Recommendations based on "Mr. Churchill's Secretary A Maggie Hope Mystery"

A wildly charming and fast-paced mystery written with all the panache of the hardboiled classics, Fortune Favors the Dead introduces Pentecost and Parker, an audacious new detective duo for the ages.“Razor-sharp style, tons of flair, a snappy sense of humor, and all the most satisfying elements of a really good noir novel, plus plenty of original twists of its own.”—Tana French, bestselling author of The SearcherIt's 1942 and Willowjean "Will" Parker is a scrappy circus runaway whose knife-throwing skills have just saved the life of New York's best, and most unorthodox, private investigator, Lillian Pentecost. When the dapper detective summons Will a few days later, she doesn't expect to be offered a life-changing proposition: Lillian's multiple sclerosis means she can't keep up with her old case load alone, so she wants to hire Will to be her right-hand woman. In return, Will is to receive a salary, room and board, and training in Lillian's very particular art of investigation.Three years later, Will and Lillian are on the Collins case: Abigail Collins was found bludgeoned to death with a crystal ball following a big, boozy Halloween party at her home—her body slumped in the same chair where her steel magnate husband shot himself the year before. With rumors flying that Abigail was bumped off by the vengeful spirit of her husband (who else could have gotten inside the locked room?), the family has tasked the detectives with finding answers where the police have failed.But that's easier said than done in a case that involves messages from the dead, a seductive spiritualist, and Becca Collins—the beautiful daughter of the deceased, who Will quickly starts falling for. When Will and Becca's relationship dances beyond the professional, Will finds herself in dangerous territory, and discovers she may have become the murderer's next target.

The Mysterious Affair At Styles (Agatha Christie Signature Edition)

 The Blackbird sisters are back--and as witty and wonderful as ever! For richer, for poorer...                                                               Nora Blackbird, the Bucks County ex-debutante with a haute couture wardrobe, a hot job as a glamorous society columnist and a stone cold bank account, might finally have her own life just right, but everyone around her is going down in flames. Her sister Libby seems destined to be the lead character in a tabloid sex scandal.  Her sister Emma is expecting a mysterious love child.  Her best friend, Lexie Paine, is serving time in the slammer.  And now her mobbed-up boyfriend, Mick Abruzzo--who might actually be her husband--is conducting clandestine capers from Blackbird Farm while under house arrest. What's a good girl to do?  Find a killer, that's what!  Word arrives that the sisters' great aunt, Madeleine Blackbird, has died in a volcanic eruption on an Indonesian island and left her fabulous country estate, worth millions, to the three of them.  But when the Blackbird sisters show up to claim their windfall, they find the house in a state of disheartening decay and all of Madeleine's to-die-for treasures gone. Worse, the mansion has been hiding a grisly secret: the body of a woman who died there many years ago.  All the evidence points to a high society murder... Nora's special bond with flamboyant Aunt Madeleine compels her to seek out the truth.  With her aunt's amorous stepson dogging her footsteps, her unscrupulous lawyer acting like a skunk, and her devoted housekeeper not to be found, Nora's investigation is going nowhere.  Good thing Mick's close by to offer Nora distractions both dark and delightful.  And, as ever, her irrepressible sisters provide some unexpected... and highly unorthodox... assistance when she most needs it.

The most dramatic installment yet in the Nero Award-winning Pentecost and Parker series, as Will scrambles to solve a shocking murder before Lillian takes the fall for the crime. NEW YORK CITY, 1947: Wealthy financier and ghoulish connoisseur of crime, Jessup Quincannon, is dead, and famed detective Lillian Pentecost is under arrest for his murder. Means, motive, and a mountain of evidence leave everyone believing she's guilty. Everyone, that is, except Willowjean "Will" Parker, who knows for a fact her boss is innocent. She just doesn't know if she can prove it. With Lillian locked away in the House of D--New York City's infamous women's prison--Will is left to root out the real killer. Was it a member of Quincannon's murder-obsessed Black Museum Club? Maybe it was his jilted lover? Or his beautiful, certainly-sociopathic bodyguard? And what about the mob hit-man who just happened to disappear after the shots were fired? With the city barreling toward the trial of the century, each day brings fresh headlines and hints of long-buried scandals from Lillian's past. Will is desperate to get her boss out from behind bars before her reputation is destroyed. Because the House of D is no kind place, especially for a woman with multiple sclerosis. Or one with so many enemies. Her health failing and being targeted by someone who wants her dead, Lillian needs to survive long enough to take the stand. With time running out on both sides of the prison walls, Will and Lillian must wager everything to uncover who put their thumb on the scales and a bullet in Quincannon's head. Before Lady Justice brings her sword down, ending Pentecost and Parker's adventures once and for all.

