Andrew Cartmel

Humorous cosy-crime caper from the author of the beloved, bestselling Vinyl Detective series  in which a feisty, amoral book dealer uses her unique skills to solve fiendish crimes, A love letter to Agatha Christie murder mysteries and classic whodunnits.When rock musician and World War Two nut Erik Make Loud hires Cordelia, the Paperback Sleuth, to track down a series of rare and highly sought-after Commando novels by the blatantly pseudonymous Butch Raider, it seems like a routine job. But Cordelia soon discovers that the series ? and in particular the incredibly rare Commando Gold paperback ? are all but impossible to track down.The books? creator ? real name Monty Hanington, once a promising young poet and now an embittered drunk ? proves easier to find. And when he reveals to Cordelia that all his stories came from a real ex-commando he?d met on a pub crawl, a man who was only too happy to provide authentic colour to Monty?s stories for a pint or two, she realises the tales might just be a little too authentic. For Commando Gold details a 1944 operation in Greece, in which commandos stumbled on a cache of Nazi gold and decided to bring it home with them. The operation was real, the gold is definitely real and the horde still exists ? hidden away in England.And some people are willing to kill to get it.

The Vinyl Detective plunges into the world of Italian movie soundtrack music in his eighth adventure that is sure to delight those who love whimsical British cosy crime. Expect laughs, LPs, cats and the return of fan favourites, Nevada, Tinkler, Stinky Stanmer and more.Some of the greatest (and grooviest) music ever committed to vinyl has come out of Italy. And some of the greatest music to come out of Italy is the rich diversity of soundtracks composed for the indigenous film industry ? particularly for gruesome thrillers known as ?gialli?. The maestros who composed for these include Ennio Morricone, Piero Piccioni, Armand Trovajoli…And Valerius Passeri.He was one of the finest composers of this genre and his original LPs from his 1960s heyday fetch a fortune from collectors. No one disputes that Passeri was a genius…The argument is whether or not he was a murderer. Passeri?s mistress was killed in London in the 1960s while he was here on location for a film shoot. There was never enough hard evidence to lead to a prosecution but the stink of scandal has never gone away. Passeri?s granddaughter Chloe has come to England to hire the Vinyl Detective. She wants him to negotiate for a collection of her father?s LPs. The mastertapes of the albums have been destroyed and she needs immaculate vinyl copies to provide the source for a series of reissues ? Chloe?s mission is to preserve her grandfather?s heritage.And also, it transpires, to clear his name.So it turns out that the Vinyl Detective?s real job will be to find out who actually committed a murder ? over half a century ago, in Swinging London.But the real killer is not enchanted with the notion of being exposed. And, having killed once before, they see no problem in doing so again.

The first novel in a new series from the author of the Vinyl Detective mysteries, this cosy-crime caper features a cast of lovable rogues who face fiendish puzzles and murderous villains in this love letter to Agatha Christie murder mysteries and classic whodunnits. Introducing a new series from the creator of the beloved, bestselling Vinyl Detective novels. Cordelia knows books. An addict-turned-dealer of classic paperbacks, when she’s not spending her days combing the charity shops and jumble sales of suburban London for valuable collector’s items, she’s pining for the woman of her dreams and nimbly avoiding her landlord’s demands for rent. The most elusive prize of all, her white whale, has surfaced — a set of magnificent, vintage Sleuth Hound crime novels. Gorgeous, and as rare as they come. Just one problem. They’re not for sale. Still, that won’t stop a resourceful woman like Cordelia… One burglary later, the books are hers. Unfortunately, the man she’s just robbed turns out be one of London’s most dangerous gangsters, and now he’s on her trail and out for blood. Cordelia’s best laid plans to pay the rent and woo the object of her affections start to fall apart, and she realises she may have placed herself in the crosshairs of a villain torn straight from the pages of her treasured novels.

Bydlí se dvěma kočkami, prvotřídním gramofonem, velkou sbírkou jazzových nahrávek a na živobytí pro sebe i obě ochočené šelmy si vydělává jako „vinylový detektiv“. Raritní gramofonové desky, o které sám nemá zájem, prodá se ziskem na internetu. Zkrátka poklidná, nevzrušivá existence… Jenomže pak u jeho dveří zaklepe tajemná Nevada, jejíž ještě tajemnější zaměstnavatel touží po raritní nahrávce z roku 1955. Historie desky je trochu zvláštní – vydavatel krátce před vydáním alba spáchal sebevraždu kvůli problémům s konkurencí a vydíráním… Ale je to snad důvod práci odmítnout, když je nabídka finančně štědrá a Nevada tak krásná?Brzy ovšem za podivných okolností umírá detektivův kamarád, znalec jazzu a majitel obchodu s deskami, následují další podezřelá úmrtí a dvojici se na paty pověsí nájemní zabijáci…První díl detektivní série od spoluautora scénáře legendárního seriálu Dr. Who.