A young man is found lying unconscious on the outskirts of Bucharest. No one knows who he is and everyone has a different theory about how he got there. The stories of the various characters unfold, each closely interwoven with the next, and outlining the features of what ultimately turns out to be the most important and most powerful character of all: the city of Bucharest itself. The novel covers the last 13 days of 1897 and culminates in a beautiful tableau of the future as imagined by the different characters. We might, in fact, say that it is we who inhabit their future. And so too does Dan Cretu, alias Dan Kretzu, the present-day journalist hurled back in time by some mysterious process for just long enough to allow us a wonderful glimpse into a remote, almost forgotten world, but one still very much alive in our hearts.

Introducing spirited female sleuth Elizabeth Fairchild in the first of the brilliant new Oak Park village mystery series, set in 1920s Illinois. June, 1925. Having been widowed in the Great War, Elizabeth Fairchild lives a quiet life at the home of her wealthy parents in genteel Oak Park village, Illinois. Although she does her best to avoid emotional entanglements, determined never to be hurt again, Elizabeth forms a close friendship with gentle Mr Anthony, who owns the local antiques store. But tragedy strikes when Mr Anthony is found stabbed to death in the alley behind his shop. Why would anyone murder a mild-mannered antiques dealer who simply loved beautiful things? A robbery gone wrong? A gangland execution? Or could it have something to do with the mysterious customer who bought a gold pocket watch from Mr Anthony on the day he died? When one of her father's oldest friends is accused of the crime, Elizabeth determines to expose the real killer. But her investigations soon attract unwelcome attention. With gangsters moving into the neighbourhood from nearby Chicago, Oak Park is no longer the safe haven it once was. Could Elizabeth be seriously out of her depth?

A Chicago crime reporter is out to stop a local hate group from assassinating President Truman in this historical crime thriller. Chicago, 1948. As President Harry Truman prepares to visit Chicago in the final tense days of his reelection campaign, police reporter Steve "Snap" Malek receives an ominous threat. An anti-Semitic group plans to assassinate the president for officially recognizing the new state of Israel. When Malek refuses the hate group's demands for newspaper publicity, they begin killing Chicagoans-one a day, including a policeman and a fireman. As the so-called New Reich promises more of the same, Malek begins his dogged hunt to uncover their true identities. Along the way, he meets maverick automaker Preston Tucker, and even gets the chance to drive the revolutionary Tucker Torpedo. But when Truman arrives in Chicago for a parade, time is running out for Malek to stifle the deadly plot.

Ursula Stannard faces the ultimate test in this gripping Tudor mystery. How far is she prepared to go to protect those dearest to her and save her own life? April, 1590. Ursula Stannard, the queen's half-sister and occasional secret agent, has just left Sir Francis Walsingham's funeral when she is summoned back to her childhood home, Faldene House, by her aunt. Uncle Herbert has died suddenly from natural causes, but Ursula's arrival in the Sussex Downs triggers a shocking sequence of death and devastation. Through her service to the queen, Ursula has made dangerous enemies. The formidable Mercer brothers are set on revenge, and their cruelty knows no limits. As a deadly net closes around Ursula and her loved ones, can she keep those closest to her safe and stop the Mercers before they strike again?

Wild, beautiful and spellbinding, this is the compelling wartime story of freedom and love on the windswept islands of Orkney 'Powerful . . . Lea writes beautifully of island life and love, and the sacrifices that both demand' THE TIMES 'Deeply evocative of Orkney and its wild beauty. A stunning tale of sisters, salvation and sacrifice' Emma Stonex The sky is clear, star-stamped and silvered by the waxing gibbous moon. No planes have flown over the islands tonight; no bombs have fallen for over a year. ___________ Orkney, 1940. Five hundred Italian prisoners-of-war arrive to fortify these remote and windswept islands. Resentful islanders are fearful of the enemy in their midst, but not orphaned twin sisters Dorothy and Constance. Already outcasts, they volunteer to nurse all prisoners who are injured or fall sick. Soon Dorothy befriends Cesare, an artist swept up by the machine of war and almost broken by the horrors he has witnessed. She is entranced by his plan to build an Italian chapel from war scrap and sea debris, and something beautiful begins to blossom. But Con, scarred from a betrayal in her past, is afraid for her sister; she knows that people are not always what they seem. Soon, trust frays between the islanders and outsiders, and between the sisters - their hearts torn by rival claims of duty and desire. A storm is coming . . . In the tradition of Captain Corelli's Mandolin, The Metal Heart is a hauntingly rich Second World War love story about courage, freedom and the essence of what makes us human during the darkest of times. ___________ 'Confirms Lea as a highly original and inventive writer' Sunday Times 'A tense, passionate and deeply atmospheric novel . . . Caroline's beautiful transported me entirely to another time and land' Susan Fletcher 'A beautiful, heart-breaking tale of grief, love and the bond between sisters' Louise Hare 'Myth, legend, fear and superstition all play a part in this intensely atmospheric novel' Choice Magazine 'Atmospheric, heart-wrenching, evocative' Gytha Lodge Praise for Caroline Lea: 'Enthralling' Stacey Halls, author of The Familiars and The Foundling 'Fantastic' The Times 'Memorable and compelling' Sarah Moss, author of The Times Book of the Year Ghost Wall 'Intensely written and atmospheric' Daily Mail 'Gripped me in a cold fist. Beautiful' Sara Collins, author of The Confessions of Frannie Langton 'Brilliant' Daily Express

