Mostrando resultados por autor "Bruce Beckham" en Todas las categorías

THE LAST WOMAN TO BE TRANSPORTED FROM CUMBRIA BARELY OF AGE, eighteen-year-old Flora Mary Graham was found guilty by a jury of twelve good Kendal men and true of the murder in his prime of the Seventh Earl of Fellside, by striking him about the head and sending him to his death in Blind Beck, the town’s stream running in violent spate on the stormy night of Halloween, 1852. Apprehended at the scene bearing a babe in arms, the child swaddled and soaked, three gold sovereigns were found in Flora’s possession, half a year’s wages for a servant girl such as she. The motive ascribed was ...

NEW FOR 2024 – STAND-ALONE, #24 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY."IT IS ALMOST three decades since the body of a young housewife was pulled from Wastwater, England’s deepest lake. The corpse had been weighted and sunk twenty years earlier – wrapped and concealed in a carpet, a submerged landmark that was actually known to leisure divers. Such a grisly fact only added to the horror that haunts the neighbouring dales; how long before another picturesque Lakeland water gives up its dark secret? BRUCE BECKHAM brings a ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #11 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."WHEN BEAUTIFUL YOUNG SOCIALITE Scarlett Liddell apparently commits suicide during a ‘Murder Mystery Weekend’, extravagantly staged at a Lakeland castle, the coroner calls in DI Skelgill to tie up the loose ends. Post mortem results, however, cast doubt upon the provisional verdict – and circumstantial evidence begins to point to one obvious suspect – the woman’s multi-millionaire husband, Will Liddell. And when Will Liddell is accused of a separate ...

When a long-serving Master at one of England's most prestigious public schools drowns in Bassenthwaite Lake, Detective Inspector Skelgill is summoned to investigate his apparent suicide. It soon becomes clear that senior members of staff are not all that they seem. As the school closes ranks, Skelgill realizes he is pitted against a sinister power struggle for control of its highly lucrative operation.

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #3 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."WHEN A MAN IS FOUND STRANGLED by a climbing rope beneath the Lake District's notorious Sharp Edge, it is assumed he is the victim of a tragic accident. But Detective Inspector Skelgill suspects otherwise, and his fears are borne out when a second corpse is discovered close to Striding Edge. Soon it appears that a ritualistic serial killer stalks Cumbria's fells. As the body count increases, Skelgill must determine the connection between the seemingly randomly ...

When a high-flying adman is stabbed to death on a company weekend in the English Lake District, local detective Daniel Skelgill finds himself wrenched from his rural Cumbrian comfort zone. As the investigation unfolds, DI Skelgill is led a merry dance between London and Edinburgh, at every turn confronted by uncooperative suspects—colleagues, wife and lovers of the deceased—each of whom is possessed of motive and opportunity. Is this a crime of passion, a professional hit, or a cleverly calculated killing borne out of greed and jealousy?

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #4 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."BY THE TIME Detective Inspector Skelgill becomes the tenth person to be stranded on secluded Grisholm (Pigs’ Isle in Old Norse) where a writers’ retreat is taking place, one of the assembled literati is already dead. Though natural causes may provide the explanation, a second ‘accidental’ death and a raft of curious experiences convince Skelgill that a cold and calculating killer is at large. But where is his evidence? Set around Derwentwater in the ...

NEW FOR 2024 – STAND-ALONE, #22 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." DRIFTING ABSENTLY in The Doghouse on Bassenthwaite Lake, Skelgill has a feeling that he is being watched. From a wheelchair in the adjoining grounds of Duck Hall Nursing Home an elderly man looks on. They exchange a wave; it becomes a regular occurrence. And when later Skelgill engages with his bankside supporter he learns of his tragic circumstances. The helpless man has surely fallen prey to unscrupulous next of kin. As Father Time looms, there ensues a ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #5 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."A SPATE OF VICIOUS ATTACKS upon valuable Herdwick sheep, the sudden disappearance of a foreign hiker, and the unexplained drowning of a woodland hermit – a series of apparently unconnected events – draw Detective Inspector Daniel Skelgill to the white-knuckle passes and isolated dales of deepest Lakeland. s straws in the wind suggest there is sorcery afoot – and a connection to an equally sinister trade in human traffic – Skelgill and his team risk dire ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #13 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."MURDER ON THE MIDNIGHT EXPRESS? When the exclusive London-to-Edinburgh sleeper plunges into a snowdrift deep in the Cumbrian fells, DI Skelgill awakes to discover one fellow passenger dead and another missing. Through a blinding blizzard Skelgill leads a daring evacuation – but even before they reach the sanctuary of an isolated coaching inn, a third traveller suffers a life-threatening mishap. As suspicion pervades the elite group of apparent strangers, ...

