine. She leaves in their
protection an ancient manuscript which seems to hint at the
possibility that Mary Magdalene was an apostle--an artifact certain
to stir up a storm of biblical proportions in the Christian
establishment. When Ruskin is suddenly killed in a tragic accident,
Russell and Holmes find themselves on the trail of a fiendishly
clever murderer. This next installment is brimming with political
intrigue, theological arcana, and brilliant Holmesian deductions.
Cleo Sherwood disappeared eight months ago. Aside from her parents
and the two sons she left behind, no one seems to have noticed. It
isn't hard to understand why: it's 1964 and neither the police, the
public nor the papers care much when Negro women go missing. Maddie
Schwartz - recently separated from her husband, working her first
job as an assistant at the Baltimore Sun - wants one thing: a
byline. When she hears about an unidentified body that's been
pulled out of the fountain in Druid Hill Park, Maddie thinks she is
about to uncover a story that will finally get her name in print.
What she can't imagine is how much trouble she will cause by
chasing a story that no-one wants her to tell.
A Libertus Mystery of Roman Britain The marriage of a former vestal
virgin is always an important event, so the anticipated arrival of
such a bride in Glevum is the excuse for an even more lavish
banquet than usual on the Emperor's birthday feast. However, when
Audelia's covered carriage finally arrives, the lady in question is
nowhere to be found. Libertus investigates and makes a gruesome
discovery, suggesting that Druid rebels may have been involved. But
when another lady disappears, Libertus finds himself in a race
against time to ensure the safety of the vanishing vestals.
The unhappy Snokes family is entangled in a murder investigation.
Arthur Snokes is the prime suspect, and his wife is so desperate to
clear his name that she persuades a reluctant Denton to look into
the case. Digging into the family's tragic past, he finds more
trouble: a mysterious series of killings and a young boy who may
hold their solution.
THE WORD-OF-MOUTH INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER 'Born of No Woman proves
that fiction can still amaze' Le Monde 'A vivid, mesmerizing tale'
L'Express 'A choral novel radiating with black light' Elle
Nineteenth-century rural France. Before he is called to bless the
body of a woman at the nearby asylum, Father Gabriel receives a
strange, troubling confession: hidden under the woman's dress he
will find the notebooks in which she confided the abuses she
suffered and the twisted motivations behind them. And so Rose's
terrible story comes to light: sold as a teenage girl to a rich
man, hidden away in a old manor house deep in the woods and caught
in a perverse web, manipulated by those society considers her
betters. A girl whose only escape is to capture her life - in all
its devastation and hope - in the pages of her diary... Translated
from the French by Lara Vergnaud THE HIT NOVEL RECOMMENDED BY
FRENCH BOOKSELLERS: 'The most beautiful French novel of the year'
'Love at first sight for a book is rare. But this novel left me
speechless' 'Dive in: you'll come out feeling utterly alive' 'One
of the most beautiful books I've ever read' 'The best book I have
read for a long time' 'This story has something powerful, animal,
carnal and terrible too. A punch in the gut'
April, 1933. To the costermongers of London, Eddie Pettit is simply
a gentle soul with a near-magical gift for working with horses.
When he is killed in a violent accident, the costers are sceptical
about the cause of his death, and recruit Maisie Dobbs to
investigate. Maisie, who has known these men since childhood and
remembers Eddie fondly, is eager to help. But it soon becomes clear
that powerful political and financial forces are equally determined
to prevent her from learning too much about Eddie's death. As
Maisie uncovers lies and manipulation on a national scale, she must
decide whether to risk all to see justice done.
A journalist in nineteenth-century New York matches wits with a
serial killer in a gripping thriller by the prizewinning author of
the Ian Hamilton Mysteries. New York, 1880. Elizabeth van den Broek
is the only female reporter at the Herald, the city's most popular
newspaper. Then she and her bohemian friend Carlotta Ackerman find
a woman's body wrapped like a mummy in a freshly dug hole in
Central Park-the intended site of an obelisk called Cleopatra's
Needle. The macabre discovery takes Elizabeth away from the society
pages to follow an investigation into New York City's darkest
shadows. When more bodies turn up, each tied to Egyptian lore,
Elizabeth is onto a headline-making scoop more sinister than she
could have imagined. Her reporting has readers spellbound, and each
new clue implicates New York's richest and most powerful citizens.
And a serial killer is watching every headline. Now a madman with
an indecipherable motive is coming after Elizabeth and everyone she
loves. She wants a good story? She may have to die to get it.
Jack Blackjack's search for an executioner's son ensnares him in a
fiendish mesh of schemes in this lively Tudor mystery. London. May,
1556. Hal Westmecott, one of the city's most feared executioners,
reckons Jack Blackjack owes him a favour - and now he's come to
collect his dues. Hal has ordered Jack to track down his long-lost
son and, although Jack believes he's been set an impossible task,
he's in no position to refuse. But when Jack's search draws him to
the attention of a ruthless nobleman, a dead priest's vengeful
brother and finally to a bloodstained body in a filthy lodging
house, he comes to realize he is an unwitting pawn in a mesh of
schemes dreamed up by the most powerful people in England. Just who
is a friend, who is a foe - and will Jack escape with his life
intact?
