Mystery, Thriller & Suspense
To Make A Killing (Anna Southwood Mystery Book 2)
‘...Bedford's plot is tight and pacy.’ - The Sunday Age Hilda Trelawney, a resident of a sleepy fishing village on the Australian South coast, has recently been widowed. Her husband Mark was found dead at the bottom of a dangerous cliff walk on the Shoalhaven River, and the cops have ruled the death an accident. Hilda, however, is unconvinced. She hires private eye Anna Southwood to investigate the case. Anna soon finds that this rural idyll is not as peaceful as it seems, with the local residents at war with property developers, who seek to destroy the natural parks to make way for housing complexes and resorts. Mark was one of the key players in thwarting these plans - but could anyone have hated him enough to murder him? On a quest to get to the bottom of it all, Anna finds herself uncovering corruption in the present and past; fanaticism and greed; and lies and more lies, as gradually she unpeels layers of concealment that have lain in place for more than forty years. To Make A Killing is a gripping crime thriller from a master story teller. Praise for Jean Bedford ‘Both Anna and Bedford show promise in the world of detective fiction and we should look forward to another Anna Southwood mystery.' - New Woman ‘It is a very satisfying experience to read a detective thriller that is not only well written but so interesting it is hard to put down.’ - The Newcastle Herald Jean Bedford was born in England in 1946 and came to Australia in 1947. She was brought up in Victoria, graduated in Arts at Monash University and in TESL at the University of Papua New Guinea. She has taught English as a second language, worked as a journalist and a publisher’s editor, taught creative writing classes, and was Literary and Arts Editor of the National Times. Her short stories have appeared in Nation Review, the National Times and Meanjin, and have been widely anthologised. She is married to Peter Corris and has three daughters, Sofya, Miriam and Ruth, and a stepdaughter, Abi. She lives on a small island in Moreton Bay.
Signs of Murder (Anna Southwood Mystery Book 3)
Fiona Galloway is a young, deaf social worker - self-assured, confident and successful. But after a series of threatening letters are delivered to her door, her composure is shaken. Fearing for her safety, she turns to private eye Anna Southwood for help. Anna accepts the case with little to go on. But the clock is ticking on, and things take a sinister turn for the worse when Fiona is found brutally attacked and beaten half to death. Fiona tells Anna that she thinks the threats may be linked to her client, Jackie Sims, who is in Long Bay gaol on a murder charge. With the two cases seemingly related but with no hard evidence, Anna struggles to piece together the stories and trace them back to perpetrators. Who is so concerned about what Fiona knows that they would attempt to silence her in such a sadistic manner? Anna soon realises that there is more behind this case that initially meets the eye. With the body count increasing, she begins a race against the clock to untangle the web of intrigue - a world of crooked lawyers, shady doctors, members of Sydney’s criminal underworld, and layers of secrets and corruption ... Praise for Jean Bedford ‘Bedford has such a great eye and ear for the way we are and speak that it is a pleasure to burn the midnight oil’ - ITA Magazine ‘Bedford is up with the best’- Graeme Blundell, The Australian ‘Both Anna and Bedford show promise in the world of detective fiction and we should look forward to another Anna Southwood mystery.' - New Woman ‘It is a very satisfying experience to read a detective thriller that is not only well written but so interesting it is hard to put down.’ - The Newcastle Herald Jean Bedford was born in England in 1946 and came to Australia in 1947. She was brought up in Victoria, graduated in Arts at Monash University and in TESL at the University of Papua New Guinea. She has taught English as a second language, worked as a journalist and a publisher’s editor, taught creative writing classes, and was Literary and Arts Editor of the National Times. Her short stories have appeared in Nation Review, the National Times and Meanjin, and have been widely anthologised. She is married to Peter Corris and has three daughters, Sofya, Miriam and Ruth, and a stepdaughter, Abi. She lives on a small island in Moreton Bay
If With A Beating Heart
‘No, they were all wrong about love. Their sort of love destroyed people.' Retreating from a youth of misplaced passion among the romantic poets, Claire Clairmont has spent the rest of her life in obscurity. That is until young scholar, Simeon Collings, a scholar, tracks her down in Florence. He is desperate to get his hands on her memoirs of Byron and Shelley, so he can write a ground-breaking thesis, but Claire will not immediately give him what he wants. She knows she is close to death, and wants her life story recorded before it is too late. As Simeon listens on, Claire relives her past, from her youthful days spent with her half-sister Mary Shelley, and eminent father William Godwin, to her infatuation with Percy Bysshe Shelly, and later her affair with Lord Byron. Claire takes us from the theatrical backstreets of London to Geneva and the birth of Frankenstein. Those summer months change Claire and Simeon irrevocably, as she makes peace with her demons, and he reinvents his future, learning from the old woman how desire and ambition can indeed destroy... From the bestselling author of Sister Kate comes this haunting love story, a portrayal of an obsessive life balanced precariously between idealism and despair. Jean Bedford is an English-born Australian writer who is best known for her crime fiction, but who has also written novels and short stories, as well as nonfiction. 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.
Worse than Death (Anna Southwood Mystery Book 1)
‘Bedford is up with the best’ The Australian Recently widowed, Anna Southwood opens up her own detective agency. Tired of investigating minor cases of missing pets and nuisance calls, she is about to call it quits. Until she is hired to solve the disappearance of local girl, Beth Channing. Leonie Channing is currently being charged with the murder of her daughter, yet refuses to say anything. Even to her defence lawyer. Rex Channing is frantically searching for any trace of his daughter. Anna soon realises there is more to this case than a missing child. Similarities to Beth and another girl who disappeared two years prior cause Anna to delve further into the Channing family history. Even when her life is threatened by delving too far into certain suspects, Anna is determined to continue her investigation. Are the two disappearances related? Or are the similarities purely coincidence? Is there a serial murderer in her midst? Or are the children runaways? With no bodies located, Anna holds out hope that at least Beth can be found alive. What she doesn’t realise, is that even the seemingly trustworthy citizens have their own secrets. Worse than Death is a gripping crime novel, full of unexpected twists that will keep you guessing until the final page. Jean Bedford is an English-born Australian writer who is best known for her crime fiction, but who has also written novels and short stories, as well as nonfiction.