Book Description

I saw the glint of the fish knife in his hand as he started to run… I flinched instinctively to avoid him, but he ran straight past me and lunged instead at the man on the steps. It was all over quickly before I even realised what was happening. I heard the businessman gasp softly and then he went down, silently to his knees. The stranger is still breathing, but Alice can see the life draining from him. Her mind races as she continues to fight for his life, almost in tears with the effort. Convinced it must have been a bungled mugging, Alice’s conviction crumbles when the man is killed with a bullet to the head within minutes of the first attack. Who has killed this random stranger? And why? Death in Leamington is more than a crime story; it is a riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma. Set in the genteel Regency town of Royal Leamington Spa, the murder of an elderly foreign visitor sets off an intricate chain of events, surprising literary encounters and one too many unexplained and gruesome deaths. Inspector Hunter and his new assistant DC Penny Dore race to solve the murders, but as the body count mounts and each new lead evaporates; Hunter becomes more and more convinced that there are darker forces involved. Death in Leamington will appeal both to those who enjoy solving a crime mystery and those with an interest in history, art and music. The story is a celebration of the literary and folk heritage of this elegant Warwickshire town, incorporating many of the characters from its history, and a few literary ghosts from its past, including quotations from works as diverse as The Faerie Queene, The Scarlett Letter, Alice in Wonderland and even Shakespeare’s Queen Mab puts in an appearance. "I’ll leave you, the reader, to solve the mystery but the enigma I will not explain – its 'dark saying' must be left unguessed." Edward Elgar