Simon Brett

Ellen Curtis is about to have her own life thrown into chaos in this third light-hearted decluttering mystery!"Brett layers the old-fashioned puzzle with deep psychological insights . . . Not to be missed" Booklist Starred ReviewDeclutterer Ellen Curtis has been working to bring order into the life of Cedric Waites, a recluse in his eighties who hasn't left his house or let anyone inside it since his wife died. On one of her regular visits, Ellen finds the old man dead.Sad but, given his age, perhaps not unexpected. Nothing to get worked up about . . . until the police raise the suspicion that Cedric might have been poisoned! The cause seems be something he ate, and as Ellen cleared away the old man's food containers, she is under suspicion. As is Dodge, who works for Ellen and has unhelpfully done a runner . . .Meanwhile, a rival declutterer is out to sabotage Ellen's reputable business, her two grown-up children are back home and in crisis, and she has a potential love interest. Ellen's life has taken on a chaotic turn of its own! Can she uncover the killer and bring order back to her own life?

Neighbours Carole and Jude uncover more than they bargained for when Jude decides to redecorate her cottage in this lighthearted cosy mystery."An edgy cozy, filled with dry wit and deft plot twists"- Booklist Starred ReviewHaving decided to redecorate Woodside Cottage, Jude has engaged the services of local man Pete, who has painted and decorated the homes of Fethering residents for many years. Pete is currently working on Footscrow House, a large Victorian building which is being converted into holiday flats by a local developer. Having arranged to meet at 'Fiasco House', as it is known locally due to the many failed business enterprises over the years, Jude and Pete make a surprising discovery behind a wall panel: a woman's handbag! The casual discovery becomes serious when the police identify the handbag's owner as Anita Garner, a young woman who vanished in suspicious circumstances twenty years earlier. Determined to find out what really happened to Anita all those years ago, Jude and her neighbour Carole's investigations plunge them into a maze of deception and murder, as they uncover a number of uncomfortable secrets beneath the serene surface of Fethering life . . .

Introducing an engaging new amateur sleuth, declutterer Ellen Curtis, in the first of a brilliant new mystery series.Ellen Curtis runs her own business helping people who are running out of space. As a declutterer, she is used to encountering all sorts of weird and wonderful objects in the course of her work. What she has never before encountered is a dead body.When Ellen stumbles across the corpse of a young woman in an over-cluttered flat, suspicion immediately falls on the deceased homeowner's son, who has recently absconded from prison. No doubt Nate Ogden is guilty of many things - but is he really the killer? Discovering a link between the victim and her own past, Ellen sets out to uncover the truth. But where has her best friend disappeared to? And is Ellen really prepared for the shocking revelations to follow?

When Jude joins the Fethering community choir, she discovers that at least one of her fellow choristers is hiding a deadly secret.Although she hadn't known Leonard Mallett very well, nor liked him particularly, Carole Seddon feels duty bound to attend her fellow committee member's funeral. As she suspected, the hymns, readings and sermon are all very predictable - not unlike Leonard himself. What she couldn't have predicted was that the deceased's daughter would use the occasion to publicly accuse her stepmother of murder. Did Heather Mallett really kill her husband, as many Fethering residents believe? Deciding to get to the heart of the matter, Carole's neighbour Jude joins the new community choir - and discovers that amidst the clashing egos and petty resentments lurk some decidedly false notes. At least one chorister would appear to be hiding a deadly secret - and it's up to Carole and Jude to unearth the truth.

Having landed a small part in a new West End play, The Habit of Faith, Charles Paris is dismayed to discover that his good fortune has been orchestrated by his bête noire, the now-famous screen actor Justin Grover. But why has Grover become involved in this relatively obscure production - and why has he roped in Charles to star?From the outset the production is fraught with difficulties - and matters become even more complicated when a body is discovered at the foot of the dressing room stairs. Did they fall - or were they pushed? As one of the last people to have seen the victim alive, Charles Paris is drawn into the ensuing investigation - and discovers that more than one person involved in the play has a scandalous secret to hide .

The wickedly entertaining new Fethering mystery featuring chalk-and-cheese detective duo Carole and JudePolly'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 that Polly's should become a community venture, managed and run by volunteers from the village. Roped in to help, Jude finds the committee meetings fraught with petty power struggles, clashing personalities and monstrous egos. Matters take a turn for the worse when she and Carole come across a badly-decomposed body on Fethering beach - and uncover a link to Polly's. Not only do the two neighbours have to find out whodunit, they are also faced with the thorny question: is it possible to run a business on that most volatile of commodities - goodwill?

A cozy featuring the return of Mrs Pargeter For Mrs Pargeter, it is a matter of principle that she should complete any of her late husband's unfinished business. Amongst the many bequests he made to her, perhaps the most valuable is his little black book, in which he listed all the people who ever worked for him, with details of their particular skill sets. This means that whenever Mrs P has a crime to solve she can readily contact someone with the relevant expertise to help in her enquiries. Attending the funeral of the rich and respected Sir Normington Winthrop, because his is one of the names in the little black book, Mrs Pargeter sets out to discover the connection between Sir Normington and her late husband. Her investigations will draw her into a shady world of gun-runners, shifty politicians - and a kidnapped vicar.

