Books
Heading off on holiday? Take one of our books from local authors to read!
The Empire Theatre Murders
by Jack Murray
If you love a murder mystery, the theatre and period dramas – this is the book for you.
Set in the 1920s, it features Kit and Mary Aston who are asked to investigate threatening letters that have been sent to the performers in a seaside variety theatre, and temperamental magician, Javier Gonzalo, has lost his head, quite literally, mid act. Can Kit and Mary identify the murderer in time?
The author creates a wonderful eerie atmosphere within the pages, and the themes of revenge, illusion, mystery and magic just add to its compelling nature.
Jack Murray was born in Northern Ireland but now lives in Berkhamsted.
The World Outside My Window
By Clare Swatman
Laura is unable to leave her house, and instead is reduced to looking out the window and relying on her husband Jim and best friend Debbie to help her. But one day Jim doesn’t come home.
And when he has still not returned after a week, Laura has no choice – she has to leave the house and find her husband.
But she’s not alone, her local community rally round her – and when they discover that Jim might have been hiding some secrets, Laura has a choice – retreat back behind her window, or start living her life.
Another emotional, page-turner from our former Living Magazines’ editor!
Clare has written seven women’s fiction novels, and lives in Berkhamsted.
Tring Rural Village in the Twentieth Century
By Jenny and Alan Warner
Jenny and Alan Warner interviewed 13 long-term residents of Tring Rural Villages, as part of their voluntary work for the website Tringruralhistory.co.uk.
Within its pages you can discover what life was like in Long Marston, Puttenham and Wilstone during the Second World War and proceeding years. From bombs dropping on a village school, and the secret life of the airfield at Long Marston, to legendary parties in the village hall and Father Christmas appearing on a horse and cart on Christmas morning.
It’s wonderful to read these memories from longstanding residents, and to know they have been preserved for future generations.
The book is available to buy from Tring Local History Museum.
Outwitting the Enemy
By Mike Walsham
A couple of years ago, we featured Mike’s book Doing One’s Duty – a thrilling tale about the British Intelligence Service.
The main character, Andrew, is back in Mike’s latest book. In this tale, he is sent to spy on the building of the submarine pens for a possible raid by the RAF later in the year, then parachuted into northern France on another mission.
Mike Walsham is an author who lives in Ringshall, Little Gaddesden. He published his first novel, Monique, in 2020.