Mary Copeland: Victorian detective

Mary Copeland: Victorian detective examines the life of this young woman who is raised by her uncle and aunt in London in the late nineteenth century and who develops into a detective of stature who works on request for Scotland Yard. As a woman, however, it is almost impossible to fulfil a social function and so she has to do her job anonymously. She is assisted in this by employees of Scotland Yard, with whom she forms a secret unit over time.

The stories, which take place from 1888, include many painters from the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. The titles of the four stories are taken from paintings from that time. Swiers impressively manages to portray the London of those days, just after The Ripper Murders and before The London Dock Strike.

In the Netherlands, the first four books on Mary Copeland were published between 2019 and 2022 and subsequent volumes are in preparation.

Melancholy of the Heart - Echoes on the Wind

From an early age Ruth had always struggled to fit in. Her only solace was provided by the abundance of nature she enjoyed living by the beautiful North Cornwall coast. She took pleasure in seeing the resilience of sea pinks, small pink flowers clinging to the cliffs and the warm coconut aroma of vivid orange gorse. As an only child she felt lost and isolated until her gift made itself known to her. This gift gave her a reason to live in a world she barely understood. She was not prepared however for the toll on her emotional and physical self her gift would exact from her, never knowing when she would be called upon to help those no longer of this time find forgiveness.

Moorland Forensics - Conspiracy of Souls

In 1986 young investigative reporter for the Newton Abbot Star and daughter of wealthy philanthropist Lord Ilbert-Tavistock tragically disappears under mysterious circumstances, never to be seen again.

Over 30 years later the fresh graves of two teenage girls are uncovered on the desolate wastes of Dartmoor, followed by the sadistic murder of a City art expert, sending shockwaves through the South West.

Contracted to assist the police task force; siblings James, Fiona and Katie Sinclair at Moorland Forensic Consultants uncover links to the murders with the medieval Benedictine Priory of St Oswald’s and tumultuous events from the battlefields of WW2.

With the police close to admitting defeat and pressure mounting from an outraged media, in a last-ditch effort the team travels to Southern Germany to obtain vital evidence.

Moorland Forensics race against the clock to prevent more deaths, whilst James is battling his own demons, taking things one step too far.

Murder Never Sleeps

Victor Madison was a man who never took "no" for an answer and Private Investigator Paul West immediately sensed that he could be trouble the moment he walked through his office door. He didn't ask, he demanded that West find his only daughter, Cindy, who had been missing for over two years. Money was no object. Police Inspector Charlie King, West's former partner, was the lead investigator into Cindy's missing case which was a cold one but was once again active when he was given permission to work on it with West. Their investigation took them to Alabama where they became involved with a collection of fascinating and questionable characters, including a local sheriff who made them his deputies; a bank manager with self-serving interests; a charismatic pastor and cult leader who knew a dark secret; and a besotted enabler who would go to any devious means to protect him… and she did. Madison's daughter was found, but not in the manner the reader could ever guess, or imagine. The suspense, in this page-turning mystery, never wanes right up to the last page and the chilling climax.

Murder on the Angkor Express

The Kingdom of Cambodia is struggling into the twenty-first century, following the Pol Pot “killing fields” which erased a third of the population in the late 1970s. The encroaching dragons of mighty China and vibrant Vietnam vie with the tiger of Thailand to squeeze the precious life from the Mekong River Basin.

Politics is still dominated by the enduring shadow of the Khmer Rouge whose tentacles pervade a corrupt oligarchy, which is fighting to keep out the popular opposition leader, Sam Rainsy.

With a backdrop of potential civil war, our hero Chief Inspector Suon has to solve the case of Leap Son. A body found at the end of the murderous six-hour bus journey from Battambang to Siem Reap. With a coachload of tourists, all with a tale to tell or a secret to keep. Will Chief Inspector Suon be able to solve a crime committed in full view of all yet seen by no-one? More importantly, will he be allowed to?

Murder Unchained

When Private Investigator Paul West took on his next case, it seemed easy and one that would pay handsomely. All West had to do was compile a profile of Jason Knox for his only son, Matthew, who had no memory of him. His father had walked away from Matthew’s mother when he was an infant and left him the sole beneficiary of his multi-million-dollar estate.

It didn’t take long before he was thrust into one of the most complex cases in a long and illustrious career. It took him to Ebony River, a small town, on Vancouver Island’s east coast that seldom gave a wink or nod to the outside world.

What he found was the two-year-old unsolved murder of Jason Knox and his wife that was still baffling RCMP Sergeant Andy Holt. When West told him why he had come to Ebony River, Holt asked him if he would go undercover and help him solve the case.

West’s investigation concentrated on an eclectic range of residents including: bikers with an agenda, a former member of the town council with a grudge to settle, a small church time had left behind, a farmer’s Sunday dinner that revealed hidden secrets and a mayor desperately trying to get re-elected.

Murder Unchained is a page-turner. It will keep the reader guessing up to the last page.

Pretty Dead Ordinary

Nearly two years after a serial killer let loose with havoc in Brumby Flat, intrigue, unexpressed desires and murder ride back into town.

