Books to look forward to from Allison and Busby

Two young boys stumble on a dead prostitute. She's on Sean Denton's patch. As Doncaster's youngest community support officer, he's already way out of his death, but soon he's uncovering more than he's supposed to know. Meanwhile Karen Friedman, professional mother of two, learns her brother has disappeared. She desperately needs to know he's safe, but once she starts looking, she discovers unexpected things about her own needs and desires. Played out against a gritty landscape on the edge of a Northern town, Karen and Sean risk losing all they hold precious.  To Catch a Rabbit is by Helen Cadbury and is due to be published in January 2015. Read SHOTS' review here.

Death Wears a Mask is by Ashley Weaver and is due to be published in June 2015.  Amory Ames is investigating the disappearance of valuable jewellery snatched at a dinner party and lays a trap to catch the culprit at a lavish masked ball hosted by the notorious Viscount Dunmore. She wasn’t expecting one of the illustrious party guests to wind up dead . . .

Sussex, 1925. Sherlock Holmes and Mary Russell find a beautiful stone belonging to the future emperor of Japan – mysteriously left in their garden. There’s some unfinished business they need to clear up. From the winding lanes of Oxford to the palaces of Japan, the ingenious duo embark on an utterly compelling adventure of politics and espionage.  Dreaming Spies is by Laurie R King and is due to be published in February 2015.

Spring, 1932. Four years after she set sail from England, leaving everything she most loved behind, Maisie Dobbs at last returns, only to find herself in a dangerous place. En route to England a brutal murder in Gibraltar leads Maisie into a web of lies, deceit and peril.  A Dangerous Place is by Jacqueline Winspear and is due to be published in April 2015.

What’s an editor to do with so many demands? Do you deal with the morning’s pile of manuscript submissions first? Or the swine from sales who steals all the chocolate digestives? Or do you concentrate on your ex-lover, whose business partner has just been found dead, slumped over his desk with a gun in his hand? Sam takes on the art world with a handy reserve of satire and irrelevant information culled from books.  Boxing Day. A dead body has been found in the chemistry department of Queen's University in West London. Tom Chambers, the head of department, was known to have a bad heart, and had it not been Christmas, no questions would have been asked. What was a procedural post mortem soon turns into a murder investigation when it becomes evident Chambers had been injected with a dangerous amount of digitalin. A Bed of Scorpions is by Judith Flanders and is due to be published in February 2015.

The Red House is by Emily Winslow and is due to be published in February 2015. Maxwell is living his worst nightmare when he begins to question whether his fiancee Imogen is his own blood sister, separated by adoption. A visit to Imogen's birthplace in Cambridge stirs up deja vu that intensifies his fears.While Detective Chief Inspector Morris Keene languishes at home, struggling with a debilitating injury and post-traumatic stress, his former partner Detective Inspector Chloe Frohmann is following a suicide case in which Morris' daughter Dora is suspected of assisting the death. When buried skeletons are discovered next to an old barn, the suicide is linked back to Imogen's childhood, revealing horrors of the past and new dangers in the present.

Thea Osborne, Cotswold house-sitter with an infamous reputation for getting mixed up in crime, is determined to avoid trouble this time. Her latest commission in the village of Daglingworth seems straightforward, with most of her time spent looking after an old corgi and a hibernating tortoise. Thea is ready for a relaxing if rather boring two weeks, with phone calls to new boyfriend Drew Slocombe the highlight of her days. Until, that is, a dead body is discovered in a nearby quarry... Revenge in the Cotswolds is by Rebecca Tope and is due to be published in March 2015.

The Venetian Venture is by Suzette Hill and is due to be published in January 2015. 1954, Venice. For Rosy Gilchrist the tables may have turned. Her boss at the British Museum, Dr Stanley, has chosen her to travel to Venice, track down a rare edition of Horace's Odes and bring it back for their collection. Rosy jumps at the chance to spend time away from her capricious supervisor and hopefully indulge in a little Venetian culture. Following Dr Stanley's advice, she roams the cobbled streets of Venice in search of the book and crosses paths with old friends Felix Smythe and Cedric Dillworthy. With their help, Rosy thinks she's laid her hands on the treasure but things soon take a drastic downward spiral. A wealthy and eccentric recluse offers a GBP1 million reward for anyone who can find Horace's Odes and pair it with a missing Murano vase. The price on the book's head brings all sorts of murky characters out of the shadows. Soon Rosy finds herself in a race against time as her rivals will go to any lengths to secure the prize ... even murder.

