Showing results by author "Simon McCleave" in All Categories

Three years ago, DCI Laura Hart was the top hostage and crisis negotiator for the Greater Manchester Police. Then her husband was kidnapped. Despite her best efforts to reason with the criminals, he was brutally murdered. Now living on the Isle of Anglesey in Wales, Laura is slowly healing. Then she gets a call: armed drug dealers have seized a tourist boat—and her 10-year-old son Jake is on board. There’s no other negotiator available, and the police need her to step up.

Starting a new life in Snowdonia was always DI Ruth Hunter's dream. Until a twisted killer turned it into her worst nightmare. Detective Inspector Ruth Hunter lives with the pain of her partner’s mysterious and unsolved disappearance. About to hit 50, the veteran police officer trades in the crime-ridden streets of London for a more peaceful life in rural North Wales. But Ruth has barely settled into her new position in North Wales Police, when the body of a brutally murdered woman is discovered...with strange symbols carved into her skin.

The beautiful town of Llangollen is rocked by the brutal shooting of a local farmer, Aaron Jenkins. DI Ruth Hunter is called in to track down the murderer. When she and the CID team discover that both Aaron and his wife were having affairs, their focus is on this.

The beautiful Isle of Anglesey has been rocked by the brutal murders of three female students at a local college. DI Laura Hart is called in to track down the murderer – who the papers have dubbed the Anglesey Ripper – before he strikes again. She quickly identifies a suspect but just as she is about to pounce, he slips through her fingers. Laura and the Beaumaris CID must pursue the serial killer across the island in an increasingly dangerous game of cat and mouse – but he’s always one step ahead of them. And soon, the hunters will become the hunted.

Two months since ex-Police Negotiator Laura Hart was forced back into action after her son’s kidnap, she has re-joined the force as a DI. On her first day, an anonymous tip-off leads to the discovery of a skeleton in a crumbling castle ruin near the seaside town of Beaumaris, Anglesey. Laura can’t wait to prove herself by solving the case and when the investigation leads her to MI5 and the Real IRA, she knows she’s on the trail of something truly explosive. But some people will do anything to stop their secrets coming out – as the rising body count shows.

When a young man is murdered in a fire at a holiday park, it seems that his complicated love-life might provide the clues to his killer. However, when DI Ruth Hunter and her CID team discover that there is also drug dealing at the park, the focus of their investigation switches. When their prime suspect disappears and with time running out, Ruth must track down the killer before it’s too late.

Recently divorced Cerys thought buying a luxury Tuscan villa would be the fresh start she so desperately needed. But a year later, she's struggling to move on from the pain of her past. Determined to make Villa Lucia a success, she's pinned all her hopes on this season's guests. Until one of them is found murdered in the villa's infinity pool. Now, as the police descend on the property, the secrets of her guests begin to unravel, and Cerys is forced to confront her own demons

An inmate at Tonsgrove prison is murdered in her cell, but no one is willing to talk to the police. DI Gareth Williams is receiving pressure from above to solve the case – and quickly. Then, a local seventeen-year-old girl vanishes from her home. The close-knit community is shaken and they each have a different theory. Gareth knows that time is of the essence. With two major cases being investigated at the same time, the Beaumaris force is stretched thin. Frustrated at the lack of progress Gareth’s colleague and fiancée, DI Laura Hart, decides to take action: going undercover at the prison.

The historical city of Chester has been rocked by the brutal murders of several young men close to the canal. DI Ruth Hunter is called in to track down the murderer – who the papers have dubbed the Towpath Ripper – before they strike again. Ruth identifies a suspect but just as she is about to pounce, they slip through her fingers.

When a Wrexham based businessman is found murdered across the border in Heswall on The Wirral, Ruth and the Llancastell CID team must work with Merseyside Police to solve the crime. It seems that a fatal accident on a local building site might provide the motive. When Ruth discovers that a gang in Birkenhead have been using intimidation to steal valuable machinery, the focus of the investigation changes. Ruth and her CID team must pursue the dangerous suspects in a deadly game and stop them before there is another cold-blooded killing.

When the body of a local boat tour operator is found on the beach beside Llandudno Pier, it seems that her murder might be linked to an ongoing rivalry with a new boat tour company. However, when it is discovered that the victim had recently started a relationship with a much younger man, the focus of the investigation changes.

Diary of a War Crime is the first book in the DI Ruth Hunter crime prequel series. If you like chilling police procedurals, true-to-life characters and psychological twists, then you’ll love Simon McCleave’s addictive thrill ride. London, 1997. A series of baffling murders. A web of political corruption. DC Ruth Hunter thinks she has the brutal killer in her sights, but there's one problem. He’s a Serbian War criminal who died five years earlier and lies buried in Bosnia.

When local teenagers discover a body at the disused Denbigh Asylum, it seems that his murder might be linked to a modern slavery ring trafficking young people from the Indian subcontinent. However, social media then reveals that the victim was involved in a toxic relationship which may provide a clue to his death. When there is another murder, the focus of the investigation switches again. With time running out, Ruth and the Llancastell CID team must find the killer before they flee the country and disappear.

Callum and his three best friends are celebrating their eighteenth birthdays with an epic camping trip to the mysterious Llanddwyn Island, off the coast of Anglesey. Then Callum disappears, and the others return to the mainland in a state of shock. When his body is discovered, DI Laura Hart is brought in to investigate. Is the murder the work of the Fair Men, a pagan group with a dark history who still hold their ceremonies on the island? Or were the boys less tight-knit than they would have Laura believe?

A twisted serial killer. A deadly game of cat and mouse. Can DI Ruth Hunter catch a crazed psychopath who seems intent on destroying her life? DI Ruth Hunter hopes that settling in Snowdonia will melt away the grief of a missing partner. Burying herself in her work, she senses that her current missing persons case isn't all that it seems.

Ruth and Nick are called to a fatal shooting at Chirk Castle, a well-known tourist spot in North Wales. The only witness to the murder is Daniel, the 10-year-old son of the victim. Ruth discovers that the victim was a small-time drug dealer and it seems that his killing might be linked to stolen drugs. However, when a local girl is also brutally murdered, Ruth has to change the focus of the investigation as it is clear that the murderers will go to any lengths to cover their tracks.

When a London journalist is run off the road and killed, it seems that his death might be linked to his investigation into plans for a nuclear plant. Is the murder linked to an American power company with a dark past who want to bury the story? There are also locals who stand to make millions from the plant’s construction. However, it soon appears there might be an event in Jake’s past that might provide the clue.

When a young woman is discovered in Wrexham covered in someone else’s blood, it seems that a horrendous crime has been committed. The only questions are who and where. But there’s a major problem. She can’t remember a thing–not even her name! Once the grisly crime has been uncovered, the Llancastell CID team must track down the killer before they strike again.

A missing ex-partner. A web of corruption. Can DI Ruth Hunter locate and rescue the woman she loved before she vanishes again - this time forever? Having disappeared off the face of the Earth seven years ago, DI Ruth Hunter has been unable to give up the search for her missing ex-partner, Sarah. Following a series of new clues, Ruth flies to Paris in a desperate attempt to find Sarah before she is trafficked out of the country...or worse!

Detective Inspector Ruth Hunter is still struggling to deal with her stress. So when the body of a businessman washes up on a secluded North Wales shore, the former London cop is anxious to prove she can lead the local investigative team and nail the killer. But as she digs into the dead millionaire’s business affairs, DI Hunter discovers a disturbing link to an infamous Liverpudlian drug lord....