Kirjahaku

First published as Firing Line. October, 1940. Bombs are falling on Stratford when air-raid warden Sylvia Parks sees a house with a shining light, in clear breach of the city's strict blackout rules. With no answer at the door she manages to break in, only to discover the body of a young woman, strangled to death with a stocking. For Detective Inspector John Jago, the scene brings back memories of the gruesome Soho Strangler, who murdered four women a few years ago but has never been caught - could there be a connection?

November 1940. Darkness descends and another anxious night begins for those tasked with guarding the industrial heartland of London from enemy attack. As a policeman patrols the Royal Albert Dock, something catches his eye - a man is sprawled awkwardly across a nearby barge, a dagger lodged in his back. Detective Inspector John Jago of West Ham CID discovers the victim was a dock worker by day and a Home Guard volunteer by night - and there are things even his wife doesn't know about his past. As the investigation unfolds, Jago uncovers a widening circle of secrets ranging across family tensions, the last war and a far-flung corner of the British Empire.

First published as Direct Hit Saturday 7th September, 1940. The sun is shining, and in the midst of the good weather Londoners could be mistaken for forgetting their country was at war - until the familiar wail of the air-raid sirens heralds an enemy attack. The Blitz has started, and normal life has abruptly ended - but crime has not. That night a man's body is discovered in an unmarked van in the back streets of West Ham. When Detective Inspector John Jago is called to the scene, he recognises the victim: local Justice of the Peace, Charles Villiers. The death looks suspicious, but then a German bomb obliterates all evidence. War or no war, murder is still murder, and it's Jago's job to find the truth.

First Published as Fifth Column. September, 1940. As the Blitz takes its nightly toll on London and Hitler prepares his invasion fleet just across the Channel in occupied France, Britain is full of talk about enemy agents. Suspicion is at an all time high and no one is sure who can be trusted. In Canning Town, rescue workers are unsettled when they return to a damaged street and discover a body that shouldn't be there. When closer examination of the corpse reveals death by strangling, Detective Inspector John Jago is called upon to investigate. But few seem to really care about the woman's death - not even her family. As Jago digs deeper he starts to uncover a trail of deception, betrayal, and romantic entanglements.

First Published as Enemy Action. September, 1940. With London having endured the Blitz for nearly a month, people are calling for vengeance, but once again the night heralds more destruction. In Custom House, anxious residents dutifully head to the nearest public air-raid shelter as the warning siren wails. When dawn brings the all-clear, people disperse, but one man remains - he is dead, stabbed through the heart. Detective Inspector John Jago discovers that the victim was a pacifist. But why, then, was he carrying a loaded revolver in his pocket?

Armistice Day, 1940. The nation remembers the Great War while a new and harrowing conflict rumbles on. The Blitz Detective, John Jago, must set aside his own painful memories to investigate a suspicious death in Pimlico, south-west London. The body of a young man has been discovered in an Anderson shelter, with two white poppies in his pocket. As the investigation progresses, Jago and his assistant, DC Cradock, find themselves knee-deep in Pimlico's shady underworld and connections with Mosley's fascist party. It will take all their skills to uncover the truth behind the young man's brutal death.

November 1940. As dawn begins to break, blackout regulations are rendered pointless by a car burning fiercely near the Regent's Canal in Camden Town, north London. In the burnt-out vehicle police find the charred remains of a body. The victim is Les Latham, a commercial traveller for the Baring and Sons confectionery company. He liked to be known as Lucky Les, but it seems his luck has finally run out. Detective Inspector John Jago discovers a mysterious photograph and some suspicious-looking petrol ration books among Latham's belongings. These lead him off on a murky trail of deceit, corruption and murder. It seems that the Blitz Detective will have to make his own luck to bring to light an unexpected killer.

November 1940. As dawn begins to break, blackout regulations are rendered pointless by a car burning fiercely near the Regent's Canal in Camden Town, north London. In the burnt-out vehicle police find the charred remains of a body. The victim is Les Latham, a commercial traveller for the Baring and Sons confectionery company. He liked to be known as Lucky Les, but it seems his luck has finally run out. Detective Inspector John Jago discovers a mysterious photograph and some suspicious-looking petrol ration books among Latham's belongings. These lead him off on a murky trail of deceit, corruption and murder. It seems that the Blitz Detective will have to make his own luck to bring to light an unexpected killer.

