A Spring Betrayal

by Tom Callaghan

Published 21 April 2016

Inspector Akyl Borubaev's Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan is a lawless post-Soviet metropolis rife with corruption and vice. A hard-hitting thriller for fans of Tom Rob Smith and Gorky Park.

We uncovered the last of the bodies in the red hour before dusk, as the sun stained the snowcaps of the Tian Shan mountains the colour of dried blood and the spring air turned sharp and cold . . .

Inspector AkylBorubaev of Bishkek Murder Squad has been exiled to the far corner of Kyrgyzstan, but death still haunts him at every turn. Borubaev soon finds himself caught up in a mysterious and gruesome new case: several children's bodies have been found buried together - all tagged with name bands. In his search for the truth behind the brutal killings, Borubaev hits a wall of silence, with no one to turn to outside his sometime lover, the beautiful undercover agent Saltanat Umarova.

When Borubaev himself is framed, accused of involvement in the production of blood-soaked child pornography, it looks as though things couldn't get any worse. With the investigation at a dangerous standstill, Borubaev sets out to save his own integrity, and to deliver his own savage justice on behalf of the many dead who can't speak for themselves . . .


A Killing Winter

by Tom Callaghan

Published 26 February 2015

'Even better than Child 44. Akyl Borubaev is a terrific creation' Anthony Horowitz

WE UNCOVERED THE LAST OF THE BODIES IN THE RED HOUR BEFORE DUSK, AS THE SUN STAINED THE SNOWCAPS OF THE TIAN SHAN MOUNTAINS THE COLOUR OF DRIED BLOOD. . .

Inspector Akyl Borubaev of Bishkek Murder Squad has been exiled to the far corner of Kyrgystan, but death still haunts him at every turn. Borubaev soon finds himself caught up in a mysterious and gruesome new case: several children's bodies have been found buried together - all tagged with name bands. In his search for the truth behind the brutal killings, Borubaev hits a wall of silence, with no one to turn to outside his sometime lover, the beautiful undercover agent Saltanat Umarova.

When Borubaev himself framed for his involvement in the production of blood-soaked child pornography, it looks as though things couldn't get any worse. With the investigation at a dangerous standstill, Borubaev sets out to save his own integrity, and to deliver his own savage justice on behalf of the many dead who can't speak for themselves . . .

'Just keeps getting better . . . buy the whole series right away' Peter Robinson, No.1 bestselling author of Sleeping in the Ground

'Storytelling of the highest quality . . . Introduces a detective it is impossible not to believe in. Callaghan is a new voice to be welcomed' Daily Mail


A Killing Winter

by Tom Callaghan

Published 26 February 2015

'The Kyrgyz winter reminds us that the past is never dead, simply waiting to ambush us around the next corner'.

When Inspector Akyl Borubaev of Bishkek Murder Squad arrives at the brutal murder scene of a young woman, all evidence hints at a sadistic serial killer on the hunt for more prey.

But when the young woman's father turns out to be a leading government minister, the pressure is on Borubaev to solve the case not only quickly but also quietly, by any means possible. Until more bodies are found...

Still in mourning after his wife's recent death, Borubaev descends into Bishkek's brutal underworld, a place where no-one and nothing is as it seems, where everyone is playing for the highest stakes, and where violence is the only solution.