Last rites for a very special bird killer

It was a miserable deed but it had to be done. Yesterday morning, I dug a grave for my old feline friend. Fred was a ginger cat, one of a litter of eight adorable little bird-killers that we first met when they were only a few days old. We had booked a night in aContinue reading “Last rites for a very special bird killer”

How to Dispose of a Body

It arrived unceremoniously, lifted up and over the hedge with an articulated grabber arm that was operated from the driver’s cab of the flat-bed delivery lorry parked on the roadside. The engine roared at the strain. The loading platform of the vehicle rocked back and forth but on the second attempt the swinging load landedContinue reading “How to Dispose of a Body”

When Two’s a Crowd

I was on a weekend away in the Cotswolds with old school friends recently. A medieval sarcophagus was standing outside the porch entrance to an ancient abbey, lid off invitingly in the late afternoon sun. Normally I would exercise solemn respect and walk on by. But on that day none of us were on ourContinue reading “When Two’s a Crowd”

Muskets and Daggers

An old chum rang me this morning while I was out on a windy walk before work. I haven’t seen him for a couple of years and it was good to catch up. It was like old times. He was always hugely entertaining when we met up, holed up in a cozy pub over aContinue reading “Muskets and Daggers”

Poirot and Paddles

After riding the steam train to historic Dartmouth today, we crossed the river by ferry and boarded a paddle steamer in September sunshine. The steamer headed out to sea just beyond the forts guarding the entrance to the estuary before turning upriver. A grey seal lounged on a pontoon and pulled a banana pose asContinue reading “Poirot and Paddles”

Rolling stones unmasked

Two fantastic marketeers, Isabel in Spain and Melanie in Canada, are helping me spread the word about my debut crime novel, Below The Strandline. This has taken a bit of the pressure off me to launch my self-published book. I am away for a short break from my day job with a bubble of unmaskedContinue reading “Rolling stones unmasked”

There’s a lot of crime out there!

It is an eye-opener for me in my brief time I have been on twitter how many seasoned and new crime fiction writers are out there and the excellent quality of marketing product behind them. There’s a whole industry built on dishonesty, corruption, violence, murder, kidnap and judging by the levels of interest in theContinue reading “There’s a lot of crime out there!”