Rennie Airth

Tormented by his harrowing wartime experiences and the loss of his family, Inspector John Madden is sent by Scotland Yard to investigate when a small Surrey village is torn apart by five horrific murders and joins forces with a beautiful doctor to capture the killer, a demented veteran of World War I. A first novel. Reprint.

River of Darkness

His quiet family life in rural 1932 England shattered by the brutal murder of a young village girl, former inspector John Madden teams up with former Scotland Yard colleagues, the British secret service, and the German police in an investigation that forces them to draw on the burgeoning science of criminal psychology. By the author of River of Darkness. Reprint. 50,000 first printing.

The Blood-Dimmed Tide

A former police investigator tries to solve the murder of his employee, Rosa Novak, following clues through war-torn Europe in 1944, and discovers a connection between the victim, a murdered Parisian furrier, a member of the Resistance, and stolen diamond

The Dead of Winter

On a hot summer day in 1938, a beautiful actress is murdered on the grand Kent estate of Sir Jack Jessup, close friend of the Prince of Wales. The arrest of an ex-convict and his subsequent confession swiftly bring the case to a close, but in 1949, the reappearance of a jade necklace raises questions about the murder. Was the man convicted and executed the decade before truly guilty? Though happily retired from the police force, John Madden is persuaded to investigate the case afresh"--

The Death of Kings

"[Airth's] meticulously detailed procedural mysteries are beautifully written . . . well worth reading, and rereading." --Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Snowed in at a country manor, former Scotland Yard inspectors John Madden and Angus Sinclair find themselves trapped in the company of a murderer. On a trip into Winchester, former chief inspector Angus Sinclair learns of a tragedy that has taken place in the village he is staying in. Beloved church organist Greta Hartmann has slipped and fallen to her death in a shallow creek, and while investigations conclude it to be an accident, her friend and housemate, Vera, remains unconvinced. After learning that Greta was the widow of a prominent anti-Nazi German preacher, Sinclair meets with the distraught Vera, and he resolves to dig deeper into the story. His investigations lead him to the stately manor of Julia Lesage, where she lives with her devoted staff that includes her secretary, cook, and driver. Though confined to a wheelchair, Julia is an electrifying spirit with a sharp wit, and those who know her adore her. Among those who do, a gentleman with dubious business dealings is also staying at the house--and Julia appears to be in love with him. A blizzard hits, keeping Sinclair, and later Madden, on the grounds with little to do but analyze the case of Greta's death, until a murder takes place, and everyone becomes a suspect.

A John Madden Mystery

The Decent Inn of Death

Investigating two murders linked by a common weapon, Scotland Yard Detective Inspector Billy Styles and local detective Vic Chivers trace one of the victims to retired legend John Madden, who joins them in a race against time to prevent further killings. By the author of River of Darkness.

The Reckoning

The fourth book in the much acclaimed Inspector John Madden series from the author of River of Darkness, The Blood-Dimmed Tide and The Dead of Winter The Second World War has ended, leaving a bruised and fragile peace. But this tranquillity is threatened when a shocking murder takes place in the Sussex countryside. Before long, police experts discover a link to another, earlier, killing hundreds of miles away . . . While Scotland Yard detective Billy Styles struggles to find a link between these two murders, a strange twist of fate brings former Detective Inspector John Madden into the investigations. As the victim count rises it becomes clear that to catch this serial killer Madden, Styles and young policewoman Detective-Constable Lily Poole must act quickly. But Madden remains haunted by the mysteries at the heart of the case. Why was his name in a letter the second target had been penning, just before he died? Could the real clue to these perplexing murders lie within the victims' pasts? And within his own? With this stunning, atmospheric crime novel teeming with twists and moving between the 1950s, the First and Second World Wars, Rennie Airth, the author of River of Darkness, The Blood-Dimmed Tide and The Dead of Winter presents his greatest and most compelling novel yet.

Cold Kill

As rural England emerges from World War I, a vicious attack on a household leaves five butchered bodies and no explanation for the killings. Scotland Yard sends Inspector John Madden, still recovering from his own harrowing war experience and from the deaths of his family. The locals dismiss the slaughter as a robbery, but Madden detects the signs of a madman at work.