NEW FOR 2024 – STAND-ALONE, #23 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." LAKELAND’S MOST FAMOUS 24-hour fell running feat was accomplished by local man Bob Graham, who in June 1932 scaled 42 peaks over a distance of 66 miles, with an attendant height gain just a little shy of Mount Everest – arriving back at Keswick Moot Hall with 21 minutes to spare. ‘The Bob Graham Round’, as this route came to be known, is etched into Cumbrian folklore, not least because the 42-year-old Keswick B&B owner ran in tennis shoes, long shorts...

When a dog walker discovers a decaying corpse in Harterhow Woods it is surely just a matter of time before the police will close in upon the murderer. But despite a nationwide appeal the distinctive remains defy identification. Skelgill believes he knows the perpetrator - but his team have other ideas. As they unearth contradictory clues Skelgill becomes impatient - an arrest is made. But when the victim is finally named a new prime suspect emerges. Skelgill is determined to prevail - but the facts don't fit his gut feel.

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #16 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."NOBODY SAW HER. NOBODY CAN FIND HER. When 37-year-old Lisa Jackson sets out for work one Friday morning she is in high spirits. Things are going well with her new boyfriend. But when she does not reach her desk, or answer her mobile phone, her colleagues and family raise the alarm. Suspicion immediately falls on co-worker Ray Piper. A married man, he and Lisa have recently ended an affair. But steely-eyed Piper denies any knowledge of Lisa’s disappearance.Yet...

STAND-ALONE, #18 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." A BLIND EYE TURNED, AN INJUSTICE DONE. High in lonely Swinesdale, notorious burglars Jake and Boris Baddun perish in a burnt-out stolen Mercedes. Known associate Dale Spooner leaves his biological signature and the predatory DI Alec Smart moves in for the kill. Spooner is convicted, and now languishes in jail. A rumour reaches Skelgill: Spooner is innocent and can prove it – a cast-iron alibi, a video on a hidden mobile phone. But Spooner will not talk. At stake is the safety of ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #15 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."VIRILE; HANDSOME; RUTHLESS. When gamekeeper Lawrence Melling takes over at traditional Lakeland sporting estate Shuteham Hall he soon ruffles the feathers of not only elderly Lord Edward Bullingdon and his younger model wife Miranda, but also their adult offspring and fellow estate workers. Meanwhile local conservationists perceive an existential threat to rare hen harriers nesting on nearby Over Moor. And when Miranda’s jewellery worth a six-figure sum goes ...

NEW FOR 2023 – STAND-ALONE, #20 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." AN ATTEMPTED MURDER in the United States … a tragic road death in a Cumbrian forest … an old photograph stolen from an ancient coaching inn. Unrelated events – until a midnight drowning below Ouse Bridge exposes a connection. After two decades, has a killer returned to Cumbria to ply their trade? Does a suspect hide in plain sight among loose acquaintances? Who is truthful and who is lying? Skelgill must patiently circle … until finally he picks up ...

NEW FOR 2023 – STAND-ALONE, #21 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." SEE NO EVIL, HEAR NO EVIL, SPEAK NO EVIL ... A reality documentary crew is on the hunt for a victim. An unsolved murder from the 1970s that could leave the authorities red-faced. Celebrity criminologist Professor Simeon Freud plans to bask in the glory. Posing as a researcher, DS Jones joins the production team, but Skelgill must work in the shadows. His instincts rebel – not least that his protégé is prey to a narcissist on the one hand and a killer on ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #12 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY."WHEN DI SKELGILL TAKES under his wing a talented fell-runner – his underprivileged cousin, Jess – little does he realise in what jeopardy he places her. For Cumbria is being targeted by the infamous ‘county lines’ drug gangs. As turf wars break out, Jess inadvertently finds herself in the crossfire – but family ties blind her to the danger of her association with Skelgill. As the body count increases, Skelgill finally recognises the threat to his ...

NEW FOR 2022 – STAND-ALONE, #19 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "A COMPELLING BRITISH CRIME MYSTERY." EVIL LIES UNDETECTED. When shepherd Jud Hope finds an American passport in a fox’s earth, a connection is made to an unidentified fatality – an elderly female walker who fell to her death in a treacherous rocky gill near Ambleside. Meanwhile, a spate of ‘nighthawker’ incidents sees ancient monuments desecrated under cover of darkness. The spotlight falls upon Derek Shaw, a museum curator exploring Cumbria’s Roman heritage. Onto this stage emerges a ...

STAND-ALONE MURDER MYSTERY, #17 IN THE SERIES. MEET MAVERICK BRITISH DETECTIVE DI SKELGILL... "MAD, BAD AND JUST A LITTLE BIT COZY." TWELVE CLOSE FRIENDS, ONE DEADLY ENEMY. A Ouija board spells out ‘MURDER’ and next morning wealthy widow Daisy Mills is found drowned at a Lakeland beauty spot. Was this a warning from beyond the grave, or an agent provocateur among the house party? Could the earlier death of successful businessman Simon Mills really be the accident it seemed? And was it by coincidence that the same clique of old school friends had met before each tragedy? Pitched into ...