James Oswald Books

The latest book in the Sunday Times bestselling phenomenon that is the Inspector McLean series, from one of Scotland's most celebrated crime writers. The charred remains of an elderly woman are discovered in a burned out gamekeepers cottage, hidden away in woodland to the west of Edinburgh. What is at first assumed to be a tragic accident begins to take on a more sinister aspect as Detective Inspector Tony McLean digs deeper. There is far more to the victim than her humble surroundings suggest . . . Praise for James Oswald: 'The new Ian Rankin' Daily Record 'Creepy, gritty and gruesome' Sunday Mirror 'Crime fiction's next big thing' Sunday Telegraph

The latest book in the Sunday Times bestselling Inspector McLean series, from one of Scotland's most celebrated crime writers.An archaeological dig at the old South Leith parish kirkyard has turned up a mysterious body dating from around 700 years ago. The experts wonder if she wasn't murdered and dumped, but some suspect that this gruesome discovery is a sacrifice, placed there for a specific purpose.Then a second body is unearthed. This victim went missing only thirty years ago - but the similarities between her death and the ancient body's suggest something even more disturbing.Drawn into the investigation, McLean finds himself torn between a worrying trend of violent drug-related deaths and uncovering what truly connects these bodies. When a third body is discovered, and too close for comfort, he begins to suspect dark purpose at play - and that whoever put them there is far from finished.Praise for James Oswald:'The new Ian Rankin' Daily Record'Creepy, gritty and gruesome' Sunday Mirror'Crime fiction's next big thing' Sunday Telegraph

The Obsidian Throne is J.D. Oswald's stunning conclusion to 'The Ballad of Sir Benfro' series - an epic high fantasy tale of dragons, swordsmanship, honour and two of the most unlikely yet extraordinary heroes in all of fiction. There is no war in the northlands, just annihilation. Either the dragons will destroy this world or Queen Beulah will raze it to the ground. Below the city is a secret the House of Balwen have kept for millennia, a treasure beyond imagination. None but a direct descendent of Balwen himself can open the escape routes from this cavern. To do so, Princess Iolwen will need to claim the Obsidian Throne. Meanwhile Errol and Sir Benfro find their destinies drawing closer together, with the future of all life in the Twin Kingdoms resting on these two unlikely heroes. There will be self-sacrifice and terrible betrayals. And the lives of boy and dragon will be forever changed. J. D. Oswald is the author of the epic fantasy series 'The Ballad of Sir Benfro', which includes Dreamwalker, The Rose Cord, The Golden Cage, The Broken World and The Obsidian Throne. He is also the author of the Inspector McLean series. James runs a 350-acre farm in north-east Fife.

Krimi. A truck driver loses control in central Edinburgh, ploughing into a crowded bus stop and spilling his vehicle's toxic load. The consequences are devastating. DI Tony McLean witnesses the carnage. Taking control of the investigation, he soon realises there is much that is deeply amiss - and everyone involved seems to have something to hide. But as McLean struggles to uncover who caused the tragedy, a greater crisis develops: the new Chief Superintendent's son is missing, last seen in the area of the crash

The tenth book in the Sunday Times-bestselling Inspector McLean series, from one of Scotland's most celebrated crime writers When a member of the Police Scotland team fails to clock-in for work, concern for her whereabouts is immediate... and the discovery of her burnt-out car in remote woodland to the south of Edinburgh sets off a desperate search for the missing woman. Meanwhile, DCI Tony McLean and the team are preparing for a major anti-corruption operation - one which may raise the ire of more than a few powerful people in the city. Is Anya Renfrew's disappearance a co-incidence or related to the case? McLean's investigations suggest that perhaps that Anya isn't the first woman to have mysteriously vanished in these ancient hills. Once again, McLean can't shake the feeling that there is a far greater evil at work here... Praise for James Oswald: 'The new Ian Rankin' Daily Record 'Creepy, gritty and gruesome' Sunday Mirror 'Crime fiction's next big thing' Sunday Telegraph

The Broken World is the fourth instalment in the epic fantasy series by J. D. Oswald, The Ballad of Sir Benfro, preceded by Dreamwalker, The Rose Cord and The Golden Cage. *** The book, sir. The Llyfr Draconius. You'll find what you need in there, if you know how to look. The war across the Twin Kingdoms rages on. Queen Beulah has killed one sister and ordered the assassination of another. The Inquisitor Melyn journeys though the north-lands of Llanwennog in a merciless bid to overthrow King Ballah. Now in possession of Brynceri's ring, his power seems indestructible. Nothing can stop the invasion. Captured by the travelling circus, Sir Benfro cannot shake their control, more powerful than Magog's malign influence. Errol Ramsbottom, left for dead, follows the trail of his friend's captors - only Benfro holds the key to Errol's beloved Martha's whereabouts. But both sides are set on a path of destruction - dragon against dragon, king against queen, man against man. As the ancient spell that split Gwlad begins to unravel, it may be easier for Benfro and Errol to travel to Gog's world now. But what will happen when the barriers between the two worlds fail entirely? As unlikely alliances form and strategies shift, who will emerge victorious? *Parts of the previous eBook edition of The Golden Cage have been used in this work, The Broken World*

The search for a missing journalist is called off as a body is found at the scene of a carefully staged murder. In a sealed chamber, deep in the heart of Gilmerton Cove, a mysterious network of caves and passages sprawling beneath Edinburgh, the victim has undergone a macabre ritual of purification. Inspector Tony McLean knew the dead man, and can't shake off the suspicion that there is far more to this case than meets the eye. The baffling lack of forensics at the crime scene seems impossible. But it is not the only thing about this case that McLean will find beyond belief. Teamed with the most unlikely and unwelcome of allies, he must track down a killer driven by the darkest compulsions, who will answer only to a higher power.

Inspector McLean is back in the next gripping instalment in James Oswald's best-selling crime series. McLean must investigate the seedy goings on of an exclusive and secretive society, catering for the rich and powerful of the city. Somehow it is linked to a particularly gruesome cold case from twenty years ago, McLean's first case with the force.

The ninth book in the bestselling phenomenon that is the Inspector McLean series, from one of Scotland's most celebrated crime writers.Her mummified body is hidden in the dark corner of a basement room, a room which seems to have been left untouched for decades. A room which feels as cold as the grave. As a rowdy demonstration makes its slow and vocal way along Edinburgh's Royal Mile, Detective Chief Inspector Tony McLean's team are on stand-by for any trouble. The newly promoted McLean is distracted, inexplicably drawn to a dead-end mews street... and a door, slightly ajar, which leads to this poor girl's final resting place. But how long has she been there, in her sleep of death? The answers are far from what McLean or anyone else could expect. The truth far more chilling than a simple cold case... The unmissable new thriller in James Oswald's best-selling Inspector McLean series. Praise for James Oswald:'The new Ian Rankin' Daily Record'Creepy, gritty and gruesome' Sunday Mirror'Crime fiction's next big thing' Sunday Telegraph

When a body is found in a tree in the Meadows, Edinburgh's scenic parkland, the forensics suggest the corpse has fallen from a great height. Detective Inspector Tony McLean wonders whether it was an accident, or a murder designed to send a chilling message?