The car jolts to a halt at the pavement's edge, the driver waving through the windscreen to attract Richard's attention. He starts with astonishment. The driver is Gemma, his ex-wife. He has not seen or spoken to her for several years. They have nothing to say to each other. But something has changed her mind - something urgent.

Two-year-old Tamsin Hall was abducted during a picnic. The Hall family fell apart. A depressed Sally Wilkinson, the nanny, committed suicide. Retired Chief Inspector George Sharp confronts Umber, on of the witnesses, and forces him to join in a search for the culprit. It is a quest that both will later regret having embarked upon.

When Tim Harding agrees to do a favour for a friend by bidding on his behalf for an antique ring at auction, little does he know of the secrets that tie the ring to three tragedies: the sinking of HMS Association off Scilly in 1707, a murder in Penzance 30 years later and the drowning of a journalist diving at the Association wreck site in 1999.

12 years before, Geoffrey Staddon had left the woman he loved and the house which had been his first important commission and the best thing he had ever done as an architect. Now, in 1935, a murder and its consequences compel him to return. The author's other novels include Into the Blue .

A thriller about a history graduate who goes to Madeira to investigate the mysterious fall from grace of a politician 70 years earlier, and finds that people still want the truth to remain hidden.

Harry Barnett leads a shabby existence in the shadow of a past disgrace, reduced to caretaking a friend's villa on the island of Rhodes and working in a bar. Then a guest at the villa - a young woman he had instantly and innocently warmed to - disappears, and Harry is suspected for murder.

Presents the sequence of extraordinary events. This work is about a chain of intrigue, deceit, greed and murder. It covers: the loss of H M S Association with all hands in 1707; an admiralty clerk's secret mission thirty years after; a fatal accident during a dive to the wreck in 1996; and an expatriate's reluctant return home.

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On assignment in Vienna, photographer Ian Jarrett falls desperately in love with a woman he meets by chance, Marian Esguard. Back in England, he breaks up with his wife and goes to meet Marian at an agreed rendezvous. She fails to show. Ian sets out to solve a mystery that may be 170 years old.

Spanning more than 50 years, this is a novel of dark secrets and extraordinary revelations. It starts when Leonora Galloway visits the war grave of her father and discovers that he was killed 11 months before she was born. The author's other books include Into the Blue and Past Caring .

Before he fully understands the risks he is running, Flood finds himself entagled in the mysterious - and dangerous - relationship between the Oswins and the Colborns. The prospects of him surviving until the close of the show suddenly start to look very far from good.

When Harry is informed that his son, David, is in a diabetic coma, he is certain there must be a mistake, since he does not have a son. But he soon discovers that he does and that other scientists employed like David have died in mysterious circumstances. Is David the victim of attempted murder?

The arrival of a stranger in William Trenchard's life threatens to destroy all he holds most dear. The stranger claims to be Sir James Davenall, who was once engaged to Trenchard's wife, who supposedly committed suicide years before and his return reveals dark secrets about the Davenall family.

For a group of ex-comrades, it is to be the reunion to end all reunions: a weekend in the Scottish castle where they were guinea pigs in a psychological experiment many years before. They haven't seen each other since. But the convivial atmosphere on the journey north is quickly shattered by the apparent suicide of one of their party.

A novel by the author of Closed Circle . While out walking Robin Timariot encounters a woman, with whom he has an unforgettable conversation. On his return home, Timariot discovers the woman was raped and murdered and he becomes obsessed with the search for the truth.

Set in 18th-century London, Amsterdam and Rome, this mystery involves mysterious packages, murder and financial scandal.

A murder mystery that moves between a wedding party in 1981 and a murder in 1947. Chris Napier decides to delve into the events of the past to try and find out who killed his great uncle, Joshua Bradwell. Before long, larger mysteries begin to dog Chris's footsteps into the past.

Rupert Alder has vanished. His employers believe he is guilty of major fraud. A Japanese businessman claims he has stolen a document of vital importance. And a private detective has discovered a mysterious death near Glastonbury, back in 1963. Rupert's friend, Lance Bradley, must uncover the truth.

Recovering from the recent death of his wife in a tragic accident, Tony Sheridan goes to stay with his sister-in-law, Lucy, and her husband, long-time friend Matt, in their home in the country. Disturbed by memories of his wife, and an attraction for Lucy, he starts having weird dreams.

Actor Toby Flood, formerly of big and small screen but now seldom seen on either, arrives in Brighton on the first Sunday in December with the other cast members of the Joe Orton play Lodger in the Throat. Flood is visited that night by his estranged wife, who now lives with wealthy entrepreneur, Roger Colborn.