Susan Elizabeth George Books

Author's style compared to P. D. James and Ruth Rendell.

The central plot deals with two bodies found in a circle of prehistoric stones. Who were they? How did they get there? Did the victims even know each other? Detectives Thomas Lynley and Barbara Havers find themselves caught up in a mystery that grows more perplexing the longer they contemplate it. As usual with George, the mystery itself is well devised and a lot of fun to speculate on as you read. You don't think of the Agatha Christie style of novel as being overhauled, but in fact, a number of very good writers have been pushing the cozy into some brave new areas. Nancy Pickard, Joan Hess, and Carolyn Hart, to name just a few, have demonstrated that the cozy can be serious as well as seriously (or pointedly, if you prefer) funny. Over the past decade, Elizabeth George has also been pushing the Christie-style mystery into richer and more rewarding areas. Her new novel, In Pursuit of the Proper Sinner, is so rich in character, incident, and theme that one finally has to take it seriously, not just as a mystery but as a novel as well. I'm not going to say that it "transcends the mystery genre," because that's offensive to mystery writers. And rightly so. But I will say that, in much the same way that Sharyn McCrumb has expanded the range of the serious crime novel, George has also pushed her particular form to the limits.

In London, a woman parliamentarian's daughter is kidnaped and a newspaper editor with whom the parliamentarian had an affair receives a call, threatening the girl's life unless he admits paternity. Inspector Lynley suspects the girl is behind it.

The quiet life of the Yorkshire countryside is shattered by a brutal murder and the shocking revelations unearthed by Scotland Yard investigators Barbara Havers and Thomas Lynley.

When the Metropolitan Police fail to realise a serial killer is at work, London ignites over the fact that the killer's victims are young black and mixed race boys. Institutionalised racism is claimed by the community's activists and tabloids alike. Acting Superintendent Thomas Lynley is given the case, and his Scotland Yard task force is soon handling more killings and a looming tragedy. Elizabeth George brings to the familiar subject of the serial killer a freshness and clarity of vision that provide illuminating insight into the psychological complexity of the tortured criminal mind. She does so within a richly textured, thrillingly suspenseful narrative that defies any reader to predict its outcome. Nor does she neglect our favourite characters, whose private lives provide an engrossing counterpoint to their professional duties.

When a Member of Parliament comes to New Scotland Yard demanding an investigation into a suicide, the Assistant Commissioner sees an opportunity to get rid of Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers, whose career has been hanging by a thread for some time. Barbara is sent to the beautiful town of Ludlow to review the case, under the cold eye of Detective Chief Superintendent Isabelle Ardery, who more than shares the Commissioner's view of her. But Ardery has problems of her own and in her haste to return to London, she overlooks certain uncomfortable facts. So, soon the case is reopened, and this time it is Detective Inspector lynley who must accompany Havers to Ludlow, with little more than a week to save the Met's reputation and Barbara's job. And the more they investigate, the more it looks as if the suicide was part of a much more sinister pattern of events.

When a member of the small but growing Asian community of Balford-le-Nez is found dead, the sleepy seaside town ignites, and Sergeant Barbara Havers, working without her long-time partner, must find the killer before the price of deception becomes more than anyone can afford. Reissue. (A PBS Mystery! presentation, airing August 2004, starring Nathaniel Parker & Sharon Small) (Mystery)

The power of parental love, a power which overrides all other considerations, all other loves and loyalties, but which can end in tragedy._

When Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley, Eighth Earl of Asherton, and his fiancee, Deborah Cotter, arrive at Howenstow, Lynley's family home, they find the atmosphere rife with tension.

While DI Thomas Lynley is still on compassionate leave after the murder of his wife, Isabelle Ardery is brought into the Met as his temporary replacement. The discovery of a body in a Stoke Newington cemetery offers Isabelle the chance to make her mark with a high profile murder investigation. Persuading Lynley back to work seems the best way to guarantee a result: Lynley's team is fiercely loyal to him and Isabelle needs them - and especially Barbara Havers - on side. The Met is twitchy: a series of PR disasters has undermined its confidence. Isabelle knows that she'll be operating under the unforgiving scrutiny of the media, so is quick -- perhaps too quick - to pin the murder on a convenient suspect. The murder trail leads Lynley and Havers to the New Forest, and the eventual resolution of the case. Its roots are in a long-ago act of violence that has poisoned subsequent generations and its outcome is both tragic and shocking.

Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley risks his career when he discovers that a recent murder victim had been tied to an old homicide investigation that could involve his superior, Superintendent Malcolm Webberly.

Charlotte, het tienjarige dochtertje van parlementslid Evelyn Bowen, verdwijnt op raadselachtige wijze. Als snel ontvangen beide ouders een dreigbrief van de kidnapper: als zij zijn eisen niet inwilligen, zal het kind sterven... Eve is niet bereid te geloven dat Charlotte werkelijk in handen van een vreemde is gevallen: zij is ervan overtuigd dat Charlottes vader, Dennis Luxford, hierachter zit. Dennis, hoofdredacteur van het op sensatie gerichte dagblad The Source, is er immers voortdurend op uit Eve onderuit te halen. Dennis, meent Eve, is op een politieke rel uit die haar zal dwingen af te treden als staatssecretaris van Binnenlandse Zaken. Zij weigert dan ook pertinent de politie in te schakelen. Totdat het lijkje van Charlotte aanspoelt... Inspecteur Lynley staat nu voor een bijna onmogelijke taak: hij is veel te laat ingeschakeld, dus de meeste sporen van de misdaad zijn allang uitgewist. En tot overmaat van ramp wordt hij ook nog eens aan banden gelegd door vertegenwoordigers van de regering, die elke beweging registreren...

