Calleshire Chronicles Series

Book 1

Gertrude Powell led a very full and exciting life - perhaps too full in someone's eyes. Because now she has been murdered....No one was too surprised when octagenerian Gertrude Powell was found dead at Almstone Manor, a retirement home for former members of the Fearnshire Regiment. She had, after all, been very ill. But on the morning of the funeral, her son Lionel receives a disturbing letter - from his mother. In it, Gertrude states that someone is trying to kill her....For every fact Detective Inspector Sloan learns about Gertrude, there seems to be a mystery too. Why, for instance, would she never reveal the name of her second husband? And just what is the Pragmatic Solution she was so fearful of in her letter?

Book 18

Little Knell

by Catherine Aird

Published December 2000

An Inspector Sloane mystery'A new crime classic' PETERBOROUGH EVENING TELEGRAPHIt had seemed such a simple removal job for Wetherspoon and Wetherspoon, Furniture Removers - to clear the Whimbrel House of its contents following the death of Colonel Caversham. Only one item proved a little difficult to manoeuvre - the heavy lead coffin containing an Egyptian mummy that was now the property of Mr Fixby-Smith, Curator of the Greatorex Museum. But little does Sidney Wetherspoon know that the coffin he is carrying does not contain the remains of Rodoheptah, but the body of a young lady who has only been dead for a couple of weeks. When the horrifying discovery is made at the museum, Inspector Sloan is called in to find not only a two thousand year old corpse, but also a ruthless killer . . .

Book 20

Hole in One

by Catherine Aird

Published 29 March 2005

When flirtatious golfing beginner Helen Sewell, goes in search for her wayward golf ball in the dreaded 'Hells Bells' bunker she is not prepared for the horrible surprise that lies buried under the soft sand. When a body is discovered by two lady golfers buried in the steepest bunker on the course Detective Inspector Sloan and Detective Constable Crosby are called in to solve a murder mystery, with more twists and turns than a golf course. This is a gentle and finely constructed murder mystery set on Berebury golf course in the fictional county of Calleshire. The Sloan and Crosby series have been beloved by fans and lauded by critics for their wonderful comic touch, intricate plotting and literate charm.

Book 22

Past Tense

by Catherine Aird

Published 15 March 2010

Josephine Short was clearly a very practical woman but it also appears she was a woman with a secret or two. When her great-nephew's wife, Janet Wakefield, gets a call from the Berebury Nursing Home, she's somewhat taken aback. Not only does it come as a surprise to hear that her husband's estranged great aunt has passed away, but more surprising is the fact she had been living locally for some years. Janet is sure that her husband Bill was the last of Josephine's close family, so imagine her surprise when a handsome young man approaches her at the funeral and introduces himself as Josephine's grandson. Janet has never even heard of a child, never mind a grandchild. Detectives Sloan and Crosby find themselves assigned two rather puzzling cases. First, there's the young woman's body which has been discovered in the River Alm. And then there's the mysterious break-in at Berebury Nursing Home. To be precise, it's Josephine Short's room at the Nursing Home that's been entered, although nothing seems to be missing. What could the intruder have been after? It becomes apparent to Sloan and Crosby that the two cases are connected - but who can the killer be?

Book 25

Inheritance Tracks

by Catherine Aird

Published 16 April 2019

Four strangers arrive at the solicitors' office of Puckle, Puckle, and Nunnery. They have never met, and have no idea why they have been invited. But they - along with a missing man - are descendants of the late Algernon George Culver Mayton, the inventor of "Mayton's Marvellous Mixture" and each entitled to a portion of the Mayton Fortune. But before they can split the money, the missing man must be found.
They begin their search, but then Detective Sloan receives a call that one of the legatees had died following an attack of food poisoning. Now detectives Sloan and Crosby must determine whether the deceased merely ingested a noxious substance by accident, or if the legatees are being picked off one-by-one. And when matters of money and family rivalry are involved, there is almost certainly foul play afoot.

The Calleshire Chronicles Volume One

by Catherine Aird

Published 1 May 2018