"Superb. . .a fast-moving and gripping plot"- Publishers Weekly
Starred Review August, 1556. Jack Blackjack is on a simple mission:
make it back home to his beloved London. It should be simple,
right? Wrong. He's made it as far as Exeter, but before he can
secure a fresh steed in that hellish city, he's faced with a dead
priest, ruthless thieves, and a devious Dean who's determined to
see the back of Jack. That suits Jack just fine - he wants to
leave! So when wealthy merchant Wolfe, offers passage to London via
sea, Jack jumps at the chance . . . and unwittingly into further
danger! With thieves, pirates and potential murderers at every turn
who can Jack trust? Will he uncover the truth behind the dead
priest and missing merchant ships? But more importantly, will he
ever make it home to London with his purse strings and limbs
intact? Set during the brief but exceedingly troubled reign of
Queen Mary I, elder half-sister to the future Elizabeth I,
(1553-1558) the Bloody Mary series features the amoral former
cutpurse turned paid assassin, Jack Blackjack, as its cowardly,
lecherous, yet strangely likeable amateur sleuth protagonist. The
joke is always on Jack as he lurches from one crisis to the next,
never quite sure what's going on, yet always - just about -
managing to keep one step ahead of his many enemies and those who,
for whatever reason, are trying to kill him.
Stranded at a house party - when a murderer strikes! May 1861,
Victorian England. When Matthew and Harriet Rowsley are invited to
a house party at Clunston Park by Matthew's cousin, Colonel
Barrington Rowsley and his wife Lady Hortensia, Harriet is nervous
- surely the aristocratic guests will snub her? After all, they are
but mere servants in their eyes! Her fears are realized on their
first evening when the only person who deigns to speak to her is
the spiteful Grafin Weiser and confirmed when she commits a major
faux pas at the cricket match the following day. But there's no
escape! The cricket match is abandoned due to a storm, and flooding
leaves the house guests stranded. Things worsen when Grafin Weiser
is found murdered and the finger is quickly pointed at Clara, an
eleven-year-old maid, as the culprit. Convinced that she cannot be
guilty, Harriet and Matthew agree to investigate. The aristocratic
facade begins to crumble under their scrutiny, and they start to
unlock the secrets of Clunston Park. Why does the Colonel allow his
bullying friend Major Jameson so much leeway? Is there more to the
befuddled Lord Pidgeon than meets the eye? Harriet and Matthew must
uncover the truth, before they find themselves in deadly danger . .
.
A gripping thriller from the No.1 New York Times bestseller, which
sees Natalie Nevsky drawn into a web of spying and murder behind
the Iron Curtain. Perfect for fans of The Night Manager. Glamorous
Natalie Nevsky lives with her adoring husband, the Cossack. Until
he is brutally killed and she discovers that their life together
was not as it seemed. Back in Russia, he'd been playing a deadly
game of espionage in the sophisticated, dangerous world of the fur
trade - and one mistake has cost him his life. Drawn into a dark
and seedy web of spying and ruthless murder behind the Iron
Curtain, Natalie must learn to walk a tightrope of survival. And
she cannot afford to put a foot wrong.
Winner of The Bloody Scotland Crime Debut of the Year 2021
Shortlisted for the McIlvanney Prize for Scottish Crime Book of the
Year 2021 and longlisted for the HWA Debut Crown 2021 'Astounding.
Tense, absorbing and dripping with gallus Glasgow humour, this book
is absolutely wonderful' Abir Mukherjee, bestselling author of the
Wyndham & Banerjee series 'Peaky Blinders meets William
McIlvanney in this rollocking riveting read' Adrian McKinty,
bestselling author of The Chain Glasgow, 1932. When the son-in-law
of one of the city's wealthiest shipbuilders is found floating in
the River Clyde with his throat cut, it falls to Inspector Jimmy
Dreghorn to lead the murder case - despite sharing a troubled
history with the victim's widow, Isla Lockhart. From the flying
fists and flashing blades of Glasgow's gangland underworld, to the
backstabbing upper echelons of government and big business,
Dreghorn and his partner 'Bonnie' Archie McDaid will have to dig
deep into Glasgow society to find out who wanted the man dead and
why. All the while, a sadistic murderer stalks the post-war city
leaving a trail of dead bodies in their wake. As the case deepens,
will Dreghorn find the killer - or lose his own life in the
process? Edge of the Grave by Robbie Morrison is a dark historical
crime novel set in Glasgow, 1932. A city still recovering from the
Great War; split by religious division and swarming with razor
gangs. For fans of William McIlvanney's Laidlaw, Denise Mina and
Philip Kerr. 'A magnificent and enthralling portrait of a dark and
dangerous city . . . Chilling and brutal, but also deeply moving
and, most importantly, beautifully written' - Mark Billingham
May 1898. A new client arrives at Baker Street - Abigail Moone, a
wealthy, independent writer of successful mystery stories under a
male pseudonym. She presents an unusual problem. Abigail claims
that she devised a man's death that was reported in that morning's
newspaper: that is, she planned his murder as an event to be
included in one of her mystery stories. Following real people and
imagining how she might murder them and get away with it is how
Abigail comes up with her plots, but this "victim" has actually
died, apparently of the poison method she meticulously planned in
her notebook. Someone is trying to frame Abigail for his death, but
with the evidence stacking up against her, she turns to Holmes to
prove her innocence.