A violent past haunts Sir Walter Maltravers, the wealthy lord of Ingoldby Hall. As a commander during the War of the Roses, he fought alongside Edward IV at the bloody, fratricidal Battle of Towton. Decades earlier, and thousands of miles away, he served in the fanatical bodyguard of the last Byzantine emperor, Constantine XI Palaeologus.There, as Turkish Jannisaries breached Constantinople’s walls and set the city aflame, Sir Walter committed what may have been an unforgivable sin: instead of defending the emperor with his last drop of blood, Maltravers fled. But not before scooping up all the treasure he could carry, including the Lacrima Christi---a giant ruby said to be a holy relic of incalculable value.When the ruby disappears from Canterbury’s Franciscan monastery, Sir Walter fears the emperor’s vengeful loyalists---the Athanatoi---have tracked him to his estate. He doesn’t have much time to ponder his dilemma. Crawling on his bare knees to the shrine at the center of his enormous private hedge maze, the penitent Sir Walter encounters his axe-wielding killer. . . . Maltravers’s head turns up days later, impaled on a pole.Gossips in Canterbury whisper of the fabled Athanatoi, come to claim their bloody due from a traitor. But apothecary Kathryn Swinbrooke doesn’t think so. Her Irish fiancée, Colum Murtagh, the King’s Commissioner in Canterbury, is called in to investigate the crimes. A Renaissance woman in a Middle Age world, Swinbroke comes to believe that all is not as it seems within the cozy confines of Ingoldby Hall. She asks tough questions of the wealthy power-players who seem to hover around the murder case. And before long, the death toll mounts: a maid, a madwoman, a scribe, a retainer. . . . One thing becomes abundantly clear: if Swinbrooke and Murtagh don’t nail down the killer---or killers---soon, they’ll be next!

THE REMORSEFUL DAY'"Where does this leave us, sir?""Things are moving fast.""We're getting near the end, you mean?""We were always near the end."'The murder of Yvonne Harrison had left the Thames Valley CID baffled. A year after the dreadful crime they are still no nearer to making an arrest. But one man has yet to tackle the case - and it is just the sort of puzzle at which Chief Inspector Morse excels.So why is he adamant that he will not lead the re-investigation, despite the entreaties of Chief Superintendent Strange and dark hints of some new evidence? And why, if he refuses to take on the case officially, does he seem to be carrying out his own private enquiries?For Sergeant Lewis this is yet another example of the unsettling behaviour his chief has been displaying of late...THE WENCH IS DEAD'That night he dreamed in Technicolor. He saw the ochre-skinned, scantily clad siren in her black, arrowed stockings. And in Morse's muddled computer of a mind, that siren took the name of Joanna Franks...'The body of Joanna Franks was found at Duke's Cut on the Oxford Canal at about 5.30 a.m. on Wednesday, 22 June 1859.At around 10.15 a.m. on a Saturday morning in 1989 the body of Chief Inspector Morse - though very much alive - was removed to Oxford's John Radcliffe Hospital. Treatment for a perforated ulcer was later pronounced successful.As Morse begins his recovery he comes across an account of the investigation an trial the followed Joanna Franks death... and becomes convinced that the two men hanged for her murder were innocent...