A long-awaited wedding celebration turns sinister when a bridesmaid nearly drowns in the local dam. Once again, Senior Detective Phillip Duncan is drawn into the initial investigations, but quickly becomes the prime suspect. Gradually the small South Australian town starts to believe he fits the profile of their new deadly threat.

Some familiar characters return from The Big Dead Dry. Raquel Willaston is still living with the charismatic silo painter Phil Proctor and Anabella Williams has returned after serving time in a correctional centre for the accidental death of the local Mayor. Raquel’s son Steve is now the local rookie cop, quickly learning how to cope with the evil circumstances unfolding around him. Then there are the new folks in town, the crafty Tanaka family with their rebellious beautiful daughter ‘Yankee’ who Steve becomes obsessed with.

Pretty Dead Ordinary sums up the order of things to come. Detective Duncan is forced to work harder than ever to prove his own innocence and hopefully bring the real killer to justice.

Pretty Eyes

After PI Agnes Trout repels a vicious attack by an intruder in her New York City apartment, she discovers that other women have been attacked by the same perpetrator. Even though the attacker is known, none of the women attempt to bring him to justice. Agnes’s own quest uncovers a brutal murder and brings her into contact with the glacial matriarch of a wealthy family, an enigmatic, charming fixer and a cold-blooded killer. At the same time, she is asked by a close friend to look into the checkered life of the friend’s secretive and menacing husband.

Determined attempts on her life and malicious threats will not slow Agnes down as, along with help from unexpected quarters, she goes after a killer and a scheming husband.

Prunes

Old spies don’t retire, they just sit on the sidelines until needed. This is what Mr Eggington and Violet believed until they uncovered a plot that would reshape the financial world. Mr Eggington was counting toilet rolls and paperclips until he reached retirement, and his best former operative, Violet, had ended up as a tea lady.

Events unfold with surprising speed after she tries to buy a packet of biscuits to go home with Mr Eggington’s tea. She is set up and ‘roofied’ ending up in an old person’s home after this dastardly attack and Mr Eggington is ridiculed when he tried to bring his fears to the attention of his boss.

Rallying the most unlikely people they engineer a plot to save the country. Hidden depths are uncovered in their new friends and they pool all their skills to overthrow the evil megalomaniac, after trying to break all the codes and riddles of course!

Raising the Dead

Emeline Upswatch, a naive 20-year-old bride, is grief-stricken after the deaths of both of her beloved parents. Now, Emeline believes she has made a grave error in moving with her husband, Randy, from her California Delta childhood home to unknown Charles Town, Virginia. She questions her marriage and herself. Marooned in grief in an unfamiliar world and intimidated by her mother-in-law, Emeline is rescued by the appearance of a mysterious older woman, Felicity, who becomes her dearest friend, mentor, and “other mother” with whom she can share her innermost feelings. Unlike Emeline, Felicity divulges nothing about her history or personal life. When Felicity disappears as mysteriously as she arrived, Emeline is determined to unearth her older friend’s whereabouts. What she ultimately discovers forces her to question her sanity, world, memories, and newfound joy.

In her second book, Jayne Lisbeth cements her reputation as a “sensitive, entertaining and deeply moving writer.” In Raising the Dead her quirky, mysterious, home-spun and loveable characters keep the reader engaged and entertained from the first page to the last.

Early reviews praise Raising the Dead as “a deep and emotional account of Emeline’s introspective journey with a wholesome, spiritual, supernatural angle ... Inspirational ... A poignant plot, with a well-structured, assured writing style, sure to appeal to a wide audience.”

Rippleswade Hall

Taking the form of a legal witness statement in a civil action in the High Court and an expert report from a psychologist, Rippleswade Hall is the story of Barrington Whibley, who is appointed to investigate a suspicious fire at a grand family house. Whibley makes three separate visits to Rippleswade Hall, each recounted in detail in the witness statement. His last visit is to attend a special and lavish dinner on the summer solstice, hosted by Natalie Trelewyn-Digby, the heiress and sole occupant of Rippleswade Hall. Whibley begins to fall in love with both her and the hall. Some very strange events occur at the dinner party and Whibley becomes obsessed to know whether his recollections were real, drug-induced or a psychotic episode. An investigation into love and madness – Remains of the Day meets Twin Peaks.

Seasons of Freedom

Robert Allen ‘Bubba’ Armentrout is an adventurous youngster, experiencing everything life has to offer in the 1960s’ rural community of Freedom, Virginia. His life is rich with loyal companions, exploits, carefree days and a burgeoning sexual awareness.

This tranquil normality crumbles when what begins as an innocent childhood predicament of Bubba’s own making transforms into his witnessing of a salacious encounter between two of Freedom’s most revered citizens. A chain of events that results in multiple homicides exposes him to the dark underbelly of his hometown and shatters his sense of safety and serenity in Freedom.

Only Bubba knows the truth behind these murders, and that truth is deadly. Seasons of Freedom is a coming-of-age mystery set in a politically fragile rural Southern community in the culturally volatile 1960s.