Showing results by author "Rachel McLean" in All Categories

DI Zoe Finch has been in Cumbria long enough to know who’s pulling the strings in organised crime, and who’s helping them from within the police. But just as she’s closing in on the evidence to prove it, she finds herself scrambling in the fallout from the murder of a key witness, and struggling to keep the case out of the hands of the very man she suspects of orchestrating it.

When a detective who's been suspended pending a corruption investigation is murdered, alarm bells start ringing for DI Zoe Finch and her team. Was the victim connected to organized crime boss Trevor Hamm? Was he in league with Zoe's former colleague Ian Osman? And why is CID boss David Randle trying to curtail the investigation? With her mentor off sick and a new boss breathing down her neck, Zoe must investigate without drawing attention to herself.

An isolated community... a web of secrets... a mysterious death. When a body washes up on the shores of Brownsea Island, DCI Lesley Clarke initially suspects suicide. But as she gets closer to the island's close-knit community, she starts to suspect foul play. Why did the victim argue with her closest friend days before her death? What secrets is the victim's manager keeping? And can Lesley get to the bottom of the mystery before someone else dies?

When a body is found draped over Swanage’s iconic Globe monument, DCI Lesley Clarke is called in. A message points to the motive: Go Home. Is this a hate crime? Or something closer to home? Lesley must find the killer before he or she strikes again, all while dealing with a mutiny in her team and political pressure from her boss. At the same time, a local journalist has been investigating the death of Lesley's predecessor — and claims to have key information. Wary of involving her team, Lesley brings in her old colleague Zoe Finch to help.

DCI Lesley Clarke is back in Dorset, and her world has turned upside down. One of the people she's closest to is to under arrest for the murder of DCI Mackie and a body has been found in the remote lighthouse at Portland Bill. And not just any body, but the body of someone she investigated before moving to Dorset. Can Lesley win the trust of the close-knit Portland community and find the killer? And can DI Zoe Finch of the West Midlands force help her track down potential suspects? Does Superintendent Carpenter know more than he's letting on about Mackie's death?

Fresh from solving a spate of murder mysteries, Diana Bakewell and Zaf Williams are separated when Zaf goes on a course to gain his qualification as a tour guide. The course is at London's iconic St Paul's Cathedral, which Zaf is expected to get to know so he can be tested on his tour guide abilities. Meanwhile, Diana is forced from her wonderful London home by her unscrupulous landlord. But all this has to be put aside when a resident at a local hostel is found dead, apparently poisoned.

Still reeling from the death of one colleague and a near miss for another, DI Zoe Finch could have done with a quiet winter. But when a body is pulled from the ice at a rural beauty spot, Zoe and her team find themselves back in the thick of murder and intrigue. Who is the dead man? Why was he there? And is there a connection with a web of blackmail and corruption that spreads across the county?

When a young man is found dead at Birmingham University, the police initially think it's a drug overdose. But when DI Zoe Finch learns that the victim was accused of raping a fellow student, she starts to suspect this might not be so straightforward. Suspicion falls on the rape victim, but when she provides an alibi, Zoe's team. must look elsewhere. And then another man dies in the same way... Does someone want to teach these men a lesson? And if so, who?

The Susannah Ramsay and Sadie Dawes cases are solved and DCI Lesley Clarke's team is back together. But there are tensions. Is Dennis hiding more than just mental health problems? Did Superintendent Carpenter cover up the details of DCI Mackie's death? And does Lesley's girlfriend Elsa know more about Mackie than she's letting on? Just as Lesley feels she is getting closer to answers, she's forced to work on the other side of Dorset after a body is uncovered by a landslide at Lyme Regis's beach. Who is the body and is there a connection to DCI Mackie, Arthur Kelvin, and Elsa's law firm?

It's Christmas in Lyme Regis, and DC Tina Abbott is looking forward to some well-earned time with her family. But then her mum Annie, true to form, reports a crime. The pottery shop has been broken into and the owner Peg, Annie's friend, attacked. The evidence is scant. A solitary fingerprint in blood, but nothing stolen, at least as far as the police can tell. But when Annie discovers a gaudy pottery reindeer that was left at the scene of the crime, she and her swimming club friends get drawn into the mystery.

