I never intended to turn to crime. It all started with a short story about two wee boys living on an unnamed island in the shadow of a hill. The only crime in the story was the poverty in which one of the boys lived. It should have ended there. It would have, if it hadn't been for a chance remark from another writer, keen to know what happened to the boys when they grew up. That got me thinking, and before I knew it, one of the boys was a detective and the other... Well, you'll just have to read In the Shadow of the Hill to find out. And then you might want to find out more about DS Joe Galbraith's story in Madness Lies. The settings of Inverness and the Outer Hebrides provide stunning backdrops for the dastardly deeds in the stories.

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I was perusing the old records of the Northern Counties District Lunatic Asylum (Craig Dunain Hospital) at the Highland Archive Centre in Inverness, when I felt another story coming on. Unravelling was born, and it's a dark, murky tale of family secrets,  madness and murder.​

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Off to the capital city of Edinburgh next, where I spent many happy years living and studying. Deception was in my head for a long time before it came to print. It's a tale of a relationship mired in deceit and lies. Some family secrets too ...

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Queen of Grime is also set in Edinburgh. It's a grim and darkly funny tale of crime scene cleaner, Erin Flett, and - yes, you've guessed - the ultimate in family secrets. There's a prequel novella too - Spoils of the Dead - available as a free e-book for subscribers to our mailing list.

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The Queen of Grime series continues with The Silent Watching, due out in January 2026. Watch this space for further details.​

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