“The Hanging in the Hotel”
The Hopwicke Country House Hotel, owned by Jude's glamorous friend Suzy Longthorne, is to host an event for the all-male society, The Pillars of Sussex.
On the night, Jude helps Suzy serve dinner, and in the early hours of the morning they watch with relief as the guests drag themselves to their beds.
On the night, Jude helps Suzy serve dinner, and in the early hours of the morning they watch with relief as the guests drag themselves to their beds.
The next morning, one young solicitor does not come down for breakfast. Jude heads for Nigel Ackford's room, presuming he is feeling the effects of the night before. It soon becomes apparent, however, that Nigel has been spared his hangover. For Jude finds him hanging from the beams of his four-poster bed . . .
Convinced it was not suicide, Carole and Jude must now find out the truth behind an elaborate attempt to cover up a simple, cold-blooded murder.
The affluent seaside resort of Smalting is unaccustomed to crime. So when human remains are found beneath the floorboards of one of its beach huts, the community is awash with suspicion and fear.
Amateur sleuths Carole Seddon and best friend Jude are drawn into the mystery, and their suspicion quickly falls on attractive Philly Rose, a young Londoner newly arrived in the area, whose boyfriend has recently vanished in mysterious circumstances.
When the bones under the beach hut are identified, the ghosts of the past are painfully reawakened, and long-hidden secrets begin to surface.
Bones Under the Beach Hut is an ingenious mystery from one of England's favorite crime writers, exquisitely plotted with cracking dialogue, colorful characters, and packed with unexpected twists.
"I was very honoured to be awarded an OBE in the 2016 New Year’s Honours ‘for services to literature’," Brett writes.
Around the same time he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, thus providing him with some more letters to put after his name. Then back in 2014 he was presented with The CWA Diamond Dagger, one of the highest accolades in the crime writing world.
Brett's writing also includes comedy in radio and television series such as No Commitments and After Henry.
"I am very fortunate to make a living (most of the time) from something I would do anyway," Brett writes. "I can’t remember a time when I didn’t want to write. I still do, and I want to do it better."
