Endgame by Daniel Cole

That puzzling chestnut: a suicide (or is it murder?) in a locked room, especially when the victim is a retired police officer. It’s only a disgraced detective William ‘Wolf’ Fawkes who isn’t so sure.

He and his team begin to dig into Finlay Shaw’s past, for a possible motive for murder. Was Shaw dirty? Or was he on the trail of corrupt police? If so, would those he hunted kill to save themselves?

Exciting, page turning.

Daniel Cole is an author after my own heart, prefers to be down the beach when he should be writing. Thinking time, Daniel. Thinking time it’s called.

Endgame by Daniel Cole. hb and ebook pub Trapeze £16.99/£9.99

Fugitive 13 by Rob Sinclair

The second book in the SLEEPER 13 series, but fine as a stand alone.

So: Aydin Torkal -aka Sleeper 13 – is on the run from international intelligence agencies, and the insurgents he has betrayed.

Of course, he has an ally. Someone who believes in him, and that is M16 agent Rachel Cox, who is glad he is supportive in the ongoing war against terror, an ally indeed. But who else is there who can be classed in this way – an ally? It seems perhaps not her colleagues. So she’s on her guard, on the hunt.

And as for Aydin, he hunts down those who committed the sin of destroying his childhood, but where will that trail lead ? Aaah, read and see.

I like espionage thrillers,and this is a good ‘un. The title is evocative. 13 is such a flag for ‘unease, for trouble’.

In our street, there is no thirteen. It goes from 12 to 14. 13 is scary, brings bad luck.

Fugitive 13 by Rob Sinclair. pb £7.99 eBook £4.99. Audio book available.

The Adventures of Maud West – Lady Detective by Susannah Stapleton

Non-fiction, a true story about the life and career of Maud West, one of Britain’s first lady-detectives.

Maud opened her agency in London in 1905, and thereby started a thirty year career sleuthing at the behest of society’s finest who might not want their linen, or silk, ferreted about with, and aired in public by the coppers. Maud is far more private as behoves a Private Deterctive.

By no means a shrinking violet,our  Maud’s exploits grabbed international headlines but who was she really?

Susannah Stapleton, an historical researcher, put dear Maud  under the microscope, ignoring the red herrings Maud liked to scatter in her wake in order to preserve her own version of the truth. No, no, none of that. Come into the garden Maud and let Stapleton show you your life, as it really was.

Fascinating portrait of a woman ahead of her time, not to mention the gossipy shock and deliciousness of glimpses into Society’s nether regions. I enjoyed it. Bravo and good old Maud, good on Susannah for exposing the evidence of a life definitely lived.

The Adventures of Maud West, Lady Detective by Susannah Stapleton.

Annie Clarke’s latest book, Heroes on the Home Front is out now.

The glorious M.C. Beaton has done it again with Beating About the Bush  – a blisteringly funny teasing mystery, with the redoubtable Agatha Raisin blundering around, offending willy nilly and not caring. I adore this woman, and as always, as I read, I know I have met my disgruntled soul mate, or has Beaton has been peeping through my curtains?

Listen a moment: you know you buy those Christmas presents that you wish you’d bought for yourself? Well, buy this and a second for that sensible person who – Snakes and b…….s – adores our Aggie too.

Agatha is known for her repetitions, as am I. One of Agatha’s is to shout every time she passes woodland in a car. ‘That’s a good place to dump a body.’ It drives everyone mad, as it drives my family mad when I say, ‘Should we have taken that turning? Just asking.’

Agatha is not alone in her predilection, for the police find elderly Mrs Dunwiddy in the woodland next to the road leading out of Mircester.

Of course our Cotswold resident, Agatha, runs her own investigation, digging deep, heeldless of bosses, Russians, and the sensitivities of those around her.  And let us not forget her complicated love life.. And what is going to happen between her and Sir Charles Frith?

Oh lord, what a treat, what a fabulous read, what laughs, what larks, what charm, what naughtiness. I love this woman. Read it, give it, let others share in this crazy Agatha Raisin world.

Beating About the Bush by M.C. Beaton hb £18.99  pub Constable.

Annie Clarke’s latest novel Heroes on the Home Front is out now.

Snap Dragon by Drumond Park is my sort of game, eh, I mean my grandson’s sort of game. Well he needs someone to play with doesn’t he? And this is such fun.

