Detective Inspector Montague Pluke

Prize Murder

Prize Murder is the latest installment of the adventures of Montague Pluke, detective and lover of horse-troughs; while seeking the legendary Holy Trough of Blackamoor, Detective Inspector Montague Pluke comes across a man's body. Brent Fowler is lying on a patch of moorland normally covered in thick heather; however, a fire has burnt it away to reveal his body. The dead man, Pluke discovers, has been shot in the head.

It is soon established that the victim was a paedophile murder suspect, and so the eccentric and superstitious Pluke is pitched headlong into an investigation which spans both sides of the Pennines. Other paedophiles have also been lured to beauty spots and assassinated; it is known that some received letters saying they had won prizes offering unforgettable experiences.

Relying on his luck-enhancing techniques as he ventures into the city of Manchester upon his quest, Pluke himself is arrested on suspicion of being a paedophile! Then it is his turn to receive a letter saying he has won a Lucky Break weekend in the Lake District. Pluke knows that Brent Fowler won the prize of a weekend shooting party - as its victim - and so it is that the brave and magnificent Montague Pluke allows himself to be carried by the assassins to almost certain death, steadfastly protected by his rabbit's foot, rowan twig, double hazel nut and lucky blackthorn shillelegh.

Nicholas Rhea adds:

"Lots of us have received letters offering chances of winning wonderful competitions, but suppose first prize was your own murder! When Detective Inspector Montague Pluke receives such a letter, he needs all his luck if he is to survive."

Prize Murder was published by Constable Crime on October 26th 2006, price £17.99. You can order this book from Amazon, or from your local bookshop, quoting ISBN-13: 978-1-84529-375-8.

• Order Prize Murder in the audio edition, on (cassette, ISBN: 978-1846520624, or as a Story Sound CD, ISBN: 978-1-84652-063-1).
• The Magna Large Print edition (ISBN: 978-0-7505-2772-9) was published on 15th September 2007).

"It's original, it's funny - discovering Pluke has been one of life's little pleasures."
Yorkshire Post

"Eccentrically superstitious, Detective Inspector Pluke is a policeman of whom we shall hear more."
Yorkshire Gazette and Herald.

The Montague Pluke Series

Omens of Death

The publication in 1996 of Omens of Death launched a new series of books, featuring the eccentric Detective Inspector Montague Pluke and his Yorkshire market town of Crickledale.

When Detective Inspector Montague Pluke noticed the solitary crow upon the roof of No 15 Padgett Grove, he realised it was an omen of death. An added factor was that the day was not the most providential of weekdays. Wednesday, like Wednesday's child, was often full of woe.

That unwelcome combination of portents dominated Montague's morning walk to the office and produced a mood of impending doom, albeit with just a glimmer of excitement. This glimmer was based on the fact that, as the officer in charge of the CID in Crickledale Sub-Divisional Police Station, he had never solved a murder or never arrested a killer. In fact, there had never been a murder in Crickledale, a pretty limestone market town on the edge of the North York Moors. It was Montague Pluke's ambition to detect a noteworthy murder, before retirement allowed him to seek neglected or forgotten horse troughs.

Fate seems to be on his side and, the very next day, the naked body of a young woman is found at the Druids' Circle. Then two more people die in suspicious circumstances and Montague Pluke is at last able to put all his police training, as well as his great knowledge of superstitions ancient and modern, to good work.

"Detectives, in fiction at least, come in all shapes and sizes, but few make as much impact as Montague Pluke...The strength of the book lies in the characters, especially the eccentric Pluke and his wife, Millicent. But a rich seam of secondary characters wait in the wings. All hold out the promise of a wealth of humour and interest that can be tapped in the future."
Yorkshire Post

"My latest creation, and one which appears to be gaining popularity, is the bizarre policeman, Detective Inspector Montague Pluke. A highly superstitious man and an outlandish dresser, Pluke is a small-town detective with an inflated opinion of himself and his role as a leading citizen of Crickledale, a small Yorkshire market town. Pluke solves murders by his knowledge of superstitions, while his hobby and passion is the recording of disused horse troughs which he discovers on the North York Moors."

Order Omens of Death from Amazon. It is also available in large print and audiobook editions.

Special offer: Order an autographed copy of Omens of Death from the author.

Superstitious Death

When Mrs Cholmondeley's bay tree withered and died, Detective Inspector Pluke knew that a death was imminent. The discovery of a shallow grave containing the body of an unknown young woman confirmed his worries, but a mirror in the grave told Pluke that this was no ordinary investigation. But the highly superstitious Pluke's problems really began when the Security Services told him to end his investigations of his prime suspect.

Read a review at the CrimeBuff website

Order Superstitious Death from Amazon. It is also available in a large print edition.

Special offer: Order an autographed copy of Superstitious Death from the author.

A Well-Pressed Shroud

Detective Inspector Montague Pluke finds, face down in the shallow waters of an historic horse trough, the recent heir to the Trippingdale castle. He was a thoughtful man much liked by his employees. So why would anyone want to kill him?

Order A Well-Pressed Shroud from Amazon in hard cover, large print or audiobook editions.

Garland for a Dead Maiden The Curse of the Golden Trough

Praise from a fan:

"I read the Montague Pluke ones. Pluke is such an eccentric detective and I love the way he is passionate about horse troughs."
Mike Sheard, Hull.