The body of a young man fished out of the Thames is of little interest to Londoners caught up in the excitement of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. Yet to Inspector Sam Blackstone, the case is as puzzling as any he has ever come across. Why should a corpse dressed the in rags of a commoner have the face of a gentleman? And if this man does belong to noble stock, why has no one come forward to claim the body? As his investigation proceeds, Blackstone finds himself entering the world of the aristocracy—in which the presence of an ordinary policeman is far from welcome—and tramping the dangerous streets of London's Little Russia—where English law and order are not welcome. Death seems to stalk him, and as each new clue leads to nothing more than a new murder, Blackstone comes to realize that he is caught up in what may turn out to be the most horrendous crime of the century… Blackstone and the Rendezvous with Death is an expertly plotted Victorian mystery that will keep readers guessing to the last page. Praise for Sally Spencer: “Spencer's finest hour: a tightly plotted puzzler with surprises at every turn” Kirkus Reviews “Spencer is an accomplished craftsman who serves up a good puzzle and deftly solves it with intelligence and insight” Publishers Weekly “Characters are diverse, intriguing, and believable . . . plots never fail to surprise; and the procedural details are grittily realistic” Kirkus Reviews Sally Spencer worked as a teacher both in England and Iran - where she witnessed the fall of the Shah. She now writes full time. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.

The first in the series of kidnappings was amateur, but the spectacular abduction of a young Indian crown prince from a London street forces Inspector Blackstone to accept that this is no ordinary gang he is dealing with. It becomes plain that it is not just the safety of one child that is at stake—it is the future of the British Empire!

The theft of the fabulous Faberge golden egg from a Russian country estate goes far beyond the bounds of mere robbery, Blackstone is warned in London. The victim is the Prince of Wales, the egg itself a gift from the Russian Tsar—and if the Tsar takes offence at the Prince's carelessness in losing it, the delicate balance of power in Europe could be destroyed for ever. Yet if Blackstone is investigating a simple robbery, why is there an attempt on his life the moment he sets foot in Russia—an attempt which would have succeeded but for the intervention of mysterious masked figures? Why will no one talk about the closed coach which fled the scene after the theft? And what is the motive behind the murder of a young British officer staying at the house? The more Blackstone learns, the less he knows … Who can he really trust? And is this priceless Golden Egg masking a deeper, darker secret? “Vivid characters, a dazzling plot, authentic period details, and plenty of surprising twists make this latest effort by Sally Spencer an outstanding choice for historical mystery fans” - Booklist “This new series from the author of the Chief Inspector Woodend novels features a nicely captured Victorian ethos, solid prose, and winning subplot diversions. Anne Perry fans and devotees of Victorian-era mysteries will enjoy this new historical. For most collections” - Library Journal Sally Spencer worked as a teacher both in England and Iran - where she witnessed the fall of the Shah. She now writes full time. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.

Inspector Sam Blackstone has dealt with arsonists before—but never one quite like this. If the arsonist’s true purpose is to make the government hand over one hundred thousand pounds, why does he seem so reluctant to apply the necessary pressure? Why does he content himself with burning down a single warehouse, when he could set an entire riverside wharf ablaze? And why firebomb a single sloop, when it would have been just as easy to destroy the whole fleet? In order to answer these questions, Blackstone—aided by Dr Ellie Carr, a passionate disciple of the new science of criminal pathology—must follow a trail of death and destruction. That trail will lead them to the very centre of government itself. And, not for the first time, Blackstone soon realises that in solving this case, he may well be destroying his own career. Blackstone and the Burning Secret is a brilliantly plotted historical mystery from a master of the genre. Praise for Sally Spencer: “Spencer's finest hour: a tightly plotted puzzler with surprises at every turn” Kirkus Reviews “Spencer is an accomplished craftsman who serves up a good puzzle and deftly solves it with intelligence and insight” Publishers Weekly “Characters are diverse, intriguing, and believable . . . plots never fail to surprise; and the procedural details are grittily realistic” Kirkus Reviews Sally Spencer worked as a teacher both in England and Iran - where she witnessed the fall of the Shah. She now writes full time. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.

