Gordon Griffin

Ionanthe will leave her freedom at the castle doors. The ancient laws of this kingdom demand an eye for an eye – and she must pay the price for her sister’s mistake. Recently crowned Prince Max plans to bring change to his country, but only after his...

Lord Thurlby can only ever recall previous visits of Lavinia Muir, his mother’s god-daughter, with a shudder. So it is with undisguised horror that he hears she is to come and stay again. Her arrival on the common stage accompanied by the flirtatious...

The brutal massacre of the Harford family at Potwoolstan Hall in Devon in 1985 shocked the country and passed into local folklore. When a journalist researching the case is murdered 20 years later, the horror is reawakened. Sixteenth century...

Jenny Simmons has always thought of herself as the ugly duckling of her family, so when she blossoms into a swan, she’s not quite sure what to do. When amateur boxer Bryn Thompson walks into her life, it seems happiness really is possible. But then a...

Teenager Lewis Hoxworthy discovers a disturbing painting in a medieval barn; a discovery which excites archaeologist Neil Watson who is excavating an ancient manor house nearby. But when former rock star Jonny Shellmer is found shot through the head...

When a woman is burned to death in Grandal Field in Devon, it seems like a case of mistaken identity. Until DI Wesley Peterson learns of a legend involving a French woman who burned to death there in the 13th century. And when he discovers that...

A story from The Prisoner’s Defence, a collection of First World War short stories. Mrs Porter takes charge of her daughter's unhappy marriage. When war breaks out in France, her selfish husband manages to escape, but finds himself at the mercy of his...

A short story from British Library Crime Classic Deep Waters. Narrated in the first person by Robert Beringer, a writer of sea stories, A Question of Timing describes how he narrowly stops a murder on the bank of the Thames. Author - Phyllis Bentley....

Soho during the blackouts of the Second World War. When a piercing scream rends the air and a bloodied knife is found, Detective Inspector MacCarthy is soon on the scene. He must move through the dark, seedy Soho underworld – peopled by Italian...

With some trepidation Nigel Derry approaches the country house of his enigmatic and unpredictable aunt Gwenny for an Easter holiday visit. After a tense few days in which her guests' interactions range from awkward dinners to a knife fight, a...

At the lush Villa Calypso on the French Riviera, a dying billionaire launches a devious plan: at midnight each day he appoints a new heir to his vast fortune. If he dies within 24 hours, that person takes it all. If not, their chance is gone forever....

In A Yorkshire Vet Through the Seasons, Julian Norton, the star of Channel 5’s A Yorkshire Vet, recounts more inspirational tales from his life, the animals he has treated and the people he has met, as well as taking us through the seasons, showing...

A story from Night in the Front Line, a collection of Second World War short stories. According to the Directive opens in a Displaced Persons Camp at the end of the war. Journalist Lisa Wilson is writing a feature and is met with mixed emotions as the...

When the body of Pauline Brent is found hanging from a yew tree in a local graveyard, DS Wesley Peterson immediately suspects foul play. Then history provides him with a clue. Wesley's archaeologist friend, Neil Watson, has excavated a corpse at his...

George Surridge, director of the Birmington Zoo, is a man with many worries: his marriage is collapsing; his finances are insecure; and an outbreak of disease threatens the animals in his care. As Surridge's debts mount and the pressure on him...

A story from The Prisoner’s Defence, a collection of First World War short stories. Ten years after the war has ended, a group of veterans are united by their shared experiences serving in East Africa and overcome both class boundaries and former...

A story from The Prisoner’s Defence, a collection of First World War short stories. Armistice celebrations are depicted as a time for jubilation and euphoria in this short story with romance, the breakdown of class barriers and the thawing of...

A story from The Prisoner’s Defence, a collection of First World War short stories. "As It Is Written" is set in a British munitions factory during a blackout. It explores the vulnerability of the enemy, as well as the important contribution to the...

A short story from British Library Crime Classic The Christmas Card Crime and Other Stories. Inspired by the unsolved Peasenhall murder case of 1902, Blind Man’s Hood shows Carter Dickson’s penchant for true crime. When Rodney Hunter and his wife...

Charlie Rutland specialized in scandal-hunting. As a journalist on a smart magazine, his job was to search out anything that could be turned into a good smear story. Then, while carrying out some 'investigations' in Yorkshire, his career came to an...

A brutal game devised by three intelligent but bored teenagers escalates into murder. Led by the charismatic and cunning Laurence, the trio of `brothers` meets once a year to carry out untraceable, motiveless murders – for fun. Until, years later,...

A short story from British Library Crime Classic Deep Waters. Bullion! is the ultimate locked-room mystery. A ship transporting gold bullion is travelling from Melbourne to London. The gold is packed into chests and stored in a separate locked and...

A short story from British Library Crime Classic The Christmas Card Crime and Other Stories. When Alfred Caithness extends his stay at Dingle House for Christmas, it is not only due to the bad weather. He is in need of a loan from his wealthy cousin...

On a hot summer morning, Miles Law cycles into the village of Millington in the Vale of York, on his way to a few hours' work as an under-gardener at The Grange. But when he arrives, he finds his employer slumped in an armchair in the drawing room, a...