Alison Bruce – författare

Making a fresh start can be hard, especially with a killer watching . . .

When her sister was murdered, Jane Osborne left Cambridge and swore she'd never return. But now, Detective Gary Goodhew has stumbled onto a case that will drag Jane kicking and screaming through her painful past.

A car set on fire, a man tied to a tree, a convicted murderer on parole. All of these things are connected, and only Gary Goodhew can figure out how.

This unforgettable novel of suspense will thrill fans of Deborah Crombie and Elizabeth George.

A rash of unexplained suicides. An old woman’s baffling illness. A brutal murder. Detective Gary Goodhew must figure out what's connecting them—or die trying . . .

The esteemed Detective Gary Goodhew must solve a disturbing puzzle when he stumbles upon a circle of friends who seem to be afflicted by a plague of teenage suicides.  Poor Charlotte Stone . . . her whole life she has been burdened by grief.  First her terminally ill mother dies and then, just weeks later two of her childhood friends take their own lives. 

Detective Goodhew begins to realize that this web of tragedy is not woven by coincidence.  In his search for the link between this series of deaths, Goodhew is forced to recall deeply buried memories of a murder investigation that went cold years ago—memories that lead him to Charlotte Stone. Together they must stop the course of events set in motion years ago . . .

In this unforgettable novel, Alison Bruce twists a shocking tale that will thrill fans of Deborah Crombie and Tana French.

''Bruce is doing for Cambridge what Colin Dexter did for Oxford with Inspector Morse'' Daily MailA fresh start in a place you hate. Even tougher with a killer watching...Jane Osborne left Cambridge and vowed she''d never return. An unexpected twist of fortune results in DC Goodhew bringing her back to the remnants of her old life and a confrontation with the man who killed her sister.Meanwhile a burning car on the outskirts of Cambridge leads to the discovery of the body of its owner, Paul Marshall. There seems nothing to connect it to either a recent assault, or to Jane Osborne, until a shocking discovery rips Goodhew''s investigation apart.Praise for Cambridge Blue:''Menacing and insidious, this is a great novel'' R J Ellory''A fast-paced gritty tale guaranteed to have you hooked from beginning to end'' Cambridgeshire Pride''A gripping tale of murder and mystery'' Cambridge Style

''Bruce is doing for Cambridge what Colin Dexter did for Oxford with Inspector Morse'' Daily MailThe promise seemed simple. The scars would last a lifetime.In a single night, Kyle Phipps''s life is derailed. His relationship is over, he is denied access to his young son and everything important to him is at risk.His thoughts stumble between fear and revenge. Kyle Phipps has a choice to make.Meanwhile, after the tragic end to a previous case, DC Gary Goodhew finds himself questioning his reasons for returning to work until the badly beaten body of a homeless man is found on Market Hill. Having known the homeless man for several years Goodhew feels compelled to be part of the investigation - but routine lines of enquiry soon take a dark and unexpected turn...Suddenly the Cambridge back streets hold deadly secrets for Goodhew and the only person who has the answers is planning one final, desperate act.Praise for Cambridge Blue:''Menacing and insidious, this is a great novel'' R J Ellory''A fast-paced gritty tale guaranteed to have you hooked from beginning to end'' Cambridgeshire Pride''A gripping tale of murder and mystery'' Cambridge Style

''Bruce is doing for Cambridge what Colin Dexter did for Oxford with Inspector Morse'' Daily MailA cold case waits to be solved . . . and a killer waits in the wings.Amy was seven years old when her father was arrested for murder. His subsequent trial and conviction scarred her childhood and cast a shadow over her life until, twenty-two years later, new evidence suggests he was innocent and Amy sets out to clear his name. But Amy is not the only person troubled by the past. DC Gary Goodhew is haunted by the day his grandfather was murdered and is still searching for answers, determined to uncover the truth about his grandfather''s death and find his killer.But, right now, someone is about to die. Someone who has secrets and who once kept quiet but is now living on borrowed time. Someone who will be murdered because disturbing the past has woken a killer.Praise for Cambridge Blue:''Menacing and insidious, this is a great novel'' R J Ellory''A fast-paced gritty tale guaranteed to have you hooked from beginning to end'' Cambridgeshire Pride''A gripping tale of murder and mystery'' Cambridge Style

''Unpredictable, challenging and compelling'' Sophie HannahFrom the first time I saw them together I knew it felt wrong. I didn''t like the way he touched her or the self-conscious way he played with Molly and Luke. Joanne saw none of it of course. So I did it to prove to her that she was wrong. I did it for us.Emily''s instincts tell her that best friend Joanne''s new boyfriend is bad news. Emily fears for Joanne. Fears for Joanne''s children. But Joanne won''t listen because she''s in love. So Emily watches, and waits . . . and then she makes a choice. But Emily has a past, and secrets too. And is she really as good a friend to Joanne as she claims?''Never before have I read such a compelling, chilling read that kept me intrigued from beginning to end . . . If you adore psychological thrillers and books such as The Girl on the Train, then this is a must read!'' Red Headed Book Lover Blog ''I Did It For Us held me from the off. It''s compelling, slickly plotted and brilliantly written'' Amanda Jennings