No one can talk to the dead . . . can they? Free man of color
Benjamin January gets caught up in a strange, spiritual world that
might lead to his own demise, as he hunts for a missing teenager in
this gripping, atmospheric historical mystery. New Orleans, 1840.
Freshly home from a dangerous journey, that last thing Benjamin
January wants to do is leave his wife and young sons again. But
when old friends Henri and Chloe Viellard ask for his help tracking
down a missing girl in distant New York, he can't say no. Three
weeks ago, seventeen-year-old Eve Russell boarded a steam-boat -
and never got off it. Mrs Russell is adamant Eve's been kidnapped,
but how could someone remove a teenager from a crowded deck in
broad daylight? And why would anyone target Eve? The answer lies in
New York, a hotbed of new religions and beliefs, of human circuses
and freak shows . . . and of blackbirders, who'll use any
opportunity to kidnap a free man of color and sell him into
slavery. January's determined to uncover the truth, but will he
ever be able to return to New Orleans to share it?
A dead man at a crossroads. A secret message. A ring with a warning
about death . . . Printer's apprentice Lucy Campion is caught up in
a strange and puzzling murder case in this twisty historical
mystery set in seventeenth-century London. London, 1667. On her way
to a new market to peddle her True Accounts and Strange News,
printer's apprentice Lucy Campion quickly regrets her decision to
take the northwestern road. Dark and desolate, the path leads her
to the crossroads - and to the old hanging tree. She doesn't
believe in ghosts, but she's not sure ghosts don't believe in her.
But before she even reaches the crossroads, she's knocked off her
feet by two men in a hurry. What were they running from? To her
dismay, she soon discovers for herself: there, dangling from the
tree, is the body of a man. Did he commit self-murder, or is there
something darker afoot? The more Lucy learns, the more determined
she is to uncover the truth. But this time, even the help and
protection of magistrate's son Adam, and steadfast Constable
Duncan, may not be enough to keep her safe from harm . . .
When Bampton's coroner, Hubert Shillside, does not return from a
trip to Oxford, Master Hugh de Singleton is called. Concerned for
his old friend, Hugh takes to the road to investigate. Travel is
safer than in times hence but, out of sight of prying eyes, it is
still unwise to travel alone... Hugh finds a body, stabbed and left
to rot, but it is not the body he was expecting to find. Indeed,
reports of pillage, attacks, and chaos on the roads out of Oxford
suddenly seem rampant. Hugh must ascertain whether the incidents
are random, or whether something darker is afoot. The guilty cannot
afford to be caught, but what lengths will they go to to cover
their tracks, and will Hugh escape unscathed?
Brighton, 1950s, mid-winter. Two missing children are found buried
under snow in this chilling new case for DI Stephens and Max
Mephisto. Max's star turn in Aladdin has been overshadowed by the
murder of two local children. With fairy tales in the air, it's not
long before the press have found a nickname for the case: 'Hansel
and Gretel'. 'An excellent whodunnit, matched by the terrific
down-at-heel atmosphere of postwar Brighton' - The Times DI Edgar
Stephens has plenty of leads to investigate. The missing girl,
Annie, used to write plays and perform them with her friends. Does
the clue lie in Annie's unfinished - and rather disturbing - last
script? Or might it lie with the eccentric actor types who have
assembled for the pantomime? Once again Edgar enlists Max's help in
penetrating the shadowy theatrical world that seems to hold the
key. But is this all just classic misdirection?
Three Debts Paid is the fifth gripping instalment in an exciting
new generation of Pitt novels from the pen of highly acclaimed
crime writer and New York Times bestselling author Anne Perry. It
is February 1912 when barrister Daniel Pitt is reunited with his
old college friend, Inspector Ian Frobisher. Following allegations
of plagiarism, one of their Cambridge University professors has
committed an assault, and Ian has recommended that Daniel defends
him. Meanwhile, Daniel's dear friend Miriam fford Croft has
returned to London as a newly qualified forensic pathologist and is
working with eccentric Dr Evelyn Hall. On Daniel's first visit to
the morgue, he is shocked to find Miriam examining the mutilated
body of a young woman and, what's worse, it is being compared to
another corpse bearing identical wounds. As rumours spread of a
serial killer, nicknamed 'the rainy-day slasher', stalking the
streets of London, Daniel hears that Ian Frobisher is in charge of
the case. So begins the harrowing pursuit of a brutal murderer
whose killing spree is far from over...
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