Ushanka
There’s a killer on the loose in Dagestan, near the Caspian Sea. His purpose in life is ‘to Kill and to die In the name of Allah’. He’s an Arab Muslim wanted for bombing, murdering, and changing the face of the world in which we live. His motive is revenge. His ability is beyond understanding. The murder count continues to rise.
To some, the fugitive is a Godsend. A secret weapon that one side wants to harness in the war against the enemy. Who will turn a blind eye to the terrorist’s past? Or will they chase the fanatic and end the slaughter? One day he’s an assassin, then he is a peacemaker. His next destination is to an unknown killing spree. But then along comes an Arab Jew from the past who knows who the next target is. It’s his bargaining chip to a life beyond the world of spies. Who will believe the Arab Jew? Or will they favour the Muslim extremist? The question of who has the most influence is under review. Whoever wins will be all supreme. Is power decided on the roll of a dice?
But when Detective Chief Inspector Davies King opens a murder investigation following the discovery of a body in the harbour, he is devastated to learn that a close friend is the main suspect. Who else could it be? Publicly, the hardnosed chess-playing detective doesn’t see things the same way as others and remembers how a colleague who is involved in the enquiry once made a crucial mistake. With the authorities against him, Davies musters a handpicked bunch of detectives to destroy the gossip and unearth the evidence.
Come and join the Murder Squad. Sit back and hold tight.
The Journey
A tale of love and hate, blackmail, and power and corruption. The Journey is the story of a tripartite conference on trade, counterterrorism, societal reform, and human rights. But it all goes wrong and succumbs to unexpected chaos following a succession of events that begin in the swamps of a far-off country and end in Cumbria.
When mysterious individuals travel from afar it doesn’t take long to realise that some of the vicious rebels amongst them plan mass murder and destruction. On the same journey, a bunch of well-known crooks plan to retire to a life in the sun. They all carry a secret that defines every decision they take. Not all of them complete the nightmare journey for there is a skeleton in the cupboard that can only be disentangled in the Lake District. When the survivors meet on the shores of Ullswater, the secret is up for grabs.
Septimus
AD 78: It’s taken the Roman invaders over thirty years to reach the Lake District and the lands now known as Cumbria. Surrounded by high mountains, deep valleys, and a multitude of lakes, tarns and sheep, the Romans speculate on whether the inhabitants are an illiterate band of semi-neolithic individuals or an affluent tribe of significant status. Perhaps they will prove to be rich in gold, silver, and other treasures mined from the rocky environment where they live. Or do the locals survive on the edge of starvation existing on a daily diet of basic nourishment that is below normal living standards? Where is their army, the Romans ask? Will they run and hide in the caves with the first flight of an arrow? Are the natives naïve or cultured? Can they be trusted? How long will it take to destroy them?
Strike! Strike! Strike!
An autobiography from the front line of policing in the United Kingdom.... The true story of a sixteen years old boy from a city in the north who joined his local police force... From tea-maker to spy catcher, from errand boy to counter terrorist detective. Witness his journey via Cumbria Constabulary, the Regional Crime Squad, the Special Branch, the Anti Terrorist Branch of the Metropolitan Police, the Royal Ulster Constabulary and the Security Service.. Prepare to laugh.... Prepare to cry...
The Fragile Peace
A thriller of violent prejudices and divided loyalties. About the province where no-one talks, this story tells it like it is. This Ulster novel reaches to the very roots of sectarian life and death. Written by a member of the security forces, it penetrates behind the media-screen to reveal a human landscape that is unknown, yet startlingly believable. It is a world where sworn enemies may exchange confidences over a game of snooker; where a kneecapping operation turns into a deadly vendetta fuelled by sexual jealousy and where the fate of the United Kingdom could rest in the hands of one punch drunk bruiser with a dangerous addiction.
Threat Level One
When Master Sergeant Jack Dooley uncovers a startling secret in the desert wastes of Iraq he unwittingly triggers an alarm that resonates throughout the western world. It doesn’t take long before Boyd and his elite Special Crime Unit find themselves handling the investigation. But who is the man from Tikrit the police and intelligence community are desperately searching for? Is he really an Islamic assassin with orders to take out the leaders of the western world?
White Eagle
A Cumbrian detective is working with the Special Crime Unit and elements of British Intelligence.
When a desperate young man is forced out of his home in the mountains, he claims ‘Qisas’ and sets out on a bitter journey of revenge. As he terrorizes a continent with his wicked plan, the evil megalomaniac becomes an iconic figure synonymous with fear and dread. In a fast-moving, white knuckle ride, the unknown assassin leaves police and intelligence services reeling from the sheer pressure of relentless attacks.
Moonlight Shadows
When Conor is betrayed, he spends the night hidden in the bracken surrounded by security forces hunting him down. As moonlight shadows flicker, he realises who is responsible. With his unit destroyed, Conor sets out for revenge. But dark unspoken forces are at work and the track goes cold. A decade later, Pegasus, a discredited British Intelligence Agent, produces a mysterious piece of computer software and demands reinstatement. The enigmatic software, carried in a memory stick, threatens to destabilise the world’s economy should it fall into the wrong hands.
Thimbles
A thimble is a small, hard, pitted cup worn to protect the finger that pushes a needle in the craft of sewing. They are invariably made of metal and, euphemistically, are ‘as hard as nails.’ When a thimble pushes a needle to the extremity, regularly, and with bitter unrivalled determination, the job gets done much quicker than you might otherwise imagine. However, one should always be wary of a callous thimble that exerts pressure to the limit. Such a thimble can be aggressive, cold-hearted, lethally dangerous to mankind, and have no equal.
If the needle is the ‘spy’ who complies with instructions from the leader, then the thimble is the leader who pushes the needle and is, therefore, the ‘Spymaster’.
Saphire
A tale inspired by, and based upon, an account of a detective and an informant spanning twenty years.
You’ll need to live like a tramp for a while, eat on the hoof, fill the car’s glove compartment with chocolate bars and energy drinks, walk for miles, ride Tail End Charlie in a surveillance operation, end up abandoned and lost in the middle of nowhere, and meet someone in the most bizarre of situations who will tell you ‘what’s going to happen next’...
Based almost entirely in Cumbria, it’s a tale that takes you for a walk on the wild side, and might cause you to wonder how you can get out of the most dangerous situation you could ever imagine?
Harbour Lights
Paul Anthony describes the story of a murder in a seaside town on the shores of the English Channel. According to the elite in the local constabulary, there’s no great mystery involved since it’s an open and shut case. The Establishment has made its decision.
But when Detective Chief Inspector Davies King opens a murder investigation following the discovery of a body in the harbour, he is devastated to learn that a close friend is the main suspect. Who else could it be? Publicly, the hardnosed chess-playing detective doesn’t see things the same way as others and remembers how a colleague who is involved in the enquiry once made a crucial mistake. With the authorities against him, Davies musters a handpicked bunch of detectives to destroy the gossip and unearth the evidence.
Come and join the Murder Squad. Sit back and hold tight.