Bøker av Stephen Booth

The dramatic, gripping new Cooper & Fry crime thriller from bestseller Stephen Booth sees the stunning Peak District backdrop prove fatal for one walking partyThey knew the danger, but they went anyway..."Almost before she'd stopped breathing, a swirl of mist snaked across her legs and settled in her hair, clutching her in its chilly embrace, hiding her body from view. It would be hours before she was found."The mountain of Kinder Scout offers the most incredible views of the Peak District, but when thick fog descends there on a walking party led by enigmatic Darius Roth, this spectacular landscape is turned into a death trap that claims a life.For DI Ben Cooper however, something about the way Faith Matthew fell to her death suggests it was no accident, and he quickly discovers more than one of the hikers may have had reason to murder their companion.To make things worse, his old colleague DS Diane Fry finds herself at centre of an internal investigations storm that threatens to drag Cooper down with it.

How do you prove a murder without a body?Ten years ago, Reece Bower was accused of killing his wife, a crime he always denied. Extensive police searches near his home in Bakewell found no trace of Annette Bower's remains, and the case against him collapsed.But now memories of the original investigation have been resurrected for Detective Inspector Ben Cooper - because Reece Bower himself has disappeared, and his new wife wants answers.Cooper can't call on the Major Crime Unit and DS Diane Fry for help unless he can prove a murder took place - impossible without a body. As his search moves into the caves and abandoned mines in the isolated depths of Lathkilldale, the question is: who would want revenge for the death of Annette Bower?

Some sins won't wash away . . .A summer of endless rain in the Peak District leaves the officers of Derbyshire's criminal investigation department with a problem. They have discovered a man's body lying in shallow water, but torrential downpours have swollen the rivers and flooded the roads, making travel difficult and forensic examination impossible.And that's not all. The absence of Detective Cooper, on extended leave after an arson attack, has left a serious gap. Detective Fry is a reluctant temporary replacement, but now their makeshift team is about to be tested to the limit. The fatal events of one damp August night are likely to remain shrouded in mystery if they can't track down a car glimpsed only as a dark outline in the rain by a passerby.When the drops turn into a deluge, loyalties among the officers will be put under intolerable strain as they try to solve their toughest case yet. And that's before it emerges that Detective Cooper is not at home recuperating, but has vanished into thin air . . .

On a rain-swept hillside, hounds from the local foxhunt discover the body of a well-dressed man. At that exact moment, an anonymous caller reports the same body . . . lying half a mile away.It's only the first in a series of baffling clues as Ben Cooper and Diane Fry--partners and rivals on the detective force --plunge into a case involving horses, spectacular wealth, and a mysterious "plague village" where a centuries-old outbreak of Black Death has been transformed into a modern tourist attraction.As the spring rain falls and the body count rises, Cooper and Fry's investigation twists back to the recent past. A killer lurks in the shadows there--a killer now hiding in plain sight . . .Atmospheric and ingenious, packed with suspense and secrets, The Kill Call is an unforgettable thriller from an unforgettable writer.

Set in and around the dark, misty canals of Lichfield, Stephen Booth's incredible first standalone novel is awash with mystery.

Set in and around the dark, misty canals of Lichfield, Stephen Booth's incredible new novel is awash with mystery.When council officer Chris Buckley is approached by an odd old man demanding help in healing a decades-old family rift, he sends the stranger away.But then the old man is murdered, and the police arrive on the Chris's doorstep asking questions to which he has no answers.As Chris begins to look into the circumstances of the murder, he uncovers a deadly secret in the silt and mud of the local canals that he'll realise was better kept buried.PRAISE FOR STEPHEN BOOTH'Makes high summer as terrifying as midwinter'Val McDermid'A modern master'Guardian'Crime writing of the finest quality'Daily Mail'Ingenious plotting and richly atmospheric'Reginald Hill'A first-rate mystery'Sunday Telegraph

The dramatic, gripping new Cooper & Fry crime thriller from bestseller Stephen Booth sees the stunning Peak District backdrop prove fatal for one walking party.

Master crime writer Stephen Booth ventures into the Peak District's dark subterranean world for a brand new, stunning and gasp-inducing Cooper & Fry thriller.

Close Reading Without Readings is a collection of essays by the renowned Shakespeare scholar Stephen Booth in which the author directs readers to the experience of reading, bringing to bear the full power of his scholarship, critical acumen, and imagination to the study of how literature works.

'This is crime writing of the highest quality'Daily MailSteeped in the atmosphere of the stunning Peak District, Secrets of Death is master crime writer Stephen Booth's most daring and clever Cooper & Fry thriller yet.A beautiful place to die . . . Residents of the Peak District are used to tourists descending on its soaring hills and brooding valleys. However, this summer brings a different kind of visitor to the idyllic landscape, leaving behind bodies and secrets. A series of suicides throughout the Peaks throws Detective Inspector Ben Cooper and his team in Derbyshire's E Division into a race against time to find a connection to these seemingly random acts - with no way of predicting where the next body will turn up. Meanwhile, in Nottingham Detective Sergeant Diane Fry finds a key witness has vanished... But what are the mysterious Secrets of Death? And is there one victim whose fate wasn't suicide at all?'Makes high summer as terrifying as midwinter'Val McDermid'A modern master'Guardian'A first rate mysterySunday Telegraph'Ingenious Plotting and richly atmospheric'Reginald Hill

