Books
The Inspector Lamb Mystery Series
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In the spring of 1942, with the war in Europe raging, a gruesome murder shocks the rural community of Marbury, where a once-grand estate called Elton House has been transformed into a hospital for “shell-shocked” officers sent back from the front lines. When Detective Chief Inspector Lamb arrives to solve the case, he quickly learns that the victim, Elton House's gardener Joseph Lee, had plenty of enemies in Marbury—and so he and his team have plenty of suspects. Along with his team of investigators, which includes his daughter Vera, Lamb begins to untangle the threads of rivalry and deceit that lie beneath the surface of the seemingly-peaceful countryside village. It soon becomes clear that Lee’s mysterious past is intertwined with the history of Elton House itself, which fell into disrepair a generation earlier after a shockingly similar murder. The mystery only deepens when Lamb discovers that one of the prime suspects has seemingly committed suicide. As Lamb pieces together the connections between the crimes of the present and those of the past, he must dive into the darkest, most secret corners of Elton House to discover who is committing murder, and why.
"This will appeal to fans of Rennie Airth and Charles Todd.” (Publishers Weekly)
"Don’t we all occasionally long for an old-fashioned country mystery with a tricky plot and an eccentric cast of characters?" (Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review) [Praise for the Inspector Lamb mystery series]
"Hushed In Death is a well-crafted historical mystery with characters which highly resemble a classic Agatha Christie novel. Kelly’s atmospheric portrait of Marbury makes this a refreshing read for both fans of historical and cozy mystery novels." (Mystery Tribune)
"Kelly does a great job of writing in the style of earlier decades, so be prepared to reduce speed and savor the detective at work ... I most enjoyed the novel’s eccentric characters, from the séance-sharing widow to the unsuccessful playwright and his pet ball python." (Historical Novel Society)
"Don’t we all occasionally long for an old-fashioned country mystery with a tricky plot and an eccentric cast of characters?" (Marilyn Stasio, The New York Times Book Review) [Praise for the Inspector Lamb mystery series]
"Hushed In Death is a well-crafted historical mystery with characters which highly resemble a classic Agatha Christie novel. Kelly’s atmospheric portrait of Marbury makes this a refreshing read for both fans of historical and cozy mystery novels." (Mystery Tribune)
"Kelly does a great job of writing in the style of earlier decades, so be prepared to reduce speed and savor the detective at work ... I most enjoyed the novel’s eccentric characters, from the séance-sharing widow to the unsuccessful playwright and his pet ball python." (Historical Novel Society)
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The Wages of Desire
An Inspector Lamb Novel In the late summer of 1941, as the war in Europe drags on, long-buried secrets begin to surface in the Hampshire village of Winstead, when the body of a young woman – a former conscientious objector - is found shot to death in the church cemetery. The woman’s only connection to Winstead seems to be that she lately has joined a group of conscripted workers who are building a prisoner of war camp on an abandoned farm near the village. But Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Lamb, who is called in to solve the case, has his doubts. The mystery deepens when workers at the farm find the remains of a child in the foundation of the old farmhouse, and a tramp who had been squatting in the wood near the church turns up dead. Lamb soon begins to suspect that the crimes might be related to a tragic event that occurred in Winstead more than twenty years earlier. As he pieces together the connections between the crimes, Lamb draws closer to the source of evil in Winstead’s past and present and, in the end, must risk his own life to uncover the truth. Available August 2016 |