The Third Sin is by Aline Templeton and is due to be published in March 2015. Pleasure is the highest good: the group who called themselves the Cyrenaics practised the principle until the death of one from an overdose and the apparent suicide of another. Sobered, the group went their several ways. One heads to Canada, another disappears and a third is believed to have committed suicide, at least until his body turns up two years later in the wreck of a car swept up on to the Solway mud flats. The murky relationships among the Cyrenaics, revived when they start returning for a party bring more pain and death. DI Marjory Fleming finds this and the murder which follows on her own patch, obstructed by the unpleasant and resentful inspector she has been asked to direct, and DC Hepburn and DS Macdonald, still at loggerheads, don't make it any easier. Fleming's daughter has a new boyfriend and though Cammie at last achieves his Scotland cap, he too is in trouble with the affairs of the heart.

1815. Peter and Paul Skillen, identical twins and fearless thief-catchers, stalk all who dare to

walk in the shadow of the hangman. When they catch a notorious burglar, they claim a handsome reward and infuriate the Bow Street Runners who believe they have a monopoly on policing in the capital.  Home Secretary Viscount Sidmouth faces a crisis. During a massacre of American prisoners-of-war at Dartmoor, two escape and come to London in search of retribution – and if their demands are not met, they’ll kill Sidmouth. The Runners compete fiercely with the twin detectives to bring the villains to justice in a compelling tale of murder, kidnap, revenge and political machination.  Shadow of the Hangman is by Edward Marston and is due to be published in February 2015.  It is the first in the Bow Street Rivals series.

A huge funeral for Windermere's popular resident, Barbara Dodge, is taking place and florist Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown and her new assistant, Bonnie Lawson are busy compiling wreaths in preparation. There's word of a series of sinister dognappings occurring in nearby Troutbeck and whilst taking a walk up Wansfell Pike, Simmy and her father, Russell, stumble on a dog, strangled to death - it's not long before Simmy reluctantly finds herself caught up in a murder investigation. The Troutbeck Testimony is by Rebecca Tope and is due to be published in May 2015.

When Monsieur Pamplemousse is summoned into the head office of Le Guide by the director, Henri Leclercq, he is unaware of the chaos that is about to erupt. Accompanied by his faithful bloodhound, Pommes Frites, Pamplemousse attempts to solve Leclercq's plaintive conundrums - all of which relate back to his mobster uncle-in-law. The crime-solving duo gallivant around Paris and become tangled up in seemingly arbitrary problems; a letter about a juicy steak horrifyingly turned into a brisket; a dead restaurant owner; a giant truffle delivered by post and the imminent arrival of the vivacious Caterina, the mobster's niece. With all these obstacles at hand, Pamplemousse attempts to unravel each dilemma but it quickly proves impossible as they overlap and tangle at every turn. As he battles with this confounding case, it becomes apparent that these events are much more sinister and inextricably linked than first thought ... Monsieur Pamplemousse and the Tangled Web is by Michael Bond and is due to be published in March 2015. 

Sixth century Constantinople. Flavius Belisarius is barely eighteen and is already

commander of the cavalry patrolling the Persian frontier. A brilliant soldier but a poor schemer - Flavius needs to be both in order to survive the febrile politics of the Eastern Roman Empire. When his friend, Petrus Sabbatius uses trickery to elevate himself to the position of co-Emperor, Flavius finds himself embroiled in an explosive venture of machinations and warfare. The brave general must battle against the deadly Sassanids and protect the co-Emperor from his own subjects who are out for blood. As the valiant leader sets out to re-conquer the Western Empire from the hands of the Vandals and Ostrogoths, Flavius is unaware that his wife, joining him on the campaign, is secretly charged to spy on him. Honour is the second instalment in the brutal Roman trilogy. Only the most merciless traitors prevail in a volatile land where one wrong step will cost you your head.  The Last Roman: Honour is by Jack Ludlow and is due to be published in January 2015.

Books to look forward to from Allison & Busby

By July 1914, the ties between Kezia Marchant and Thea Brissenden, friends since girlhood, have become strained - by Thea's passionate embrace of women's suffrage, and by the imminent marriage of Kezia to Thea's brother, Tom, who runs the family farm. Yet when Tom enlists to fight for his country and Thea is drawn reluctantly onto the battlefield, the farm becomes Kezia's responsibility. Each must find a way to endure the ensuing cataclysm and turmoil. As Tom marches to the front lines, and Kezia battles to keep her ordered life from unravelling, they hide their despair in letters and cards filled with stories woven to bring comfort. But will well-intended lies and self-deception be of use when they come face to face with the enemy.  The Care and Management of Lies is by Jacqueline Winspear and was published in July 2014.

Crooked Herring is by L C Tyler and is due to be published in September 2014.  Ethelred Tressider, mid-list crime writer, is surprised when fellow author Henry Holiday unexpectedly turns up on his doorstep. He's even more surprised when Henry confesses that he may have committed murder while drunk on New Year's Eve. Though he has little recollection of the night, Henry fears he may have killed drinking companion and fellow crime writer Crispin Vynall, and asks Ethelred to discreetly make enquiries in order to discover the truth. As Ethelred and his trusty agent Elsie begin to investigate, they discover that Henry has been set up, and now all that remains is for them to find out why and, more importantly ...whodunnit?

