The summer holiday is over it's back to school for DI Andy Horton

The summer holidays are over and it's back to school for DI Andy Horton in THE LANGSTONE HARBOUR MURDERS no. 2 in the Solent Murder Mystery series of 18, published by Joffe Books.

The head teacher of a inner city Portsmouth school is found brutally murdered on an old structure in the middle of Langstone Harbour - a Mulberry.

Hayling Island and Langstone Harbour were used as a site for the construction of the Mulberry Harbours, artificial harbours created to help the Allies land their forces in Normandy.  Once built, they were sunk nearby until they were needed. One of them developed a fault and could not be used: it remains in Langstone Harbour to this day.

A note is found on the victim with the words ‘Have you forgotten ME?’ scrawled on it.  And a wad of money covered in honey, and wrapped in a five pound note is also discovered on her person.

The victim is Jessica Langley, a steely, determined woman who has made enemies on her path to success. But did any of them hate her enough to want her dead?

All the evidence points to a killer who wanted to leave a very particular message.

Horton is in a race against time to piece together the clues and stop the killer. With the clock ticking and Superintendent Uckfield pressing for results, Horton is forced to make a decision that will put his life on the line.

Meet DI Andy Horton

He's an instinctive cop with a highly formed sense of justice. Raised in a succession of children's homes he finds he can never quite trust. He's tough and resilient, but deeply empathetic, and often vulnerable. A dry sense of humour is the key to Horton’s investigative approach. It’s how he keeps people at arm’s length and stays detached from the crimes he investigates.

His greatest strength is his ability to put himself in a victim’s shoes, to imagine events from their perspective (even the moments up to their death), making leaps of deduction few would be able to. And he’s most often right.

Horton is especially tough on bullies, or people who abuse their power or position, as they remind him of those in the children’s homes. He feels a duty of care to the victims of the crimes he investigates and often feels he’s the only person looking out for them; the only one who can bring the guilty to justice so that the dead can rest. No one cared about him when he was a child; he won’t let that happen to anyone else.

THE LANGSTONE HARBOUR MURDERS is available on Amazon Kindle, Kindle Unlimited and paperbak

Also available as an audio book, produced by Saga Egmont and available on Audible.

"Really liked the way this story developed. Lots of twists and turns until the end. Can't wait to read the next one." Amazon

Narrated by Colin Mace
Produced by Saga Egmont
Running Time 7.7 hours
 

(Please note THE LANGSTONE HARBOUR MURDERS was previously published as Deadly Waters).