Zaffre Publishing
Books published by Zaffre Publishing
End of Summer
Veronica is a bereavement counsellor in Stockholm. When a familiar-looking young man joins her group with a strange story to tell, Veronica is transported back to her rural home of 1983 where, one summer's day, her little brother Billy went missing without trace.
Reviewed on 30 April 2022 by Viv Beeby
Body Language
When mortuary assistant Cassie Raven is faced with the prospect of helping with the post-mortem on her former teacher, Mrs Edwards, Cassie knows she owes it to the woman to make sure she’s looked after, even in death. What she’s not expecting is to end up on the trail of a murderer.
Reviewed on 19 February 2022 by Linda Wilson
A Three Dog Problem
When one of the Queen’s paintings turns up in an unexpected place, her secretary Rozie Oshodi is tasked with following its trail from Buckingham Palace to a Royal naval exhibition in Portsmouth. At first this seems to be just a simple investigation, then Rozie starts wading through some very murky waters.
Reviewed on 19 February 2022 by Linda Wilson
Geiger
Grandmother Agneta Broman answers a phone, hears only one word then shoots her husband and disappears, leaving the police at a loss.
Reviewed on 22 January 2022 by Ewa Sherman
The Unwilling
Jason French is home from the Vietnam war and from prison. When a girl he has been seen with is found dead, it is obvious who will be blamed, but it’s less obvious who will try to prove him innocent.
Reviewed on 27 November 2021 by Kerry Hood
Trust Me
Kathryn leaves her baby with a stranger on a train for a moment, ostensibly to take a call. She then disembarks and disappears. leaving the stranger to look after the baby and establish what has just happened.
Reviewed on 23 October 2021 by John Verpeleti
City of Spies
SOE agent Elizabeth de Mornay flees Paris in 1943 for neutral Lisbon, where she finds plenty of enemy intrigue to keep her occupied.
Reviewed on 25 September 2021 by Chris Roberts
Blunt Force
DS Jane Tennison feels she has been left to rot in a quiet central London station until the horrific murder of a top agent plunges her into a showbiz world of exploitation, drugs and dodgy deals.
Reviewed on 21 August 2021 by John Cleal
Fatal Isles
In the middle of the North Sea, between the UK and Denmark, lies the island nation of Doggerland. Not much happens there in the way of crime, until one day Police Chief Jounas Smeed's ex-wife is found brutally murdered.
Reviewed on 21 August 2021 by Viv Beeby
We Begin at the End
The release of a prisoner after 30 years precipitates a series of deaths and creates challenges for others.
Reviewed on 24 July 2021 by Chris Roberts
A Prince and a Spy
Cambridge-based American history professor Tom Wilde investigates the death of George, Duke of Kent, brother of the King of England, in a mystery plane crash.
Reviewed on 22 May 2021 by John Cleal
The Windsor Knot
When a visitor to Windsor Castle is found dead in suspicious circumstances, everyone hopes the investigation can be wrapped up before it hits the press. But when the police and MI5 seem no nearer to a solution, the Queen has to take time out of her day job to make some enquiries of her own.
Reviewed on 19 December 2020 by Linda Wilson
False Prophet
An ex-detective-turned-lawyer and a cast of eccentric but charming characters work to prevent the end of the world and catch a serial killer.
Reviewed on 31 October 2020 by John Barnbrook
Shed No Tears
When an old murder case is reopened, Cat Kinsella soon develops doubts about the key witness, but when she delves into the past, she’s unprepared for the hornets’ nest she’s just stirred up.
Reviewed on 31 July 2020 by Linda Wilson
Man at the Window
Detective Sergeant Cardilini is assigned the case when a schoolteacher is killed by a bullet. Everyone but Cardilini is sure that the shooting was an accident.
Reviewed on 31 July 2020 by Chris Roberts
Buried
DC Jack Warr discovers the truth of his own birth through links between a charred body in a burnt Victorian cottage and a series of major historical crimes.
Reviewed on 31 July 2020 by John Cleal
The Oath
Former chief of police Ubbo Heide is enjoying a peaceful seaside retirement until a gruesome package containing a severed head turns up on his doorstep. Soon a headless body is found on the local beach. However, it is not just one victim.
Reviewed on 04 July 2020 by Ewa Sherman
To Keep You Safe
Former soldier-turned-teacher Jenni Wales has to decide how far she will go to save one of her pupils when no one else appears to care that the girl is terrified and at risk of abduction.
Reviewed on 23 May 2020 by Linda Wilson
The Dangerous Kind
Cassie has gone missing, but her best friend Marnie is the only one who seems to care.
Reviewed on 25 April 2020 by Kati Barr-Taylor
Stasi Winter
Major Karin Muller is sent to Rugen Island on the Baltic coast to investigate the death of a woman apparently overcome by the savage winter weather.
Reviewed on 11 April 2020 by Chris Roberts
Hitler's Secret
Cambridge-based American history professor Tom Wilde is asked to ‘smuggle’ a mysterious package out of wartime Nazi Germany – something so secret, even Hitler doesn’t know what it is!
