Andy Hall is drawn onto some treacherous ground. Could the apparently accidental death of an environmental activist at St. Bees years before have been a cunningly conceived murder, involving both undercover police officers and a subsequent cover-up? And could Hall's chief suspect in the case really be a charming, over-achieving sociopath? Aided an abetted by DS Ian Mann (suspended) Andy Hall needs to be absolutely sure that he's right, because his wife and best friend's careers, and maybe even his family's safety, are all at stake. As always the former DCS in Cumbria Constabulary has endless ideas and theories to offer, but as to hard evidence? Well, that's quite a different matter.... 

In the second instalment of the Border City Blues novella series DS Samantha 'Pepper' Wilson faces challenges on all fronts. Her assertive policing style lands her in trouble again, but that's the least of her worries. Because Dai Young, a crime boss with boundless ambition and absolutely no boundaries, is dead set on removing his local competition, and fully intends to use the police to help him achieve his objectives. So when DC Rex Copeland is contacted by an underworld figure with some potentially career-defining intelligence he is cautious, and not only because he has already learned that informants invariably face in two directions. But, if the information is correct, then Pepper and her team have a golden opportunity to both arrest a dangerous escaped prisoner and undermine Dai Young's whole operation in Carlisle and beyond. It's just too good an opportunity to pass up, isn't it?  

The first in Cumbrian crime best-seller J J Salkeld's new series of humorous and gritty Kindle-friendly novellas. Set in Carlisle - on the border between England and Scotland and much else besides - Call & Response introduces DS Samantha 'Pepper' Wilson and her North Division CID team. In this first episode Pepper struggles to cope with the madness and sadness of everyday policing, whist covering for an absent boss and adapting to a new Superintendent who's come straight from a supermarket's supply chain to British policing's chain of command. And matters take a serious turn when a case of 'revenge porn' is reported, involving members of a minority ethnic group, and one of Pepper's young DCs is assaulted, within spitting distance of Carlisle's shiny new Police HQ. Both cases are delicate and potentially inflammatory, and Pepper's short fuse is trimmed still more by the return to Carlisle of a dangerous career criminal with whom Pepper grew up, and whose reappearance could have dangerous implications for her, the city, and its now almost vanishingly 'thin blue line'.  

The eighth instalment in J J Salkeld's best-selling Lakeland Murders series is a novella, featuring a recently retired (and now pram-pushing) Andy Hall, as well as DI Jane Francis and DS Ian Mann. Blunt and blackly humorous CSI Sandy Smith is on hand once again, and Ray Dixon returns to the fray. Set in an era of continuing cut backs, Hall becomes involved in a Quixotic attempt to prove the innocence of a Whitehaven man convicted years before of murdering his wife, before dumping her body in Crummock Water. And when another woman is strangled to death in the town, Hall and DI Francis begin to wonder if the cases could be connected? Told with Salkeld's usual blend of gritty humour and social observation, Delayed & Denied casts a sharp, sideways glance at the dispensation of justice in difficult times. Five star reader reviews of earlier books in the Lakeland Murders series include: 'As usual JJ has written what could be called a "very knowledgeable" account of what policing is all about. Look forward to Jane's return and Andy's baby lessons.' 'As with books 1-6, this (Mortal Men) was a well written, brilliant story.....Loved it! Roll on the next book!' 'Yet another superb read in this series of books. Keeps the tension going right until the end, and again set against the unfolding life behind the main characters. If you haven't read any of these novels, start at the beginning...you'll end up buying them all!'  

In episode 3 of J J Salkeld's epic Border City Blues novella series DS Samantha 'Pepper' Wilson continues to confront Dai Young, the newly crowned criminal kingpin. Her senior colleagues still seem oblivious, of this and much else besides, but at last an unconventional ally has arrived on the field of battle - a latter-day Robin Hood who seems intent on stealing only from Young, and on giving only to the deserving. And there's still the whiff of police corruption in the air, as operation after operation is blown. Could it really be that, after a century and a half of clear superiority, the savage cuts to police budgets and capabilities are finally swinging the balance of power away from the police, and towards the dark and violent forces of organised crime? J J Salkeld is an established crime and thriller writer, whose international best-selling Lakeland Murders series is also available on Kindle. Reviewer R Rhodes said: 'Salkeld is good. Not just as a writer of gripping detective stories; but even more for his feisty exposure of the lunacies of institutions, hierarchies, and power. A refreshing and enlightening anarchist - much needed in these jaded, compliant and consumptive times.'   

This is the fourth instalment in JJ Salkeld's Cumbrian cop thriller series, Border City Blues. And it all becomes intensely personal for DS Pepper Wilson, as she faces up to personal tragedy, intimate betrayal, and an enemy of apparently bottomless evil. But the forces of law and order must always prevail, right? Right? This novella brings the first part of the Border City Blues saga - the Dai Young story - to a dramatic and violent conclusion. Readers love the hard-boiled mix of thrills, detection, reflection and moments of black humour that J J Salkeld always delivers in spades: 'Once again JJ Salkeld has managed to flawlessly weave another portion of this great saga, spiking your imagination with a toxicity that leaves you craving for more.' 'The touches of humor and humanity liven up these books. And those criminals. The local boy made bad, Dai, is a real piece of work.' 'The character development of the main character is interesting. She is a human being full of flaws and good intentions. The "bad guys" are from all levels of crime and society. This is a great read.'