It centres around a big purple dragon. Each player takes it in turn to throw a die, and then pull on the dragon’s tongue to see if he snaps at them. If he doesn’t, you gain a gold coin, but if he does, you lose one.

Simple, no complicated rules and lots of excitement. I find my adrenaline levels shoot up more than my grandson’s as I pull on that scary tongue, wondering whether those big teeth will snap shut or not.  Recommended ages: fours years old to very big kids.

RSP £22.99  Stockists include; Smyths, Argos, Amazon, Entertainer, John Lewis and Independents

And for slightly bigger ‘children’ (recommended from five plus years old), Pile Up Pirates has a similar element of raucousness and laughter to Snap Dragons. With all the TV series and films, pirates are as popular today as they were in my childhood and this game is simple and visual – maximum fun with minimum effort – I love it.

It consists of a small pirate boat and a jolly pirate standing on a wobbly deck, holding a plank above his head. The players need to balance more little pirates on more planks one on top of the other, all above the first one. Eventually the inevitable will happen, and they will all come tumbling down. The trick is not to let the boat deck wobble. But who will place the last pirate before disaster strikes?

RSP £12.99  Stockists include; Amazon, Argos, Shop Direct and John Lewis

By Dr K Thompson, author of From Both Ends of the Stethoscope: Getting through breast cancer – by a doctor who knows

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01A7DM42Q http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01A7DM42Q

http://faitobooks.co.uk

Note: These articles express personal views. No warranty is made as to the accuracy or completeness of information given and you should always consult a doctor if you need medical advice.

Having two grandsons, I’m always looking for novel toys and Build A Johnny Tractor is a delight.  It makes a lovely free-rolling push-along for the seven-month old, in cheery colours and big friendly eyes on the windscreen. However, for my older, pre-school grandson, who loves to copy Daddy and Grandad when they have their toolboxes out, it is a dream. The tractor comes with, guess what, an electric drill (albeit a safe plastic version of the real thing). However it really works, and has two bits, which your child can use to take the whole tractor apart. The wheels come off and the body takes apart. Then he can use the power drill once more to build it back together again. How do they think of such great toys? The drill is powered by two AA batteries and the individual pieces are chunky, to make it easy for little hands to assemble.

At just RSP £24.99 I think this is a brilliant toy for youngsters.  Stockists include; The Entertainer, Smyths, Argos, Amazon, John Lewis, Debenhams and Dunelm

Aquadoodle mats are great fun for all ages – such a simple but effective idea. A mat, printed in various designs and a special pen – that’s it – easy storage and easy to take in the car or on holiday.

You just fill the pen with water and your child draws on the mat.  That’s it. The marks show up in bright colours when your child draws, but fade away completely as the mat dries – so they can start again. No mess, no so-difficult-to-remove- felt tip crayon marks. A parent’s dream.  There are various different mats available – Aqua Splash N Print is a large mat with stampers, to introduce even your youngest to making marks and creating shapes; there are various themed mats (some which are incorporated into a bag for easy transport), such as Peppa Pig, Disney cars and My Little Pony; and then specialist Aquadoodles such as  the Dress Designer. However the one I road-tested was the My ABC Doodle. Fabulous for four to five year-olds, the mat has pre-printed alphabet letters and numbers for your child to trace over, plus separate plain areas for free drawing (see the illustration). What a fun way to learn. And if you need more special pens, these can be bought separately too.

RSP £19.99 Stockists include; Argos, Smyths, Amazon, Entertainer and Shop Direct

By Dr K Thompson, author of From Both Ends of the Stethoscope: Getting through breast cancer – by a doctor who knows

http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01A7DM42Q http://www.amazon.com/dp/B01A7DM42Q

http://faitobooks.co.uk

Note: These articles express personal views. No warranty is made as to the accuracy or completeness of information given and you should always consult a doctor if you need medical advice.

All too rarely I find a novel I cannot put down, take everywhere with me, want to turn the pages but don’t want it to finish. This is just such a one, and from a debut author too, whose actual past is that of a detective in the Criminal Investigation Branch of the New Zealand Police.

The body of a woman has been found on a pristine New Zealand beach – over a decade after she was murdered.

Detective Matt Buchanan of the Auckland Police is certain it carries all the hallmarks of an unsolved crime he investigated 12 years ago: when Samantha Coates walked out one day and never came home.

