Nuns are supposed to put worldly concerns behind them when they take their vows, but in the past fifteen years, Sister Agnes has not once forgotten Hugo, her abusive ex-husband. Even after having experienced his viciousness and his violence first-hand, however, Agnes is convinced that Hugo did not murder his second wife. The police disagree, prompting Sister Agnes' first investigation, one which pulls her into the monied circles of rural Gloucestershire as well as into the lives of the dispossessed - homeless local youth whose fierce friendships may hold the key to the murder. Will Sister Agnes discover the murderer's identity, or does she already know him...?

Kathleen McAleer witnesses a possible murder at St. Hugh's, a large London teaching hospital. But Kathleen has been rendered mute by a stroke and so cannot warn anyone that thirty-eight-year-old administrative assistant Gail Sullivan's demise may have been quite intentional. Luckily for Kathleen, the hospital asks Sister Agnes Bourdillon to arrange the While trying to clear her ex-husband of an accusation of murder in Sacred Hearts, Agnes discovered that her calling and her curiosity combine to make her a formidable sleuth. Even a novice like Agnes cannot help but be suspicious when the hospital staff insists on performing Gail's postmortem in-house, on not notifying the police, and on cremating the body. Agnes soon finds herself at the heart of a murderous intrigue, with her life further complicated by her attraction to a mysterious artist she meets at the hospital.

Sister Agnes is facing a crisis of faith. Working in a hostel for the homeless, Sam, a sixteen-year-old runaway, is forced to return to her family and then goes missing, and Agnes begins to question her relationship with God. Furious with the authorities, she feels she must do what she can to pull the runaway girl back from the brink of self-destruction. She sets out on a mission to find Sam and finds herself with a group of anti-road protesters in their tree-top encampment at the edge of Epping Forest. Amidst the beggars, travellers and anarchists, Sam is revelling in their fireside talk of apocalypse. But she is also contemplating returning to live with the father who deserted her sixteen years earlier and who, suspiciously to Agnes’s mind, has suddenly re-appeared. For the moment however Sam seems secure at the camp, a magic fortress in the sky, though its tents and tree houses can only provide a temporary bulwark against destruction. But even that safety is illusory. Only hours after Agnes’s arrival a body is found. Of a brutally murdered young girl… ‘The Quick and the Dead’ is a gripping crime thriller featuring inventive and original heroine Sister Agnes. ‘Enjoyable … with a satisfyingly believable conclusion’ Glasgow Herald ‘Nice one that doesn’t start with a bang and end with a whimper’ Newcastle-upon-Tyne Journal ‘A refreshingly different character’ Bolton Evening News ‘One helluva nun’ Hampstead and Highgate Express Alison Joseph was born in North London and educated at Leeds University. After graduating she worked as a presenter on a local radio station then, moving back to London, for Channel 4. She later became a partner in an independent production company and one of its commissions was a series about women and religion, the book of which was published by SPCK. She has since also worked as a reader for BBC Radio Drama. Alison, who has three children, now lives in London and is currently working on a new crime novel. Endeavour Press is the UK's leading independent digital publisher. For more information on our titles please sign up to our newsletter at www.endeavourpress.com. Each week you will receive updates on free and discounted ebooks. Follow us on Twitter: @EndeavourPress and on Facebook via http://on.fb.me/1HweQV7. We are always interested in hearing from our readers. Endeavour Press believes that the future is now.

Please note this book was previously published as A Dark and Sinful Death Sister Agnes is less than pleased with her latest assignment. Teaching French in a remote little convent school, out on the windswept Yorkshire moors. Homesick for London, she struggles to fit in from the moment she arrives. St Catherine’s might seem respectable. But there’s more to this place than meets the eye . . . Late one night, Agnes hears a commotion in the studio—and finds the art teacher, Joanna Baines, in floods of tears. A mess of shredded paintings surrounds her. By morning, Joanna’s vanished without a trace. As rumours begin to swirl, word arrives from out on the moors. They’ve found a body, not far from the convent gates. A strapping young gardener from town. He’s had his eyes scratched out. Now the race is on for Agnes to find the missing teacher. Before someone else gets there first . . . A gripping, sophisticated crime mystery that will have you intrigued from the first page. Steeped in the intriguing atmosphere of the untamed Yorkshire Moors.

