Bøger af Veronica Heley

The restoration of a stately home takes a deadly turn in the gripping new Bea Abbot mystery. No one had been moresurprised than Julian to find he was the heir to Marston Hall, a stately homein the Home Counties. His hitherto unknown relatives had done their best toensure he didn't live to inherit, but with his ill-wishers in jail, Julian andhis wife Polly celebrated the birth of their son and heir and set about theuphill task of restoring the neglected Tudor mansion to its former glory. Bea Abbot is called inwhen yet another attempt is made on Julian's life and the corpse of a woman isfound in the stables at the Hall. Could the relatives who targeted Julianbefore be behind this murder, and what is the link between the dead woman andthe Marston-Lang family? Something wicked is afoot at Marston Hall, and Bea isdetermined to get to the bottom of it.

Ellie and her new husband Thomas are suffering from terrible colds when called to deal with Ursula, a young student, who has staged a sit-in at church and refuses to move. Ursula challenges Ellie to solve three mysteries: a broken engagement, her friend Mia's disappearance, and a murder. As she investigates, Ellie begins to suspect that there is more to these events than anyone is willing to admit. Soon she finds her own friends and family targeted as a powerful group hunts her down. Meanwhile Ellie's ever-demanding daughter Diana makes herself homeless, and her architect cousin lands himself in yet another financial mess. Both become caught up in the race to ruin Ellie before she can produce the dreadful evidence of corruption and abuse that is haunting the council chambers. Every lead returns to Ursula, who has not been entirely open with the truth. But what can one young girl do, against such a powerful family?

An Ellie Quicke Mystery Ellie Quicke is still inclined to act hastily, despite husband Thomas' steadying influence. When she took in a young rape victim, she knew the commitment might become a burden, but she didn't expect it to become an invitation to further violence. Mia's best friend Ursula is eager to help, but has a wedding to plan - as does Ellie's daughter Diana. Both want Ellie to stage their receptions. Can Ellie keep Mia safe? Can she pull off two weddings, when one would be havoc enough? And can she wear the same outfit to both?

Bea Abbot runs a domestic agency that doesn't 'do' murder. There's nothing sinister about Zander's request for Bea to accompany him on an errand to a grieving widow, but it's awkward because it was Zander who'd exposed the scam that his boss Denzil had been running on the Tudor Housing Trust...after which Denzil had, unexpectedly, died. His widow, 'Lady' Honoria, turns out to be a bullying racist who wants to sue the Trust for defamation of character, while the paperwork that could have proved her husband's guilt has gone missing. Oliver, Bea's computer geek of an assistant, is delighted to delve into the mysteries left on Denzil's computer, while Bea is cajoled into silence by elderly Lord Murchison, whose family has run the charity for ever...and who faces ruin if the truth comes out. Zander and Oliver find themselves suspected of murder, while Bea thinks up a novel way to rescue her son's failing marriage. As the plot thickens, it emerges that although the first death may have appeared natural, those which follow definitely do not.

Bea Abbot is alarmed when she overhears three men plotting a murder outside her agency, then discovers a man left for dead out in the freezing cold, Horrified, Bea offers him sanctuary at her house, but he's reluctant to reveal his identity. Who is he, and why did those men want to kill him? Bea must uncover the truth before they strike again . . .

An Abbot Agency Mystery Bea Abbot's domestic agency does not, repeat not, investigate murder...that is, until she finds herself in the company of a dead man dressed as a pantomime dame. It looks like suicide, but why don't his red-spangled shoes fit? Matthew Kent was an entertainer known to be a kindly and modest man in private, so why had he staged this grotesque charade in death? And why is his daughter so keen to hustle his mortal remains away without publicity? Then again, who exactly inherits his delightful Kensington house, and which of the women around him - two surviving wives and a daughter - really cared about him, rather than his money? Bea's own house is in chaos as builders remodel the agency offices, and to make matters worse, Max, her Member of Parliament son, moves in with her when his marriage looks like breaking down. Struggling to run the agency from her bedroom, concerned about both her young assistants' emotional problems, Bea tries to discover what the body on the bed was really like in life, why there is so much confusion about his death, and who is destined to die next...

A widowed amateur sleuth shadows an international art thief from London to Bruges in this "sprightly second cozy" by the author of False Charity Bea Abbot doesn't do murder. The modest agency she runs from her Victorian home in Kensington is better at finding good domestic help and the best caterers. Yet how can she turn away her oldest friend? Velma's prodigal stepson Philip has vanished. So has a valuable pre-Raphaelite painting from the home of Philip's eccentric godmother, Lady Lucinda Farne. Seeing that Lucinda's been stabbed to death, she can't possibly clear Philip's name. But Bea can. At least that's what Velma hopes. Now Bea must locate a runaway bad boy, track down a valuable Millais, and solve a deadly crime. Of course, if Philip didn't do it, that means Bea and her wily young undercover assistant will be tangling with someone far more dangerous--a professional well-schooled in the art of murder.

The new Ellie Quicke mystery Ellie Quicke is confronted by an angry young man, demanding to know what has happened to his elderly great aunt. Flavia Osborne had refused to move in with her relatives, telling everyone that she'd sold her secluded house and was moving to a retirement flat - but it seems she never arrived at her destination. Ellie is distracted by her difficult daughter Diana, who makes a shocking announcement, but Russ insists Ellie help him discover the truth. Where is Flavia, and who knows more than they are prepared to tell?

Bea Abbot's friend Leon Holland asks for her help to establish an alibi. But why does he need one? And is his life really in danger, as events seem to suggest? Then everything is thrown into chaos as a virus infects the Abbot Agency's systems ... deliberately. But why? Bea is about to find herself drawn into a vicious - and deadly - power struggle.

The latest Abbot Agency mystery - Bea Abbot runs a domestic agency that does not '-do' murder. But the disappearance of Tomi, the star of an award-winning short film, is a different matter, especially when charming but feckless Chris bribes Bea to investigate with a bouquet of flowers. When Bea - working through personal problems - discovers that Tomi is not the only one amongst his friends to vanish, however, she wonders if her own life might be in danger too . . .

In the new Ellie Quicke mystery, Ellie is forced to think the unthinkable about her own daughter, Diana . . . Could she be a murderer? Ellie has always disliked the local big estate agent, aka Great White Shark, and is distressed when her daughter Diana announces that she is carrying his child and about to become his fourth wife. But Ellie is soon drawn into the family circle when one of the Hooper children dies in their private gym and another succumbs to a peanut allergy. The police want to write off the deaths as accident and misadventure, but Ellie believes someone is targeting members of the Hooper family. Surely Diana wouldn't . . . or would she?

Bea Abbot is alarmed when she overhears three men plotting a murder outside her agency, then discovers a man left for dead out in the freezing cold, Horrified, Bea offers him sanctuary at her house, but he's reluctant to reveal his identity. Who is he, and why did those men want to kill him? Bea must uncover the truth before they strike again . . .

Ellie and new husband Thomas are called to deal with Ursula, who has staged a sit-in at church. Ursula challenges Ellie to solve three mysteries: a broken engagement, a disappearance and a death. Ellie suspects there is more to these events than anyone is admitting. Soon she finds her own close circle targeted, as a powerful group hunt her down.