The DS Coupland Series - psychological crime fiction that packs a punch

FRAGILE CORD

A small boy lies drowned in the bottom of a bath
His mother is found with a noose around her neck...
The local community is in shock.

Introducing Salford detectives Kevin Coupland and Alex Moreton as they investigate what appears to be a routine murder-suicide. Tracey Kavanagh was her usual upbeat self; right up until the moment she drowned her son and tied a rope around her neck killing herself and her unborn child. For Alex Moreton, this case couldn't have come at a worse time, battling with her partner over whether to have another child, she is superstitious about pushing their luck - they're happy enough as they are...aren't they? DS Kevin Coupland is dealing with a serious assault outside a wine bar in Swinton. Devoted family man Ricky Wilson is brutally stabbed following an altercation with youths while out with his wife and their children to celebrate her birthday. Coupland and Moreton's cases merge when it transpires that Tracey and Ricky were tragically connected. Is it possible that there could be more to these two investigations than pure coincidence? And what was Tracey Kavanagh so frightened of she thought wiping out her family was the answer?

As the past collides with the present Coupland uncovers a tragic secret that will destroy Tracey's family, or what's left of it. Coupland must choose whether the truth shall come out - or be taken to the grave.

A PLACE OF SAFETY

A young woman is killed in a drive-by shooting. Key witness Abby Marlowe is in fear for her life. At first the case looks like a local turf war gone wrong, but someone in power is doing everything they can to cover the killer's tracks. What are they trying to hide?

Earl Baptiste's life has gone into freefall, one minute he's trying to impress a local gang leader, next thing he's on the run for murder.

DS Kevin Coupland, still coming to terms with his wife's illness has a new DCI to contend with. DS Alex Moreton, due to start her maternity leave at the end of the week has a replacement DC snapping at her heels.

When another witness is murdered Coupland comes under increasing pressure to track down the killer but then tragedy strikes, testing him to the limits. Someone is intimidating the remaining witnesses with a cold blooded callousness that smacks of a professional. As Coupland sifts the truth from the lie he discovers the drive-by shooting wasn't so random after all, and that Abby Marlowe is in the worst possible danger...

ONE BAD TURN

A serial killer is on the loose...

No sooner has Detective Sergeant Kevin Coupland stepped off the plane from a family holiday than he gets the call that a woman's body has been found on a path beside a recreation park in a smart suburb in Salford. Account Manager Sharon Mathers suffered a brutal blow to the head following a night out with friends from work.

Teamed with DC Ashcroft who has transferred from the Met under a cloud, Coupland struggles to find a motive for the killing when two days later another body is found, this time at the bottom of a footbridge at Salford Station. Could the same person be responsible? While still trying to work out the answer to this Coupland's personal life spirals into freefall when his daughter Amy introduces him to her new boyfriend - a thug he'd put away for GBH two years before. The relationship puts a strain on the detective's home life and impacts his judgement at work - putting him under the microscope with the powers that be.

When a third body is found he makes a startling discovery - the killings are linked to a murder in '92. Coupland was a probationer back in the nineties - could he be linked in some way to the killer?


Genre: Mystery