Short Sentence was launched in 2012 by Bloomsbury Publishing, in association with the Writers' and Artists' Yearbook. Following a short story written by one of Bloomsbury's brilliant crime authors, competitors were challenged to take up the same theme and write of a dastardly deed using 1000 words or less. This is Bloomsbury's collection of the winning entries in parallel with the five brilliant authors, Parker Bilal, Conor Fitzgerald, Anne Zouroudi, Thomas Mogford and James Runcie.

    The perfect place for murder... Molly Higgins never expected to be caught up in a murder investigation. All she'd hoped for this year was to work hard, save enough money to open her very own café on the Cornish coast and avoid her ex, Conor Blackstone, who has just arrived back in the village. But when she and Conor discover a body on the cliffside in Port Trevan they are thrown once more together. Molly is keen to leave the mystery to the police, but when she finds herself their top suspect, Molly has no choice but to catch the killer herself - before it is too late.

    A resilient nonagenarian who keeps returning from the dead to scam unsuspecting insurance companies... A safecracker who prides himself on professional incompetence ... Now gentleman detective Albert Campion must match wits with a sinister assortment of lowlifes, crooks and cons in thirteen of the most baffling, bemusing, and breathtaking cases of his career.

    The author has put together promising stories for every alphabet that are guaranteed to scare you out of your wits and question the presence of the supernatural.Pick up the book as the night crawls by for feeling those chills creeping up your skin and your heart beating out of your chest.

    Her little cottage has a leaking roof, her car broke down, and she’s managed to lose her favorite hat while walking back home. So far, this trip to England has not been so much the restful country retreat she wanted. So far, it has pretty much sucked. And unfortunately, it’s about to get worse. When she catches attractive neighbor Maddox out in a horrible rainstorm, Jade invites him in out of the cold, only to see scratches on his arms. Maddox is pleasant and polite, but even Jade can see that something is wrong. When she learns the next day that an old lady was murdered in her cottage, Jade has a sinking feeling that she knows who’s to blame. When another body crops up soon after, Jade sets out to find the truth. After all, how much worse could this vacation get? She might as well tramp over the heath and figure out what’s going on. But all this poking about is going to put her squarely in the killer’s sights. And now that they’ve murdered twice, they’re not going to stop until all of their enemies are dead.BONUS FREE story included in this book!

    This casebook promises twists and turns with a pair of lady sleuths with sharp wits and Holmesian intelligence. The Complete Hester Lynton Mysteries includes - The Puzzled BridegroomIt was just another ordinary day when private tutor Hester Lyton boarded a steam train from Paddington to London. But this would be no ordinary journey.Within just a few short miles. the amateur detective has held two menacing convicts at gun point, acquired an inquisitive assistant by the name of Ivy Jessop, and embarked on an investigation into the case of a missing governess. Teaming up together, Hester and Ivy must combine their Sherlock Holmes style intellect with their feminine wiles, to solve a series of mysteries that have defeated lesser minds.Over the course of three adventures, Hester and Ivy find themselves up against a spate of murders, confused identities, missing people, thieves and forgeries.The Soho AnarchistThe Victorian detective Hester Lynton and her sharp-minded assistant Ivy Jessop are back for another series of dazzling adventures.In London a mysterious package with a deadly secret has landed on Hester's desk. In the suburbs, a woman is plagued by a series of pranks which hint at the supernatural. And in Islington, a medium claims to have the power to access the thoughts of her client's dead relatives, as well as the money in their pockets.Can Hester find the elusive Soho Anarchist before another bomb is blown? Will she unearth the secret of Greystones Villa and identify its tormentor? And will she unveil the true identity of Madame Valland and the secrets of her supernatural powers?The Wayward HusbandIn her latest baffling case, a complex and unusual tale involving a certain Mrs Bramming leads Hester and Ivy into the most dangerous case of their career.Meanwhile, when a famous writer loses a valuable manuscript, and enlists Hester's help to find it, an eminent doctor appears to be involved in the inexplicable events. But how? And why? Some mysteries are baffling even to Victorian London's greatest detective. The Complete Hester Lynton Mysteries is a dazzling collection of Victorian mystery stories that are perfect for fans of Sherlock Holmes, G W Calkitto, and the Raffles series.

    

    Wendy always wanted to be a detective and she was overjoyed when her cat, Black, had the same dream as her so they started to work together. They’ve solved many cases together, but the disappearance of successful business women had left her in a slump because Black believed it was someone who Wendy loved. The two of them investigates the mystery behind the disappearances and discovers something darker than any one of them could have ever imagined.