Praise for The Wages of Desire
"Kelly’s pleasantly baffling second whodunit featuring Det. Chief Insp. Thomas Lamb of the Hampshire Constabulary fulfills the promise of 2015’s The Language of the Dead. Fans of the TV series Foyle’s War, which similarly addresses the role of the police during WWII, will be pleased." (Publishers Weekly - Starred review)
"Don’t we all occasionally long for an old-fashioned country mystery with a tricky plot and an eccentric cast of characters? Stephen Kelly’s The Wages of Desire, although set in Hampshire during World War II, doesn’t quite ring all those bells, but it’ll do. For the most part, the residents of Winstead are the sort of people you’d expect to find in a quiet rural village in 1942, even 12-year-old Lilly Martin, who spies on the neighbors in hopes of collecting material for a crime novel. (“She’d been surprised to discover how restless Winstead could be at night.”) But something isn’t quite right about Gerald Wimberly, the vicar of St. Michael’s Church — or, as the police would have it after interrogating him about a woman found murdered in the cemetery, the “bloody lying vicar.” Could this death be connected to a prisoner-of-war camp being built on a derelict farm, where the bones of a child are unearthed? What else will tumble out of the rotting woodwork?" (New York Times Book Review - Marilyn Stasio)
"Kelly adds something perversely novel, and potentially divisive, to the decorous conventions of his golden-age models: abrupt shifts in point of view, sometimes within a single scene, between characters who seem right out of Agatha Christie and those with considerably darker doings on their minds." (Kirkuk Reviews)
“The war is more matter of fact than oppressive presence in this second Lamb mystery, as decades-old secrets are wrapped up in a satisfying conclusion.” (Booklist)
"The Wages of Desire is historical mystery at its very best, well-researched, well-written and well worth reading!" (Reader to Reader Reviews)
NOW AVAILABLE IN PAPERBACK. BUY IT AT THE LINKS BELOW.
The Language of the Dead
"An evocative debut with a dark secret at its heart, The Language of the Dead grips from the beginning and refuses to relinquish its hold until the final page."
As the shadow of World War II descends over Europe, Detective Chief Inspector Thomas Lamb hunts for an elusive killer behind the veil of a seemingly charming English village.
German bombers are arriving daily, seeking to crush England. But in a rural Hampshire village, life has remained relatively quiet—until an elderly loner, Will Blackwell, is brutally murdered. The method of his killing bears the hallmarks of the traditional vanquishing of a witch and, indeed, local legend claims that as a boy Blackwell encountered a ghostly black dog sent from the devil, who struck a bargain for Blackwell’s soul.
Not long after the murder, a young woman who is carrying the illegitimate child of a fighter pilot also is violently killed; then a local drunkard ends up in the race of an abandoned mill with the back of his head bashed in. As the Germans continue their relentless attack, Lamb rushes to solve the crimes.
Do the killer’s motivations lie in the murky regions of the occult?
German bombers are arriving daily, seeking to crush England. But in a rural Hampshire village, life has remained relatively quiet—until an elderly loner, Will Blackwell, is brutally murdered. The method of his killing bears the hallmarks of the traditional vanquishing of a witch and, indeed, local legend claims that as a boy Blackwell encountered a ghostly black dog sent from the devil, who struck a bargain for Blackwell’s soul.
Not long after the murder, a young woman who is carrying the illegitimate child of a fighter pilot also is violently killed; then a local drunkard ends up in the race of an abandoned mill with the back of his head bashed in. As the Germans continue their relentless attack, Lamb rushes to solve the crimes.
Do the killer’s motivations lie in the murky regions of the occult?