'Sister Agnes is a fascinating and complicated woman.' Val McDermid Young and fiercely independent, Sister Agnes Bourdillon has never felt the need of a wimple to express her spirituality. But her strength is tested by her secondment to Silworth, a South London women’s prison. She does, however, find the work compelling, as she attempts to negotiate the network of bullies and victims, loyalties and hatreds, prisoners and jailers, searching to understand the often violent histories that lie behind each woman. Then the father of Cally Fisher, one of the most turbulent inmates, is shot dead. The chief suspect is Cally’s boyfriend. Reminded unnervingly of how she is losing her own mother, who is rapidly retreating from reality in a French nursing home, Agnes finds that she too has become entangled in a dark world that stretches further than the prison walls… 'The Dying Light' is one of Alison Joseph's great mysteries which has the reader turning the page as Agnes gets embroiled in a crime which threatens her own being. Praise for Alison Joseph ‘Clever and intriguing - a must for all Agatha Christie fans’ - Peter James ‘Christie herself is the fulcrum of this highly diverting piece, delivered with all the quirky skill that is Joseph’s trademark.’ - Barry Forshaw, Crime Time Alison Joseph is a London-based crime writer and radio dramatist. She is the author of the series of novels featuring Sister Agnes, a contemporary detective nun based in South London, and has written numerous plays for radio, including the adaptations of Simenon's Inspector Maigret series broadcast on BBC Radio 4. She is currently chair of the Crime Writers Association.

Please note this book was previously published as The Night Watch Matt Kavanagh, blessed with movie-idol looks and the bank balance to match, is the envy of everyone he knows. Even Sister Agnes is not immune. He’s always had the devil’s own luck. Until now . . . Agnes locks eyes with Matt across a crowded London pub—and knows there’s more to this tall, dark businessman than meets the eye. Underneath his perfect manners and designer suit, Agnes senses a man in turmoil. Days later, Matt’s body is found on a deserted country lane. And Agnes can’t believe what killed him . . . A golf ball from out of the blue. It hit his head while he was out horse-riding. Everyone says his death was a tragic accident. But Agnes suspects foul play—and she won’t let this drop. Especially when she discovers Matt is not the only one to die this way. Another rider suffered a fatal fall just weeks ago, on the same lonely stretch of road. One dead rider is tragic. But two’s a coincidence too far. Will Agnes’s meddling make her victim number three . . . ?

Please note this book was previously published as The Darkening Sky He died with a song in a seedy London alley. Agnes can’t stop thinking of Andy McFadden. A tortured veteran with no place left to call home, except the shelter where Agnes works. It’s years since he left the army. But the real battle will always be inside his own head. When Andy is killed in a drunken brawl, one dark night in Charing Cross, Agnes is saddened but not surprised. She just can’t believe Andy’s friend was the one to strike the fatal blow. If only Andy’s friend could set the record straight. But his memories of the night are hazy at best . . . The only thing he can recall with any clarity is a mystery woman. Holding Andy close as his life drained away. Singing a lullaby. Was she really there or did he dream her?

Agnes never wanted to move to Collyer House, a crumbling old mansion-turned-psychiatric hospital. But she’s supposed to be cataloguing the house’s vast library . . . If only she could tear herself away from one book in particular. An intriguing old diary, penned by the house’s former mistress. Its pages warn of a sinister black dog, which appeared just before the writer’s daughter died. Now history seems doomed to repeat itself. Young mum Tina-Marie turns up at the hospital, raving of a black dog that follows her every step. She just knows it’s a bad omen. That something terrible is about to happen to her vulnerable young daughter. The next day, Tina-Marie drags herself back to Agnes’s door, a stab wound gaping in her chest. She opens her mouth to speak . . . but nothing comes out. Only one last rattling breath. Tina-Marie’s beloved daughter is nowhere to be found. Agnes will stop at nothing to bring her home safe. But that same night, Agnes is woken by growls in the dark . . . A gripping, sophisticated crime mystery that will have you intrigued from the first page. Steeped in the intoxicating atmosphere of Central London, from the twisty alleys of Soho to the grimy towpaths of Kings Cross.

The South London hostel is under attack, and Sister Agnes is trying to protect her vulnerable charges. At the same time, someone from her estranged father's past appears, bearing an odd collection of fossils. The apparent suicide of a desperate young woman resident throws Agnes into crisis – and the situation is made worse by the realisation that the fossil collection, with its strange journal, hides deeper secrets from her father's life. This page-turning crime story is about how the past informs the present, whether in the shape of fossils, or in our own family history. It is a meditation on faith, evidence, Darwinism and the age of the Universe.