DI Jade Tanner's new Complex Crimes Unit is finding its feet. DS Mo Uddin is settling into his new Scottish home, Dr Petra McBride has stopped receiving anonymous calls, and Jade is working to support her son over the loss of his dad. But then a mysterious crime is added to their workload. The body of a young man is discovered at the top of Dunsinane Hill, with soil from Birnam Wood in his pockets. The two sites are sixteen miles apart, so this is no fluke. Petra and Jade immediately spot the Macbeth reference.

DCI Lesley Clarke has promised her new wife that their Scottish honeymoon won’t be spoiled by murder investigations. But when she’s out for a walk on the first day and finds a body, she can’t help but be dragged into a case.

DI Zoe Finch is settling into her new role in Cumbria CID. She’s solved her first murder with the help of her new team, averted a potential riot, and is starting to learn who she can trust inside Cumbria Police – and who she can’t. But when a businessman and former miner is found dead at a new mine that’s the focus of local protest, Zoe is presented with a new challenge. Her boss is trying to play the death down, and she’s being encouraged to ignore leads by colleagues whose motives seem increasingly suspicious. Zoe’s sure they’re wrong.

DI Jade Tanner has been plunged into managing the Complex Crimes Unit, Police Scotland's newest investigating team. She's recruited Dr Petra McBride, fresh from losing her job at Dundee University, and DS Mo Uddin, who's reluctantly transferred from Birmingham. When America's newest internet billionaire is shot on the shores of Loch Lomond, the team is brought in. Jade suspects a connection with the shooting of a local millionaire, an unsolved case which has been haunting her.

DI Zoe Finch has solved three major cases and is establishing herself as West Midlands Police's newest detective inspector. But when a terror attack strikes Birmingham, she has to step up another gear. A member of her team is acting suspiciously, and may even be connected to the attack. And is the whole thing just a smokescreen for other criminal activity? The stakes are raised even higher for Zoe when her boss, DCI Lesley Clarke, is injured and must hand over responsibility for the investigation. Can Zoe uncover the truth and save the lives of two innocent women?

Meet DCI Lesley Clarke. She’s a straight-talking city copper who doesn’t suffer fools gladly… and she’s been transferred to rural Dorset. After being injured in a bomb attack, Lesley is presented with a choice — early retirement, or a period of respite in a calmer location. But things don’t stay calm for long. Before she’s even started her new job, Lesley is dragged into investigating a murder at one of England’s most iconic landmarks, the imposing Corfe Castle.

DI Zoe Finch has survived her first winter in Cumbria CID. She’s learning to trust her team, even if they do have a tendency to get themselves into dangerous situations. And finally, the sun is beginning to shine. But when a competitor in a local fell race is found dead near an isolated cairn, Zoe finds herself navigating an unfamiliar landscape. From the rough and competitive world of the fell runners, through the local business community, to the exclusive Bassenthwaite Manor Hotel, people are keeping secrets from her — and not all of her colleagues seem keen for her to unearth them.

Fresh from solving not one but two murders at London landmarks, tour guide Diana Bakewell is apprehensive when a typo forces her to take two groups on two very different tours. The first group are bridge afficionados, in London to cram in as many bridges as they can cross in Chartwell and Crouch’s vintage Routemaster bus. The second is a group of Bridget Jones fans keen to explore the locations from the book and films. But then as they’re crossing the iconic Tower Bridge, a mysterious death plunges both groups into chaos. How did the victim get onto the top deck of the bus?

An old enemy and a new colleague bring twin problems for DCI Lesley Clarke. Lesley and her team think that their battles with Dorset's organised crime gangs are over. The Kelvins are all dead or in prison and Trevor Hamm's Birmingham gang have given up their attempts to expand into the county. But then a man's body is found on Chesil Beach, his fingertips and teeth removed. And his DNA isn't on the system.

Christmas in Birmingham means the Frankfurt Christmas Market. Loved and hated by brummies in equal measure, it certainly makes life interesting for West Midlands Police. But when the body of a homeless man is found behind a market stall early one Sunday morning, it looks like Christmas might be cancelled for DI Zoe Finch and her team. And when they discover that the victim has a history that makes his death politically sensitive, things get even more complicated.