FREE KINDLE BOOK - Dirty Deeds in Downdene

My pressie to you lovers of Cleo Marjoribanks the cockney millionaire who lives in the New Forest. The second book in the series - Dirty Deeds in Downdene - will be free from tomorrow 9th January for FIVE days only.

In this book Cleo gets mixed up with golfing crowd after an estate agent is murdered. Yes, her close friend DCI David 'Steaming' Kettle is trying to solve the mystery with what he terms as interference!

As well as making new friends with some lady golfers, the golf club secretary tells Cleo she isn't welcome there as she is a 'whore'!!! Read it to find out her response!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B008ORNGCU

'MURDER IN MITCHAM PARVA'

Here is the opening to the fourth Cleo Marjoribanks murder mystery.....

I don't believe it!  Only back from Spain for a few weeks and there's another body. No, I haven't found another one as I did when David and I were on holiday.  Apparently there's been a murder in another village in the Forest - that's the New Forest in Hampshire.

This morning before Mrs. Walsh - who 'does' for me - had unpacked her overall and put on the kettle (sorry - switched on the kettle) she was in full spate with the news.

'Had a terrible shock,' she told me in her New Forest burr. 'Linda's dead.'

'Who?'

'My friend, Linda'

'Sorry to hear that.  Was she ill?'

'No-o-o.  Murdered.'  She wrung her hands.  Yeah, honest she did.  She only needed a puzzled look from me to continue, 'Her husband found 'er in the garding this morning.  She went out to bingo in their church 'all last night and didn't come 'ome.'

'Wasn't he worried?'

She shook her head which is now a strange chocolate brown with blue tips and whispered. 'Separate bedrooms.'

'He wouldn't know she'd stopped out.'

'Right, but I don't know why 'e didn't notice at breakfast.'

'Letting her have a lie in?'

'Nah.  She works at Mitcham Manor.  Cleaning, like me, so she'd 'ave ter be up early.'

'You said she was murdered?' I reminded her.

'Head bashed in.'

Yup, that'd kill someone. 'Oh dear.  How did you find out?'

'One of their neighbours phoned ter tell me and ask if I've got 'n hour or two ter spare today if they need someone ter fill in at the Manor.'

Her phone played 'My Way' - she's a Frank Sinatra fan - and she rummaged in her bag for it. That's when I noticed that her nails match the blue in her hair.

When she'd finished the call and was jotting something in her Filofax I asked, 'Why do you still have a Filofax? You can put all that info onto the phone.'

'Don't know how to. This is a new one my 'usband give me.' She snorted. 'A phone's a phone. That's all I need. It's easier ter plan my weeks with the Filofax.'

Rather like me and my calendar. Incidentally, she's a bit older than me.  I think somewhere in her fifties and, so my friend Paula tells me, is always formal. Calls all her clients Mrs. or Miss - whatever. We've decided it must be a family trait as it seems all her family worked in service. You know, maids and things in the big houses.

Mug of tea and two biscuits later Mrs. Walsh finally got started on the work and I went to my office - or study or whatever you want to call it - and phoned Paula.



Sorry, but the cover seems to have gone AWOL!

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00V3CX074

Also available on Kobo. 

'How do you create your characters?'

Among questions that novelists are asked, one of the most popular is 'How do you create your characters?' Followed, of course, by 'Are they based on people you know?' The answer the latter question is a definite and very loud NO. If you think you recognise characters in a book you read, it is sheer coincidence.

What we do when creating the characters is think of the type of person we need and build around that.

Cleo Marjoribanks almost created herself. I wanted to write books set mainly in one of my favourite English locations - the New Forest in Hampshire. My heroine wanted to be a lovable character and not too young. Someone with experience of life, a sense of humour and a quick tongue. I decided that she was down-to-earth and generous. I am an Essex girl whose parents were East Enders. What better place to look for Cleo? So far as her name and style of dress is concerned, blame her.

How did she end up living in the New Forest? Won the lottery, quit her boring job and found a house in the New Forest - in a fictional village.

To find out how she then became involved in village life and helps to solve crimes you will have to read the Cleo Marjoribanks Murder Mysteries. They are available on Kindle and the first two are also available in Paperback. Depending upon demand, the rest may become paperbacks.

The books are also available on Kobo.

 

How do you pronounce Marjoribanks? I'm sure some of you know, but it is Marchbanks. One of those silly English spellings

Cosy Crime on Kindle

I have just been checking my book sales on Kindle and found a lovely surprise - lots and lots of people are buying and reading my books. Thank you, everyone.

For those of you who didn't know that I write 'cosy crime' let me tell about my books. There are two 'series'...