Carole and Jude's Turkish holiday takes a murderous turn in the new Fethering mystery Carole Seddon has never enjoyed holidays much. Nevertheless, she has allowed herself to be persuaded by her friend Jude to accept a fortnight's free accommodation at a luxurious Turkish villa owned by Jude's property developer friend Barney Willingdon.But from the outset the holiday is marred by a series of menacing incidents: threatening messages daubed on the villa walls; and their host being accosted by a knife-wielding man at a local restaurant. As Carole and Jude launch into what they do best - investigating - it becomes clear that Barney Willingdon has made plenty of enemies, with his ruthless business deals and complicated love life. Matters come to a head when Carole's sightseeing trip to nearby Pinara is curtailed by the discovery of a body in one of the ancient Lycian tombs. And what really did happen to Barney's first wife, Zoe?

The local dramatic society provides fertile ground for murder in the brand-new Fethering mysteryWhen 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 more sinister? Carole and Jude make it their business to find out.

Reality TV stars . . . Theatre lovies . . . Murder most horrid . . . It's another cozy case for actor-sleuth Charles Paris!After a long period of resting, life is looking up for Charles Paris, who has been cast as the Ghost of Hamlet's Father and First Gravedigger in a new production of Hamlet. But rehearsals are fraught. Ophelia is played by Katrina Selsey, who won the role through a television talent show. Hamlet himself is also played by a reality TV contestant, Jared Root and the two young stars have rather different views of celebrity and the theatre than the more experienced members of the cast.But when the company reach the first staging post of their tour, the Grand Theatre Marlborough, matters get more serious, with one member of the company seriously injured in what appears to be an accident, and another dead. Once again, Charles Paris is forced to don the mantle of amateur detective to get to the bottom of the mystery.

Jude's life has been turned upside-down thanks her new man, Piers Targett, who's keen to get her involved in his hobby - or obsession - of Real Tennis. But when one of Piers' friends dies on the court in suspicious circumstances, Jude finds herself caught up in the police investigation. Meanwhile, Jude's neighbour Carole is trying to identify the human remains known locally as the 'Lady in the Lake.' As the two investigations become intertwined, Carole and Jude's efforts to find the truth look set to lead to more murders. Simon Brett is the winner of The CWA Diamond Dagger 2014.

Elderly Valerie Trevelyan has been murdered with an overdose of painkillers and there are suspicious bruises on her neck. Worse still is the fact that the two key suspects in the case are her sons, Gavin and Miles. Making no secret of their cold relationship with each other, both had a financial motive and the physical opportunity to have been the killer. As detectives interview the brothers, as well as their senile father, Lionel, secrets about the family are discovered as the clues mount up and clearly lead to one person. But is he actually the murderer? This can be performed with four men or as a one-man show.

1902. The Bellingford Amateur Dramaticks' next production is to be A Midsummer Night's Dream - but it is a production with a difference, as it is being sponsored by (and therefore controlled by) a local entrepreneur and Henry Irving devotee, Sydney De Lainey. Rehearsals, under De Lainey's tyrranny, are awkward and many tensions arise within the company, culminating in De Lainey's brutal murder. The brand-new science of fingerprinting is used to solve the crime during a performance of the Dream and the culprit is arrested. A Bad Dream, charming and full of period detail, ws commissioned by the Sutton Amateur Dramatic Club in celebration of its 100th Anniversary in 2002.

Miggy is a "Sloane Ranger", who has been dumped by her boyfriend Roddy because she is "shallow" and does not care for the environment in the way his new love, Harmony, does. Here, Miggy tells us her story as she wrestles with environmental issues presented by the act of putting the kettle on.

A pantomime script based around the "Sleeping Beauty" story. Princess Aurora suffers a curse from the evil Carabosse, and falls asleep for hundred years. With a kiss from Florizel, and a little help from the audience in solving a riddle, Carabosse is defeated and all ends happily.

In Act I of this play, Detective Inspector Bruton questions Celia Wallis about her husband's murder. Celia is obviously in the clear, but the drunken journalist sleeping in her bed seems very shady. Act II, however, takes place before the murder, and turns all our expectations on their heads.

An untraditional pantomime. The aristocratic Boronski family live in Siberia in the years before the Russian Revolution. Just as spring is about to begin, their lives are disrupted by the evil Fox, who condemns Siberia to eternal cold and despatches the Wolf to kill Babushka Boronski.

Frinsley Village Hall is the hub of community life, lovingly tended by the amiable Mr Quigley, whose little blue book ensures the aerobics class never clashes with the wedding bookings. But plans are afoot to change this cosy existence... the invidious Keith has plans to sell the site. Feeling sure of success, Keith launches his attack on Mr. Quigley a big mistake, for Mr Quigley is wilier than he looks. Offers acting opportunities for all and great fun for the audience!13 women, 13 men

Madeleine was sure she looked younger than her 37 years, but despite her charms, she has yet to meet a man worthy of her virginity. Until she gets to know a colleague. Together they plan a weekend away, but neither of them know that Madeleine has another admirer, who is tracking their every move.

Boris Smolensky's budget repertory production of "Murder at Priorswell Manor" is looking decidedly shaky. The cast are more interested in their egos than the play and life imitates art when Boris's wife, Renee, is murdered on stage. Simon Brett's hilarious text, a worthy companion to his Charles Paris theatrical thriller novels, ruthlessly satirizes the politics of the inept company and the numerous red herrings keep the audience guessing until the final moments of the play.5 women, 3 men