Josephine Tey

March 1934. Revered mystery writer Josephine Tey is traveling from Scotland to London for the final week of her play Richard of Bordeaux, the surprise hit of the season, with pacifist themes that resonate in a world still haunted by war. But joy turns to horror when her arrival coincides with the murder of a young woman she had befriended on the train ride-and Tey is plunged into a mystery as puzzling as any in her own works. Detective Inspector Archie Penrose is convinced that the killing is connected to the play, and that Tey herself is in danger of becoming a victim of her own success. In the aftermath of a second murder, the writer and the policeman must join together to stop a ruthless killer who will apparently stop at nothing.

Exhausted and disillusioned with the world of theater in May 1935, Josephine Tey has traveled to Cornwall to spend the summer with her friends, the Motleys, at their run-down but beautiful country estate. Ready to begin work on her second mystery novel, Tey finds much to inspire her in the landscape and its legends. Meanwhile, the Motleys have become involved in an amateur production at the nearby Minack Theater. Detective Inspector Archie Penrose has returned to his roots in Cornwall to attend the funeral of a family friend, a young estate worker who died in a tragic riding accident. Penrose has a few questions about the circumstances surrounding the fatal occurrence. And when the Minack Theater proves to be the stage for a real-life tragedy, Penrose and Tey together must investigate an audacious murder and confront an evil suggesting that there are darker things than death. "Packed with lust and illicit passion." "The portrayal of Tey is both sympathetic and perceptive…Upson is chillingly effective at showing how good intentions may lead to evil consequences…A fine addition to a promising series." "Carefully plotted, full of historical information, local color and meticulous psychological analysis." "Within a relatively short period, Nicola Upson has established herself as one of the most inventive and unusual of crime writers…It's easy to feel that Tey herself would be delighted with these fictitious imaginings of her life."

London, 1903. Two women are hanged in Holloway Prison for killing babies. More than thirty years later, their crimes resurface with shocking consequences. When Josephine Tey sets out to write a novel about Amelia Sach and Annie Walters, the notorious Finchley baby farmers sentenced to death for a string of newborn murders, she has no idea that the research for her book will be used in the investigation of a modern-day killing-the sadistic murder of a young seamstress, found dead in the studio of Tey's friends, the Motley sisters, amid preparations for a star-studded charity gala. While initially the death of the young girl, an ex-con trying to go straight, seems to be the result of a long-standing domestic feud, Josephine's friend, Inspector Archie Penrose, is not convinced. And when a second young woman is involved in a horrific accident soon afterwards, the search begins for a vicious killer who will stop at nothing to keep the past where it belongs. Moving between the decadence and glamour of a private women's club, the bleak surroundings of Holloway prison, and the deprivation of London's slums, Two for Sorrow is a dark and unsettling exploration of the way in which the crimes of the past destroy those left behind-long after justice is served. "Upson upsets readers' expectations with a surprise that keeps the suspense high to the satisfying conclusion. Puzzle fans as well as admirers of psychologically-rich crime authors such as Ruth Rendell will find a lot to savor." "This excellent entry in this highly recommended series provides all the classic detective components with a contemporary kick. The case is intricate and surprisingly intimate, weaving in and out of two historical periods." "Curiously touching and psychologically compelling." "Upson's style is compelling, meticulously researched, and immaculately written. She creates a world you enter through her pages and are reluctant to leave at the end." "Any crime aficionado…should make room for Nicola Upson's novels in which the real-life author Josephine Tey, one of the grandest dames of the Golden Age of detective fiction, investigates murders in the thirties."

Nicola Upson blends biography and fiction, excitement and menace, and a touch of Alfred Hitchcock in Fear in the Sunlight, a mystery starring real-life writer Josephine Tey. Summer, 1936: Josephine Tey joins her friends in the resort village of Portmeirion to celebrate her fortieth birthday. Alfred Hitchcock and his wife, Alma Reville, are there to sign a deal to film Josephine's novel, A Shilling for Candles, and Alfred Hitchcock has one or two tricks up his sleeve to keep the holiday party entertained-and expose their deepest fears. But things get out of hand when one of Hollywood's leading actresses is brutally slashed to death in a cemetery near the village. The following day, fear and suspicion take over in a setting where nothing-and no one-is quite what it seems. Based in part on the life of Josephine Tey-one of the most popular, best-loved crime writers of the Golden Age, Nicola Upson's Fear in the Sunlight features legendary film director Alfred Hitchcock as a prominent character-and features the classic suspense and psychological tension that fans of Hitchcock films love.

In this atmospheric, intriguing historical mystery brimming with psychological tension, an unexpected inheritance plunges beloved British mystery author Josephine Tey into a disturbing puzzle of dark secrets eerily connecting the present and the past. When Josephine Tey unexpectedly inherits Red Barn Cottage from her estranged godmother, the will stipulates that she must personally claim the house in the Suffolk countryside. But Josephine is not the only benefactor-a woman named Lucy Kyte is also in Hester's will. Sorting through the artifacts of her godmother's life, Josephine is intrigued by an infamous death committed on the cottage's grounds a century before. Yet this old crime-dubbed the Red Barn murder-still seems to haunt the tight-knit village and its remote inhabitants. Is it just superstition, or is there a very real threat that is frightening the locals? Could the truth be related to the mysterious Lucy Kyte, who no one in the village admits to knowing? With a palpable sense of evil thickening around her, Josephine must untangle historic tragedy from present danger and prevent a deadly cycle from beginning once more.

