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Michael Kenyon

This page lists novels by Michael Kenyon.

Cover images are, where possible, of the first UK edition and a recent paperback or digital edition.

 

Michael Kenyon: Novels

May You Die in Ireland

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1965

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The Whole Hog

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1967

Published in the US as The Trouble with Series Three.

"A man, involved in the experimental feeding of pigs in an Illinois laboratory, discovers to his alarm that a batch of his pigs have been stricken with a mad euphoria, and he finds himself at the centre of a clash between the authorities and spies who think nothing of murder."
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Out of Season

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1968

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Green Grass

Michael Kenyon

Macmillan

1969

"Tom Beamish, an Irish sculptor, and his English wife, Gwen, believe that somewere, if only they can be nosed out, await the ideal home and country. Over the next hill, where the grass is green, their problems will vanish."
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The 100,000 Welcomes

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1970

A Superintendent O'Malley novel.

"The luck of the Irish isn't always good as Finn McQuaid discovers when he decided to lift St. Patrick's Cross from the Rock of Cashel and hold the government to ransom. First his brother Mickey arrives from the States with a suitcase of stolen dollars, a furious redhead and two hoods on his heels. Then the Government turns spoilsport. And to cap it all, Superintendent O'Malley sees faces in his dreams. But the police don't have all it their own way - any more than the robbers...or the Minister of France...or the Oil millionaire...or anyone else involved in the shenanigans."
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Shooting of Dan McGrew

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1972

A Superintendent O'Malley novel.

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A Sorry State

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1974

A Superintendent O'Malley novel.

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Mr. Big

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1975

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Brainbox and Bull

Michael Kenyon

Collins / Angus & Robertson / Lions

1976

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The Rapist

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1977

"The shattering, chilling novel of a small town haunted by sexual violence."
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Deep Pocket

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1978

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The Molehill File

Michael Kenyon

Coward, McCann And Geoghegan

1978

Uncertain if published in UK.

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Zigzag

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1980

An Inspector Peckover novel. Published in the US as The Elgar Variation.

"Peckover is despatched to Dublin to escort home a prisoner, who has kidnapped his young daughter and taken her over the Irish Sea. When that prisoner is shot dead in Dublin Airport car park, Peckover thinks - with some relief - that his sojourn in Ireland is over. It is not. For as the mysteries surrounding Arthur Blennerhassett run on beyond his untimely death, and the authorities search desperately for his missing daughter, Peckover is asked to assist with a totally different type of investigation. Ireland is suddenly being flooded with porn, in volumes so large the authorities seem powerless to stop it. And Peckover, having spent time with the Vice Squad in London, is the man for the job. Working with Dublin's Chief Superintendent O'Malley, Peckover follows the twists and turns of what seem to be two crimes: the murder of Arthur Blennerhassett, and the sudden deluge of porn upon Irish shores. But as he follows them both, Peckover finds the crimes, and the people behind them, zig-zagging into each other with greater and greater intensity."
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The God Squad Bod

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1982

An Inspector Peckover novel. Published in the US as The Man at the Wheel.

"Reporter Peter Ramsden once came to blows with the chauffeur of a hired limo and knocked out the driver’s tooth with a lucky punch. Soon after, the limo crashed, leaving the four passengers dead — and both the driver and a million pounds missing. The passengers, rich Arab sheiks, apparently always carried their money with them and their furious relatives soon suspect that it has been stolen. Only Ramsden had seen the chauffeur, and he didn’t expect to see him again … especially not years later as the Reverend Jody James, a fanatical evangelist with a bizarre agenda. Suddenly Ramsden was after the biggest story of his life … or a very quick way to die — after receiving anonymous threats warning him there will be severe and violent repercussions if he persists in his attempts to probe the Reverend, and possibly expose him. When Scotland Yard’s Inspector Henry Peckover heard the threats against the London reporter, he too jumped on the Bible bandwagon and found himself in Little Rock, Arkansas, on the trail of a killer who mixed ol’ time religion with greed, lust, and unholy murder."
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A Free-Range Wife

Michael Kenyon

Collins

1983

An Inspector Peckover novel. Subsequently published in the US as No Mercy.

" It's springtime in France - the season of love in the country of romance. But Scotland Yard Inspector Henry Peckover has murder on his mind. Inspector Henry Peckover’s latest case takes him deep into French chateau country and it’s not long before he’s on the trail of a vicious killer. Several men have been found dead in various locations, but they’ve all got something in common – they have all suffered severe damage to their genitals. Could it be that promiscuous American Mercy McCluskey - an infamous chateau resident - has a connection to all these victims? She denies this - and claims not to know where her husband Hector is. But after interviewing the widow of one of the victims, Peckover is sure that Mercy is the key to solving the case, especially when two more of her suitors turn up dead. Before long, Inspector Peckover had uncovered an IRA connection, a gin-swilling gunrunner, a mysterious killer with a very French twist, and another potential corpse - his own!"
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A Healthy Way to Die

Michael Kenyon

Hodder and Stoughton

1986

An Inspector Peckover novel.