    But can she be sure which one? A year after one of their identical twin daughters, Lydia, dies in an accident, Angus and Sarah Moorcroft move to the tiny Scottish island Angus inherited from his grandmother, hoping to put together the pieces of their shattered lives. But when their surviving daughter, Kirstie, claims they have mistaken her identity--that she, in fact, is Lydia--their world comes crashing down once again.As winter encroaches, Angus is forced to travel away from the island for work, Sarah is feeling isolated, and Kirstie (or is it Lydia?) is growing more disturbed. When a violent storm leaves Sarah and her daughter stranded, they are forced to confront what really happened on that fateful day.

    Three Irresistible Gentleman. A vengeful viscount, an arrogant earl and a damaged soldier all find love with ladies that defy their plans and disrupt their lives. A sensual Regency Romance Box Set with warmth and wit. This volume collect books 1-3 including; Captivated by the Viscount, My Captive Earl and Her Noble Captive.Captivated by the ViscountA lot can change in four nights.... Ruination and kidnap were not on Miss Lucy Lazenby´s list of planned events for that week...even if it seems to be for her own good. Caught up in the lies and passion of Lord Danbury, Lucy finds the truth can never be hidden for long. Jasper Carnforth, Viscount Danbury is really doing the girl a favour by ruining her...if it just so happens to coincide with his own need for vengeance - all the better. However keeping the delectable Lucy in his home is more of a challenge than he´d imagined. Retribution may have brought them together, but desire has its own agenda. This fast paced Regency novella (34,000 words) is the first standalone story in The Captivating Debutantes Series.My Captive EarlThe Earl of Rookdean did not want to host a house party.Miss Clara Lockwood did not want to attend the Earl of Rookdean’s house party.You don’t always get what you want…At a masquerade ball on the opening night, Rookdean encounters a captivating Grecian-dressed goddess. With identities hidden, will his heart be able to find what his eyes cannot see?It started by chance, in a moonlit sunken garden. It leads to a week of concealed passion, deception and misunderstanding. With a house full of hidden desires, demanding men, song, charades, debutantes and…Lady Minkworth – who wouldn’t want a house party?This regency novella (49,000 words) is the second standalone story in The Captivating Debutantes Series. Heat level: Sensual. 3 out of 5.Her Noble CaptiveThat bitter winter of 1813…Her… Miss Rosalind Trewent. Irrepressibly vivid. Improperly spoken. Burdened by secrets. Refuses to marry.Noble… Major Lucas Mainwaring. Excessively grouchy. Reluctant earl. Self-admitted wreck. Can never marry.Captive… Winter and the cold hand of a murderer stalk the land, but the arrival of the Major as a houseguest warms Rosalind to her very toes.But the past can never be hidden for long…An idyllic country village is not always as it appears and when Lucas delves deeper, he discovers murky secrets, veiled passions, lust he thought he could never feel...and a love that began many years before.The Captivating Debutantes series can be read in any order.

    As weeks go by with no responses to his newspaper advertisement, he has taken to spending his days wandering idly about London rather than admit his failure to his beloved wife Julia, the former Lady Fieldhurst.One day, while loitering amidst the crowds thronging the Covent Garden market, he wonders morosely if it might have been better had he not been born at all. Then he sees one of his former colleagues and, in an attempt to make a discreet exit, contrives instead to knock himself unconscious.He awakens to discover that his Bow Street colleague doesn’t seem to remember him, and after staggering back home to Curzon Street, he finds someone else living in the house where he lived with Julia. But still greater surprises are in store for Pickett as he attempts to navigate his way through a world in which he never existed…With a wink and a nod to Frank Capra’s classic film IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE, NOWHERE MAN offers an alternate version of many of the earlier entries in the John Pickett mystery series.

    Deception. Terrorism. This is Tom Black's new occupation. Tom Black is the Government's newest recruit. He is an agent working for a top secret anti terrorist group. Troubled by his past, Black enters the dark, cold world of espionage vowing to make up for his past misdemeanours by serving his country. Black's first mission is to locate a consignment of weapons, and those responsible for smuggling them into the country. He will soon learn that his new occupation is filled with deception, and those who control him will stop at nothing to ensure the job is done.

    Both Detective Mark Whitman and Sorcerer Merrick Stone have expressed a desire to woo her, but she’s had to put them both on the back burner while she and her son have gotten their thriving restaurant and B&B up and running. But now that things at Habernackle’s have settled down a little, Linda is at a crossroads. It’s time to pick which man has her heart! Unable to make up her mind, Linda enlists the help of local matchmaking witch Sweets Porter to help. But when everything goes haywire will Linda be forced to start back at square one again? Or will she finally choose one of the men to call her own? ​ This is a Witch Squad Cozy Mystery Short-Story. It falls after Witch School Dropout and before The Witch Within in the series. If you haven’t read the series yet you may discover a few character spoilers.