Intrepid writer and amateur sleuth Josephine Tey returns in this sixth installment in Nicola Upson's popular series-perfect for fans of Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot and Jaqueline Winspear's Maisie Dobbs-that unfolds in 1930s London as England prepares to crown a new king. London, 1937. Following the gloomy days of the abdication of King Edward VIII, the entire city is elated to welcome King George. Just one of the many planned festivities for the historic coronation is a BBC radio adaptation of Queen of Scots, and the original playwright, Josephine Tey, has been invited to sit in on rehearsals. Soon, however, Josephine gets wrapped up in another sort of drama. The lead actress has been sleeping with Britain's most venerable newsman, Anthony Beresford-and his humiliated wife happens to work in the building. The sordid affair seems to reach its bloody climax when Beresford is shot to death in his broadcasting booth at the deafening height of the coronation ceremony. Josephine's dear friend Detective Chief Inspector Archie Penrose has the case wrapped up before long. But when a second, seemingly related murder throws Penrose for a loop, it falls to Josephine to unravel a web of betrayal, jealousy, and long-held secrets … caught all the while in a love triangle of her own making. Charming and provocative, thick with the atmosphere of prewar England, London Rain is a captivating portrait of a city on the edge-and an unforgettable woman always one step ahead of her time. "Narrator Wanda McCaddon switches effortlessly among Scottish, English, and Welsh accents, expertly coloring the intriguing subplots in Upson's sixth historical crime novel… McCaddon's range of expression and pace greatly enrich the well-drawn novel, which is as much historical fiction as mystery. Her clear, crisp, and inviting narrative voice perfectly channels 1930s England, offering listeners a time warp that is hard to leave." "The author continues to blend history and fiction seamlessly, both in the portrayal of her main character (a real-life contemporary of Agatha Christie) and in the setting…[and] constructs a murder mystery that will keep readers guessing. The glimpses into the changing face of feminism and the politics of the BBC in the late 1930s prove equally intriguing." "The coronation of George VI in 1937 provides the backdrop for Upson's psychologically complex and twisty sixth whodunit featuring real-life mystery writer Josephine Tey." "Delivers deft plotting and evocations of the era through charming descriptions of London. As little is known about Tey, Upson's speculations on her life create intriguing (fictional) biographical footnotes." "Notable for its well-wrought characters and involving plots that vividly capture a time and place." "The complexity of the overlapping relationships and a burst of momentum make her fictionalized heroine's sixth case a worthy sequel to its predecessors." "This book is what historical crime is all about."

Josephine Tey, a sharp-witted amateur sleuth based on the celebrated Golden Age mystery writer, returns in the seventh in Nicola Upson's critically acclaimed series, perfect for readers of Agatha Christie and Jacqueline Winspear. Called to the peaceful wooded churchyard of St John-at-Hampstead, Detective Chief Inspector Archie Penrose faces one of the most audacious and unusual murders of his career. The body of the church's organist is found in an opened grave, together with a photograph of a manor house and a cryptic note. The image leads Archie to Cambridge, where the crisp autumn air has brought with it bustling life to the ancient university and town. Mystery author Josephine Tey and Archie's lover Bridget Foley have each recently settled in Cambridge, though both women are not equally happy to see him. One has concealed an important secret from Archie which now threatens to come to light. Meanwhile, the change of seasons has also brought with it a series of vicious attacks against women in town, spreading fear and suspicion through the community. Soon, another body is revealed, and in the shadow of King's College Chapel, Archie uncovers a connection twenty-five years old which haunted both victims-as well as some of their living companions. As Archie and Josephine each grapple with savage malefactors intent on making their victims pay, they must race to stop another attack in this beautifully written, intricately plotted mystery.

At once a compelling murder mystery and a moving exploration of love and grief, critically acclaimed author Nicola Upson's eighth Josephine Tey mystery is a force to be reckoned with. In the summer of 1915, the sudden death of a young girl brings grief and notoriety to Charleston Farmhouse on the Sussex Downs. Years later, Josephine Tey returns to the same house-now much changed-and remembers the two women with whom she once lodged as a young teacher during the Great War. As past and present collide, with murders decades apart, Josephine is forced to face the possibility that the scandal which threatened to destroy those women's lives hid a much darker secret. 194811Ten Years Earlier2Summer 1915

A snowy Christmas gathering on an island off the Cornish coast goes murderously wrong in this festive Golden Age mystery. December 1938, and storm clouds hover once again over Europe. Josephine Tey and Archie Penrose gather with friends for a Cornish Christmas, but two strange and brutal deaths on St. Michael's Mount - and the unexpected arrival of a world famous film star, in need of sanctuary - interrupt the festivities. Cut off by the sea and a relentless blizzard, the hunt for a murderer begins. Pivoting on a real moment in history, the ninth novel in the Josephine Tey series draws on all the much-loved conventions of the Golden Age Christmas mystery, while giving them the contemporary twist which has come to distinguish the books so far.

It takes a village to bury a child... 1 September 1939. As the mass evacuation takes place across Britain, thousands of children leave London for the countryside. But when a little girl vanishes without a trace, the reality of separation becomes more urgent and more deadly for those who love her. In the chaos and uncertainty of war, Josephine struggles with the prospect of change. As a cloud of suspicion falls across the small Suffolk village she has come to love, the conflict becomes personal, and events take a dark and sinister turn. Blending a Golden Age mystery with the timeless fears of a child's abduction, Dear Little Corpses is an atmospheric snapshot of England in the early days of war.

Violence finds its way to old Hollywood in the eleventh Josephine Tey mystery, perfect for fans of Rhys Bowen and Jacqueline Winspear. September 1939, and the worries of war follow Josephine Tey to Hollywood, where a different sort of battle is raging on the set of Hitchcock's Rebecca. Then a shocking act of violence reawakens the shadows of the past, with consequences on both sides of the Atlantic, and Josephine and DCI Archie Penrose find themselves on a trail leading back to the house that inspired a young Daphne du Maurier-a trail that echoes Rebecca's timeless themes of obsession, jealousy, and murder.