Reviewed on 22 February 2020 by John Cleal
The Holiday
The villa in the south of France is idyllic, but the messages that Kate finds on her husband’s phone portend a lurking danger.
Reviewed on 18 January 2020 by Kati Barr-Taylor
The Dirty Dozen
Detective Sergeant Jane Tennison is posted to the Sweeney, the Flying Squad, rocked by corruption allegations and notoriously misogynistic. She must not only prove herself to her male colleagues, but also tackle some of London’s most vicious armed robbers.
Reviewed on 30 November 2019 by John Cleal
After She's Gone
Psychological profiler Hanne and her partner investigator Peter arrive in an isolated town in dense forests to investigate a cold case. She tries to keep her dementia secret, writing everything in a diary. Within days the couple vanishes, adding to the tensions between local inhabitants, police and the refugees relocated to the area.
Reviewed on 30 November 2019 by Ewa Sherman
The Exiled
A series of dangerous power games are played out in ancient Rome against the threatening backdrop of Mount Vesuvius.
Reviewed on 12 October 2019 by Linda Wilson
The Sinner
Tom Killgannon is asked to do one last undercover job, to get close to convicted child killer Noel Cunningham in Blackmoor prison and ensure he reveals the burial sites of his last two victims. He’s told the job will be straightforward. He was lied to.
Reviewed on 12 October 2019 by Linda Wilson
The Bad Daughter
Robin, the daughter who turned her back on her family, is going home – now that half of them are dying.
Reviewed on 12 October 2019 by Kati Barr-Taylor
The Familiars
1612. Fleetwood Shuttleworth, the mistress of Gawthorpe Hall, is pregnant for the fourth time. Her previous three pregnancies have all ended in miscarriage. Fleetwood needs the help of young midwife Alice Gray, but in an atmosphere of suspicion and fear, Fleetwood stands to lose her friend, her baby and her life.
Reviewed on 10 August 2019 by Linda Wilson
Stasi 77
Major Karin Muller of the Volkspolizei is called back from leave to investigate a murder in a state cotton mill, but soon finds that the Stasi have an interest and are determined to block her progress in the case.
Reviewed on 13 July 2019 by Chris Roberts
Stasi 77
Major Karin Muller of the Volkspolizei is called back from leave to investigate a murder in a state cotton mill, but soon finds that the Stasi have an interest and are determined to block her progress in the case.
Reviewed on 13 July 2019 by Chris Roberts
Shadow
Marc Dane and his partner, ex-Delta Force sniper Lucy Keyes, must thwart a plot by an international group to use extremist right wingers to unleash a lethal virus in a major European city.
Reviewed on 13 July 2019 by John Cleal
Murder Mile
Newly promoted DS Jane Tennison has been posted to the tough South London borough of Peckham. Her arrival is greeted by the discovery of two women’s bodies in as many days, then a third, dismembered, corpse just three days later.
Reviewed on 15 June 2019 by John Cleal
The Body in the Boat
A coffin in a boat on Dungeness beach sees the Reverend Marcus Hardcastle and his friend Mrs Amelia Chaytor investigate a huge fraud and a plot that threatens the nation.
Reviewed on 01 June 2019 by John Cleal
Nemesis
Professor Tom Wilde of Cambridge University is in France on holiday with his fiancée Lydia when he is approached by a man who at first sight appears to be a beggar. It turns out, however, that he has been in touch with one of Wilde’s former students who had gone off to join the International Brigade in the Spanish Civil War and is now held in a French prison camp. He urges Wilde to do all he can to free him.
Reviewed on 13 April 2019 by Arnold Taylor
The Ash Doll
Lawyer Charlie Priest has a high-profile case which he looks like losing when his star witness fails to show in court, and subsequently turns up dead.
Reviewed on 12 January 2019 by Chris Roberts
The Darkness Around Her
Lawyer Dan Grant is asked to represent Peter Box, who has been accused of murder. The evidence looks damning and to make it worse Box refuses to explain what happened.
Reviewed on 08 December 2018 by Chris Roberts
Don't Make a Sound
Malcolm and Harriet are about to have another daughter, a little sister for Daisy. All Malcolm need do is remove the flimsy lock and steal this latest child her from her parents.
Reviewed on 10 November 2018 by Kati Barr-Taylor
A House of Ghosts
Kate Cartwright, a woman with special gifts, is invited by armaments millionaire Lord Francis Highmount and his wife to join a party on their isolated island to take part in a seance to contact their sons killed in World War I. As the guests arrive, it becomes clear each has something to hide – and soon one will be savagely murdered.
Reviewed on 10 November 2018 by John Cleal
The Helicopter Heist
A gang sets out to commit Sweden’s biggest ever cash robbery.
Reviewed on 27 October 2018 by John Cleal
The Anomaly
A TV film crew are on the hunt for a mysterious cavern in the Grand Canyon that has remained tantalisingly elusive for over a century.
Reviewed on 18 August 2018 by Linda Wilson
The Last Hour
Marcus Clodius Ballista, the Romanised Angle princeling, uncovers a plot to assassinate the Emperor Gallenius, but has just 24 hours to warn his friend.
