Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell mystery
9 total works
Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell is a very busy man; as Head of Sixth Form at Leighford High he does his best to resist Ofsted imperatives and mark GCSE coursework, whilst trying to cram as much History as possible into the reluctant heads of Nine Eff Gee and their like. Despite this, Max still finds time for some amateur sleuthing, even though his policewoman 'Significant Other', DS Jacquie Carpenter, has decided that this time he's leaving any murder investigations to her. But how can he refuse when the terminally nervous school photographer asks for his help after accidentally photographing a murder on the beach? Their discovery of a body buried in the sand dunes sets in motion a chain of events that only the redoubtable Mad Max can break, but one thing is certain; life in Leighford will never be the same again.
The latest in the popular "Peter 'Mad' Maxwell" series. Deena Harrison was one of Leighford High School's 'characters'. She set fire to the toilet block when she was eleven, and threw Ollie Wendell down the science lab stairs soon after her twelfth birthday. But she had the voice of an angel and could act the skin off a rice pudding, so Mr Diamond, the Headteacher, invoked all sorts of inclusion clauses and EU Equal Opportunities initiatives to keep her on. The autumn she came down from Oxford, there was something of a crisis in the Drama department at Leighford High. Mrs Carmichael was in danger of losing her baby and the Little Shop of Horrors was in danger of closing down. So Deena came back - just to help out. And people started dying. Oh, just tragic accidents of course - loose cables, carelessly placed ladders. Just minor health and safety issues, really. Somebody was killing the cast, and it wasn't Audrey II, the man-eating plant. DCI Henry Hall got to know the Arquebus Theatre quite well that summer. With his favourite DS, Jacquie Carpenter, expecting her own baby, and with murder treading the boards, Hall had his hands full.
Especially when Deena's old Head of Sixth Form stumbled into the spotlight. You see, Deena's old Head of Sixth Form had a habit of solving murders...Mad Max is on his bike.
Especially when Deena's old Head of Sixth Form stumbled into the spotlight. You see, Deena's old Head of Sixth Form had a habit of solving murders...Mad Max is on his bike.
With girlfriend DS Jacquie Carpenter back at investigating and little son, Nolan, a fast-growing six months, Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell, Head of Sixth Form at Leighford High, hires an au pair, Juanita Reyes. The summer slowly unfolds in sleepy seaside Leighford, and Juanita seems perfect, doting on the baby and working hard to improve her English. Then, she goes missing. And so does Rodrigo Mendoza, a Spanish teacher at a neighboring school. When Rodrigo's body is found in a hurriedly dug grave, Maxwell rushes to Juanita's defence as the spotlight of suspicion descends upon her. But then a second corpse appears . . .
Having had his retirement snatched from him by malfunctioning technology, Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell finds himself facing yet another new year at Leighford High School. After having her hopes of a dedicated house husband dashed, his wife, Jacquie, is further annoyed when a family holiday quickly becomes an impromptu Year Seven trip to the Isle of Wight, families welcome. Less than a week into their trip the situation takes another turn for the worse when the wife of Tom Medlicott, the new Head of Art, goes missing, forcing Jacquie to play the role of woman policeman. Back in West Sussex, when Medlicott himself is found dead at the bottom of the stairs, Henry Hall is also drawn into the investigation, but with the man's entire family in the morgue, his suspect list is non-existent. Then Maxwell, researching with paper and pencil, stumbles by accident on the linchpin to the whole case. He knows the reason, all he has to find is the murderer. And to find him - or her - he will have to cross more than the Solent. With the answer lying in a missing piece of paper, divorces and deceit, will Maxwell survive to apply for retirement again?
Love of money is the root of all evil, apparently, and the amount of money involved would drive many otherwise law-abiding people to commit a murder. Or two. Or three.
Love of money is the root of all evil, apparently, and the amount of money involved would drive many otherwise law-abiding people to commit a murder. Or two. Or three.
For Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell, the only mystery that has arisen so far this year at Leighford High is the question of how to use a computer. The 'dinosaur' Head of Sixth Form just cannot get to grips with technology, and doesn't see the need to know how to send a text or an email, when a simple note or phone call will suffice. However, it soon becomes vital that he learns when some of his female pupils begin to receive strange and threatening messages, with the anonymous sender claiming to know intimate details about the girls' personal lives. Then Max starts to receive messages too, and two of the girls go missing. When a body is found it seems that the prank has taken a sinister turn. And Mad Max may well be the next target. With his job under threat from the ambitious IT technician, Nicole, and the formidable Pansy Donaldson, as well as facing increasing pressure from his wife to retire, will Max manage to crack the case? Or is the chance of him reaching retirement looking more unlikely by the day?
At Leighford High, the ever-resourceful Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell is temporarily promoted to Head of History when his colleague Paul Moss is chosen for an American exchange and heads off to Los Angeles. Paul's counterpart is Hector Gold, who is accompanied to Leighford by his eccentric family including his wife Camille and her parents, Jeff and Alana O'Malley. Clearly Jeff O'Malley is quite a character - with money to burn he has been gate-crashing the local poker school, much to the dismay of its members. When events take a sinister turn and Sarah Gregson, one of the poker school's members, is found murdered, newly-promoted Inspector Jacquie Carpenter Maxwell and Henry Hall investigate, with the assistance of Maxwell. As it becomes apparent Sarah suspected Jeff of cheating and Jeff was sacked in LA for being a crooked cop, is this simply a case of murder as revenge for name-calling? Being quite the expert in solving murders, Maxwell believes there is more to it.
In the latest witty instalment of the Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell series, the teacher and part-time sleuth must contend with outlandish Americans, a son who is acting strangely, a missing cub-scout mistress and the usual Leighford High School mayhem whilst trying to catch a murderer before more lives are lost.
In the latest witty instalment of the Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell series, the teacher and part-time sleuth must contend with outlandish Americans, a son who is acting strangely, a missing cub-scout mistress and the usual Leighford High School mayhem whilst trying to catch a murderer before more lives are lost.
By day, Peter Maxwell is the golden-hearted, cynical Head of Sixth Form at a comprehensive school on the South Coast. By night, at weekends and in the holidays, he is doing his bit to fight crime.
There comes a time in every teacher's life when he must face his Nemesis - the four-yearly Ofsted Inspection. The team arrives at Leighford High one glorious summer and proceeds to stick its collective nose into various classrooms. The immediate problem of Head of Sixth Form, Peter Maxwell, is the attractive and vivacious Sally Meninger, a Humanities expert who proceeds to cast aspersions on Maxwell's metier as a teacher. Out on the town one night to relieve the tension, the Head of Sixth Form finds her in an intimate situation with her fellow Inspector, Alan Whiting. On the third day, with the atmosphere at the High School decidedly fraught, Whiting is found stabbed to death in the office set aside for the Inspection team. The police are called in and Maxwell cannot help but notice that Sally is not as distraught at Whiting's death as might be expected. It emerges that her private life is somewhat irregular - a view reinforced when Maxwell catches her in flagrante with his Headmaster, James Diamond. Events move quickly and Diamond is arrested on suspicion of the murder of Whiting But is it that simple? Aided by his inside informant, lover DS Jacquie Carpenter, Maxwell sets out to prove that his colleague is innocent. And the only way to do it is to take on the Inspectors one by one...
With the beginning of a new school year under way, Peter 'Mad Max' Maxwell prepares to get stuck into his curricular routine and is looking forward to his forthcoming wedding to fiancée DS Jacquie Carpenter. The immediate task in hand for senior staff members is the hiring of a new Assistant Head teacher, for which the school caterers have prepared a private buffet. But during the lunch meeting disaster strikes, as guests and staff alike become seriously ill in a matter of minutes.
After being reluctantly thrust into the role of Acting Headmaster, Maxwell works in conjunction with the police, including his lovely Jacquie, to try to unravel the mystery. But with certain fingers pointing at him, and Jacquie worried that the attack has infiltrated his life in a way that could soon get out of control, is Maxwell in more danger than he thinks?
After being reluctantly thrust into the role of Acting Headmaster, Maxwell works in conjunction with the police, including his lovely Jacquie, to try to unravel the mystery. But with certain fingers pointing at him, and Jacquie worried that the attack has infiltrated his life in a way that could soon get out of control, is Maxwell in more danger than he thinks?