Bøger af Chris Nickson

Simon Westow, the city's unwavering thief-taker, must confront betrayal, history and murder in this gritty page-turner set in nineteenth-century Leeds.Leeds, May 1825. Thief-taker Simon Westow is hired by Sir Robert Foley to find four silver cups stolen by his servant. The cups are a family treasure, crafted by local silversmith Arthur Mangey over a century before. Meanwhile, Simon has also been invited to witness the demolition of Middle Row, where Mangey reputedly had a secret workshop for coin clipping, the very crime he was hanged for in 1696. Is it a coincidence or a terrible omen? Simon's curiosity swiftly turns to horror when he discovers Foley's servant lying dead in the clandestine room. How can a long-dead criminal be involved in the servant's demise? Simon needs all the help he can get from his assistant Jane and deadly prot�g� Sally to navigate the twisted path from history to the present amidst the growing number of dead bodies. But is the truth worth dying for? This authentic and atmospheric historical mystery will appeal to fans of Anne Perry and Charles Finch.

1734. When a young country lad requests the Constable's help in finding his sister who has run away to Leeds to seek her fortune, Nottingham is not optimistic. Such girls usually end up as prostitutes - or worse. The following day, the young man is found dead, his throat slit. The evening before his death, the victim had been seen in deep conversation with career criminal Tom Finer in the Bell Inn. Could there be a connection to his murder? Why has Finer returned to Leeds after a seventeen-year absence? And what really happened to the young man's sister? Then a second body is discovered floating in the River Aire - and Nottingham finds himself plunged into a murder investigation where nothing is as it seems.

For over four decades, John Martyn was a musician's musician (lauded by artists as disparate as Eric Clapton, Phil Collins and Bob Marley), a superb guitarist and singer who straddled the worlds of folk, jazz and rock, earning an OBE and being honoured with a Life Achievement by the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards shortly before his untimely death in 2009. He was a true innovator, constantly pushing the boundaries of his music - but he hadn't been kind to his body. Drinking and drug use contributed to serious health problems that led to the amputation of part of John's leg - but even that didn't slow him down. He turned out one of his best albums in 2007, and toured regularly. There were plans for a new record - but John succumbed to pneumonia early in 2009. He leaves behind a body of work that ranges from the beautifully intimate to the majestic, created during a turbulent, troubled, but uncompromising life - all detailed in Solid Air.

Introducing Detective Inspector Tom Harper in a brand-new historical mystery series. June 1890. Leeds is close to breaking point. The gas workers are on strike. Supplies are dangerously low. Factories and businesses are closing; the lamps are going unlit at night. Detective Inspector Tom Harper has more urgent matters on his mind. The beat constable claims eight-year-old Martha Parkinson has disappeared. Her father insists she's visiting an aunt in Halifax - but Harper doesn't believe him. When Col Parkinson is found dead the following morning, the case takes on an increasing desperation. But then Harper's search for Martha is interrupted by the murder of a replacement gas worker, stabbed to death outside the Town Hall while surrounded by a hostile mob. Pushed to find a quick solution, Harper discovers that there's more to this killing than meets the eye - and that there may be a connection to Martha's disappearance.

As an atmosphere of fear and suspicion pervades the city, Richard Nottingham and his team find themselves hunting a ruthless child-killer, a monster who preys on abandoned street children, those with no one to care about them, no one to report them missing. The Constable has his suspicions as to who the culprit might be - but how can he prove it when the wealthy and powerful protect their own? He could also do without the interference of the new mayor, who's taking a close personal interest in the case. Nottingham's efforts to bring the killer to justice will have tragic consequences for himself and his family.

As so many give their lives in the trenches, Deputy Chief Constable Tom Harper and his men are working harder than ever to catch a saboteur running loose on the streets of Leeds - and their investigation takes a dark twist with two shootings. With his back against the wall and the war effort at stake, Harper can't afford to fail.

Leeds. November, 1823. After hearing about the brutal deaths of two young boys, thief-taker Simon Westow's painful memories of his childhood reawaken. Unable to sleep, he goes for a walk - and stumbles upon a body being pulled from the river. Simon is drawn into investigating the deaths, but the pursuit of the truth takes him down a dangerous path.

Leeds, June 1913. Deputy Chief Constable Tom Harper is overseeing a national suffragist pilgrimage due in Leeds. Then Davey Mullen, an American gangster, returns from New York to his city of birth and seemingly triggers a series of chilling events. Is Davey responsible for the sudden surge in crime, violence and murder on Leeds's streets?

Fourth title in the gripping medieval mystery series set in Chesterfield

On a hot summer morning, Richard Nottingham, Constable of Leeds, is called out when a young woman is found stabbed to death among the ruins of Kirkstall Abbey. In her pocket is a love note.Nottingham must delve into the dark secrets of the rich and influential to uncover the truth.

1364: The plague has returned and fear fills the air as the pestilence claims its first victims in Chesterfield. When the local priest vanishes, John the Carpenter believes the man is simply scared - until he discovers a body left in an empty house.

Eager to prove herself and determined to succeed, Lottie faces apathy from colleagues and the general public alike until she suddenly finds herself on the trail of a missing girl that leads to the underbelly of the city and to murder.

`Chris Nickson works his usual magic, populating late medieval Chesterfield with characters that are clearly of their time and yet jump off the page, vibrant and familiar.

Leeds, 1957: When enquiry agent Dan Markham and his new partner, retired Detective Sergeant Baker, take on a missing persons case, a simple matter turns into a murder investigation when a body is recovered from the River Aire.