December, 1940. Christmas is coming, but the season of goodwill is overshadowed by the death and destruction of the Blitz. In London's Covent Garden, where the glamour of theatreland rubs shoulders with the bustle of the capital's biggest fruit and vegetable market, the war has closed the theatres and ruined the market trade. When a daylight air raid hits the Prince Albert Theatre in Drury Lane, rescuers find a man dying in the wreckage. But it wasn't the bomb that's ending his life - he's been stabbed, and with his dying breath he whispers what sounds like a fragmented confession. As Detective Inspector John Jago begins to investigate, there's an underlying question he must grapple with: was the murdered man himself a killer?

December, 1940. The season of goodwill is overshadowed by the death and destruction of the Blitz. In London's Covent Garden, where the glamour of theatreland rubs shoulders with the capital's busiest fruit and vegetable market, the war has closed the theatres and ruined the market trade. When a daylight air raid hits the Prince Albert Theatre on Drury Lane, rescuers find a man dying in the wreckage. But it wasn't the bomb that caused his fatal injuries - he's been stabbed, and with his dying breath he whispers what sounds like a fragmented confession ... As Detective Inspector John Jago begins to investigate, there's an underlying question he must grapple with: was the murdered man a killer himself?

December 1940. New Year's Eve draws closer, but crowds will not be gathering on the steps of St Paul's Cathedral to celebrate. After a quiet Christmas, the area has suffered London's most devastating air raid since the start of the Blitz and waves of incendiary bombs have burnt the heart of British book publishing to the ground. Detective Inspector John Jago finds a desolate woman sitting among the ruins of her family business and must break the news - her husband's been found shot dead at their home in Soho. An antiquarian bookseller, he'd just acquired a mysterious volume which is priceless - and missing. Did someone covet it enough to kill for it? Obsessive collectors and unscrupulous dealers haunt Jago's descent into Soho's underworld, where he finds criminals are branching out in the shadows of the blackout.

December, 1940. The area around St Paul's Cathedral suffers a devastating air raid and the heart of British book publishing burns to the ground. Detective Inspector John Jago must break bad news to a woman sitting in the ruins of her business: her husband has been found murdered at their home in Soho. An antiquarian bookseller, he had just acquired a mysterious, and now missing, volume. Did someone covet it enough to kill for it? Unscrupulous dealers haunt Jago's descent into Soho's underworld, where criminals are branching out in the shadows of the blackout.

January 1941. When Detective Inspector John Jago is called to a house in London's Bloomsbury, he finds the body of a woman who's been attacked and left to die, her only crime seemingly being her kindness to strangers. She's taken victims of the Blitz and the war that's torn Europe apart and given them refuge in her home, but now she's a victim too - of murder. As Jago tries to find out who killed her and why, he uncovers a tangle of damaged hearts and minds. There may have been envy, resentment, even outright hostility. But who would want to strike down an angel of mercy in her own home?

January 1941. When Detective Inspector John Jago is called to a house in London's Bloomsbury, he finds the body of a woman who's been attacked and left to die, her only crime seemingly being her kindness to strangers. She's taken victims of the Blitz and the war that's torn Europe apart and given them refuge in her home, but now she's a victim too - of murder. As Jago tries to find out who killed her and why, he uncovers a tangle of damaged hearts and minds. There may have been envy, resentment, even outright hostility. But who would want to strike down an angel of mercy in her own home?

November 1940. Darkness descends and another anxious night begins for those tasked with guarding the industrial heartland of London from enemy attack. As a policeman patrols the Royal Albert Dock, something catches his eye - a man is sprawled awkwardly across a nearby barge, a dagger lodged in his back. Detective Inspector John Jago of West Ham CID discovers the victim was a dock worker by day and a Home Guard volunteer by night - and there are things even his wife doesn't know about his past. As the investigation unfolds, Jago uncovers a widening circle of secrets ranging across family tensions, the last war and a far-flung corner of the British Empire.

October, 1940. Bombs are falling on Stratford when air-raid warden Sylvia Parks sees a house with a shining light, in clear breach of the city's strict blackout rules. With no answer at the door she manages to break in, only to discover the body of a young woman, strangled to death with a stocking. For Detective Inspector John Jago, the scene brings back memories of the gruesome Soho Strangler, who murdered four women a few years ago but has never been caught - could there be a connection?

September, 1940. With London having endured the Blitz for nearly a month, people are calling for vengeance, but once again the night heralds more destruction. In Custom House, anxious residents dutifully head to the nearest public air-raid shelter as the warning siren wails. When dawn brings the all-clear, people disperse, but one man remains - he is dead, stabbed through the heart. Detective Inspector John Jago discovers that the victim was a pacifist. But why, then, was he carrying a loaded revolver in his pocket?

