Duffy

In the grimy underbelly of London, private detective Duffy takes on an extortion case and finds himself pitted against one of the city's most dangerous crime lords Rosie McKechnie was alone when the two men entered her home, tied her to a chair, and cut her with a switchblade. It was a message for her husband, Brian. To outside appearances, Brian McKechnie is just a businessman. But to Big Eddy Martoff, London's underworld kingpin, McKechnie is a big fat mark. With a history of crooked business deals and extramarital affairs, McKechnie is the perfect target. To beat back the blackmail, McKechnie needs someone who understands lowlifes like Martoff-and Nick Duffy knows lowlifes. Duffy was a copper until four years ago, when malicious rumors about his sex life ripped through the force. Now he is in private security, and McKechnie's case is one he cannot refuse. Duffy, no stranger to his city's seedier offerings, dives into a world of prostitutes, hoods, and porn moguls. Can he find a way to put the pinch on Big Eddy before Soho swallows him whole?

Duffy's latest clients: The thieves of Heathrow Airport Down-and-out Duffy takes a stranger home from the pub for a one-night stand to take his mind off his scuffling private security business. But his bedmate surprises him with a job offer the next morning. Turns out Mr. Right Now is chummy with the freight thieves of Heathrow. The airport's crooks pride themselves on their restraint, but someone has been pilfering much more than his share. The Heathrow hoods need a detective to find out who has been robbing them. The seedy, sly Duffy is the only man for such an absurd job. But when he baits his hook for the bad thieves, he lands something much more dangerous.

"There are too many ways of breaking a footballer's leg. Too many, that is, from the footballer's point of view. Others may find the freedom of choice encouraging." Third Division Athletic has been an unlucky club for ages, but things are about to get much worse. Danny Matson, Athletic's top scorer, is out for the season after a scuffle inexplicably leaves him with a ruptured Achilles tendon. The team's manager, Jimmy Lister, is convinced that someone is intentionally kicking the team while it's down, and he hires Nick Duffy to get to the bottom of it. Duffy has always been a worrier. He frets about his weight, about his burgeoning relationship with constable Carol Lucas, about his promiscuity with both men and women, and about the AIDS epidemic sweeping through London. This latest case gives him an opportunity to focus his attention elsewhere, on a list of suspects ranging from trophy-hungry supporters to hardcore skinheads bent on whitewashing England.

Duffy is summoned to a country manor for his hairiest case yet Vic Crowther's housekeeper found the body. Ricky bled out after crashing through the French windows of the manor's library. Crowther doesn't know who did this to Ricky, but he does know whom to blame. Duffy, the security consultant who installed the dodgy burglar alarm, will have to answer for this murder. When Duffy rushes out to the country to smooth things over, he finds more than one surprise. First of all, Ricky was a dog. And Braunscombe Hall is filled to capacity with strange folks-even by Duffy's rarefied standards. His country sojourn is extended-as are his headaches-when he finds that each of the eccentric guests has a problem that needs his expertise.

Nick Duffy was a copper on the vice squad until malicious rumors about his own sex life ripped through the force. Now he's in private security. No stranger to London's seedier offerings, Duffy is just the right man for cases that are a little morally slippery. In these four novels, Duffy: Hired by a disreputable businessman who's being blackmailed by one of the city's most dangerous crime lords, Duffy must navigate Soho's underworld of prostitutes, porn moguls, and hoods. Fiddle City: The freight thieves of Heathrow Airport have a problem: Someone has been pilfering more than his share. These Heathrow hoods need a private detective to find out who's been robbing them-and down-and-out Duffy takes the case. Putting the Boot In: Every football team expects injuries, but Third Division Athletic seems to be exceptionally unlucky. The manager hires Duffy to find out who's intentionally kicking the team while it's down, and soon he's taking on everyone from diehard fans to hard-core skinheads. Going to the Dogs: As the security consultant who installed a dodgy burglar alarm, Duffy is called to a country manor to find out who defenestrated the owner's dog. But he arrives to find Braunscombe Hall full of eccentric guests, aka suspects.