My aim is to create mystery dramas about everyday people who get tangled up in unexpected and challenging situations – preferably with a strong romantic undercurrent, and more than a trace of wry humour. And I try to write them in written in fluid, transparent prose that you hardly even notice. I grew up in Newcastle upon Tyne, a major city in north-east England, but all my adult life I've lived in London. I used to edit UK magazines about trucks and the logistics world, and work I’ve driven the length and breadth of the country in pursuit of that work. I've also traveled widely in North America and Europe. I've woven this experience into the nine mystery thrillers I've published so far – seven in the Mike Stanhope Mysteries series, and two stand-alones (one of them written under the pen name Anders Teller). I'm an avid reader of mysteries, too. I’m a great admirer of Michael Connelly, though I don’t think I could ever match his distinctive, spare prose style. And one of my all-time heroes is the British horseracing thriller writer Dick Francis. In my opinion his best books are among the greats of the English language – not just as thrillers, but in any genre you care to name. My books tend to focus on horsepower, not horses, but if you should ever find even the most distant echoes of Mr Francis in my books, I’ll count that as a win.