Murha keskellä Lontoon pommituksia. Mike Hollow'n West Hamin murha aloittaa historiallisen Blitz-dekkarisarjan, jossa rikoskomisario John Jago tutkii rikoksia Lontoon synkillä kaduilla, sodan langettaessa varjonsa kaiken ylle. Aurinkoisena syyskuun päivänä vuonna 1940 lontoolaiset näyttävät heittäneen mielestään sodan - kunnes ilmatorjuntahälytys ujeltaa merkkinä vihollisen hyökkäyksestä. Salamasota alkaa ja normaali elämä päättyy siihen. Mutta rikokset eivät. Samana yönä West Hamin pikkukaduilta löydetään miehen ruumis. Kun rikoskomisario John Jago kutsutaan paikalle, hän tunnistaa uhrin olevan paikallinen rauhantuomari Charles Villiers. Kuolema vaikuttaa epäilyttävältä, mutta saksalaisten pommi tuhoaa kaikki todisteet. Sota tai ei, murha on silti murha, ja Jagon tehtävänä on selvittää totuus. Lontoossa asuva Mike Hollow (s. 1953) on työskennellyt mm. toimittajana, kääntäjänä ja copywriterina. Hän rakastaa viihdyttävien tarinoiden luomista ja on nykyään täysipäiväinen kirjailija. West Hamin murha on ensimmäinen häneltä suomennettu teos ja se aloittaa sota-ajan Lontooseen sijoittuvan historiallisen Blitz-dekkarisarjan.

Murha tehtaan varjossa. Mike Hollow'n toisessa Blitz-dekkarissa Canning Townin murha etsitään nuoren naisen kuristajaa. Öiset pommitukset kurittavat Lontoota ja huhut vihollisen agenteista tuntuvat kiirivän kaikkialla. Koskaan ei voi olla varma, keneen voi luottaa. Pommituksen jälkeen Canning Townin pelastustyöntekijät ryhtyvät raivaamaan vaurioituneita katuja. He löytävät ruumiin, jonka ei pitäisi olla siellä. Ruumiin tarkempi tutkinta paljastaa kuristamiskuoleman, ja rikoskomisario John Jago kutsutaan tutkimaan asiaa. Uhri on nimeltään Mary Watkins, ja hän on työskennellyt paikallisessa tehtaassa, joka valmistaa muun muassa transistoreja hallituksen salaisia tehtäviä varten. Mutta juuri kukaan ei tunnu välittävän naisen kuolemasta, ei edes hänen perheensä. Kun Jago kaivautuu syvemmälle, alkaa paljastua petoksen, kavalluksen ja syrjähyppyjen sotkuinen vyyhti... Canning Townin murha jatkaa historiallista Blitz-dekkarisarjaa, jossa rikoskomisario John Jago tutkii rikoksia Lontoon synkillä kaduilla sodan langettaessa varjonsa kaiken ylle. Lontoossa asuva Mike Hollow (s. 1953) on työskennellyt mm. toimittajana, kääntäjänä ja copywriterina. Hän rakastaa viihdyttävien tarinoiden luomista ja on nykyään täysipäiväinen kirjailija. Canning Townin murha on sota-ajan Lontooseen sijoittuvan historiallisen Blitz-dekkarisarjan toinen osa.

Murha pommisuojassa. Mike Hollow'n kolmannessa Blitz-dekkarissa Custom Housen murha suojaan hakeutuneiden ihmisten joukosta löytyy nuoren miehen ruumis. Syyskuu 1940. Lontoo on kärsinyt pommituksista jo lähes kuukauden ja jälleen kerran yö tuo mukanaan lisää tuhoa. Custom Housessa huolestuneet asukkaat suuntaavat lähimpään pommisuojaan, kun varoitussireeni ulvoo. Aamunkoitteessa vaara on ohi, ja ihmiset hajaantuvat, mutta pommisuojan lattialta löytyy ruumis - sydän lävistettynä. Rikoskomisario John Jagon tutkimuksissa selviää, että uhri oli opettaja ja pasifisti, jonka taskusta löytyy ladattu revolveri. Kuka halusi hänet hengiltä ja miksi juuri nyt, kun koko kaupunki on luhistumaisillaan? Custom Housen murha jatkaa historiallista Blitz-dekkarisarjaa, jossa rikoskomisario John Jago tutkii rikoksia Lontoon synkillä kaduilla sodan langettaessa varjonsa kaiken ylle. Lontoossa asuva Mike Hollow (s. 1953) on työskennellyt mm. toimittajana, kääntäjänä ja copywriterina. Hän rakastaa viihdyttävien tarinoiden luomista ja on nykyään täysipäiväinen kirjailija. Custom Housen murha on sota-ajan Lontooseen sijoittuvan historiallisen Blitz-dekkarisarjan 3. osa.