Joe Sandilands Series by Barbara Cleverly

In a land of saffron sunsets and blazing summer heat, an Englishwoman has been found dead, her wrists slit, her body floating in a bathtub of blood and water. But is it suicide or murder? The case falls to Scotland Yard inspector Joe Sandilands, who survived the horror of the Western Front and has endured six sultry months in English-ruled Calcutta. Sandilands is ordered to investigate, and soon discovers that there have been other mysterious deaths, hearkening sinister ties to the present case... moreIn a land of saffron sunsets and blazing summer heat, an Englishwoman has been found dead, her wrists slit, her body floating in a bathtub of blood and water. But is it suicide or murder? The case falls to Scotland Yard inspector Joe Sandilands, who survived the horror of the Western Front and has endured six sultry months in English-ruled Calcutta. Sandilands is ordered to investigate, and soon discovers that there have been other mysterious deaths, hearkening sinister ties to the present case.Now, as the sovereignty of Britain is in decline and an insurgent India is on the rise, Sandilands must navigate the treacherous corridors of political decorum to bring a cunning killer to justice - knowing the next victim is already marked to die. less

Simla 1922. While the rest of India bakes in the hot season, up in the pine-scented coolness of the Himalayan hills the English have recreated a vision of home. Here are half-timbered houses, amateur theatricals, gymkhanas and a glittering vice-regal court for the socialites. The summer capital of the British Raj is fizzing with the energy of the jazz age. It is toward this country that detective Joe Sandilands is heading as the guest of the governor of Bengal... moreSimla 1922. While the rest of India bakes in the hot season, up in the pine-scented coolness of the Himalayan hills the English have recreated a vision of home. Here are half-timbered houses, amateur theatricals, gymkhanas and a glittering vice-regal court for the socialites. The summer capital of the British Raj is fizzing with the energy of the jazz age. It is toward this country that detective Joe Sandilands is heading as the guest of the governor of Bengal. But when Joe's travelling companion, a Russian opera singer, is shot dead at his side on the road to Simla, he finds himself plunged into a murder investigation. As Joe begins to unravel the mystery which has its roots in the aftermath of the First World War, he discovers that behind the sparkling facade of Simla lies a trail of murder, vice and blackmail.From the Paperback edition. less

In the northwest frontier 1910, the screams of a wounded British officer abandoned at the bottom of a dark ravine are heard by a young Scottish subaltern. Ignoring the command to retreat to base the Highlander sets out alone, with dagger in hand, to rescue his fellow officer from the Pathan tribesman who is slowly torturing him to death. But the bloody outcome of this rescue attempt is not what anybody could have predicted... moreIn the northwest frontier 1910, the screams of a wounded British officer abandoned at the bottom of a dark ravine are heard by a young Scottish subaltern. Ignoring the command to retreat to base the Highlander sets out alone, with dagger in hand, to rescue his fellow officer from the Pathan tribesman who is slowly torturing him to death. But the bloody outcome of this rescue attempt is not what anybody could have predicted. Over a dozen years later the backwash of this tragedy threatens to engulf Joe Sandilands. On a welcome break from his policing duties, Joe is spending a fortnight with his old army friend, James Lindsay, commander of the British army's front line fort at Gor Khatri on the Afghan border. However, the fragile peace is soon broken resulting in the death of a Pathan prince and the taking of hostages, and Joe and his companion are given seven days in which to identify, arrest and execute the killer before the frontier erupts into war. The deadly edge of the final days of the Raj sets the backdrop for this third engrossing novel in the popular Joe Sandilands series. less

In her award-winning mysteries–from The Last Kashmiri Rose to The Damascened Blade–Barbara Cleverly paints a dazzling portrait of the British Raj, infusing it with intrigue, enchantment, and menace. And in her detective hero Joe Sandilands, war veteran and Scotland Yard policeman, Cleverly gives us a gallant guide to this paradise lost. Having seen humankind at its worst, now, in a lush royal kingdom, Sandilands will see it at its most dangerously complex... moreIn her award-winning mysteries–from The Last Kashmiri Rose to The Damascened Blade–Barbara Cleverly paints a dazzling portrait of the British Raj, infusing it with intrigue, enchantment, and menace. And in her detective hero Joe Sandilands, war veteran and Scotland Yard policeman, Cleverly gives us a gallant guide to this paradise lost. Having seen humankind at its worst, now, in a lush royal kingdom, Sandilands will see it at its most dangerously complex....In northern India, Ranipur is renowned for its trove of priceless gems, its exquisite palace, and its medieval mores in matters involving men and women. But Ranipur’s prince is dying, and Joe has been sent to be Her Majesty’s witness to a charged battle of succession. With two heirs dead and another running for his life, Joe suspects that a murderer is hiding among the palace’s visitors and residents, from English opportunists to scorned wives and a dangerous seductress. Now, as a gilded, remote bastion teeters on the brink of chaos and a man-eating tiger prowls the nearby countryside, Joe must turn hunter–of a human, an animal, and the hunger that drives them both.... less

