Nicola Upson Boeken

When bestselling crime author Josephine Tey inherited a remote Suffolk cottage from her godmother, it came full of secrets. There were the infamous Red Barn murders, committed in the grounds a century before, and still casting a shadow over the village. And there was Lucy Kyte, the mysterious beneficiary of her godmother's will, who no-one in the close-knit village would admit to knowing. As Josephine settles into the strange little house and attempts to make friends with the frightened locals, she knows that there is something dark that has a tight hold on the heart of this small community. Is it just the sinister ghosts of the Red Barn murders, or is there something very much alive that she needs to beware of?

March 1934. Revered mystery writer Josephine Tey is traveling from Scotland to London for the final week of her play Richard of Bordeaux, the surprise hit of the season, with pacifist themes that resonate in a world still haunted by war. But joy turns to horror when her arrival coincides with the murder of a young woman she had befriended on the train ride—and Tey is plunged into a mystery as puzzling as any in her own works. Detective Inspector Archie Penrose is convinced that the killing is connected to the play, and that Tey herself is in danger of becoming a victim of her own success. In the aftermath of a second murder, the writer and the policeman must join together to stop a ruthless killer who will apparently stop at nothing.

Called to the peaceful wooded churchyard of St-John’s-at-Hampstead, Detective Chief Inspector Archie Penrose faces one of the most audacious and unusual murders of his career. The body of the church’s organist is found in an opened grave, together with a photograph of a manor house and a cryptic note. The image leads Archie to Cambridge, where the crisp autumn air has brought with it bustling life to the ancient university and town. Mystery author Josephine Tey and Archie's lover Bridget Foley have each recently settled in Cambridge, though both women are not equally happy to see him. One has concealed an important secret from Archie which now threatens to come to light. Meanwhile, the change of seasons has also brought with it a series of vicious attacks against women in town, spreading fear and suspicion through the community. Soon, another body is revealed, and in the shadow of King’s College Chapel, Archie uncovers a connection twenty-five years old which haunted both victims—as well as some of their living companions. As Archie and Josephine each grapple with savage malefactors intent on making their victims pay, they must race to stop another attack in this beautifully written, intricately plotted mystery.

When Elsie Munday arrives to take up position as housemaid to the Spencer family, her life quickly becomes entwined with the charming and irascible Stanley, his artist wife Hilda and their tiny daughter Shirin. Elsie does her best to keep the family together even when love, obsession and temptation seem set to tear them apart...

As a cloud of suspicion falls across the small Suffolk village she has come to love, the conflict becomes personal, and events take a dark and sinister turn. Dear Little Corpses is a journey into fear as evacuated children flee from the dangers of the Blitz to find themselves facing the terror of abduction.

May, 1937, and London prepares to crown a new king. Bestselling writer Josephine Tey is in town to oversee a BBC radio production of her play, Queen of Scots - but adultery, treachery and pent-up jealousies stalk the corridors of Broadcasting House.

Josephine Tey and Archie Penrose gather with friends for a Cornish Christmas, but two strange and brutal deaths on St Michael's Mount - and the unexpected arrival of a world famous film star, in need of sanctuary - interrupt the festivities.

** Longlisted for the CWA Sapere Books Historial Dagger 2020 ** 'Haunting . . . Superlative.' Sunday Times Crime Book of the Month 'A terrific novel.' A. N. Wilson Summer, 1915: a young woman falls to her death at Charleston Farmhouse on the Sussex Downs. But was it an accident? Twenty years later, Josephine Tey is faced with the accusation that it was murder, and that she was complicit in the crime. Can she clear her name and uncover the truth, exposing the darkest secrets of that apparently idyllic summer?

Set in May 1935, the story follows Josephine Tey, who seeks solace in Cornwall after growing weary of theater life. At the Motleys' picturesque yet dilapidated estate, she aims to write her second mystery novel, drawing inspiration from the enchanting landscape and local legends. Simultaneously, the Motleys engage in an amateur production at the nearby Minack Theater, intertwining their lives with Tey's creative journey amidst the backdrop of artistic exploration and friendship.

The fourth in Nicola Upson's delightful and atmospheric period crime series featuring Josephine Tey.