Natasha Cooper

Willow is attracted to a case involving a man jailed for manslaughter after a hit-and-run. His wife suspects he was forced to confess. But why would a man go to jail for a crime he didn't commit? The truth behind the puzzle is dark and perplexing--and as tragic as the half-truths of self-deception that lead to murder. Martin's Press.

Sour Grapes

Fruiting Bodies is a compelling novel featuring female sleuth, Willow King, set within the fraught corridors of an NHS hospital. Just as Willow is giving birth to her first child, her obstetrician is found dead, face-down in his own birthing pool. To her he has always been charming, supportive and reassuring, but someone hated him enough to hold his head under water until he drowned. She has to find out why. Her husband, Superintendent Tom Worth, warns her that it is neither easy nor safe to pre-empt a police murder investigation, but Willow cannot stop. Interviewing a hospital administrator at one moment and a leading member of WOMB (Women Overtake Male Birthing) the next, Willow starts to find out what lay behind the obstetrician's facade of charm and professional competence. When she and her baby are released form hospital, the scope of her enquiry widens. But she soon discovers that Tom was right and, in a violent confrontation, she pays a high price for her curiosity. In "Fruiting Bodies" Natasha Cooper once more mixes an entertaining, light-hearted mystery with a sidelong glance at some of the more intractable antagonisms of contemporary life and a shrewd psychological insight into the minds of those who love, those who hate, and those who cannot believe that they have to abide by the same rules as the rest of us.

Fruiting Bodies

Michael Jecks

Stuart Pawson

Edward D Hoch

Carla Banks

 Bill Kirton 

Peter Lovesey 

Christine Poulson 

Zoe Sharp 

Frank Tallis 

Yvonne Eve Walus 

Tonino Benacquista 

Robert Barnard 

Matt Coward 

Kate Ellis 

Paul A Freeman 

***Winner of the National Crime Short Story Prize*** Robert Barnard's contribution 'Sins of Scarlet' won the National Crime Short Story Prize. A woman contemplating suicide on Beachy Head finds a bench dedicated to the memory of herself. An art lover in Venice conducts a spree of mutilations as a response to the Surrealist Movement. At Heathrow Airport, armed police take up positions to apprehend the wrong man... The latest showcase of shorts from the CWA celebrates the ‘who’ in the whodunnit, the psyche behind the psychological profile. Husbands lead double lives, psychologists confuse perpetrators with ex-partners, neighbours reassess the people they thought they knew. It seems if there’s one thing you can’t classify or slap an ID card on, it’s the id. The collection includes stories by two recipients of the Crime Writers’ Association ‘Diamond Dagger’ lifetime achievement award (Peter Lovesey and Robert Barnard), and an American Grand Master awardee (Edward D Hoch, who has published more crime short stories than anyone else, ever!).

Crimes of Identity

I.D.

Now a full-time mother and bestselling writer, Willow King is content to leave crime-solving to her police chief husband. Yet she can’t resist a case involving Andrew Lutterworth, accused of a fatal hit-and-run that landed him in prison for manslaughter. His wife suspects he was forced to confess and was incarcerated on purely circumstantial evidence. But what could motivate a man to admit to a crime he did not commit a willingly go to jail because of it? The truth behind the puzzle is as dark and perplexing as the human psyche—and as tragic as the half-truths of self-deception that lead to murder. ‘Elegant . . .deeply satisfying.’ Library Journal ‘With her deft characterizations and intriguing puzzle, Cooper provides a . . . fine British cozy.’ Publishers Weekly

The Department of Old Age Pensions is not noted for drama. Nor for scandal, corruption or even the odd leak to the tabloids. Not until Algernon Endlesham, its high-flying Minister, is brutally bludgeoned to death. Willow King, Assistant Secretary (Finance), is noted for her formidably enquiring mind. Though an enquiry is the last thing she could wish for. Especially if daunting ex-SAS Inspector Worth uncovers her figment of an alibi and well-kept secret. Disconcertingly for Willow, however, someone has a very violent means of silencing the curious . . . ‘A smart plot with some clever twists’ Oxford Times ‘Festering Lilies is witty and elegant. It is a pleasure to light on a new talent’ The Bookseller ‘Instead of the physical violence in which heroes of thrillers usually engage, Willow proves her superiority by verbal decimation . . . as she effortlessly trumps male condescension’ Observer

Festering Lilies

Can you ever trust anyone, however much you care about them? Things aren't always what they seem . . . In the eighth Trish Maguire novel, Abandoned as a baby and brutalised in care,sculptor Sam Foundling is the obvious suspect when his wife Cecelia is found beaten to death in his studio. Trish, who Maguire acted as his barristerfor him years ago, when he was an abandoned child being brutalised in care. She saved him then, but trying to protecting him b hopes he didn't do it. Her campaign for him ,now will brings her up against DCI Caro Lyalt, the senior investigating officer . . . and her own best friend. Evidence against Sam mounts up. Cecilia's powerful mother is pressing for his arrest. The police hierarchy want him charged for the brutal murder. If Trish is to save his sanity, and her own, she must unlock the secret offind out exactly what happened in the studio that morning, and time is running out . . .

A Greater Evil

Passions run high in the world of publishing, but they rarely lead to murder – or do they? Gloria Grainger, wealthy bestselling novelist, is found dead in her room one morning. Everyone assumes she died of natural causes – except for Willow King. Despite Chief Inspector Tom Worth’s mockery of her suspicions Willow is determined to uncover the sinister truth. She finds herself investigating a particularly nasty murder case, in which there seems no limit to the amount of emotional damage people can inflict upon each other. Then Willow herself becomes a target for the same murderous hatred that surrounded Gloria . . . ‘This sparkling whodunnit effectively blends mystery, sophistication, and a dash of romantic melodrama’ Publishers Weekly (Bloody Roses) ‘Well plotted – and immense fun to read’ The Times (Poison Flowers)

Bitter Herbs

How can a ravishing art collection be built on so much blood and pain? In the fifth novel in the series, London barrister Trish Maguire brings her forensic intelligence to bear on the dark secrets behind the paintings in the collection. Hidden away end of the First World War, they are now curated by an expert with scandal in his past and all too many threats to face in the present. Taking a crash course in the dark mysteries of the art world, Trish must also help her young half-brother come to terms with his mother's violent death. Having learned about the agonizing reality of life in the trenches, lightened only by an engrossing love story, she uncovers a web of deceit that has spanned the decades since 1918. Now the innocent, the violent, and the victims all have to free themselves. And not everyone can escape with their life.

A Place of Safety

Why would anyone risk his life blowing up tanks of toxic chemicals? This is the question barrister Trish Maguire must answer in her ninth investigation. When the explosion rips through quiet fields in the north of England, it destroys much more than the innocent life of the man who farmed them. In her grief his widow, Angie, turns on the company responsible. Trish finds herself in turmoil when she is called on to defend not the ruined and heartbroken Angie, but the multinational company that owned the tanks. At the same time, she faces other explosions at home. Her adopted son, David, has a new school friend in the damaged and volatile Jay. When Jay's mother is found brutally beaten, Trish becomes embroiled in two huge battles - one for everything she has worked for, and one for everything she believes is right.

A Poisoned Mind

The Drowning Pool by Natasha Cooper released on Feb 20, 1998 is available now for purchase.

Natasha Cooper

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