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EVIL CRIMES a gripping crime thriller full of twists

Page 22

by MICHAEL HAMBLING


  http://www.amazon.co.uk/CRIMES-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B01B1W9CIG

  http://www.amazon.com/CRIMES-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B01B1W9CIG

  A young woman’s body is discovered on a deserted footpath in a Dorset seaside town late on a cold November night. She has been stabbed through the heart.

  It seems like a simple crime for DCI Sophie Allen and her team to solve. But not when the victim’s mother is found strangled the next morning. The case grows more complex as DCI Sophie Allen discovers that the victims had secret histories, involving violence and intimidation. There’s an obvious suspect but Detective Allen isn't convinced. Could someone else be lurking in the shadows, someone savagely violent, looking for a warped revenge?

  BOOK 2 DEADLY CRIMES

  https://www.amazon.co.uk/DEADLY-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B01DL5CGRK/

  https://www.amazon.com/DEADLY-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B01DL5CGRK/

  A young man’s mutilated body is found on top of the Agglestone, a well-known local landmark on Studland Heath

  It seems that he was involved in a human trafficking and prostitution gang. But why is DCI Sophie Allen keeping something back from her team? Is it linked to the extraordinary discovery of her own father's body at the bottom of a disused mineshaft, more than forty years after he disappeared?

  Book 3: BURIED CRIMES

  https://www.amazon.co.uk/SECRET-CRIMES-gripping-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B01F6FAR06

  https://www.amazon.com/SECRET-CRIMES-gripping-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B01F6FAR06

  Two women go away for the weekend, but only one comes back alive. Was it just the music they were into? And who was the man the victim met at the festival?

  DCI Sophie Allen is back in charge after the emotional upheavals she suffered in 'Deadly Crimes,' but is she really in control? And Detective Constable Rae Gregson joins the team and immediately faces challenges that put her life in peril.

  BOOK 4: BURIED CRIMES

  https://www.amazon.co.uk/BURIED-CRIMES-gripping-detective-thriller-ebook/dp/B01I04EMTW/

  https://www.amazon.com/BURIED-CRIMES-gripping-detective-thriller-ebook/dp/B01I04EMTW/

  A family move into their dream home in Dorchester: it seems perfect, particularly for their two children, but when Philip and Jill Freeman move a buddleia bush, what they find buried beneath its roots will haunt them forever.

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  A SELECTION OF OUR OTHER TITLES YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY

  A victim who charmed women from the local church . . . A savage police officer on the case. Is private detective Doug Mullen out of his depth?

  http://www.amazon.co.uk/WATER-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B013RUFWLQ

  http://www.amazon.com/WATER-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B013RUFWLQ

  A BODY FOUND IN THE WATER EXPOSES DARK FAMILY SECRETS AND INFIDELITY

  Private detective Doug Mullen discovers a body floating in the River Thames. He doesn't tell the police that he knows who it is, and when he is hired to investigate the dead man, matters get very complicated. Mullen is used to tracking down cheating husbands, not ruthless killers. The victim turns out to have been playing a complex game of deception with more than one woman.

  As Mullen gets closer to tracking down the killer, he finds himself in grave danger. Unless he can crack the case, Detective Inspector Dorkin may pin the crime on him, or those with secrets to hide may put him out of circulation.

  Mullen fights for his life as this fast-moving mystery reaches its stunning conclusion.

  http://www.amazon.co.uk/SECRET-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B00XYMC5GI/

  http://www.amazon.com/SECRET-gripping-detective-thriller-suspense-ebook/dp/B00XYMC5GI/

  Shocking family secrets come to light when a young woman is murdered

  Amy Hill, a nineteen-year-old student, is strangled and her body dumped on open ground in the city. New police partners, D.I. Jim Neal and D.S. Ava Merry are called in to investigate this brutal crime. The last person to see Amy alive was Simon, the son of a family friend, but before he can be properly questioned he disappears.

  Detectives Neal and Merry are led on a trail of shocking family secrets and crimes. Can this duo track down the murderer before anyone else dies? Stopping this tragic cycle of violence will put D.S. Merry’s life at risk in a thrilling and heart-stopping finale.

  If you like Angela Marsons, Rachel Abbott, Ruth Rendell, or Mark Billingham you will be gripped by this exciting new crime fiction writer.

