WHEN Mrs Fitzpatrick disappears for days at a time, her husband asks Kate Shackleton, an amateur sleuth with police connections, to find out where she goes.

Persuaded by Mr Sykes’ her assistant, Kate takes on the case not realising it would lead her into one of her most complicated assignments to date.

Scotland Yard has its own investigation in Leeds and is led by Marcus Charles, the man whose proposal of marriage Kate had previously turned down. But when Everett Runcie, a once wealthy banker, is found dead at the Hotel Metropole, Kate and Marcus find their cases are intertwined.

Kate now has to delve in Runcie’s private life and his recent movements wondering if there is a link between him and the elusive Mrs Deidre Fitzpatrick; when another murder is discovered, that connection is certain.

It seems the further Kate investigates, events become more sinister and more difficult to solve.

It is rare to find an author that brings characters so much to life that they become like real friends, but Frances Brody, a writer from Leeds, is certainly such one.

Her Kate Shackleton books are so entertaining, well constructed, and well written that when finished the reader feels bereft; but there is always anticipation for the next one.

If you haven’t read any Frances Brody books, I urge you to do so.

This series would make great TV.