'A modern master'GuardianBen Cooper and his team from Derbyshire Constabulary's E Division return in this gripping new page-turner from the master of the genre.For the Peak District hamlet of Shawhead, there's only one road in and one road out. Its handful of residents are accustomed to being cut off from the world by snow or floods. But when a lorry delivering animal feed is found jammed in the narrow lane, with no sign of the driver except for a blood-stained cab, it's the beginning of something much more sinister... 'Booth skilfully portrays a stunning landscape with a dark heart that conceals secrets, vendettas and revenge'Daily Mail 'Makes high summer as terrifying as midwinter'Val McDermid'A first rate mysterySunday Telegraph'Ingenious Plotting and richly atmospheric'Reginald Hill

The old Corpse Bridge is the route taken for centuries by mourners from villages on the western fringes of Derbyshire to a burial ground across the River Dove, now absorbed into the landscaped parkland of a stately home. When Earl Manby, the landowner, announces plans to deconsecrate the burial ground to turn it into a car park for his holiday cottages, bodies begin to appear once again on the road to the Corpse Bridge. Is there a connection with the Earl's plans? Or worse, is there a terrifying serial killer at work? Back in his job after the traumatic events of previous months, Detective Sergeant Ben Cooper knows that he must unravel the mystery of the Corpse Bridge if he's going to be able to move on with his life. As the pressure builds, Ben doesn't know who he can trust and, when the case reaches breaking point, he has to make a call that could put everything - and everyone - at risk...

A summer of endless rain in the Peak District leaves the officers of Derbyshire's CID with a problem. They have discovered a man's body lying in shallow water, but torrential rain has swollen the rivers and flooded the roads, making travel difficult and forensic examination impossible. And that's not all. The absence of DS Ben Cooper, on extended leave after an arson attack, has left a serious gap. DS Diane Fry is a reluctant temporary replacement, but now their makeshift team is about to be tested to the limit. The fatal events of one damp August night are likely to remain shrouded in mystery if they can't track down a car glimpsed only as a dark outline in the rain by a passer-by.As the rain turns into a deluge, loyalties among the officers will be put under intolerable strain as they try to solve their toughest case yet. And that's before it emerges that Ben Cooper is not at home, but has vanished into thin air...Packed with atmosphere, suspense and danger, bestseller Stephen Booth's exceptional new Cooper and Fry thriller is a masterclass in British crime writing.

Brutal acts of firestarting have ravaged the Peak District, and now a new wave of moorland infernos sweeps across the national park. For DS Ben Cooper, the blazes are best left to the firefighters, even with the arsonists still at large.But when an intruder breaks into an abandoned pub, Cooper is on the case - and he swiftly unearths a pair of grim surprises. The first is evidence of a years-old double homicide. And the second is a corpse, newly dead...What links the three deaths? Where are the missing bodies? Who is responsible - and how do the raging fires fit in? For Cooper and his rival DI Diane Fry, it's the most twisted investigation of their lives... and with an ingenious killer pulling the strings, it could also be their last.Drenched in atmosphere and danger, Stephen Booth's relentless new thriller builds to a shock finale that will catch even the most seasoned suspense readers off guard.

In the heart of summer, in the dead of night, something wakes you. The house is quiet. The children are sleeping. The kitchen is empty. Except for the body on the floor. A series of brutal home invasions is terrorizing the Peak District. Until now, the burglars haven't left a clue. This time, they've left a corpse. But as the death toll rises, two intrepid cops begin to suspect that the robberies - and the murders - are not what they seem. Beneath the scorching summer sun, a dangerous game is in play . . . and a merciless killer is hiding in plain sight. Packed with twists, suspense, and danger, The Devil's Edge is a gripping thriller to rival the very best of Peter Robinson and Peter James.PRAISE FOR STEPHEN BOOTH'A modern master' Guardian'Wonderful' Daily Mail'One of our best storytellers' Sunday Telegraph

An atmospheric new Fry and Cooper thriller for fans of Peter Robinson and Reginald Hill

Detectives Fry and Cooper return in another supremely atmospheric Peak District thriller, perfect for fans of Peter Robinson and Reginald Hill

A death in the family-from-hell bring Detectives Fry and Cooper to a remote and unfriendly rural community in their fourth psychological thriller.'And as it grew dark, Withens became almost entirely silent. Except for the screaming.'A small village in the Peak District, Withens is troubled by theft and vandalism, mostly generated by local family-from-hell, the Oxleys. Now it is the focus of a murder investigation - a man's body has been found on the bleak moors nearby, and the man is an Oxley. To crack the case, DC Ben Cooper must break open the delinquent clan.His boss, DS Diane Fry, is also in Withens. Grim new evidence has turned up in the case of a missing student but her parents refuse to believe she could be dead.The darkness in Withens's heart is growing. And things are only going to get nastier...

Stephen Booth returns with an evocative mystery perfect for fans of Ian Rankin and Peter Robinson.It's a new year for Ben Cooper and Diane Fry, and that means new mysteries to solve in the icy depths of a bitter winter.It isn't the easiest way to commit suicide, but the dead woman seems to have simply curled up in the freezing snow and lain there until her heart stopped. There was no one to observe her death but the foxes and the hares. Yet she is riddled with bruises. Her demise is horrifying. Is it also suspicious?When two more bodies are found, Cooper and Fry begin to wonder whether these tragedies are connected?and whether they will survive the winter . . .

The second in the series set in the Derbyshire Peak District, Dancing with the Virgins is a tense psychological follow-up to Stephen Booth's acclaimed debut Black Dog.