Langham and Dupre Mystery

London, 1955. When crime writer Donald Langham's literary agent asks for his help in sorting out "a delicate matter," little does Langham realize what he's getting himself into. For a nasty case of blackmail leads inexorably to murder as London's literary establishment is rocked by a series of increasingly bizarre deaths. With three members of the London Crime Writers' Association coming to sudden and violent ends, what at first appeared to be a series of suicides looks suspiciously like murder-and there seems to be something horribly familiar about the various methods of dispatch. With the help of his literary agent's assistant, the delectable Maria Dupre, Langham finds himself drawing on the skills of his fictional detective hero as he hunts a ruthless and fiendishly clever killer-a killer with old scores to settle.

Crime writer sleuth Donald Langham is faced with the classic locked-room conundrum in this historical mystery. July, 1955. Donald Langham has interrupted his romantic break in rural Suffolk with the delectable Maria Dupre to assist a fellow writer. Alastair Endicott has requested Langham's help in discovering what's happened to his father, Edward, who seems to have disappeared without trace from inside his locked study. Before he vanished, the elder Endicott had been researching a book on the notorious Satanist Vivian Stafford. Could the proposed biography have something to do with his disappearance? Does local resident Stafford really possess supernatural powers, as some believe? As Langham and Dupre question those around them, it becomes clear that there have been strange goings-on in the sleepy village of Humble Barton. But is the village really haunted-or does someone merely want it to look that way? With a further shocking discovery, the case takes a disturbing new twist.

Crime writer sleuth Donald Langham is invited to a remote Scottish castle to solve an intriguing mystery. It's the bitterly cold December of 1955, and Donald Langham has been asked by his friend, private detective Ralph Ryland, to assist him on a case. Ryland has been contacted by their old commanding officer, Major Cartwright, who has reasons to believe that his life is under threat at his remote castle in the Scottish Highlands. On arriving at the castle, Langham and Ryland learn that Major Cartwright is attempting to raise the wreck of a German fighter plane, which crashed into the loch in 1945. But it's not only the bad weather that has put a halt to the progress of the salvage. Soon after Langham's arrival, one of Cartwright's guests is brutally murdered-and the hunt is on to stop a ruthless killer before he or she strikes again.

1950's Private Investigator Donald Langham discovers that truth is stranger than fiction when he investigates a murder on an American movie set. 1956. Having just started work as a professional private investigator, Donald Langham's first client is American movie star Suzie Reynard, currently shooting a murder mystery film at Marling Hall, an Elizabethan manor house in the depths of the Norfolk countryside. The film's director – Suzie's lover – has been receiving threats and Suzie is convinced his life is in danger. On arriving at Marling Hall with his fiancée Maria, Langham finds the film set awash with clashing egos, petty jealousies, ill-advised love affairs and seething resentments. Matters come to a head when a body is discovered in the director's trailer. It would appear to be an open-and-shut case when someone confesses to the murder. Donald and Maria are not convinced – but why would someone confess to a crime they haven't committed? If Langham is to uncover the truth, he must delve into the past and another murder that took place more than twenty years before…

A country house weekend in rural Cornwall ends in murder and mayhem for crime-writer sleuth Donald Langham and his wife Maria. "It's time to let bygones be bygones. Water under the bridge, right? What happened … happened a long time ago. "When Langham's literary agent receives a cryptic letter inviting him to spend the weekend at the grand Cornish home of successful novelist Denbigh Connaught, Charles Elder seems reluctant to attend. What really happened between Elder and Connaught during the summer of 1917, nearly forty years before – and why has it had such a devastating effect on Charles? Accompanying his agent to Connaught House, Langham and his wife Maria discover that Charles is not the only one to have received a letter. But why has Denbigh Connaught gathered together a group of people who each bear him a grudge? When a body is discovered in Connaught's study, the ensuing investigation uncovers dark secrets that haunt the past of each and every guest – including Charles Elder himself …