"At the sumptuous SimpSon’s SuperSpa thousands of pounds change hands while the rich and corpulent clientele battle to fight the flab. But pounds that are not of the financial variety are harder to lose, as wheezy members of Millicent Wildwood’s aerobics class soon find out. So when one hapless participant suddenly drops dead during a particularly arduous stretch and firm exercise no one, at first, suspects murder. Enter Constable Jason Twitty, ex-Harrovian SuperSleuth, sartorially striking in embroidered bolero and cowboy boots, whose visit is supposed to be purely routine. But when he has a nasty experience in the jacuzzi, and is warned off the investigation by an unseen attacker, his sleuthing instincts are naturally aroused … It very soon becomes apparent that some of the SuperSpa’s inhabitants are interested in much more than the pursuit of the body beautiful."
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Peckover Holds the Baby

Michael Kenyon

Severn House

1988

An Inspector Peckover novel. Subsequently published in the US as Cradling Death.

"Detective Chief Inspector Henry Peckover is sent off to the jungles of Belize to track down The Honourable Vivian White, full-time cocaine king and all-round criminal. Because as it turns out, drugs aren’t the only mess that the very dishonourable Honourable Viv has got himself entangled with. Wherever Viv goes, it seems, there go murder, kidnapping, deception and an unsavoury mix of bad behaviours. With his partner in crime already lying dead in a London flat, it seems that the time has finally come to put an end to Viv’s activities. What’s more, Viv is not the only member of his family raising eyebrows at Scotland Yard. His father also seems to have some sort of agenda … but what, exactly, is going on between father and son? With bodies and threats piling up in London, it’s high time the police found out. Thus Detective Chief Inspector Peckover heads out of his London comfort zone, to the steamy jungles of Belize, accompanied by the fashion-conscious Constable Jason Twitty. Once there, the pair is joined by undercover agent Peachy O’Day, of the Los Angeles Police Narcotics Division. With Peckover’s laconic wit and intelligence, Twitty’s sharp insight and O’Day’s ability with a gun, surely they cannot fail? And when the Honourable Viv kidnaps his own baby, it seems there is no longer any room at all for failure. Yet as bullets fly and the body count rises, Peckover begins to see that almost nothing in Belize is quite what it seems."
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Kill the Butler!

Michael Kenyon

Macmillan

1991

An Inspector Peckover novel.

"When New York millionaire Lou Langley dies in a mysterious hit and run accident, questions are asked… Henry Peckover, Chief Inspector from Scotland yard, is flown in to investigate. Going in undercover as a quaint English butler, Peckover (aka Jarvis) will be clearing tables, serving drinks, and interviewing suspects. And trying not to get caught, of course. Jetlagged and exhausted, Peckover takes a night-time stroll along the beach. But someone else is out that night, and when Peckover goes investigating he gets far more than he bargained for. Things quickly escalate and he soon finds himself fending off an attack from the mysterious, dark figure. In a desperate act of self-defence, he manages to get his teeth around the man’s ankle just before the suspect escapes. Looking for bite marks, Peckover sets out to check the ankles of his two main suspects – the cook, Joop, and Ahoy’s caretaker, Timothy Thwaite. The problem is that both of them have vanished. Finding two men in New York will be hard enough, but storm clouds are on the way. Hurricane Doris is coming and if Peckover doesn’t watch out, he’ll be swept away before he can find the killer."
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Peckover Joins the Choir

Michael Kenyon

Macmillan

1992

An Inspector Peckover novel. Subsequently published in the US as Rehearsing For Death.

" For every article that has gone missing, the Sealeigh choir – a travelling choir from a small village on the Ken coast – have held a concert nearby. Chief Inspector Henry Peckover and Detective Constable Jason Twitty are sent to become the choir’s newest recruits as part of an undercover investigation, but playing the part of professional singers and avoiding suspicion is no easy task. The routine of rehearsals and choir gossip is challenging and Peckover struggles to manage with Twitty’s flamboyant nature, fearing he will scupper the investigation. The entire choir is under suspicion and the two policemen cannot afford to become distracted. A ruthless criminal is in close proximity, concealing treasured art and they must be discovered before someone realises that Peckover and Twitty are not really who they claim to be… By the time the choir arrives in Ghent for their next concert, Peckover has discovered tantalizing information about several of its members. The investigation is now an international operation and together with French Sergeant Pépin and Flemish Inspector Spaak, Peckover must work on the preliminary report from Scotland Yard to close the case. But before they discover the thief, the body of one of the choir members is found in the cathedral and Peckover and Twitty find themselves heading up a murder enquiry."
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Peckover and the Bog Man

Michael Kenyon

Macmillan

1994

An Inspector Peckover novel. Subsequently published in the US as Digging Up Death.

"Sir Gilbert Potter, KCB, CBE, FBA, Britain’s most eminent archaeologist, has invited Miriam Peckover to be guest chef and Henry, Bard of the Yard, predicts a night of wine, women and song. At first, all goes smoothly. Miriam’s haggis is delicious, the Scotch flows freely and Peckover even manages to understand some of Rabbie Burns’ poetry before going to bed a contented man. But at 7.15 a.m. his slumbers are interrupted by the ringing of the telephone. Sir Gilbert Potter has been murdered. Granted, Sir Gilbert Potter was a pompous bore, but who could have wanted him dead? Might the killing be connected with the archaeological dig Sir Gilbert was leading up at Dundrummy Castle? But surely the excavations could achieve nothing but good, especially for the poverty-stricken laird, who is hoping for a lucrative discovery on his land. Sir Gilbert’s ambitious young assistant Posy Cork decides to continue with the dig regardless. And it’s not long before she and her colleague uncover something very interesting indeed. But have they, as Posy hopes, discovered the body of an ancient bog man, or could this be Sir Wilfred Cuff-Bingley, another eminent archaeologist who disappeared mysteriously from the very same site some fifty years ago?"
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Last updated September 2018