Reviewed on 18 August 2018 by John Cleal
Ghost
Marc Dane and his partner, ex-Delta Force sniper Lucy Keyes, must call on all their skills to track down a worldwide series of devastating cyber-attacks.
Reviewed on 18 August 2018 by John Cleal
A Darker State
Newly-promoted Major Karin Muller is assigned for action when the body of a young man emerges from a river between East Germany and the Polish border.
Reviewed on 21 July 2018 by Chris Roberts
It All Falls Down
Nora is looking for answers to her broken past. She doesn’t realise Detroit, where the questions take her, is a desperate city that will break her even more.
Reviewed on 23 June 2018 by Kati Barr-Taylor
Kill Me Twice
Investigative freelance writer Morgan Vane takes up the case of a woman jailed for the arson murder of the abusive father of her child – then sees the ‘dead’ man outside her own home.
Reviewed on 14 April 2018 by John Cleal
Nucleus
The year is 1939 and war is imminent with a race under way between the allies and the Nazis to produce an atomic bomb. Cambridge lecturer Tom Wolfe knows the city’s Cavendish research laboratory is a prime target for German attacks.
Reviewed on 14 April 2018 by John Cleal
Exile
Disgraced former MI6 man Marc Dane faces a threat to the world when a Somali warlord acquires a nuclear weapon.
Reviewed on 31 March 2018 by John Cleal
From the Shadows
Robert Carter is accused of the murder of a 24-year-old woman. His defence is flimsy and he seems determined not to help himself. But young solicitor Dan Grant is determined to uncover the truth.
Reviewed on 20 January 2018 by Linda Wilson
The Assassin of Verona
The young Will Shakespeare faces personal tragedy and political intrigue.
Reviewed on 06 January 2018 by John Cleal
Sweet Little Lies
DC Cat Kinsella stopped trusting her father at the age of eight, so she’s certainly not surprised when a connection emerges between him and her latest murder investigations. It’s as if she’s been waiting her whole life for this moment.
Reviewed on 25 November 2017 by Linda Wilson
Eyes Like Mine
A girl is missing. And it’s Nora Watts’ daughter – the one she gave up at birth.
Reviewed on 11 November 2017 by Kati Barr-Taylor
The Mayfly
Lawyer Charlie Priest is approached by tycoon Ellinder to investigate the death of his son Miles, shortly after Charlie escapes an attack from Miles himself.
Reviewed on 28 October 2017 by Chris Roberts
Unforgivable
Terrorists hit a multicultural event in Cardiff and follow up with more bombings. With police resources stretched, DC Will MacReady is unhappy to be assigned to investigate the murder of a girl, but soon realises there is a link between the events.
Reviewed on 14 October 2017 by John Cleal
Lost Girls
Two young girls are missing. And a depraved auction is about to begin – one which will destroy two families.
Reviewed on 02 September 2017 by Kati Barr-Taylor
Good Friday
Detective Constable Jane Tennison is a key witness to the IRA bombing of a tube station. As she fights to forget the dreadful scenes, a chance sighting exposes a terrorist plot to strike a deadly blow at London’s police.
Reviewed on 02 August 2017 by John Cleal
Stasi Wolf
Oberleutnant Karin Muller is drafted south to assist in the recovery of two infant twins who have been abducted, a search that eventually becomes very personal.
Reviewed on 10 June 2017 by Chris Roberts
Evil Games
Detective Inspector Kim Stone’s latest adversary is a sociopath who manipulates the most vulnerable into killing.
Reviewed on 01 April 2017 by Jim Beaman
The Ice Beneath Her
A beheaded body of a young woman is found in an upmarket home of a controversial retail king. Stockholm’s homicide detectives and a criminal profiler are shocked when they realise that the murder resembles an unsolved case from years ago.
Reviewed on 18 March 2017 by Ewa Sherman
Corpus
American lecturer Tom Wilde, a specialist in Elizabethan espionage history, is dragged into political conspiracies as Communists and Nazis vie for influence over the English throne.
Reviewed on 04 February 2017 by John Cleal
Ash and Bones
A plain clothes officer is shot dead in a raid and the original suspect left in a coma. CID trainee Will MacReady is desperate to help, but ignored by his colleagues, follows his own leads that lead the detectives down a dark path.
Reviewed on 10 December 2016 by John Cleal
Nomad
When a devastating attack takes out an M16 clandestine ops team, suspicion falls on Marc Dane, the sole survivor.
Reviewed on 03 September 2016 by Linda Wilson
The Body on the Doorstep
Reverend Marcus Hardcastle is pickling himself in beer and port in a lonely parish on the Romney Marshes. When a man is shot on his doorstep, he is plunged into a plot involving espionage, treason and betrayal.
Reviewed on 06 August 2016 by John Cleal
Maestra
Judith Rashleigh loses her job with a London auction house when she discovers an art fraud. And then the body count starts to rise.
Reviewed on 28 May 2016 by Sharon Wheeler
