Mr Briggs’ Hat (Audiobook) When Thomas Briggs got into a first-class carriage to travel home after visiting relatives, he couldn’t have known he’d never reach his destination. The discovery of bloodied seat cushions, a bloodstained hat and a broken watch chain, signalled what was to become known as Britain’s first railway murder. Would police be…
Category: History
‘The Wicked Boy’ by Kate Summerscale
The Wicked Boy (Audio Book) In July 1895, 13-year-old Robert Coombes and his younger brother travel to Lord’s to watch a cricket match. The trip heralds the start of a spending spree for the two boys who are soon observed pawning items from their family home and taking jaunts to the seaside in the company…
Book Reviews, Books, Characters, Crime, History, Humour, murder, mystery, Political, Thriller, True Crime
‘A Very English Scandal’ by John Preston
A Very English Scandal: Sex, Lies and a Murder Plot at the Heart of the Establishment In the House of Commons, Liberal Party leader Jeremy Thorpe, together with a small group of intimate friends, plots to get rid of a thorn in his side. Thorpe’s ex-lover Norman Scott is getting in the way of a…
‘Anne Perry and the Murder of the Century’ by Peter Graham
Anne Perry and the Murder of the Century In 1954 two teenage friends, Juliet Hulme and Pauline Parker, took a walk in a New Zealand park with Pauline’s mother, Honora. Half an hour later, the mother lay dead. The girls claimed there had been a terrible accident, but the crime scene and subsequent investigation revealed…
‘Blackmail, Sex and Lies’ by Kathryn McMaster
Blackmail, Sex and Lies When Glasgow socialite Madeleine Smith meets Emile L’Angelier, the pair embark on a disastrous romance. With the Frenchman constantly haranguing her to introduce him to her family, the naive young woman is caught in a difficult position. Knowing her lover’s working class status will never be accepted, she endeavours to call…
‘Now and Then in Tuscany’ by Angela Petch
Now and Then in Tuscany: Italian Journeys A sequel to the author’s first novel, ‘Tuscan Roots’, this volume follows the journey of Giuseppe Starnucci, in the early part of the last century, as he exchanges an unhappy life at a seminary for one travelling with shepherds, herding sheep to new grazing lands near the Tuscan…
Victorian Villains No 3 – Katie Webster
In my search for characters, I must admit I do enjoy a good murder. Some time ago, I started a series on Victorian villains, the first two being Amelia Dyer and Mary Ann Cotton. Ms Dyer ended up being the model for the baddie in the second of my Christie McKinnon stories, The House That…
‘Primogenito’ by Greta Cribbs
Primogenito When Ashley’s husband develops a mysterious and frightening illness, she seeks out the one person who can help. However, Damian Fuentes has problems of his own to contend with, and dredging up deeply disturbing memories is the last thing he wants to do. Nevertheless, if he is to keep his family safe he must…
‘Ambrosius: Last of the Romans’ by Tim Walker
Ambrosius: Last of the Romans In a time of myths and legends, Roman tribune Ambrosius Aurelianus returns to Britannia on a secret mission. With the Roman influence on the island quickly fading, the people have fallen back on their tribal roots. Along with his adoptive brother, Uther Pendragon, Ambrosius sets out to lead the Britons…
‘Chase: The Hunt for a King’ by Thomas Dellenbusch
Chase: The Hunt for a King With Scotland on the brink of independence, the country’s government plans to establish its own king. However, the new monarch’s lineage isn’t everyone’s cup of tea and when a protector of the impending royal family is murdered, the action prompts one of the surviving sons to contact an old…
Colin Garrow 