The theft of a painting takes crime-writer sleuth Donald Langham to a country house full of seething tensions, resentment and dark secrets. November, 1956. Lord Elsmere, an old friend of Donald Langham's literary agent, Charles Elder, is in a pickle – his favourite painting, a Gainsborough, has been stolen from under his nose. What's more, there's no evidence of a break-in. The family heirloom was recently re-insured for a hefty price, and Elsmere is struggling financially. Could he have staged the theft, or was it taken by one of the guests? Old Major Rutherford, evasive beauty Rebecca Miles, Dutch war hero Patrick Verlinden, Elsmere's son Dudley Mariner and his statuesque sculpture fiancée, Esmeralda Bellamy, are all guests at the manor. But who would steal the painting, and why? Private investigators Langham and Ralph Ryland take on the case and soon uncover seething animosities, jealousy, secrets and deception, before events take a shocking turn…

And then there was one ... can Donald Langham and Maria Dupré stop a killer who's picking off victims one by one? December, 1956. Donald Langham's wife Maria Dupré receives a chilling invitation to attend a death at the home of Maxwell Falwell Fenton in Essex. The once-prominent artist has a number of enemies, and has faded into obscurity since the war ended. Is the invitation to his own death or someone else's? Arriving at Winterfield on a cold winter evening, Donald and Maria meet five strangers who have also received numbered invitations. They all had a reason to hate or fear Maxwell, including Maria, who reveals a secret from her own past. But is she telling the whole truth? The soiree produces a gruesome and dramatic twist, but it's about to get much worse when someone starts picking off the six, one by one. Can Donald untangle lies, betrayal, and incredible revelations to identify the killer before Maria becomes the next victim?

Donald Langham and Maria Dupré must navigate a rocky road to find a killer when a body is found next to a standing stone. Newlyweds Donald Langham and Maria Dupré have moved to the country. They're excited about starting a new life in the picturesque village of Ingoldby-over-Water – and about meeting their new neighbours. But they've barely moved into Yew Tree Cottage when their new neighbour at Standing Stone Manor, Professor Edwin Robertshaw, invites Donald over to discuss some 'fishy business'. Shortly after, a body is found by the professor's precious standing stone in the manor grounds. Donald and Maria discover tensions, disputes and resentment raging below the surface of this idyllic village, but can they find out which of the villagers is a cold-blooded killer?

The search for a missing artist draws Donald Langham and Ralph Ryland into London's criminal underworld with deadly consequences. London. April, 1957. Private investigator Donald Langham is approached by retired businessman Vernon Lombard to find his missing son, Christopher. But what appears to be a simple case of a missing artist becomes far more alarming when Langham realizes there's more to Christopher's disappearance than meets the eye, and then makes a terrible discovery. Meanwhile, Langham's business partner Ralph Ryland's search for a missing greyhound forces him to confront a shameful secret from his own past, with terrifying consequences. Can Langham navigate London's criminal underworld, fascism and deception to track down a killer and save Ralph's life?

This traditional 1950s mystery series introduces crime writer Donald Langham and his sleuthing partner, literary agent Maria Dupre, as an engaging detective duo. When London's literary establishment is rocked by a series of bizarre deaths, Langham must draw on the skills of his fictional detective hero as he hunts a fiendishly clever killer with old scores to settle. Murder by the Book London, 1955. When crime writer Donald Langham's literary agent asks for his help in sorting out 'a delicate matter', little does Langham realize what he's getting himself into. For a nasty case of blackmail leads inexorably to murder as London's literary establishment is rocked by a series of increasingly bizarre deaths. With three members of the London Crime Writers' Association coming to sudden and violent ends, what at first appeared to be a series of suicides looks suspiciously like murder - and there seems to be something horribly familiar about the various methods of dispatch. With the help of his literary agent's assistant, the delectable Maria Dupre, Langham finds himself drawing on the skills of his fictional detective hero as he hunts a ruthless and fiendishly clever killer - a killer with old scores to settle. Murder at the Chase July 1955. Fellow writer Alastair Endicott has requested Donald Langham's help in discovering what happened to his father Edward, who has disappeared without trace from inside his locked study. The elder Endicott had been researching a biography of the notorious Satanist Vivien Stafford. Could there be a connection to his disappearance?