A John Madden Mystery Set in World War II England

"[Rennie Airth's] meticulously detailed procedural mysteries are beautifully written . . . well worth reading, and rereading."—Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review Rennie Airth's The Decent Inn of Death is forthcoming. On a freezing London night in 1944, Rosa Novak is brutally murdered during a blackout. Scotland Yard suspects the young Polish refugee was the victim of a random act of violence and might have dropped the case if former police investigator John Madden hadn't been her employer. Madden feels he owes it to Rosa to find her killer and pushes the investigation, uncovering her connection to a murdered Parisian furrier, a member of the Resistance, and a stolen cache of diamonds. Delivering the atmospheric writing and compelling characters that have already established Rennie Airth as a master of suspense as well as style, this long-awaited third installment in the John Madden series is historical crime writing at its best.

It is 1921 and a terrible discovery has been made at a manor house in Surrey - the bloodied bodies of Colonel Fletcher, his wife and two of their staff. The victims have all been stabbed and the lack of disturbance in the house suggests that the attack was one of terrifying speed. The Surrey police force seem ready to put the murders town to robbery with violence, but Detective Inspector Madden from Scotland Yard sees things slightly differently. For he has experienced the horrors of World War I and has seen madness at first hand. And he is certain this crime has been perpetrated by a psychopath who will strike again...and soon. 'One of the most gripping thrillers I have ever read' - Country Life

"[Rennie Airth's] meticulously detailed procedural mysteries are beautifully written . . . well worth reading, and rereading."—Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review Rennie Airth's The Decent Inn of Death is forthcoming from Penguin On a hot summer day in 1938, a beautiful actress is murdered on the grand Kent estate of Sir Jack Jessup, close friend of the Prince of Wales. The arrest of an ex-convict and his subsequent confession swiftly bring the case to a close, but in 1949, the reappearance of a jade necklace raises questions about the murder. Was the man convicted and executed the decade before truly guilty? Though happily retired from the police force, John Madden is persuaded to investigate the case afresh. In a story of honor and justice that takes Madden through the idyllic English countryside, post-war streets of London, and into the criminal underworld of the Chinese Triads, The Death of Kings is an atmospheric and captivating police procedural.

The author of "The New York Times" Notable Book "River of Darkness" returns with a macabre tale of the social struggles of post-World War I Britain and the looming menace of Hitler's Germany. When a young girl is savagely murdered in a rural English village, the crime catapults former Inspector John Madden into the grisly world of a brutal killer.

"Rennie Airth is one of the best detective writers around. And The Death of Kings is his best book yet."—Philip Kerr, New York Times bestselling author of The Other Side of Silence In the fifth novel in the critically acclaimed John Madden series, the former Scotland Yard detective returns in a gripping post-World War II mystery that will delight fans of Philip Kerr On a hot summer day in 1938, a beautiful actress is murdered on the grand Kent estate of Sir Jack Jessup, close friend of the Prince of Wales. The arrest of an ex-convict and his subsequent confession swiftly bring the case to a close, but in 1949, the reappearance of a jade necklace raises questions about the murder. Was the man convicted and executed the decade before truly guilty? Though happily retired from the police force, John Madden is persuaded to investigate the case afresh. In a story of honor and justice that takes Madden through the idyllic English countryside, post-war streets of London, and into the criminal underworld of the Chinese Triads, The Death of Kings is an atmospheric and captivating police procedural.

An American actress arrives in London to find herself the target of a ruthless assassin in this compelling standalone thriller. Actress Adelaide Banks is swapping her native New York for London to spend Christmas with her widowed Aunt Rose. Rose wrote in her note that she was off to Paris for a few days and would be back in time for Addy's arrival. But when Addy reaches Rose's Knightsbridge address, no one's home, and she has two unexpected callers . . . Where is Rose, and what has she got herself entangled in? Dragged into a deadly game of cat-and-mouse on the snowy streets of London, Addy finds herself navigating a dark underworld of ruthless assassins, rogue agents and international crime. Can she survive long enough to uncover the truth?

Rennie Airth

About

Books

Join the club