A WITTY BRITISH COSY MYSTERY WITH A DARK EDGE

A body in the rhubarb patch was not part of the plan.

James and Inky Clatterbridge have come to Abbey Marina in search of a quieter life. Their houseboat at No. 7, Pontoon Pike offers exactly what they’d hoped for: eccentric neighbours, evenings at The Heron, and the slow satisfactions of tending an allotment beside the river.

Then Inky discovers a dead man half hidden beneath the rhubarb leaves.

The victim – a rough sleeper known only as G – seemed to drift unnoticed around the marina community. But murder has a way of exposing the hidden currents beneath even the calmest waters. And when the police recover the apparent murder weapon – James’s missing dibber – suspicion begins to settle alarmingly close to home.

The police believe the case is straightforward. But James, a writer of horror fiction with a professional interest in human darkness, has a working hypothesis of his own.

As he starts asking questions among the houseboats and pontoons of Abbey Marina, James discovers a community held together by secrets, loyalties and long-nursed grievances. The deeper he digs, the clearer it becomes that somebody in the marina knows far more about the murder than they are prepared to admit.

And somebody is willing to kill to keep the truth buried.

Why cozy crime readers are stepping onto Pontoon Pike:

The First Full-Length Case: The official Book 1 in a gripping, fast-paced new British cozy mystery series.

* Atmospheric River Settings: Immerse yourself in the quirky, close-knit world of marina life, local pubs, and allotment secrets along the Bedfordshire waterways.
* A Captivating Puzzle: A classic whodunit packed with red herrings and eccentric suspects, featuring a clever amateur sleuth who, after clearing his own name, won't rest until he uncovers the real killer.

Small marina. Big secrets. One very stubborn sleuth.