Praise for The Language of the Dead
“Readers of the wonderful Charles Todd series will recognize the premise of a former soldier-turned-cop affected by the war but debut novelist Stephen Kelly makes this novel both reassuring and fresh. Vivid. Readers will look forward to spending more time with these characters.” (Michele Ross of NPR Atlanta's "Mystery Guest.") Listen to the review here: http://wabe.org/post/english-wartime-crime-fiction-offers-hint-occult
"Stephen Kelly gives us a debut crime novel of intricacy and depth. ... A highly satisfying conclusion wraps up THE LANGUAGE OF THE DEAD, and there's good reason to hope that Pegasus Crime will follow up with a sequel from Stephen Kelly. Since this one's a debut, collectors will want to catch a copy in first printing -- take action now, as the book was released on April 15." (Mystery author Beth Kannell, owner of Kingdom Books, a specialty mystery bookshop in Vermont.) Read the full review here: http://kingdombks.blogspot.com/2015/04/policing-during-world-war-ii-language.html?spref=tw
"As German bombs rain down on England, all remains fairly quiet in the remote Hampshire village of Quimby. Until its residents start turning up dead. First Will Blackwell, an elderly loner, is found murdered, his death eerily reminiscent of the manner in which suspected witches in the same area were once killed. Adding fuel to the rumor mill, stories circulate that, as a boy, Blackwell made some sort of Faustian pact with a ghostlike black hound. The country cop in charge of investigating, as well as trying to quell the villagers’ panic about both the murder and the Germans’ impending invasion, is DI Thomas Lamb. Soon after, a young woman who is carrying the illegitimate child of a pilot is also discovered dead, along with the town drunk, who is found in the mill, his skull crushed. With his constituency dropping faster than the Germans can bomb them, it’s up to Lamb to solve this perplexing case. VERDICT: Fans of well-researched historical mysteries, particularly the work of Charles Todd and Charles Finch, will welcome this solid debut that introduces a complex, driven hero who is both a product of his time and relatable in our modern age. Here’s hoping this will be the first of many installments featuring the endearing Lamb." (Library Journal)
“This is a thrilling read. An evocative debut with a dark secret at its heart, Language of the Dead grips from the beginning and refuses to relinquish its hold until the final page. Based on a real case the novel takes the facts in a new and original direction, providing a thrilling dénouement via some very satisfying twists and turns. I for one can't wait to read more about the adventures of Inspector Lamb and his team in the future.” (Diana Bretherick, author of City of Devils)
“Kelly transports his reader fully and with convincing authenticity to a different time and place. They just happen to be a time of war and a place of darkness and menace—and once he's got you there, he spins his web of intrigue with expert ease. Superb stuff!” (Craig Russell, international bestselling author of the Fabel and Lennox thriller series)
"Charles Todd fans will welcome Kelly’s first novel, a superior whodunit set in WWII England. In the summer of 1940, with the Luftwaffe making frequent bombing raids, Det. Chief Insp. Thomas Lamb is naturally worried about his 18-year-old daughter, Vera, who has recently begun working in the south-coast village of Quimby as an air raid warden. Meanwhile, Lamb must investigate the murder of William Blackwell, an elderly farmhand, who was run through the neck with his own pitchfork with a scythe buried in his chest. A milkmaid was dispatched in the same savage manner in 1882, and rumor has it that the dead man was a witch, based on a supposed encounter in 1880 between a 10-year-old Blackwell and a demonic black dog, a story recounted in a book of local legend. Lamb, who’s haunted by his experiences in WWI, is a complex lead meriting further outings." (Publisher's Weekly)
"Novelists love to turn the cherished notion of the “simple life” of the picturesque English village upside down. In Kelly’s debut, it’s July 1940, and the Luftwaffe is trying to bomb England into submission, but Quimby, a small Hampshire village, is routinely passed over. Then old Will Blackwell is brutally murdered, a tine of a pitchfork in his throat and a scythe buried in his chest. Detective Inspector Thomas Lamb is summoned and soon learns that the attack mirrors the traditional means of dispatching a warlock. Two more bodies also turn up. Wickedness seems to abound in Quimby. Lamb must sort it out, but the taciturn villagers all seem to be hiding something. The crusty Lamb is a well-conceived character, but what makes the novel work is Kelly’s portrait of the village and the almost palpable sense of menace that comes from the possibility of a Nazi invasion." (Booklist)