When the truth lies out of sight...West Wales, 1850. When an old tree root is dug up, the remains of a young woman are found. Harry Probert-Lloyd, a young barrister forced home from London by encroaching blindness, has been dreading this discovery. He knows exactly whose bones they are. Working with his clerk, John Davies, Harry is determined to expose the guilty. But the investigation turns up more questions than answers and raises long-buried secrets. The search for the truth will prove costly. But will Harry and John pay the highest price? An exceptional Victorian Welsh crime thriller, perfect for fans of Laura Shepherd-Robinson, Andrew Taylor and S. W. Perry. Praise for Alis Hawkins'Beautifully written, cunningly plotted, with one of the most interesting central characters' E.S. Thomson 'The most interesting historical crime creation of the year' Phil Rickman

Solve a murder, bring a killer to justice... but at what cost?Harry Probert-Lloyd, a young barrister forced home from London by encroaching blindness, has begun work as the acting coroner of Teifi Valley with solicitor's clerk John Davies as his assistant. When a faceless body is found on an isolated beach, Harry must lead the inquest. But his dogged pursuit of the truth begins to ruffle feathers. Especially when he decides to work alongside a local doctor with a dubious reputation and experimental theories considered radical and dangerous. Refusing to accept easy answers might not only jeopardise Harry's chance to be elected coroner permanently, but could, it seems implicate his own family in a crime. An absolutely scintillating historical crime thriller full of suspense and intrigue perfect for fans of S. J. Parris, C. J. Sansom and Abir Mukherjee. Praise for Alis Hawkins 'Beautifully written, cunningly plotted, with one of the most interesting central characters' E.S. Thomson 'The most interesting crime creation of the year' Phil Rickman

There is nothing more deadly than an ambitious and desperate man. Even as the Allies inch ever closer to winning the war from within the dying embers of the Third Reich, a monstrous plot is hatched to restore Nazi Germany to world prominence. Major Michael Tagleva is flown to France on a top secret mission and soon finds himself in the thick of the fighting to liberate Paris. He becomes embroiled in a desperate race against time to protect his country from a web of intrigue and at the same time save the Tagleva banking empire from its enemies. Before the end, exhausted and despite personal tragedy, Michael comes face to face with the creator of the plot who will stop at nothing to win his prize. Can he find and eliminate the source of catastrophe before it overwhelms everything he holds dear. In this long-awaited completion of the Tagleva saga, Stephen Davis has once again uncovered true historical fact to create a gripping adventure, which treads the murky corridors of the intelligence services in London and Berlin, pulls back the veil of Switzerland's secret banking system and ends with a truly shocking revelation from within the very heart of the Vatican.

"Todd's astute character studies . . . offer a fascinating cross section of postwar life. . . . A satisfying puzzle-mystery." - The New York Times Book Review Scotland Yard Inspector Ian Rutledge is assigned one of the most baffling investigations of his career: an unsolved murder case with an unidentified victim and a cold trail with few clues to follow A woman has been murdered at the foot of a megalith shaped like a great shrouded figure. Chief Inspector Brian Leslie, one of the Yard's best men, is sent to investigate the site in Avebury, a village set inside a prehistoric stone circle not far from Stonehenge. In spite of his efforts, Leslie is not able to identify her, much less discover how she got to Avebury-or why she died there. Her killer has simply left no trace. Several weeks later, when Ian Rutledge has returned from successfully concluding a similar case with an unidentified victim, he is asked to take a second look at Leslie's inquiry. But Rutledge suspects Chief Superintendent Markham simply wants him to fail. Leslie was right-Avebury refuses to yield its secrets. But Rutledge slowly widens his search, until he discovers an unexplained clue that seems to point toward an impossible solution. If he pursues it and he is wrong, he will draw the wrath of the Yard down on his head. But even if he is right, he can't be certain what he can prove, and that will play right into Markham's game. The easy answer is to let the first verdict stand: Person or persons unknown. But what about the victim? What does Rutledge owe this tragic young woman? Where must his loyalty lie?

