'As good as Sherlock!!' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Just so entertaining to read!' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'What joy! What a mystery! What a tale!' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

As his eyes adjusted to the gloom of the attic, he saw by the light of guttering candles, stretched out on the floor before him, the body of a young man, his throat cut from ear to ear . . .


London, 1889: Famous writer Oscar Wilde is the toast of London town. But when the body of a young man of his acquaintance is found in a dark attic room, surrounded by candles, he knows he can't rest until the killer is behind bars.

Appealing to fellow author Arthur Conan Doyle, creator of the great Sherlock Holmes, the pair set out to solve the crime.

But unravelling a real-life plot is very different to writing one. Can Wilde and Doyle outsmart the murderer hiding in the shadows, before it's too late?

A wonderfully witty and gripping cosy historical mystery to transport you to the grand drawing rooms and back alleys of London. Perfect for fans of Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie and Richard Osman.

Readers love The Candlelight Murders:

'I devoured this book in mere days and immediately moved on to the second in the series' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Exciting, fast paced, at times humorous and with a dramatic denouement at the finish just like any good murder mystery . . . A great read' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Entertaining, charming and evocative' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'This series is just what I needed; immersive, funny, clever, educational, and easy to read in the best of ways' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'If you are a fan of Sherlock Holmes and of Oscar Wilde, this is the book for you . . . Wonderful . . . The mystery itself is intriguing and the answer is shocking' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Previously published as Oscar Wilde and the Candlelight Murders.


The Ring of Death

by Gyles Brandreth

Published 1 May 2008

'So amazingly good, I could not put it down' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'An inventive and highly enjoyable murder mystery' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Will a game of Murder at a dinner party turn deadly?

London 1892: Author Oscar Wilde has assembled friends and acquaintances for one of his Sunday Supper Clubs, among their number is his great friend and creator of Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyle. Mid-way through the evening, a game is proposed: each guest must write down the name of the person they would most like to kill.

But soon, the fictional victims begin to die one-by-one in mysterious circumstances - in the order their names were drawn during the game.

With growing horror, Wilde and Doyle realise that one of their guests must be the murderer. Trapped in a race against time, they must uncover the killer's identity before they can complete their final move . . .

A wonderfully witty and addictive cosy historical mystery that presents the reader with an intricate puzzle to solve. Perfect for fans of Sherlock Holmes, Agatha Christie and Richard Osman.

Readers are gripped by The Ring of Death:

'Crackles with wit, tension, mysteries, and is reminiscent (but dare I say better) than the Sherlock Holmes canon' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Oscar Wilde is solving crimes while rubbing elbows with Sir Arthur Conan Doyle . . . What's not to like?' Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'This book had everything I love in a story: historical detail, cleverness, wonderful conversational by-play . . . BRAVO!'
Reader review ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

Previously published as Oscar Wilde and the Ring of Death.


In OSCAR WILDE AND THE DEAD MAN'S SMILE, the third in Gyles Brandreth's acclaimed Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries series featuring Oscar Wilde and Arthur Conan Doyle, Oscar risks his life to solve a series of deadly murders in bohemian Paris... 'Intelligent, amusing and entertaining' Alexander McCall Smith

Paris, 1883. Oscar Wilde, aged twenty-seven, has come to the city of decadence to discover its charms, to rekindle his friendship with the divine Sarah Bernhardt and to collaborate with France's most celebrated actor-manager, Edmond La Grange.
Oscar discovers dark secrets lying at the heart of the La Grange company, and is confronted by murders both foul and bizarre. To solve the crimes, to unravel the mystery, Oscar risks his life - and his reputation - embarking on a dangerous adventure that takes him from bohemian night clubs to an asylum for the insane, from a duel in the Buttes de Chaumont to the gates of Reading Gaol.


Oscar Wilde and the Vampire Murders opens in 1890, at a glamorous party hosted by the Duke and Duchess of Albemarle. All of London's high society -- including the Prince of Wales -- are in attendance at what promises to be the event of the season. Yet Oscar Wilde is more interested in another party guest, Rex LaSalle, a young actor who claims to be a vampire. But the entertaining evening ends in tragedy when the duchess is found murdered -- with two tiny puncture marks on her throat. Desperate to avoid scandal and panic, the Prince asks Oscar and his friend Arthur Conan Doyle to investigate the crime. What they discover threatens to destroy the very heart of the royal family. Told through diary entries, newspaper clippings, telegrams, and letters, Oscar Wilde and the Vampire Murders is a richly atmospheric mystery that is sure to captivate and entertain.


In OSCAR WILDE AND THE MURDERS AT READING GAOL, the sixth in Gyles Brandreth's acclaimed Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries series featuring Oscar Wilde and Arthur Conan Doyle, Reading Gaol's most famous prisoner is pitted against a ruthless and fiendishly clever serial killer. 'Intelligent, amusing and entertaining' Alexander McCall Smith

It is 1897, Dieppe. Oscar Wilde, poet, playwright, novelist, raconteur and ex-convict, has fled the country after his release from Reading Gaol. Tonight he is sharing a drink and the story of his cruel imprisonment with a mysterious stranger. He has endured a harsh regime: the treadmill, solitary confinement, censored letters, no writing materials. Yet even in the midst of such deprivation, Oscar's astonishing detective powers remain undiminished - and when first a brutal warder and then the prison chaplain are found murdered, who else should the governor turn to for help other than Reading Gaol's most celebrated inmate?

In this, the latest novel in his acclaimed Oscar Wilde murder mystery series, Gyles Brandreth takes us deep into the dark heart of Wilde's cruel incarceration.


In OSCAR WILDE AND THE VATICAN MURDERS, the fifth in Gyles Brandreth's acclaimed Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries series featuring Oscar Wilde and Arthur Conan Doyle, the two must penetrate the highest echelons of the Catholic Church to solve a macabre series of killings. 'Intelligent, amusing and entertaining' Alexander McCall Smith

In 1892 Arthur Conan Doyle, exhausted by his creation Sherlock Holmes, retires to the spa at Bad Homburg. But his rest cure does not go as planned. The first person he encounters is Oscar Wilde, and when the two friends make a series of macabre discoveries amongst the portmanteau of fan mail Conan Doyle has brought to answer - a severed finger, a lock of hair and finally an entire severed hand - the game is once more afoot.

The trail leads to Rome, to the very heart of the Eternal City, the Vatican itself. Pope Pius IX has just died. These are uncertain times. To uncover the mystery and why the creator of Sherlock Holmes has been summoned in this way, Oscar and Conan Doyle must penetrate the innermost circle of the Catholic Church - seven men who have a very great deal to lose.



In OSCAR WILDE AND THE NEST OF VIPERS, the fourth in Gyles Brandreth's acclaimed Oscar Wilde Murder Mysteries series featuring Oscar Wilde and Arthur Conan Doyle, the Prince of Wales asks Oscar to investigate a scandalous crime at the very heart of Victorian high society... 'Intelligent, amusing and entertaining' Alexander McCall Smith

The story opens in the spring of 1890 at a glamorous reception hosted by the Duke and Duchess of Albemarle. All London's haut monde is there, including the Prince of Wales, who counts the Albemarles as close friends. Although it is the first time Oscar and Bertie have met, Oscar seems far more interested in Rex LaSalle, a young actor, who disarmingly claims to be a vampire...


However, what begins as a diverting evening ends in tragedy. As the guests are leaving, the Duchess is found murdered, two tiny puncture marks in her throat. No one has entered the house; no one has left. Desperate to avoid another scandal, the Prince of Wales asks Oscar to investigate the crime. What he discovers threatens to destroy the very heart of the Royal Family...