August 2026 Book of the Month
The Body in Abbey Park
Film logline
Detectives Hadleigh and Betts investigate a murder that points to hidden malevolent international organisations - child smugglers and anarchist bombers.
Synopsis:
When Detective John Hadleigh's brother is brutally assassinated, it sets off a chain reaction of violence that spans continents. As bodies pile up from Naples to London to New York, Hadleigh finds himself in a race against time to uncover the target of an international web of anarchists.
Meanwhile, in the quaint town of Glastonbury, Detective Betts faces a chilling discovery-a young woman's naked body, strangled and abandoned in Abbey Park.
The Body in Abbey Park is the fourth book in the series - The Future Walks Among Us.
Soundtrack:
Audio extracts:
It felt like an eternity, or perhaps the blink of an eye. She had no sense of how long. Time had become unfettered. Maybe an hour, maybe two, or three, but she hadn’t wavered. She stared relentlessly at the ochre bloom that blossomed beneath the wall’s green paint. Her mind attempted to attach meaning to the design; circular, but with sugary edges, like some strange confection. It was the detective in her; she never stopped. And when you’re stuck in the same space, in this instance, a hospital bed, and for a significant length of time—fourteen days and nights undoubtedly qualified—it should be time enough to absorb every facet and fixture, each blemish and crack in the four walls. But no, not when you must lie on your front throughout, with the only option of head left or head right, nothing in between, and under no circumstances can you turn over. Betts twisted her head around; her field of vision shifted to the left.
She struggled not to be too distracted by the familiar names that leapt up at her from every turn, junction, and direction. A lineage of Annes, Marys, James, and many others. All most-royal and thoroughly regal, so she frowned in surprise when she saw a plaque bearing Oliver Cromwell's name at her feet. Betts paused to catch her breath at the tomb of the half-sisters Elizabeth and Mary Tudor. Someone had made the extremely daring decision to construct a beautiful edifice of golden crowns, black marble pillars, and a pair of reclining marble statues of the two Queens.
Audio extracts:
Her client was not as Betts had imagined. The voice on the other end of the telephone was laced with the British upper classes' distinctively clipped tone and phrasing—the type of voice you would expect to hear in Harrods or at the Ascot Ladies’ Day. Betts had anticipated a grand, authoritarian middle-aged matriarch. Instead, Mrs Richie was indisputably young, stylish and attractive.
While Betts travelled to Covent Garden, Hadleigh took the tube to Notting Hill. It was a short walk to the West Kensington Police Station and his 10 a.m. appointment with the desk sergeant. Though he had been a police officer himself, a Detective Inspector no less, Hadleigh bristled at the law's rigid inflexibility. It seemed completely nonsensical that he should be held in any way responsible for the deaths of either of the two gunmen. Three innocent victims had died at their hands, including his own brother, yet somehow the Constabulary felt they had a case against him for defending himself. What was he supposed to do? Let the man shoot him?
While Betts travelled to Covent Garden, Hadleigh took the tube to Notting Hill. It was a short walk to the West Kensington Police Station and his 10 a.m. appointment with the desk sergeant. Though he had been a police officer himself, a Detective Inspector no less, Hadleigh bristled at the law's rigid inflexibility. It seemed completely nonsensical that he should be held in any way responsible for the deaths of either of the two gunmen. Three innocent victims had died at their hands, including his own brother, yet somehow the Constabulary felt they had a case against him for defending himself. What was he supposed to do? Let the man shoot him?
July 2026 Book of the Month
Sing a Song of Six Girls
Film logline:
An ambitious young musician searches for success in the vibrant 1980s music scene and discovers that every step towards fame comes at a personal cost, as six remarkable women each change the course of his life.
My new contract was to play guitar for The Roger Graham Floor Show, a company of singers and dancers performing at Hampton Holiday Centres along the south coast of England. It was day one, and I was on my way to West Sussex for a week of rehearsals. I remember it well, hah—the bright optimism of spring filled the air.
It was time to get my nose back to the old grindstone. I like to work; I enjoy staying busy, and my next job would certainly keep me occupied during those early twilight hours—musician’s hours—at the Cat’s Whiskers, a Palais de Danse owned by Mecca, the largest chain of UK nightclubs. The location was Hendon, North London.
Synopsis:
Set against the vibrant backdrop of the 1980s music scene, Sing a Song of Six Girls follows Artie, an ambitious young musician chasing fame and artistic recognition. The collapse of a promising record deal leads to a band breakup, prompting Artie to reconsider his direction and navigate the unpredictable world of the gigging circuit.
Told from Artie’s perspective but fuelled by the compelling presence of the six women he encounters, each with their own ambitions, desires and complexities, and driven by a unique blend of love and ambition. As boundaries blur and motivations are questioned, one central theme emerges: who truly uses whom?
Artie’s journey is as much about personal growth as it is about professional success—he faces love, loss, friendship, and, most of all, self-discovery.
Audio extracts:
Soundtrack
Songs
I glanced in the rear-view mirror and made another attempt to tame my hair. It bounced with a joie de vivre that other parts sadly lacked. I left the car and walked through the exclusive suburbs of Sidcup. I was surrounded by trees and shrubs, neatly kept lawns, and winding gravel drives. I followed the crazy paving until she appeared, framed in the French windows of an office extension, Ava Carlton, booking agent to the stars. In another lifetime, she’d been a Follies showgirl. It was like she’d never really left the spotlight; she seized every opportunity to show a bit of leg.