''Unpredictable, challenging and compelling'' Sophie HannahA terrible car accident - or calculated murder?An evening out for five students ends in tragedy, with two dead and one critically injured. Nicci Waldock survives, but her life is left in tatters. Years later, a sighting of Jack Bailey, the brother of her dead friend, leaves her with a shocking realisation about the night of the accident.Helped by former journalist Celia Henry, Nicci sets out to learn the truth about what really happened, and discovers a series of lies and dangerous secrets that have distorted everything she thinks she knows.In uncovering the tangled truth of what happened that night three years ago, Nicci must decide who she can trust, and who is about to kill again. And she realises that everything can be saved or lost in the moment before impact.Praise for Alison Bruce''As always, Bruce produces a rewarding read'' The Times''I Did It For Us held me from the off. It''s compelling, slickly plotted and brilliantly written'' Amanda Jennings''One of our most interesting crime writers'' Daily Mail

''Admirers of Bruce''s superb DC Goodhew series will seize on this - the first book in her new Cambridge-set series. Utterly engrossing, and with plot twists that keep you guessing till the end, this is a brilliant start to what promises to be a terrific new series.'' Christina Koning''A powerful and absorbing story that stayed with me long after I''d finished reading. A writer at the top of her game'' Elly Griffiths''Because She Looked Away is fast paced, twisty, clever, and satisfying, an engaging start to a new series from an established author'' Emily Winslow''One of our most interesting crime writers'' Daily MailAfter the sudden death of her sister, devastated detective DS Ronnie Blake relocates to Cambridge to help her brother Alex raise their sister''s young son, Noah. She reports for her first day but instead finds herself being questioned by a special investigations unit, nicknamed the DEAD Team.With a small group of six, led by DI Fenton, the once-successful DEAD team has a single outstanding case, Operation Byron, and the failure to resolve it threatens the unit''s existence. Their most promising lead is an anonymous note linking three seemingly unconnected people: a convicted fraudster, a dead academic... and Ronnie''s sister Jodie.When Ronnie is denied information about Operation Byron, she follows a lead slipped to her by Malachi, the youngest member of the team, and makes a discovery which links Operation Byron to a disturbing unsolved murder. She is rapidly drawn into an intricate web of deceit, buried secrets and tragedy and the discovery that her connection to Cambridge is far darker than she could ever have guessed. Praise for Alison Bruce''Alison Bruce always delivers. Her latest is tense, twisty, terrific'' Ian Rankin'' [Alison Bruce] has written a superior thriller, full of suppressed menace'' The Times Crime Club''Unpredictable, challenging and compelling'' Sophie Hannah''Alison Bruce has long been one of the most adroit crime fiction practitioners in the UK. The Moment Before Impact is . . . her most accomplished outing yet'' Barry Forshaw, Financial Time''As always, Bruce produces a rewarding read'' The Times''I Did It For Us held me from the off. It''s compelling, slickly plotted and brilliantly written'' Amanda Jennings

''Bruce is doing for Cambridge what Colin Dexter did for Oxford with Inspector Morse'' Daily MailAll it took was one small item on the regional news for Kimberly Guyver and Rachel Golinski to know that their old life was catching up with them. They wondered how they''d been naïve enough to think it wouldn''t. They hoped they still had a chance to leave it behind - just one more time - but within hours, Rachel''s home is burning and Kimberly''s young son, Riley, is missing.DC Goodhew begins to sift through their lives, and starts to uncover an unsettling picture of deceit, murder and accelerating danger. Kimberly seems distraught but also defensive and uncooperative. Is it fear and mistrust of the police which are putting her son at risk, or darker motivations?With Riley''s life in peril, Goodhew needs Kimberly to make choices, but she has to understand, the one thing she cannot afford is another mistake.Praise for Cambridge Blue:''Menacing and insidious, this is a great novel'' R J Ellory''A fast-paced gritty tale guaranteed to have you hooked from beginning to end'' Cambridgeshire Pride''A gripping tale of murder and mystery'' Cambridge Style

''Bruce is doing for Cambridge what Colin Dexter did for Oxford with Inspector Morse'' Daily MailDC Gary Goodhew is intelligent, intuitive and the youngest detective at Cambridge''s Parkside Station. He is the first on the scene when the body of a young woman is discovered on Midsummer Common and for the first time in his career is given the chance to work on a murder investigation.Soon there is an identity for the victim: Lorna Spence. Richard Moran, her boyfriend and employer, has reported her missing and is distraught to discover that she has been killed. He claims she was loved by his staff and his sisters, reserved Alice and vulnerable Jackie. He says she had no enemies but it isn''t long before Goodhew discovers plenty, including her high maintenance colleague Victoria and Goodhew''s reckless former classmate Bryn.They both swear that they have nothing to do with Lorna''s death but Goodhew knows someone is lying. Then there is another brutal murder and Goodhew knows it is time to use his own initiative to flush out the killer, even though it means risking his job and discovering the truth about the one person he hopes will be innocent.''A gripping tale of murder and mystery'' Cambridge Style''Menacing and insidious, this is a great novel'' R J Ellory

''Bruce is doing for Cambridge what Colin Dexter did for Oxford with Inspector Morse'' Daily MailKaye Whiting went to buy a birthday present and didn''t come back. She isn''t dead, or physically injured. But she is alone and very, very scared.Fifty miles away in Cambridge town centre a deeply disturbed young woman is standing by a payphone. She knows she often feels compelled to do harmful things and is driven by a desire to make a call. DC Gary Goodhew is one of the detectives assigned to find Kaye and when her body is discovered the only clue to the potential murderer is a woman''s voice on his answerphone saying, ''Kaye isn''t the first and won''t be the last...''Praise for Cambridge Blue:''Menacing and insidious, this is a great novel'' R J Ellory''A fast-paced gritty tale guaranteed to have you hooked from beginning to end'' Cambridgeshire Pride''A gripping tale of murder and mystery'' Cambridge Style