M. R. Hall

The body of a dead man is discovered in an overgrown cemetery in Bristol, the sign of the cross gouged into his flesh. At first it seems to coroner Jenny Cooper that all the evidence points to a horrific, if routine, suicide. Then an enigmatic young priest, Father Lucas Starr, arrives on Jenny’s doorstep, entreating her to hold an inquest into the death of Eva Donaldson, a high profile political campaigner whose past life continued to haunt her. A young man, Paul Craven, has recently been sentenced for Eva’s brutal murder. But despite Craven’s conviction and the evidence against him, Father Lucas is convinced of the man’s innocence. Jenny’s investigations into Eva’s death will lead her to a powerful new religious organisation and to those who control it. When it later emerges that the man found in the cemetery was also a member of the group, Jenny discovers that more could link the deaths of these victims than she could have realized.

The Redeemed

Coroner Jenny Cooper investigates . . . A tragic accident or a terrible crime? When Flight 189 plunges into the Severn Estuary, Coroner Jenny Cooper finds herself handling the case of a lone sailor whose boat appears to have been sunk by the stricken plane, and drawn into the mysterious fate of a ten year-old girl, Amy Patterson, a passenger on 189, whose largely unmarked body is washed up alongside his. While a massive and highly secretive operation is launched to recover clues from the wreckage, Jenny begins to ask questions the official investigation doesn't want answered. How could such a high tech plane - virtually impregnable against human error - fail? What linked the high powered passengers who found themselves on this ill-fated flight? And how did Amy Patterson survive the crash, only to perish hours later? Under pressure from Amy's grieving mother, and opposed by those at the very highest levels of government, Jenny must race against time to seek the truth behind this terrible disaster, before it can happen again . . .

The Flight

Coroner Jenny Cooper investigates . . . An unlikely suicide or a deadly conspiracy? When Bristol Coroner Jenny Cooper investigates the fatal plunge of a man from a motorway bridge, she little suspects that it has any connection with the sudden death of a friend's thirteen year old daughter from a deadly strain of meningitis. But as Jenny pieces together the dead man's last days, she's drawn into a mystery whose dark ripples stretch across continents and back through decades. In an investigation which will take her into the sinister realms of unbridled human ambition and corrupt scientific endeavour, Jenny is soon forced to risk the love and lives of those closest to her, as a deadly race to uncover the truth begins . . .

The Chosen Dead

A dense, bitterly cold fog has settled over the Wye Valley when Bristol Coroner Jenny Cooper is called to the scene of a dreadful tragedy: in the village of Blackstone Ley, a house has burned to the ground with three members of a family inside. Though evidence of foul play is quickly uncovered, it isn’t long before the police investigation is drawn to a close. It seems certain that the fire was started by one of the victims, Ed Morgan, in a fit of jealous rage. But their infant son is still missing and Ed had left a message for his surviving wife, Kelly Hart, telling her that she would never find the child . . . As Jenny prepares the inquest, she finds herself troubled by the official version of events. What could have provoked Ed’s murderous rampage? How might the other, guarded inhabitants of the village have been involved? And what could the connection be with the mysterious abduction of a little girl ten years ago? Battling to supress gruelling events in her own life, Jenny soon becomes entangled in another perplexing inquiry that may have surprising links to this one. Can she unearth Blackstone Ley’s secrets, before it’s too late?

The Burning

Perhaps she had been too swift to imagine a conspiracy, too easily swept up in the emotion of a teenager's shocking death. Snapping her briefcase shut, she made a decision to go about her investigation in as detached and professional a manner as she could. She was the coroner, an impartial, clear-headed, determined investigator of the truth... -- back cover.

The Coroner

Coroner Jenny Cooper takes on the corrupt establishment of England’s investigative institutions, fighting a lone battle for justice.

A Jenny Cooper Mystery

The Disappeared

Jenny Copper, a coroner with a detective's eye, investigates the disappearance of two young Muslim students, who vanished without a trace seven years ago. The police had concluded that the boys, under surveillance for some time for suspicion of terrorism, had fled to Pakistan. Now, sufficient time has passed for the law to declare the boys legally dead, and a final declaration is left up to Jenny who isn't satisfied with this easy solution.

The body of a dead man is discovered in an overgrown cemetery in Bristol, the sign of the cross gouged into his flesh. At first it seems to coroner Jenny Cooper that all the evidence points to a horrific, if routine, suicide. Then an enigmatic young priest, Father Lucas Starr, arrives on Jenny's doorstep, entreating her to hold an inquest into the death of Eva Donaldson, a high profile political campaigner whose past life continued to haunt her. A young man, Paul Craven, has recently been sentenced for Eva's brutal murder. But despite Craven's conviction and the evidence against him, Father Lucas is convinced of the man's innocence. Jenny's lone quest for justice will take her to the dark heart of an establishment who wish to silence her, and on an inner journey to confront ghosts that have haunted her for a lifetime. For Jenny Cooper answers to no one but the dead...

Now in paperback, the second novel in this “series to watch” (Booklist) stars coroner Jenny Cooper as she investigates the murder of a porn star turned megachurch devotee. When Washington-based Mission Church of God opens a new megachurch in Bristol, England, it’s an instant phenomenon. With the help of millionaire Michael Turnbull, it quickly grows to a large congregation. Among the converts to its highly charismatic brand of religion is ex-porn film actress Eva Donaldson, whom Turnbull enlists as the face of a national campaign for legislation banning Internet pornography. When Eva is brutally murdered, Paul Craven, a recently released prisoner, makes a confession to police. But Coroner Jenny Cooper is reluctantly persuaded by Craven’s Catholic priest, the zealous Father Lucas Starr, that there is far more to Eva’s death than the police cared to investigate. As Jenny enters the emotionally charged world of the Mission Church, she uncovers sinister connections to the apparent suicides of two other congregants. Beset by demons from her own past, Jenny struggles to unearth the buried traumas that continue to haunt her while confronting the dark forces behind the three deaths. The Redeemed is a provocative and compelling mystery that explores the dark waters of false redemption and the fine line between good and evil. “Readers of Patricia Cornwell will very much enjoy this psychological thriller. Jenny Cooper’s character is flawed and unflinchingly real.” —Library Journal (starred review) “A chilling blend of religion and corruption.” —Publishers Weekly

M. R. Hall

About

Books

Join the club