The sudden death of Guy Brouard after his morning swim shocks the residents of Guernsey. A generous patron and benefactor of the island since his arrival there a decade ago, his demise puts a question mark over many cherished projects. When a young American woman is charged with the murder, her brother seeks help from the only contact he has in the UK - Deborah St James. Deborah is horrified to find that her old friend has been arrested and persuades her husband Simon to accompany her to Guernsey to avert this miscarriage of justice. There they find a tangled web of deceit and betrayal, with its origins in wartime occupation. In solving the crime, they must rely on their long-standing friendship with Inspector Lynley; they must also learn painful lessons about loyalty and trust, and the loving tyranny of family ties.

"The story begins with my father, actually, and the fact that I'm the one who's answerable for his death. It was not my first crime, as you will see, but it is the one my mother couldn't forgive." In her astonishing "New York Times" bestseller, acclaimed author Elizabeth George reveals the even darker truth behind this startling confession. "Playing for the Ashes" is a rich tale of passion, murder and love in which Inspector Thomas Lynley and Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers once again find themselves embroiled in a case where nothing--and no one--is really what it seems. Intense, suspenseful and brilliantly written, "Playing for the Ashes" will make readers "search out the sleuthing pair's first six adventures...a treasure," as "Cosmopolitan" predicted in their review. "From the Paperback edition."

From acclaimed author George comes this literate, vastly detailed, and intricately characterized piece. Scotland Yard's Thomas Lynley, unexpectedly assigned to a gory stabbing murder, uncovers deeply hidden family secrets and various psychological convolutions among suspects.

In her most eagerly anticipated novel yet, Elizabeth George brings back Scotland Yard's Thomas Lynley to investigate a ruthless crime. After the senseless murder of his wife, Detective Superintendent Thomas Lynley retreated to Cornwall, where he has spent six solitary weeks hiking the bleak and rugged coastline. But no matter how far he walks, no matter how exhausting his days, the painful memories of Helen's death do not diminish. On the forty-third day of his walk, at the base of a cliff, Lynley discovers the body of a young man who appears to have fallen to his death. The closest town, better known for its tourists and its surfing than its intrigue, seems an unlikely place for murder. However, it soon becomes apparent that a clever killer is indeed at work, and this time Lynley is not a detective but a witness and possibly a suspect. The head of the vastly understaffed local police department needs Lynley's help, though, especially when it comes to the mysterious, secretive woman whose cottage lies not far from where the body was discovered. But can Lynley let go of the past long enough to solve a most devious and carefully planned crime?

Elena shocked anyone meeting her for the first time. In her skimpy dresses and bright jewellery, she exuded intelligence and sexuality, challenging all preconceptions. Until one morning, while out jogging, she is bludgeoned to death. Detectives Thomas Lynley and Barbara Havers investigate.

Detective Inspector Lynley is approached by business magnate Bernard Fairclough for a confidential review - not a formal investigation - of the circumstances of his nephew's demise. The coroner's verdict is accidental death. Recovering from the murder of his wife, Lynley has personal reasons for welcoming a spell away from London. He heads to the wild beauty of the Lake District, with Deborah and Simon St James to provide cover for his inquiries. Barbara Havers, back at base, makes her own unique contribution to the case, distracted only by Isabelle's ambitions to improve her Detective Sergeant's appearance. When he comes to know the various members of the extended Fairclough dynasty, Lynley finds many possible motives for murder, and uncovers layers of deceit and betrayal that expose the lies at the heart of the Cumbrian community.

Toby is zeven, Joel elf en Ness vijftien wanneer hun grootmoeder hen dumpt op de stoep van hun tante Kendra. Kendra Osborne, een mooie vrouw van veertig, heeft weinig omkijken naar de schuchtere Joel en de geestelijk gehandicapte Toby. Joel is op school een vaak gepeste eenling, die zich plichtsgetrouw over zijn broertje ontfermt. Hun zusje Ness daarentegen daalt steeds verder af in een wereld van junks, dealers en geweld. Als Joel en Toby op een dag in elkaar worden geslagen, zoekt Joel bescherming bij een ex-vriendje van Ness. Maar deze crimineel vraagt daar wel iets voor terug en Joel slaat daarmee een pad in dat regelrecht naar een desastreuze ontknoping leidt...

Douglas Armstrong stevent af op zijn 35ste verjaardag. En aangezien alles wat tot nu toe misging in zijn leven, misging in een jaar met een vijf erin, bereidt hij zich voor op het ergste. Temeer daar zijn veel jongere vrouw Donna daartoe ook nog eens extra de aanleiding geeft......

Tijdens een verlovingsfeest wordt het lijk van een journalist ontdekt.

Pas wanneer de zaak van het ontvoerde dochtertje van een hoge Engelse regeringsfunctionaris een dramatische wending neemt, wordt inspecteur Lynley van New Scotland Yard ingeschakeld.