The Cleo Marjoribanks Murder Mysteries is set in the New Forest, Hampshire. No, not New Hampshire but Hampshire in southern England. Cleo is a lady of a 'certain' age who is happy in her body, has a sense of humour, decided views on things and lots of money. She won the lottery and bought an almost derelict house which has been renovated as has the gardens. Due to some tragic circumstances - a double murder - she quickly became integrated into village life. And having for most of her life been scared of horses, eventually comes to like them. Not enough to get up on one, but to pet and talk to them.

There are - so far - five books. Most of the action takes place in and around the New Forest and London (where she has a studio flat) but one, 'Ghosts in the Guest House', takes place in southern Spain when she and her gentleman friend, DCI David 'Steaming' Kettle go for a holiday.

The most recent one is 'Trouble in Trewith Green', which is the name of the village where she lives. A few murders and lots of mystery. And, I am glad to report, it is selling like the proverbial hot cakes.

'The South Downs Mystery' series is the second set. These are set in and around England South Downs (near to where I live). These are more serious as they are basically police procedurals - with thanks to Sussex Police (mistakes are my own!). 'Antiques in the Attic' introduced Sarah Stewart to DI Alan Sinclair and it took more than two books for them to get their act together! Sarah is a divorced lady whose former husband dies in mysterious circumstances. After the police have broken the news and left she remembers that her husband had left a few articles in the attic - and discovers a computer and some antique silver. She goes out for lunch to her mother-in-law's and, when she comes home and returns to the attic the silver has disappeared. Lots of twists and turns to reach the answer.

The second book 'Model Murder' also takes place on the South Downs. A well known and beautiful model is murdered and there are lots of possible suspects and about halfway through the story takes a twist that totally changes the police thinking. As one reader said of the ending, 'I totally did not expect that'. Which is how it should be with all mysteries.

I am currently working on the third book in the series but don't yet have a title. As soon as I think of a good one I will let you know. In the meantime, if you haven't read my books, give them a try. From the 5* reviews and comments I do know that people enjoy them.

Happy reading - and thank you for buying my books.

When Cleo meets a horse - excerpt from Homicide in Hampshire

Cleo is a lady from London and recently moved to the New Forest.  Part of her health regime is taking walks in the forest - avoiding the ponies. She's never been close to a horse or pony and is rather scared of them!

"As I was nearing the copse I could see a saddled horse cropping the grass and wondered where the rider was.  “Oh gawd, don’t tell me someone’s fallen off and broken a leg or something,” I muttered.

I looked hard at the horse, it moved and I got the back view.  “’Ere, horse, turn round I want to get a look at your front.”  Keeping me distance I moved slowly round until I could see its face.  “I thought so.  You’re Maggie’s horse, aren’t you?”  I remembered seeing it in a photo Paula had shown me.  “Now what the heck’s your name?”  The reins were hanging down, “Come on, Cleo, be brave.  Be brave.”

I inched towards the horse.  It inched away.  I got a little closer and he moved away again.  “Oh for gawd’s sake, come ‘ere!  I want to take hold of those reins before you break your bloody leg.  Now, come ‘ere!”  Surprisingly the horse did “come ‘ere”.  I got hold of the reins.  “Now what do I do?  I’m not getting up on top of you even if I knew how.

“Come on, where is she?  You’re Maggie’s horse.  Where’s Maggie.  Come on, show me where she is.”  I was actually thinking of the horse as being like a dog.

I began walking into the copse, the horse quite close behind and getting uncomfortably close.  I could almost feel it nudging me and I broke out in a cold sweat.  “Don’t get too close, horse.  Don’t run away with me, either.  Hang on a minute.”  I stopped and it stopped.  We both listened.

I could faintly hear the sound of sobbing.  The horse whickered (I think that’s what that noise is called) and flicked his ears.  “That’s her, innit?  Come on, horse, here we go.  You lead her to me.”  I stood to one side of the footpath and let it go forward and take the lead.

Margaret was sitting on the ground nursing a foot, her helmet on the ground beside her and her fair hair like a waterfall over her face. 

“So why didn’t you use your mobile and phone your mother?”

She shoved her hair back as she looked up and whispered, “Battery’s flat.”

“How clever can you be!  So you’ve fallen off your horse.  Please don’t tell me you’ve broken your ankle.”

“I don’t know.  I don’t know,” she sobbed.

HOMICIDE IN HAMPSHIRE is available on:

Amazon Kindle

W.H. Smith's Kobo

Apple I-Pad

Barnes & Noble Nook

Sony

And other e-readers via Smashwords.com