  DEAD SECRET is the first in a new series of detective thrillers featuring D.S. Ava Merry and D.I. Jim Neal. Ava Merry is a young policewoman, recently promoted to detective sergeant. She is a fitness fanatic with a taste for dangerous relationships. Jim Neal is a single dad who juggles his devotion to his job with caring for his son.

  Set in the fictional Northern city of Stromford, this detective mystery will have you gripped from start to shocking conclusion.

  THE LADY VANISHED

  http://www.amazon.com/LADY-VANISHED-gripping-detective-mystery-ebook/dp/B0170HJAMY/

  http://www.amazon.co.uk/LADY-VANISHED-gripping-detective-mystery-ebook/dp/B0170HJAMY/

  How can someone vanish without a trace?

  Carmen Langborne is a woman who no one seems to like very much, and now she's gone missing. But there is no body, no leads and no real suspects. And the police have stopped investigating her disappearance.

  Carmen's stepdaughter Florence hires private detective Tyrone Swift to find the missing woman. If the body is found, Florence will inherit half of a very valuable house. As Swift delves deeper into the family’s affairs, he discovers dark family secrets that threaten the reputations of powerful people. Will Swift get to the truth before those with much to hide stop

  CHARACTER LIST

  Detective Chief Inspector Sophie Allen is Dorset’s acknowledged expert on murder and violent crime, appointed to run the county’s Serious and Violent Crime Unit. She is now 44 years old, and lives with her family in Wareham. Sophie has a law degree and a master’s in criminal psychology. Sophie may appear at first to be somewhat of a ‘cold fish,’ over-intellectual and too clever by half, but conceals a dark past.

  Detective Sergeant Barry Marsh is in his early thirties and is now the permanent number two in the unit. He’s quiet, methodical and dedicated, the perfect foil for Sophie’s hidden fragility.

  Detective Constable Rae (Rachel) Gregson joined the team in book 3, to replace Lydia Pillay. She is astute and hard-working. Rae is transgender with a troubled past.

  Sergeant Rose Simons is a uniformed officer, now based at Dorchester in Dorset. Rose can appear to be rather cynical about her work but in reality she is a reliable, hard-working and scrupulously honest officer. She lives alone with her young son and has a wacky sense of humour.

  Constable George Warrander is a young officer in his second year with Dorset police, working under Rose Simons. George appeared as a civilian in novel 1, Dark Crimes, interviewed by Sophie Allen and Barry Marsh when they were investigating the death of Donna Gooden
ough. During that interview he indicated his wish to join the police.

  DCI Tommy Milburn is the senior officer in Exeter CID. Sophie Allen has known him since they worked together in the Midlands a decade earlier. He is on holiday during the events described in this novel, only making a quick visit. Sophie spots that he is ill.

  DI Sue Wilding is Milburn’s deputy. She shows some inflexibility in her approach to the investigation.

  DS Steve Gulliver is also a member of Exeter CID. He is rather more relaxed than his boss.

  Martin Allen is Sophie’s husband. He is Deputy Head at a large secondary school in Dorchester. Martin has a minor, but very supportive, role in the novels. He and Sophie met while at university.

  Hannah Allen is the couple’s elder daughter, now 22 and a drama student in London. She has an apparently calm approach to life, although some events in novel 4, Buried Crimes, hinted at a deeper complexity.

  Jade Allen is the younger daughter, now 18 and in her final year at school. Jade is academically bright but has an unpredictable and quirky personality.

  Susan Carswell is Sophie’s mother, now 60. She became pregnant with Sophie while a teenager. Sophie’s father vanished during the pregnancy. The story is told in novel 2, Deadly Crimes.

  Florence and James Howard are Sophie’s paternal grandparents only discovered by her and Susan in novel 2. They live in Gloucester and have become very close. Sophie is their next of kin.