“Well, darling, if you don’t like the costume, you’ll just have to tell him… I won’t get involved unless there’s a clear breach of contract…” She shook her head. “Look, just say the PVC is chafing and too bloody uncomfortable. Or tell him to drop the whole number from the show.” Ava rolled her eyes. “Motorcycles and high-cut PVC? Doesn’t sound like family entertainment to me. Why not replace it with a Disney song… how about King of the Swingers? Oh, hang on, that doesn’t sound particularly child-friendly when you say it out loud.” She screeched a laugh.
June 2026 Book of the Month
Trouble Came Knocking
Max knew trouble might lie ahead. Bringing together people with diverse interests always carried the risk of conflict, especially when national concerns clashed with inevitable self-interest. Yet the ultimate goal was too important to allow petty squabbles to mire their common objective: the reunification of the German people.
Though she hadn't been gone long, two men had already taken seats at their table when Saffron returned. Celestine divided her attention between the new arrivals and the open wrap. Her nose was speckled like sugar frosting, and her eyes sparkled.
"Saffron, darling, meet our new friends—doctors from the Charité: Rainer and Ulrich."
Synopsis:
Clara's Restaurant at Paradise Cove, where the peaceful Malibu beaches conceal a dangerous undercurrent.
When bootleggers arrive at this picturesque location, Clara and her staff become entangled in the violent world of organised crime.
Frank's idyllic life with the enticing Dragon Sisters is disrupted by the arrival of a ruthless Cossack oligarch, determined to reclaim his homeland.
Meanwhile, Lucy and Ambrose play a dangerous game of cat and mouse in exotic Shanghai, transporting priceless Romanov jewels under the deadly watch of Bolshevik agents.
Audio extracts:
Soundtrack:
The knock on the door posed no mystery. It wasn't really a knock; knuckles played no part in it. It was a tap, made with the tips of fingers—quiet, respectful.
"Come in, Maisy," Clara said.
A girl in her early twenties entered the office. She wore the Clara’s Kitchen restaurant uniform: a cornflower-blue dress with white cuffs and collar, a white apron, and a fancy snood. It was a tidy outfit. The girl was pretty as a beauty queen, but her skin tone was a mix of races. She wouldn’t be winning any beauty pageants anytime soon. Maisy wouldn’t make it through the door.
"I'm sorry to trouble you, Miss Clara, but there's a couple of men at table fifteen. They says they want to see the owner." Maisy paused. "They look like trouble, Miss."
2:45 a.m., the skiff rushed to the shore, riding waves of frothy white surf. Dark figures in overcoats and hats swarmed around the vessel, dragging its flat bottom beyond the sea’s reach and securing it with sturdy mooring ropes. An orderly column stretched from the boat to the old stable. They found a rhythm and passed the wooden crates from one to the next in synchronised lines.
Film logline
When bootleggers bring a wave of violence to 1930s Malibu, a restaurant owner and her unlikely allies become caught between organised crime, international espionage and the hunt for the Romanov jewels.
Soundtrack
Audio extracts:
“Harry Horowitz, a reporter renowned worldwide for his informed, confidential, and often brusque broadcasting style, sits engrossed behind a modest desk.”
Film logline
Amid the 1930s race for oil, political intrigue and covert operations shape events that will influence global power for the next century.
Synopsis
Officer Rakan has a murder to investigate.
A clash of cultures at the world’s biggest oil find.
Audio extracts:
“The breathless hush before dawn was his favourite time. During these moments of transcendent magic, as darkness receded and the sun announced a new day, Officer Rakan bin Abdulaziz always felt at his most spiritual.”
May 2026 Book of the Month
The Shifting Sands
of
Dammam Dome
“Hello?” shouted the voice on the line—an older man with an English accent.
Officer Rakan couldn’t resist. “As-salāmu ʿalaykum,” he said with calm reassurance.
“Originally a 19th-century residence built by a Baloch Prince overlooking the port, Baloch House had been requisitioned by the British during the Great War.”
“Most amusing, Oswald,” said the wheezing man, and took the second chair to the side of the desk. “You passed the test, Sergeant Wallace. Well done. My name is Midas, not my real name, of course, but that’s how you’ll know me.
Soundtrack
Audio extracts:
“Softly, like a kiss, the sun caressed his face.
A rush of warmth. Sensation. Too much.”
“Follow me,” said Trudi with a flourish.
"It's probably every modern girl's dream to be in the movies," Lucy observed with a whimsical smile.
Film logline
Classic 1930s noir murder mystery - a body in the bath - a Hollywood producer, in the frame and on the run, while in Marrakesh, Séverine is on the run from Nazis and Fatwas .
Synopsis:
A man wakes in a beautiful house above the Pacific Ocean with no memory of the previous night. In the bathroom, a young woman lies dead.
4 letters had been scrawled in blood on the wall:
His name - Rudi.
“The palace wasn’t actually floating, but it seemed somehow suspended above the calm, salty waters of the Gulf.”
April 2026 Book of the Month
Softly Like A Kiss
“Ernie Watts was a dedicated and diligent detective. He took pride in his role as a representative of the law, but he struggled with visits to the mortuary.”