“Chief Inspector Thomas Lamb investigates the brutal killing of an old man, the subject of a demoniacal local legend, while the Battle of Britain rages in the skies above the English countryside. Haunted by memories of the First World War reignited by the incessant air combat, Lamb follows a twisted trail of evidence including an emotionally disturbed boy's cryptic drawings. The investigation uncovers dark secrets that connect the victim's death to a series of murders. Filled with believable, psychologically complex characters in a vividly evoked historical setting, this superbly written, suspenseful mystery keeps the reader guessing from the very beginning to a startling conclusion.” (Gary Inbinder, author of The Devil in Montmartre)
"Bombing runs by the Luftwaffe are only the most obvious sign of lethal conflict in journalist Kelly’s fine-grained first novel. July 1940. Despite the proximity of a Spitfire factory, nobody thinks there’s anything in the Hampshire village of Quimby that the Führer would want to destroy. So despite nightly blackouts and air-raid sirens and the heartbreaking absence of so many young men, the locals have plenty of leisure to ask who thrust farmhand Will Blackwell’s pitchfork through his neck, carved a cross onto his forehead and impaled his scythe in his chest. And who beat pregnant infirmary volunteer Emily Fordham to death along the road to Lipscombe. And who treated farmer Michael Bradford, who’d complained that one of his chickens had been stolen and ritually slaughtered, to more of the same. DCI Thomas Lamb and DS David Wallace, both facing running battles in their private lives, wonder whether and how the crimes are related and what Peter Wilkins, the mute teenager who lives on Lord Jeffrey Pembroke’s estate, may know about the case—and may be trying to communicate through his beautifully executed, deeply disturbing drawings of insects. And they can’t help wondering too about the villagers’ 60-year history of summarily executing innocents thought to be witches. As Lamb and Wallace and resentful DI Harry Rivers probe beneath Quimby’s decorous surface for mystery upon mystery—some of them a lot harder to figure out than others—the Blitz is coming closer than they can imagine." (Kirkus Reviews)
“Stephen Kelly's The Language of the Dead is a gripping mystery set in the middle of the German air raids on Britain in World War Two. Grisly murder, war, the occult, and lively characters with dark secrets all come together in this fine story.” (Philip Freeman, author of St. Brigid's Bones)
“Readers of the wonderful Charles Todd series will recognize the premise of a former soldier-turned-cop affected by the war but debut novelist Stephen Kelly makes this novel both reassuring and fresh. Vivid. Readers will look forward to spending more time with these characters.” (Michele Ross of NPR Atlanta's "Mystery Guest.") Listen to the review here: http://wabe.org/post/english-wartime-crime-fiction-offers-hint-occult
"Stephen Kelly gives us a debut crime novel of intricacy and depth. ... A highly satisfying conclusion wraps up THE LANGUAGE OF THE DEAD, and there's good reason to hope that Pegasus Crime will follow up with a sequel from Stephen Kelly. Since this one's a debut, collectors will want to catch a copy in first printing -- take action now, as the book was released on April 15." (Mystery author Beth Kannell, owner of Kingdom Books, a specialty mystery bookshop in Vermont.) Read the full review here: http://kingdombks.blogspot.com/2015/04/policing-during-world-war-ii-language.html?spref=tw
"As German bombs rain down on England, all remains fairly quiet in the remote Hampshire village of Quimby. Until its residents start turning up dead. First Will Blackwell, an elderly loner, is found murdered, his death eerily reminiscent of the manner in which suspected witches in the same area were once killed. Adding fuel to the rumor mill, stories circulate that, as a boy, Blackwell made some sort of Faustian pact with a ghostlike black hound. The country cop in charge of investigating, as well as trying to quell the villagers’ panic about both the murder and the Germans’ impending invasion, is DI Thomas Lamb. Soon after, a young woman who is carrying the illegitimate child of a pilot is also discovered dead, along with the town drunk, who is found in the mill, his skull crushed. With his constituency dropping faster than the Germans can bomb them, it’s up to Lamb to solve this perplexing case. VERDICT: Fans of well-researched historical mysteries, particularly the work of Charles Todd and Charles Finch, will welcome this solid debut that introduces a complex, driven hero who is both a product of his time and relatable in our modern age. Here’s hoping this will be the first of many installments featuring the endearing Lamb." (Library Journal)