It's 1926, and Joe Sandilands is back from Ranipur, enjoying the frantic pleasures of Jazz Age London. Yet there is a darkness behind all the postwar gaiety. A woman has been discovered bludgeoned to death in her suite at the Ritz. A broken window and missing emerald necklace suggest that it is a burglary gone wrong... moreIt's 1926, and Joe Sandilands is back from Ranipur, enjoying the frantic pleasures of Jazz Age London. Yet there is a darkness behind all the postwar gaiety. A woman has been discovered bludgeoned to death in her suite at the Ritz. A broken window and missing emerald necklace suggest that it is a burglary gone wrong. But the corpse is that of a much respected member of the British establishment, Dame Beatrice Joliffe, one of the founders of the Wrens; so Scotland Yard sends Joe to conduct a swift enquiry. Then, Joliffe's companion, an ex-chorus girl, falls from Waterloo Bridge at twilight, and two of the Dame's clique of eager young Wrens commit suicide. Although these deaths make Joe suspect that Beatrice has been killed by someone close to her, he suddenly finds that the case is closed, and he is asked by his superiors to surrender his files. Against the background of a looming general strike and pressure from unseen governmental presence, Joe struggles on, picking his way through the political panic and rebelling against authority. The fifth title in the Golden Dagger Award-winning series, The Bee's Kiss builds to a shattering solution. less

1926. The war-ravaged vineyards of France. In this masterpiece of suspense from CWA Historical Dagger Award-winner Barbara Cleverly, a nameless soldier plunges Scotland Yard inspector Joe Sandilands into a shifting world of deception, rage, and murder.... A well-earned vacation takes a sharp detour when Sandilands is called to France, where a shell-shocked patient--a tragic casualty of war--is in the throes of a violent nightmare... more1926. The war-ravaged vineyards of France. In this masterpiece of suspense from CWA Historical Dagger Award-winner Barbara Cleverly, a nameless soldier plunges Scotland Yard inspector Joe Sandilands into a shifting world of deception, rage, and murder.... A well-earned vacation takes a sharp detour when Sandilands is called to France, where a shell-shocked patient--a tragic casualty of war--is in the throes of a violent nightmare. Trying to determine the mystery man's identity proves a difficult, internationally delicate task: several families are claiming the unknown soldier as their own.But it is at a famed chateau, where the wine flows and disturbing secrets abound, that Sandilands meets a woman who takes his investigation in a chillingly different direction. Strong-willed and alluring Aline Houdart's husband has been missing and presumed dead for nearly ten years. Her true motives are as elusive as the truth about a long-ago night...when a horrific crime was committed and lives changed forever. Now Sandilands, an ex-soldier himself, a man who has seen his share of bloodshed and sorrow, is waging his own battle for justice. It is a fight for his fallen comrades that will unmask a killer. Or bury the truth forever... less

Brutal murder embroils Scotland Yard commander Joe Sandilands in the intrigue and violence of late 1920s Paris in CWA Historical Dagger Award-winning author Barbara Cleverly's tour de force of suspense.... In a box at the famed Theatre des Champs-Elysees, an ex-soldier and knight of the realm is dead, his throat savagely cut. In a jail cell, diplomat George Jardine, his evening clothes stained with the slain man's blood, awaits the arrival of his old wartime friend, Joe Sandilands... moreBrutal murder embroils Scotland Yard commander Joe Sandilands in the intrigue and violence of late 1920s Paris in CWA Historical Dagger Award-winning author Barbara Cleverly's tour de force of suspense.... In a box at the famed Theatre des Champs-Elysees, an ex-soldier and knight of the realm is dead, his throat savagely cut. In a jail cell, diplomat George Jardine, his evening clothes stained with the slain man's blood, awaits the arrival of his old wartime friend, Joe Sandilands. In spite of the evidence, Sandilands believes Jardine is innocent. His search for a crucial witness--a notorious beauty who quickly vanishes--leads to the discovery of a shocking series of unsolved murders. Is Sandilands hunting a serial killer? Or has he stumbled upon something even more sinister and carefully orchestrated? As the final, chilling pieces of the puzzle fall into place, Sandilands launches his own counterattack against a killer whose sadistic agenda is about to become horrifyingly clear.... less