Re-opening the case, Buchanan begins to piece the terrible crimes together, setting into motion a chain of events that will force him to the darkest corners of society – and back into his deepest obsession…

Shortlisted for the Ngaio Marsh Best Crime Novel of the Year award, The Sound of Her Voice is a brilliantly gripping crime thriller, and is  elevated above the herd by Blackwell’s empathetic portrayal of Matt, the protagonist, a detective who succumbs to the stress of all that he has to see, and FEEL as he works the crimes. The good people get killed, not the bad it seems to him. The perpetrators are not caught, or get off. It’s too much. He leaves the force, flies a plane, until he feels moved to return.

Why? Because he has unfinished business.

This is that rare beast,  a quality crime novel, which in many pays put me in mind of the great Peter Temple.

The author has lived this procedural police world. Is this that allows him to portray so empathetically and to such great effect the psychological stresses that go with the job? t Will solving this latest crime lead him not only to the killer of both women, but release him from the grip of the past?

At times bleak, disturbing, it is always involving, always impressive, and as full of twists as any good crime novel should be. What’s more the characters develop, live and breathe, which sounds simple to achieve, but it darned well isn’t. Go well written into the bargain.

Well done Orion, for publishing Nathan Blackwell. Just let me know when the next one is published.

And most of all: bravo Nathan Blackwell. More please.

Everyone – buy this book. Fabulous, Fantastic.

The Sound of her Voice by Nathan Blackwell. pb £14.99 Audio and Kindle.

Margaret Graham, writing as Annie Clarke: Heroes on the Home Front (Arrow)

The perfect cup of coffee or tea in the morning can set the mood for the rest of your day.  Capsulier’s well designed capsules are mess-free, and preserve the aroma and flavour of your favourite coffee. They are easy to use and can be used time and time again. Remember tjhat – time and time again.

Importantly in this day and age, Capsulier is the World’s first single-push, reusable, mess-free capsule maker. It allows you to craft a coffee capsule that’s easy on the environment and your pocket. Simply load roasted and ground beans into the Capsulier, close the lid, and push the lever – you’ll have a capsule ready for use in seconds.

The Capsulier LITE is a stainless-steel capsule that’s reusable, which means you can create your own custom blends in pods that are eco-friendly, easy to clean and economical.

Here at Frost Magazine we are martyrs  to a fresh cup of coffee but it’s full on, and there’s not time for nipping out and topping ourselves us, so these pod-based coffees do seem a great alternative to expensive high-street coffee without any of the of the chalky bitterness of instant. With Capsulier, you can create your own custom blend  with beans and spices of your choosing. Capsulier streamlines capsule creation and features a removable drip tray to keep this stainless-steel design in pristine condition throughout its use.

Reusable pods mean that once you’ve invested in a Capsulier, you can reduce waste by reusing pods. The stainless steel pods are reusable and washable, each pod should last the lifetime of your machine. So there we have it: no waste and good coffee. What’s not to like?

The Capsulier Lite costs £99 from Amazon

Halloween seems to have come of age. No longer the preserve of the US, we in the UK have adopted it with a passion.

Children’s fancy dress has long been in the shops and clubs and bars are advertising themed nights, but what if you want a not such a quiet night in with friends?

For those who would like to throw a Halloween Celebration at home Laithwaites have come up trumps with two wines that will not chill your blood or your wallet.

The aptly named Waxed Bat 2019 is a blend of Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon and Shiraz from Argentina and is a full- bodied young wine with a depth of colour.

On the nose the spice comes through, along with Blackberries and liquorice and on the palate the rounded tannins offset the peppery blackberry flavours. Waxed Bat would be perfect with a rich meat dish or some mature cheese.

The finely drawn label on Red Head’s 2018 Night of the Living Red is bound to be a conversation topic, even before the bottle has been opened. A male torso with open Thorax and heart replaced by a bunch of red grapes. It is as beautiful as it is macabre.

Night of the Living Red comes from Australia and is a full bodied (all puns intended) blend of Durif Petite Sirah), Shiraz and Touriga (said to be one of Portugal’s finest grapes) and definitely a wine that grabs you by the throat (I mean this in a good way).

Night of the Living Red is aptly named as the wine is almost inky black with spice, big autumn fruits, raspberry and vanilla oak on the nose.

A mouthful of this velvety wine delivers firm tannins and generous ripe fruit that has a long finish.

There is sufficient age in the bottle to keep until 2029 providing that is, you can resist the temptation.

Laithwaite’s RedHeads Night Of The Living Red 2018, £19.99