Introducing reluctant spy and friar-sleuth Brother Rodric Chandler in the first of a brand-new medieval mystery series. London. July, 1399. As rumours spread that his ambitious cousin, Henry Bolingbroke, has returned from exile in France, King Richard's grip on the English throne grows ever more precarious. Meanwhile, the body of a young woman is discovered at Dowgate sluice. When it's established that the dead woman was a novice from nearby Barking Abbey, the coroner calls in his friend, Brother Chandler, to investigate. Who would cut the throat of a young nun and throw her remains in the river? And what was she doing outside the confines of the priory in the first place? Secretly acting as a spy for Henry Bolingbroke, Chandler is torn by conflicting loyalties and agonising self-doubt. As the king's cousin marches towards Wales and England teeters on the brink of civil war, Chandler's investigations will draw him into affairs of state - and endanger not only himself but all those around him.

From the New York Times bestselling author of the Bess Crawford mystery series, a short story that unravels dark secrets from her close friend Simon Brandon’s past.

Years before the Great War summoned Bess Crawford to serve as a battlefield nurse, the indomitable heroine spent her childhood in India under the watchful eye of her friend and confidant, the young soldier Simon Brandon. The two formed an inseparable bond on the dangerous Northwest Frontier where her father’s Regiment held the Khyber Pass against all intruders. It was Simon who taught Bess to ride and shoot, escorted her to the bazaars and the Maharani’s Palace, and did his best to keep her out of trouble, after the Crawford family took an interest in the tall, angry boy with a mysterious past.

But the Crawfords have long guarded secrets for Simon and he owes them a debt that runs deeper than Bess could ever know. Told through the eyes of Melinda, Richard, Clarissa, and Bess, A Hanging at Dawn pieces together a mystery at the center of Bess’s family that will irrevocably change the course of her future.

An enchanting tale of secrets and deception that stretches from the heaths of Suffolk to the banks of the Seine.Annie Sancerre is looking for love. After her husband was killed in the trenches of the Great War, she found herself putting motherhood before everything else, whatever the cost. So when the kind and gentle Fergus Cameron proposes, Annie realises a life with him could bring both comfort and security. Then she meets debonair lawyer Richard Ross near her home in Kew and her future is thrown into doubt. But why does Richard seem to know more about her past than she does? From bestseller Teresa Crane comes an elaborate mystery of love both lost and found. Praise for Treacherous Waters 'This is compulsive reading' Marina Oliver, author of The Accidental Marriage

Sherlock Holmes is dead. Days after Holmes and his arch-enemy Moriarty fall to their doom at the Reichenbach Falls, Pinkerton agent Frederick Chase arrives from New York. The death of Moriarty has created a poisonous vacuum which has been swiftly filled by a fiendish new criminal mastermind. Ably assisted by Inspector Athelney Jones, a devoted student of Holmes's methods of investigation and deduction, Chase must hunt down this shadowy figure, a man much feared but seldom seen, a man determined to engulf London in a tide of murder and menace. The game is afoot . . .

The arrival of an unexpected guest means trouble ahead for the residents of Thorncroft House in this deftly-plotted Victorian mystery. On a freezing winter's night, with the household in mourning following the death of the dowager Lady Croft, the residents of Thorncroft House are roused from their beds by the arrival of an unexpected visitor. Although Lady Stanton seems reluctant to explain the reasons for her visit, housekeeper Harriet Rowsley would never turn a stranger from the door; she offers Lady Stanton and her servants all the hospitality at her disposal, however secretive and arrogant the new guest might be. But tensions arise over the following days, with both visitors and servants trapped indoors by the snow, and Lady Stanton proving a difficult and demanding guest. The situation worsens on the discovery of the body of a young housemaid lying crumpled at the foot of the stairs. A tragic accident . or something more sinister? Who exactly is Lady Stanton, and why has she come to Thorncroft? Has her arrival anything to do with the housemaid's death? As the household remains trapped and tensions escalate, Harriet and her husband Matthew are forced to face the fact that they may be harbouring a murderer in their midst .

LONDON 1881: Panic reigns in Bayswater as a ruthless murderer prowls the foggy streets of the nation's capital. Residents live in fear, rumours and accusations abound, and vigilante groups patrol by night. It is not, of course, a suitable investigation for a lady detective, but when a friend falls victim to the killer's knife, Frances Doughty is drawn into this sinister new case. Myth and reality collide in another thrilling mystery that will stretch Frances' powers of deduction - and her courage - to the limit.

June, 1914. Following three, seemingly unrelated suicides, DI Silas Quinn knows he must uncover the link between the three men if he is to discover what caused them to take their own lives. The one clue is a card each victim was carrying, depicting a crudely-drawn red hand. To find out what it means, Quinn must revisit his own dark past.