Date With Malice by Julia Chapman, £7.99

MRS Shepherd is utterly convinced that someone is trying to kill her but when she arrives at the Dales Detective Agency on a bleak, December morning, Samson O’Brien dismisses her fears as the daft ramblings of a confused elderly lady. But, after a series of disturbing incidents at Fellside Court retirement home, he begins to wonder if there is something to her claims after all.

With Christmas just around the corner, Samson finds himself thrown into a complex investigation that, once again, leaves him little choice but to enlist the help of the tempestuous Delilah Metcalfe. Against the backdrop of a Yorkshire winter, Samson and Delilah must work together if they are to uncover the malevolence threatening the elderly residents of Bruncliffe. Could the danger be perilously close to home?

Well plotted, full of Yorkshire wit and charm, Julia Chapman’s growing list of fans will not be disappointed.

CAROLINE REECE

WATERSTONES KENDAL