Sabbatical

NEW “STAND ALONE” MYSTERY

Harrison Steele’s dream of a work-free sailing sabbatical from his law firm is thwarted when a young bank auditor is killed a few days before he departs for the Caribbean. He becomes entangled in the investigation when no motive is uncovered for the young woman’s murder.

His sailing adventure takes an unexpected turn when he helps a teenage girl deserted by her father in Saint Lucia. The appearance of a beautiful Italian woman adds to the mystery, one good deed leads to another, and Harrison’s sailing adventure becomes a voyage of international intrigue.

Has Harrison stumbled on an undercover operation or is it something more sinister?

The Man Who Died

A successful entrepreneur in the mushroom industry, Jaakko Kaunismaa is a man in his prime. At just 37 years of age, he is shocked when his doctor tells him that he’s dying. What is more, the cause is discovered to be prolonged exposure to toxins; in other words, someone has slowly but surely been poisoning him. Determined to find out who wants him dead, Jaakko embarks on a suspenseful rollercoaster journey full of unusual characters, bizarre situations and unexpected twists.
With a nod to Fargo and the best elements of the Scandinavian noir tradition, The Man Who Died is a page-turning thriller brimming with the blackest comedy surrounding life and death, and love and betrayal, marking a stunning new departure for the King of Helsinki Noir.
‘Right up there with the best’ Times Literary Supplement
‘The Man Who Died is deftly plotted, poignant and perceptive in its wry reflections on mortality and very funny’ Declan Hughes, Irish Times
‘The deadpan icy sensibility of Nordic noir is combined here with warm-blooded, often surreal, humour. Like the death cap mushroom, Tuomainen’s dark story manages to be as delicious as it is Toxic’ Sunday Express
‘The Man Who Died by Finnish author Antti Tuomainen isn’t your standard Nordic noir. Told in a darkly funny, deadpan style … The result is a rollercoaster read in which the farce has some serious and surprisingly philosophical underpinnings’ Laura Wilson, Guardian

‘An offbeat jewel’ Don Crinklaw, Publishers Weekly

‘Hugely entertaining and satisfying … like Carl Hiassen transported to Finland. It’s full of black comedy and has an unlikely hero in Jaakko, who you’ll root for to the very end’ Kevin Wignall, author of A Death in Sweden

‘Combines a startlingly clever opening, a neat line in dark humour and a unique Scandinavian sensibility. A fresh and witty read’ Chris Ewan, author of Safe House

‘Dark and thrilling, funny and intelligent, this Fargo-like novel contains lethal doses of humour … and mushrooms’ Sofi Oksanen, author of Purge

‘Brilliant. Absolutely brilliant. I enjoyed every single sentence’ Thomas Enger

‘Told with a wit honed by the Arctic winter and a story that lures you in with the perfume of the Finnish forests, this is Wes Anderson meets the Coen Brothers in rural Finland … a book I will never forget’ Matt Wesolowski
Read more

A Proud Woman

Step into 1897 Victorian London: Unravel Love and Intrigue with The Tabitha & Wolf Historical Mystery Series, where Mystery meets Romance with a splash of Humour.

Tabitha was used to being a social pariah. Could her standing in society get any worse?

Tabitha, the Countess of Pembroke, is newly widowed at only 22 years of age. With no son to inherit the title, it falls to a dashing, distant cousin of her husband’s, Jeremy Chesterton, known as Wolf. It quickly becomes apparent that Wolf had consorted with some of London’s most dangerous citizens before inheriting the title. Can he leave this world behind, or will shadowy figures from his past follow him into his new aristocratic life in Mayfair? And can Tabitha avoid being caught up in Wolf’s dubious activities?

It seems it’s well and truly time for Tabitha to leave her gilded cage behind for good!

Mending the Duke’s Heart

Miss Ella Ward, the daughter of a poor seamstress, has always dreamed of becoming a dress designer and catching the eye of even the most prominent figures in London. However, when her beloved father dies, she dedicates herself to working by her mother’s side, to make ends meet. Her luck will finally change when a young lady becomes astonished by her talent and hires her as her personal dressmaker, spiralling her into a world she only dreamed of joining. It won’t be long until Ella’s world turns upside down once again, when she meets the lady’s charming brother and becomes unable to stop daydreaming about his sparking gaze. Will Ella manage to survive and find love in a world that is totally unknown to her? Could she truly have the fairytale ending that any other girl of her class would die for?

After the unexpected loss of his father, Ross Edmundson, The Duke of Winthrope, has become distant, burying himself in grief. Carrying the extra wound of a past love, he has refused to open up his heart again and much to his distaste, he must suffer through the upcoming season as chaperone to his young sister. Everything is about to change though when he sees the beautiful seamstress of his sister and day by day realises he is desperately falling in love with her. However, he knows that this love would be against society’s rules and that he would have to clash even with his own mother, who would undoubtedly be against this romance. Will the lonely Duke find the strength to defy everything for the sake of love? Could Ella be the one to finally sew his broken heart back together?

Ross and Ella cannot deny their blossoming feelings and they are desperate to make amends that will bring them closer to their happily ever after. However, a malicious figure who has set eyes on the Duke, tries to sabotage Ella and take her out of the picture once and for all. Will the honourable Duke manage to protect her from a world that keeps breaking her gentle heart? Will the two soulmates eventually beat the odds stacked against them or will they fail to break down the walls that keep them apart?

“Mending the Duke’s Heart” is a historical romance novel of approximately 80,000 words. No cheating, no cliffhangers, and a guaranteed happily ever after.

Read more

Witches’ Brew

A B&B that doesn’t serve breakfast, a dead body, and something strange in the room at the end of the corridor . . . Pepper knew moving back home wasn’t going to be easy.

Pepper Jasper moves from Sydney to the cozy town of Lighthouse Bay, answering a desperate plea from her aunts to help with their failing Bed and Breakfast business.

She discovers her aunts are more eccentric than she remembered, the Bed and Breakfast does not serve breakfast, and the cottages for lease have strange themes. And what’s more, within minutes of her arrival, she stumbles across a dead body.

Pepper soon has her hands full, contending with a murder mystery, irritating guests including the enigmatic Lucas O’Callaghan who is convinced every woman wants to fall into his arms, and her aunts, who are hiding more than one deep secret.

Who – or what! – lurks in the forbidden room at the end of the dark corridor?

And why do the aunts insist she drink copious quantities of special label wine?

Find out what awaits Pepper Jasper at Mugwort Manor.

A paranormal cozy mystery.

Read more