The Coniston Case is the third book in the Lake District series by Rebecca Tope and was published in July 2014.  Valentine's Day is fast approaching and Persimmon 'Simmy' Brown's flower shop near Lake Windermere is doing good business. But when Simmy receives a string of anonymous delivery orders, each one causing their recipient great distress, she begins to suspect that the messages they contain mask a sinister intent. When one of the recipients disappears, it would seem that her worst fears have been confirmed. As if that isn't enough, Simmy's friend Kathy turns up, on the trail of her wayward daughter Joanna, who she fears has grown unhealthily close to one of her university tutors. When Kathy attempts to reason with her daughter she finds that Joanna's older lover may be even more menacing than she had imagined. With both Kathy and Joanna in peril, Simmy and her friends find themselves caught up in a web of deception, blackmail and murder. It seems that Simmy Brown faces her most puzzling, and perhaps her most dangerous, case yet.

Eva Jackson is Rosemary's cousin ( 'umpteen times removed' ) and she has moved back to her childhood home in Taviscombe after the untimely death of her beloved husband Alan. As is the way of the village, Eva has been pounced upon by the local charities, and it is during a coffee morning that she mentions to Sheila Malory that she fears Alan might have died an unnatural death ...Sheila is intrigued and sets out to find out more. But when Eva's body is discovered after a supposed insulin overdose, Sheila wonders if the killer might still be at large in the charming Devon countryside ...  Death is a Word is by Hazel Holt and is due to be published in September 2014.

Twenty-two brand new short stories which are guaranteed to delight fans and win the author many more. The indefatigable detective Inspector Sloan reappears in many of these stories with his sidekick Crosby. But there are also new characters to be met, such as the mysterious Malcolm Venables of the Secret Service. Full of delicious twists and turns, Last Writes will be a collection to curl up with and savour.  Last Writes is by Catherine Aird and was published in July 2014.

Amory Ames is a wealthy young woman who regrets her marriage to her notoriously charming playboy husband, Milo.  Looking for a change, she accepts a request for help from her former fiance, Gil Trent, to stay at the Brightwell Hotel in Devon and help circumvent his sister’s marriage toa disreputable ladies’ man Rupert Howe. When the groom-to-be is murdered and Gill arrested for the crime, Amory is embroiled in the investigation not knowing that will test not only her friendship with Gil, but will upset the status quo with her husband and she must catch the killer before  she becomes a victim herself.  Murder at the Brightwell is by Ashley Weaver and is due to be published in October 2014.

Monsieur Pamplemousse and the Tangled Web is by Michael Bond and was published in July 2014.  When Monsieur Pamplemousse is summoned into the head office of Le Guide by the director, Henri Leclercq, he is unaware of the chaos that is about to erupt. Accompanied by his faithful bloodhound, Pommes Frites, Pamplemousse attempts to solve Leclercq's plaintive conundrums - all of which relate back to his mobster uncle-in-law. The crime-solving duo gallivant around Paris and become tangled up in seemingly arbitrary problems; a letter about a juicy steak horrifyingly turned into a brisket; a dead restaurant owner; a giant truffle delivered by post and the imminent arrival of the vivacious Caterina, the mobster's niece.With all these obstacles at hand, Pamplemousse attempts to unravel each dilemma but it quickly proves impossible as they overlap and tangle at every turn. As he battles with this confounding case, it becomes apparent that these events are much more sinister and inextricably linked than first thought ...

In June 1916, a young woman is found murdered in a cinema. Harvery Marmion and Joe Keedy set out to find the killer who so elusively fled in the dark. Before long, two more victims, of striking similarity but differing backgrounds, are found dead around the city.  Meanwhile, miles from home, Marmion s son Paul prepares for life on the front line as he marches towards the Battle of the Somme. Suffering a vicious blow in No Man s Land, Paul is left blinded for the rest of his life. Marmion must come to terms with the permanent darkness of his son s life, while continuing to search for the brutal killer who only strikes in the dark."  Deeds of Darkness is the fourth book in the Home Front Detective series by Edward Marston and is due to be published in October 2014.

The Balmoral Incident is by Alanna Knight and is due to be published in October 2014.  Rose McQuinn is invited to stay with her friend Olive who has a small cottage on the Balmoral Estate. As Rose travels on the train with her trusty dog Vane and her niece Mabel, she wonders what exciting adventures await them at the Royal household. Little does she realise that within just 48 hours of their arrival, death will have visited the great castle ...can Rose find out what happened and prevent any more bloodshed?