Simon Brett

One of the stars of a new TV game show is murdered, and Charles Paris, an often out-of-work actor and part-time detective, is on hand to investigate.

The wickedly entertaining new Fethering mystery featuring chalk-and-cheese detective duo Carole and Jude Polly's Cake Shop has been a feature of the shopping parade for many years, but when its owner announces her retirement, the Fethering residents start to worry about the loss of this popular amenity. Alarmed by rumours that the café might become a Starbucks, a group clubs together to form the Save Polly's Cake Shop Action Committee. The plan is...

Tristam Gowers and Yves Lafeu have the flamboyance of stage matinee idols, but currently they are running a very smart restaurant, Tryst, which is much patronized by top people in the theatrical profession. Which means it's not Charles Paris's usual ambience, but this small-part player, who's more successful as an amateur detective than as professional actor, is the guest tonight of another fascinating duo, William Bartlemas and Kevin O'Rourke, wealthy...

When Jude agrees to lend her vintage chaise longue for the local Amateur Dramatics Society's production of George Bernard Shaw's The Devil's Disciple, little does she realize she'll end up in a starring role. It's an ambitious play, culminating in a dramatic execution scene: a scene that's played for real when one of the leading actors is found hanging from the especially-constructed stage gallows during rehearsals. A tragic accident--or something...

"O foul villainy! Someone has stolen valuable paintings from Tawcester Towers, ancestral home of Blotto (the future Duke of Tawcester) and his sister, Twinks. Blotto is content to run around in a (handsome) sweat, cursing the thieving varlets and vowing revenge, but Twinks, rather more pragmatically, tracks the valets to France. She and Blotto, accordingly, go zipping off to Paris-- where they have rather a jolly time with the Left Bank bohemian set--...

Invited to a Private View of the work of controversial artist Denzil Willoughby, the good citizens of Fethering are not quite sure what to expect. And it turns out to be a lively affair, culminating in several embarrassing confrontations. But what no one could have anticipated was that the evening would end in sudden, violent death. The police seem happy to accept that it was suicide, but Fethering residents Carole and Jude remain unconvinced . ....

A duke's halfwit son and brainy daughter search for a kidnapped princess and a dangerous killer in this hilarious historical mystery series debut. It's that glorious period between the two World Wars, and the exiled king of Mitteleuropa is celebrating with a visit to Tawcester Towers, the ancestral home of the Dukes of Tawcester. When the ex-king's daughter is kidnapped, noblesse obliges Blotto, the Duke's brave and handsome son, to drive off to...

"It is her characteristic generosity rather than her love of animals that finds Mrs Pargeter supporting her friend, Jasmine Angold, at a charity reception for PhiliPussies, whose worthy aim is to rehabilitate stray cats from the Greek island of Atmos into caring English homes. But the evening is to have unexpected consequences. At the event, Mrs P is taken aback to meet a woman who claims to be the sister of her late husband, the much-missed Mr Pargeter....

Ranging from stark psychological suspense to frothy frolic, this stunning collection of twelve short stories demonstrates Simon Brett's astonishing versatility. In TICKLED TO DEATH, a lover of practical jokes is smothered to death in a custard pie. DOUBLE GLAZING reveals the patient and perverse logic of an elderly Do-It-Yourselfer. And in BIG BOY, LITTLE BOY, a former hotel porter plots the murder of a very rich wife - with shocking results.

Congratulations! The nine-month wait is over; your little bundle of joy is in your arms - but what happens now?

Whether you're a new dad or the seasoned father of a budding bunch, this nifty little book is full of humorous but helpful advice on everything from pleasing your partner to bonding with your baby, guaranteed to get you through the tears, tantrums and mountains of smelly nappies smiling!