‘As twisty-turny as a Cornish lane in high summer’ J.M. Hall, author of A Spoonful of Murder ‘A sparklingly delicious confection to satisfy the mystery reader’s appetite’ Helena Dixon, bestselling author of the Miss Underhay Mysteries A Siren’s call... to murder Former Met police officer Jodie ‘Nosey’ Parker is working a trial period as an auxiliary Detective Sergeant with the Penstowan police force. But living and working alongside DCI Nathan Withers – while still trying to grow her catering company – brings its own challenges, especially when Jodie’s attention is quickly taken up by the suspicious drowning of a local fisherman. While tourists and locals alike are falling under the spell of the annual mermaid festival with its captivating legends of Sirens luring fishermen to their deaths, Jodie and Nathan fear they may have found themselves in the middle of a very real – and very dangerous – turf war. As the casualties start to stack up, they must face the likelihood that something sinister has been going on under their noses for some time... Readers love A Cornish Seaside Murder: ‘An absolute gem... Leitch’s characters are as engaging and clever as the mystery she’s concocted’ Lauren Forry, author of The Launch Party ‘Fiona Leitch is on fine form with this wry, twisty tale from the Cornish coast’ M.H. Eccleston, author of The Trust ‘This was a great cosy crime that kept me turning the pages. I can’t wait to see what Jodie and friends get up to next!’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Love the characters and the plots. Such an easy cosy read.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Fiona is a great writer. No cheese, realistic dialogue, and great character development.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Another brilliant Cornwall visit.’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ ‘Law-enforcement, verbal-humor, situational-humor, Cornwall, cozy-mystery, series, foodie, punny, relationships, relatives, murder, murder-investigation, small-business, small-town, caterer, family...’ ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Oozing with mystery, style and unforgettable characters – I'm transported into a world of delightful intrigue and murderous mystery, and all home in time for tea. Absolutely fantastic.' Jonathan Whitelaw, author of The Bingo Hall Detectives The perfect Cornish cozy mystery for fans of Richard Osman’s The Thursday Murder Club 'Leitchs’s writing had me snorting with laughter and whizzing through the pages!' Clare Chase, author of the Eve Mallow mysteries – The time has finally come for former Met police officer Jodie ‘Nosey’ Parker to wed her fiancé DCI Nathan Withers, But their long-anticipated wedding doesn’t quite go to plan... As their guests descend on a luxurious Cornish castle for a weekend of pre-wedding activities, the happy couple look forward to spending time with friends and family. But celebrations grind to a halt when an arrow flies off-course during the archery session, and they find the body of a young woman floating face down in an ornamental pond. With the champagne chilling and canapes assembled, and an old London adversary brought in to investigate, it’s up to Jodie and Nathan to uncover the killer, before they strike again. Could the murderer be on the guest list? – Readers LOVE The Cornish Castle Murder... 'Absolutely fantastic. My absolute favourite series and I love the characters' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'I've devoured the previous books in this series and this was no different!' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'I loved the latest instalment in one of my favourite mystery series' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A massive five shiny stars from me' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'I was convinced I had the mystery solved on more than one occasion when in reality I didn't have a clue!' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'I cannot get enough of this series, if you love mysteries set in England this is for you! I recommend this book to all my cozy lover friends' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A great book full of humour, it's the 8th in the series and the best yet' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'The series has a wonderful cast of quirky characters that would be great fun to hang out with' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 'A fast-paced story with twists and turns, very likeable characters, and an unusual background' ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

The holiday season brings a mix of merriment, mayhem, and murder. And it falls to Inspector Witherspoon—with a significant portion of help from the ever-watchful Mrs. Jeffries—to find the culprit… THE BUSINESS OF DEATH Orlando Edison is a stockbroker using London’s infatuation with foreign mining ventures to make a fortune. He has curried favor with the nation’s most respected aristocrats, even inviting three of the most influential investors in England—known as the Merry Gentlemen—to be part of his latest enterprise. Despite his mysterious past, Edison is now welcomed in the highest circles and moves with ease among the rich and powerful. Yet a few days before Christmas, he is found sprawled across his doorstep, murdered. Charismatic and charming, Edison was kind to his servants and generous with his friends. Why would someone want him dead? Inspector Witherspoon and his household are all looking forward to the festive season. Witherspoon is eager to spend time with his godchild. Wiggins, the footman, is infatuated with football and would rather cheer goals than chase down clues. And Mrs. Goodge longs to bake recipes from the latest cookbooks. But they all know their duty, and led by the intrepid Mrs. Jeffries, they plan to see justice served for the holidays….

While Lord Peter is abroad on a secret mission, Harriet Vane, now Lady Peter Wimsey, takes their children to safety in the country. But there's no escape from war: rumors of spies abound, glamorous RAF pilots and flirtatious land-girls scandalize the villagers, and the blackout makes rural lanes as sinister as London's alleys. And when a practice air-raid ends with a young woman's death, it's almost a shock to hear that the cause is not enemy action, but murder. Or is it? With Peter away, Harriet sets out to find out whodunit...and the chilling reason why.