  Glossary of English terms for US readers

  ACC: assistant chief constable

  Asian: someone who (or whose ancestors) originates from India, Pakistan or Bangladesh

  Beaker: glass or cup for holding liquids

  Bladdered: drunk

  Bob: money

  Bod: person

  Boffin: smart person, scientist

  Boot: trunk, as in car trunk

  Bother: as in bother, means in trouble

  Charity Shop: thrift store

  Caravan: camper or small motorhome

  Carrier bag: plastic bag from supermarket

  Care Home: an institution where old people are cared for

  Chat-up: flirt, trying to pick up someone with witty banter or compliments

  Chinwag: conversation

  Ciggy: cigarette

  Comprehensive School (Comp.): High school

  Copper: police officer (slang)

  Cotton wool: raw cotton

  Childminder: someone who looks after children for money

  CID: Criminal Investigation Department

  Coach: a bus, often used for travel, holidays or trips

  Cos: because

  CPS: Crown Prosecution Service, body which decides whether cases go to criminal court

  Council: local government body responsible for local services

  Councillor: an elected member of a council

  Deck: one of the landings on a floor of a tower block

  Diary: appointment book

  Dinner lady: lunch lady

  Div: idiot (offensive)

  Dodgy: not to be trusted, illegal

  Dosh: money

  Double glazing: insulated windows with two layers of glass

  DC: detective constable

  DI: detective inspector

  DS: detective sergeant

  ED: accident and emergency department of hospital

  Estate: public/social housing estate (similar to housing projects)

  Estate agent: realtor (US)

  Fag: cigarette

  Fancy: find attractive

  FE: further education college

  Freshers: Students in their first term/year at university

  Garden Centre: a business where plants and gardening equipment are sold

  Gas people: company selling consumers gas for heating and hot water

  Gobsmacked: surprised

  Get off: make out

  GP: general practitioner, a doctor based in the community

  Gran: grandmother

  Guest house: a private house offering rooms to paying guests (in the days before Airbnb!)

  Hard nut: tough guy

  Hatchback: a car with an upwards-opening door across full width of back

  Home: care home for elderly or sick people

  Home Office: UK government department in charge of domestic affairs

  Inne: isn’t he

  Into care: a child taken away from their family by the social services

  Jobcentre: unemployment office

  Jumper: sweater

  Kosher: genuine or legal

  Lad: young man

  Lamped: hit

  Lay-by: an area off a road where cars can pull in and stop

  Lift: as in give a lift, drive someone somewhere

  Loo: toilet

  Lounge: living room

  Lorry: a truck

  Mobile phone: cell phone

  Net curtains: a type of semi-transparent curtain

  Newsagents: shop selling newspapers, confectionery, cigarettes etc.

  NHS: National Health Service, public health service of UK

  Nick: police station (as verb: to arrest)

  Nowt: nothing

  Nutter: insane person

  Nursery: a place which grows plants, shrubs and trees for sale (often wholesale)

  OCD: Obsessive-compulsive disorder

  OS: Ordnance Survey, detailed map

  Overalls: dungarees

  Pants: underwear

  PC: police constable

  PM: post-mortem

  Petrol: gasoline

  Petrol station: gas station

  Piss off: as exclamation, go away (rude). Also can mean annoy.

  Planning Department: the local authority department which issues licences to build and develop property

  Plod: policeman

  Posh: upper class

  Punter: client of prostitute / can also mean gambler

  Randy: horny

  Ready meal: prepared food which only needs to be reheated

  Rock: a sugary candy often on sale at the seaside

  Semi: semi-detached house, house with another house joined to it on one side only

  Skinful: enough alcohol to make you drunk

  Skip: a large container for building rubbish

  Services: Shops and gas station by highway

  Sixth-former: student in the final two years of high school (16-18 years old)

  Sod: an annoying person

  Sod it: expression meaning you’ve decided not to give a damn

  Solicitor: lawyer

  Squaddies: soldiers

  Tea: dinner (Northern English)

  Till: cash register

  Tipsy: a bit drunk

  Toerag: loser (insulting)

  Ton: a hundred pounds

  Torch: flashlight

  Tosspot: wanker, an idiot

  Tutor: university teacher

  Tower block: tall building containing apartments (usually social housing)

  Two-up two-down: house with two bedrooms upstairs, and two rooms downstairs

  Uni: university/college

  Uniform: a police officer wearing a uniform, usually a police constable

  Van: a vehicle for carrying goods

  Warrant card: police ID in the UK

  Wests: Fred and Rosemary, notorious serial killers

  Young offender: criminal between 14-17 years of age

 

 

 


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