The second mystery in the Brackerley Prison series from Frances Brody, the bestselling author of the Kate Shackleton novels. This is a classic crime mystery set in a women's prison in 1960s Yorkshire - the perfect page-turner for fans of Agatha Christie and Jacqueline Winspear.
Frances Brody Book order
This acclaimed author crafts captivating mysteries set in the 1920s, featuring the clever and elegant Kate Shackleton, a World War I widow turned sleuth. When people go missing or foul play is suspected, Kate is the one to call, sometimes accompanied by former policeman Jim Sykes. Her writing is known for its intelligence and sophisticated atmosphere, drawing readers into a world of intriguing historical puzzles. The narratives are skillfully constructed, offering a compelling blend of suspense and historical detail.






- 2024
- 2023
A Mansion for Murder
A Kate Shackleton Mystery
Set in Saltaire, the thirteenth Kate Shackleton mystery unfolds as Kate is drawn into a web of intrigue following the suspicious drowning of Ronnie Creswell. After arriving at the supposedly cursed Milner Field, she faces a chilling turn of events when Ronnie is found murdered, prompting his father to seek answers. The disappearance of ten-year-old Nancy adds urgency to the investigation, leading Kate to unravel a tale linked to old bones buried on the estate, where the truth may be more perilous than it seems.
- 2022
The thirteenth mystery in the delightful Kate Shackleton murder mystery series set in 1930s Yorkshire.
- 2021
'Frances Brody has made it to the top rank of crime writers' Daily Mail 1969. A job in the Prison Service is not for everyone. The training is hard, the cells are bleak and a thick skin is needed. But for Nell Lewis, helping prisoners is something she cares about deeply, and when she's promoted into a new post as governor of HMP Brackerley in Yorkshire, she's tasked with transforming the renowned run-down facility into a modern, open prison for women. Just as Nell is settling into her new role, events take a dark turn when a man's body is discovered in the prison grounds. The mystery deepens still when one of their female inmates goes missing, ensuing a search across the country. Can Nell resolve the sinister happenings at HMP Brackerley, before anyone else is put in danger? From the bestselling author of the Kate Shackleton mysteries comes a new classic crime series set in 1960s Yorkshire and starring prison governor Nell Lewis. This is the perfect page-turner for fans of Jacqueline Winspear and Agatha Christie.
- 2020
Death and the Brewery Queen
- 400 pages
- 14 hours of reading
The twelfth murder mystery in the enthralling Kate Shackleton series set in 1930s Yorkshire. When a dead body is discovered during a garden party at a Yorkshire brewery, indomitable sleuth Kate Shackleton has a complex murder on her hands to solve . . .
- 2019
The Body on the Train
- 384 pages
- 14 hours of reading
The eleventh delightful and atmospheric instalment in the Kate Shackleton murder mystery series set in 1920s Yorkshire.
- 2018
A Snapshot of Murder
- 400 pages
- 14 hours of reading
Kate Shackleton's tenth adventure, in which she investigates a crime in Bronte country. 'The series is right up there with Miss Marple' Sunday Sport
- 2017
Death in the Stars
- 402 pages
- 15 hours of reading
The ninth novel in the Kate Shackleton mystery series. Imagine Miss Marple in her youth!
- 2016
In working-class Leeds in the 1920s, Jess is starting on her journey through life. Growing up in the aftermath of the Great War, she is torn between her downtrodden father and her cantankerous, ambitious mother. After a disastrous spell as housekeeper to the local priest, she works happily in the office of her uncle's shoe factory and falls in love with her childhood sweetheart, Wilf. But Wilf is determined to be a successful artist, and Jess can't bring herself to stand in the way of his dreams. She also faces a bigger fight: she is consumed by the desire to save her godchild Leila from an orphanage - a battle that eventually threatens to break her heart. Originally published: as by Frances McNeil. London: Orion, 2006
- 2016
Death at the Seaside
- 400 pages
- 14 hours of reading
The eighth fantastically quirky crime novel featuring amateur sleuth extraordinaire Kate Shackleton!