“This is a thrilling read. An evocative debut with a dark secret at its heart, Language of the Dead grips from the beginning and refuses to relinquish its hold until the final page. Based on a real case the novel takes the facts in a new and original direction, providing a thrilling dénouement via some very satisfying twists and turns. I for one can't wait to read more about the adventures of Inspector Lamb and his team in the future.” (Diana Bretherick, author of City of Devils)
“Kelly transports his reader fully and with convincing authenticity to a different time and place. They just happen to be a time of war and a place of darkness and menace—and once he's got you there, he spins his web of intrigue with expert ease. Superb stuff!” (Craig Russell, international bestselling author of the Fabel and Lennox thriller series)
"Charles Todd fans will welcome Kelly’s first novel, a superior whodunit set in WWII England. In the summer of 1940, with the Luftwaffe making frequent bombing raids, Det. Chief Insp. Thomas Lamb is naturally worried about his 18-year-old daughter, Vera, who has recently begun working in the south-coast village of Quimby as an air raid warden. Meanwhile, Lamb must investigate the murder of William Blackwell, an elderly farmhand, who was run through the neck with his own pitchfork with a scythe buried in his chest. A milkmaid was dispatched in the same savage manner in 1882, and rumor has it that the dead man was a witch, based on a supposed encounter in 1880 between a 10-year-old Blackwell and a demonic black dog, a story recounted in a book of local legend. Lamb, who’s haunted by his experiences in WWI, is a complex lead meriting further outings." (Publisher's Weekly)
"Novelists love to turn the cherished notion of the “simple life” of the picturesque English village upside down. In Kelly’s debut, it’s July 1940, and the Luftwaffe is trying to bomb England into submission, but Quimby, a small Hampshire village, is routinely passed over. Then old Will Blackwell is brutally murdered, a tine of a pitchfork in his throat and a scythe buried in his chest. Detective Inspector Thomas Lamb is summoned and soon learns that the attack mirrors the traditional means of dispatching a warlock. Two more bodies also turn up. Wickedness seems to abound in Quimby. Lamb must sort it out, but the taciturn villagers all seem to be hiding something. The crusty Lamb is a well-conceived character, but what makes the novel work is Kelly’s portrait of the village and the almost palpable sense of menace that comes from the possibility of a Nazi invasion." (Booklist)
“Chief Inspector Thomas Lamb investigates the brutal killing of an old man, the subject of a demoniacal local legend, while the Battle of Britain rages in the skies above the English countryside. Haunted by memories of the First World War reignited by the incessant air combat, Lamb follows a twisted trail of evidence including an emotionally disturbed boy's cryptic drawings. The investigation uncovers dark secrets that connect the victim's death to a series of murders. Filled with believable, psychologically complex characters in a vividly evoked historical setting, this superbly written, suspenseful mystery keeps the reader guessing from the very beginning to a startling conclusion.” (Gary Inbinder, author of The Devil in Montmartre)
"Bombing runs by the Luftwaffe are only the most obvious sign of lethal conflict in journalist Kelly’s fine-grained first novel. July 1940. Despite the proximity of a Spitfire factory, nobody thinks there’s anything in the Hampshire village of Quimby that the Führer would want to destroy. So despite nightly blackouts and air-raid sirens and the heartbreaking absence of so many young men, the locals have plenty of leisure to ask who thrust farmhand Will Blackwell’s pitchfork through his neck, carved a cross onto his forehead and impaled his scythe in his chest. And who beat pregnant infirmary volunteer Emily Fordham to death along the road to Lipscombe. And who treated farmer Michael Bradford, who’d complained that one of his chickens had been stolen and ritually slaughtered, to more of the same. DCI Thomas Lamb and DS David Wallace, both facing running battles in their private lives, wonder whether and how the crimes are related and what Peter Wilkins, the mute teenager who lives on Lord Jeffrey Pembroke’s estate, may know about the case—and may be trying to communicate through his beautifully executed, deeply disturbing drawings of insects. And they can’t help wondering too about the villagers’ 60-year history of summarily executing innocents thought to be witches. As Lamb and Wallace and resentful DI Harry Rivers probe beneath Quimby’s decorous surface for mystery upon mystery—some of them a lot harder to figure out than others—the Blitz is coming closer than they can imagine." (Kirkus Reviews)
“Stephen Kelly's The Language of the Dead is a gripping mystery set in the middle of the German air raids on Britain in World War Two. Grisly murder, war, the occult, and lively characters with dark secrets all come together in this fine story.” (Philip Freeman, author of St. Brigid's Bones)