Five hundred people saw the murder—but no one knows who did it! On the face of it, this is the simplest murder Blackstone has ever had to solve. The entire audience at the George Theatre saw Charlotte Devaraux stab William Kirkpatrick with a fake dagger. They gasped as he fell. But they gasped even more when they realized this would be his final curtain call. How did the murderer manage to exchange the fake dagger for a real one? With the help of the brilliant Dr Ellie Carr, a career driven scientist, Blackstone is able to determine that this dagger had not only been exchanged for a real one but had been laced with a most deadly poison. But what is the source of this exotic poison? And who is the mysterious little old man who keeps appearing on the edges of the investigation? Assisted by the amiable Sergeant Patterson, Blackstone follows the trail of the killer from the theatre to the world of the Victorian freak show and into the depths of a lunatic asylum. And though he does not know it, another murder is now brewing. Will he find this killer in time? With a cast of unusual suspects, all of which have the motive and the wherewithal to commit the crime, Blackstone struggles to find which is truth and which is merely part of the act. Praise for Sally Spencer: "The characters are rich and complex, the plot is unusual and inventive, but it's the delightfully droll, wonderfully witty doses of humour that make the novel such a pleasure" - Booklist Sally Spencer worked as a teacher both in England and Iran - where she witnessed the fall of the Shah. She now writes full time. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.

A sadistic killer is targeting teenage girls. A horrific pattern is emerging, with each new corpse horrendously mutilated – in precisely the same way. But the victims aren’t just any girls. They are the children of England’s aristocracy. Inspector Blackstone, of the Metropolitan Police, seems to be the only man in the country who stands a chance of catching ‘the Northern Slasher’. Can Blackstone find the killer before he chooses his next victim? When Blackstone receives a letter from an old army comrade, he is plunged into the middle of an even darker horror... 'Blackstone and the Heart of Darkness' is the next thrilling instalment in the Blackstone detective series. Praise for Sally Spencer: “Vivid characters, a dazzling plot, authentic period details, and plenty of surprising twists make this latest effort by Sally Spencer an outstanding choice for historical mystery fans” - Booklist “This new series from the author of the Chief Inspector Woodend novels features a nicely captured Victorian ethos, solid prose, and winning subplot diversions. Anne Perry fans and devotees of Victorian-era mysteries will enjoy this new historical. For most collections” - Library Journal Sally Spencer worked as a teacher both in England and Iran - where she witnessed the fall of the Shah. She now writes full time. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent publisher of digital books.

July 1900: Sam Blackstone has gone to New York to pick up a prisoner, but he soon finds himself drafted in to investigate the murder of Inspector OBrien who is famed for rooting out police corruption. Working with an enthusiastic young detective who worshipped OBrien, Blackstone scours the city in search of the killer. And the more he searches, the more he becomes convinced that the police department doesnt really want the murder to be solved.

The new Inspector Sam Blackstone mystery . . . - August, 1900. William Holt, a reclusive millionaire businessman, has been kidnapped from his grand Coney Island home after the brutal murder of his two bodyguards. Soon, a huge ransom is demanded, and the victim’s two sons are given just days to find the money. Inspector Sam Blackstone, now seconded to the New York Police Department, and his partner, Alex Meade, are charged with solving the case, but they’ll need to keep their wits about them if they are to solve it in time . . .

The new Inspector Sam Blackstone mystery . . . - France, World War One. Inspector Blackstone thought he was done with army, but when a general he served with requests he investigate the brutal murder of his grandson – a young British officer in the trenches – Blackstone feels he can’t say no. Surrounded by young men over half his age, Blackstone must face the horror of modern warfare, and the prejudices of the officer class, if he is to gain justice for the murdered man.

December, 1916. Inspector Sam Blackstone is suspicious when he is called to the office of Superintendent Brigham – the new head of special branch – and confused that Brigham seems to want to see him as little as Sam himself wishes to be there. An already stranger situation grows more strange when Sam discovers what he’s there for: a German traitor wants £25,000 in exchange for secret intelligence on U-boat locations, and ‘Max’ has specifically asked for Blackstone to be the one to deliver the money – alone. Blackstone, and his sergeant, Archie Patterson, are certain there’s more to it than that, but Blackstone can’t turn down the job – if he doesn’t do it, some other poor fool will have to. But that is little comfort when, as suspected, it all goes wrong, and Blackstone finds himself on the run from his own colleagues, with Patterson languishing in a cell, looking at a twenty year stretch, if he’s lucky . . .