Home | Authors | Characters Crime Fiction ABC: Authors, Books and Characters About | Links | Contact

On this page

Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols

This page lists the Fethering series of novels that feature the amateur detectives Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

 

Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols: Novels

The Body on the Beach

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2000

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Very little disturbs the ordered calm of Fethering, a pleasingly self-contained retirement town on England's southern coast. Which is precisely why Carole Seddon, who has outlived both her husband and her career at the Home Office, has chosen to reside there. So the last thing Carole expects to encounter in Fethering is a new neighbour with but one name and an obviously colourful past. 'Jude' was not really Fethering . . . but neither was the body Carole found on the beach. A body, it has to be said, that has disappeared by the time the police arrive. Only Jude is ready to believe what her neighbour says she saw - and from that moment on, the two women are resolved to turn detectives."
cover

Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Death on the Downs

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2001

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"It wasn’t the rain that upset Carole Seddon during her walk on the Downs, or the dilapidated barn in which she was forced to seek shelter. No, what upset her was the human skeleton she discovered there, neatly packed into two blue fertiliser bags . . . Carole and Jude's enquiries take them to the small downland hamlet of Weldisham and there gossips quickly identify the corpse as Tamsin Lutteridge, a young woman who disappeared from the village months before. So why is Tamsin’s mother, a friend of Jude's, so certain that her daughter is still alive? As Jude sets out to find Tamsin, Carole digs deeper into Weldisham’s history and the bitter relationships simmering beneath the village’s gentle façade."
cover

Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Torso in the Town

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2002

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Grant and Kim Roxby had hoped that their first dinner party at Pelling House would make an impression with their new neighbours. And the next day it’s certainly the talk of the town of Fedborough. For their guests – including the couple’s old friend Jude – had been enjoying a pleasant meal before they were rudely interrupted by a gruesome discovery. A human torso hidden in the cellar. Carole and Jude soon begin to question the locals, but they can’t help wonder why a town so notoriously distrustful of outsiders is proving so terribly amenable to their enquiries."
cover

Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Murder in the Museum

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2003

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Bracketts, an Elizabethan house near the town of Fethering, is about to be turned into a museum. Once the home of celebrated poet Esmund Chadleigh, it has been decided that it should now become a shrine to his life and poetry. But the transition from house to museum is running far from smoothly, and Carole soon begins to regret her decision to be on the Board as she witnesses bitter antagonism and rivalry amongst the other members. Then a sudden discovery is made. Buried in the kitchen garden is a human skeleton. And before too long, there is a second body, not yet cold."
cover

Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Hanging in the Hotel

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2004

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"The Hopwicke Country House Hotel is to host an event for the all-male society, The Pillars of Sussex. Jude helps out on the night, and in the early hours of the morning she watches with relief as the rowdy guests drag themselves to their beds. The next morning, one young solicitor is absent from breakfast. But when Jude heads for Nigel Ackford’s room, presuming he is feeling the effects of the night before, she is horrified to find him hanging from the beams of his four-poster bed . . . Was it suicide? Jude has her doubts. Enlisting the support of her neighbour, Carole, she makes some tentative enquiries. It soon transpires that The Pillars of Sussex are involved in a conspiracy of misinformation."
cover

Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Witness at the Wedding

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2005

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Carole Seddon's son is about to be married. But as plans for the big day get underway, Stephen's future parents-in-law, Marie and Harold, seem desperate to keep the affair as discreet as possible. Then, after a quiet engagement party, Harold disappears . . . only to be found dead the next day, in a burnt out car in Epping Forest. While the family try to deal with their grief, Carole discovers they are concealing secrets that can be traced back thirty years, to the murder of Marie's best friend. Now the girl's killer has been released from prison and is back in his old stomping ground, near Fethering. As Carole enlists the help of her friend Jude in researching the truth, Gaby returns to London to find herself in grave danger. Fearing the bride-to-be is the killer's next target, Carole and Jude must unravel the Martin family's past before he makes another deadly move."
cover

Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Stabbing in the Stables

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2006

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"When healer Jude pays a visit to Long Bamber Stables one evening - to meet her unusually equine new client and his owner Sonia Dalrymple - she does not expect to stumble across a man laying in the darkness. Co-owner of the stables, Walter Fleet, has been viciously stabbed to death. Sleuthing neighbours Jude and Carole begin to make discreet enquiries, but it soon becomes clear that Long Bamber Stables is a hotbed of dangerous passions, murderous rivalries and hidden truths . . . and this horsing community will do anything to protect their reputations."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Death Under the Dryer

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2007

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Carole had never had such a bad hair day! The last thing she expected when she went for a trim at ‘Connie’s Clip Joint’ was to find the body of Kyra, Connie’s assistant, in the back room, strangled. Immediately involving her friend and neighbour Jude, Carole becomes determined to investigate the death. Meanwhile Kyra’s boyfriend Nathan Locke has vanished. His family, an eccentric, controlling bunch don’t seem overly concerned. Instead they are bizarrely obsessed with a family board game which seems to provide a host of clues as to Nathan’s whereabouts. Can Carole and Jude unravel the clues and discover the truth before someone is falsely accused, or before the killer makes a second deadly move?"
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Blood at the Bookies

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2008

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Jude has never been averse to a bit of a flutter; her friend Carole, on the other hand, thinks that the local betting shop is a den of iniquity. But when Jude stumbles upon the body of Polish immigrant Tadeusz Jankowski - the race is on to find his killer. The odds aren't looking good. No one seems to know anything about the mysterious Tadek - even his sister can't shed any light on what he was doing in Fethering. Who was the anonymous woman in the bookies who seems to have vanished? Why was Tadek interested in the local university? And who is the 'Fifi' Tadek spoke of with his dying breath?"
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Poisoning at the Pub

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2009

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

" Fethering residents, Jude and Carole, get more than they bargained for when a lunchtime meal in their local pub leaves everyone with food poisoning. The landlord is horrified and when a series of disasters start to befall his business it looks like it could be the end of the road for the Crown and Anchor. Left with a bad taste in their mouths – and not just from the food – the two amateur lady detectives wonder if it might just be more than a run of bad luck, which is forcing their favourite pub into bankruptcy. When Ray, a young man with the mental age of a five year old, is found in the kitchen of the pub with a knife through his heart – Carole and Jude swing into action. There’s a killer on the loose in Fethering and Carole and Jude need to uncover who it is before it’s last orders for the pub – and themselves."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Shooting in the Shop

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2010

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Carole Seddon hates Christmas – it all seems rather a waste of time. So when her neighbour and best friend, Jude, drags her along to go shopping at a local store called Gallimaufry – she can feel her inner-Scrooge knocking. But the sales are on and even Carole can’t resist a bargain. Then a few days later – Gallimaufry is burnt down and a body is discovered in the ashes. It seems like a tragic accident but no-one can die of natural causes when a gun is involved. The victim was young, pretty and successful – who could possibly want her dead? With a host of suspects the lady detectives know they have their work cut out for them. And as they dig deeper they discover a host of half-truths and lies. It seems that someone in Fethering has a deep, dark, deadly secret – and is prepared to kill to keep it."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Bones Under the Beach Hut

Simon Brett

Macmillan

2011

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"The affluent seaside resort of Smalting is unaccustomed to crime. So when human remains are found beneath the floorboards of one of its beach huts, the community is awash with suspicion and fear. Amateur sleuths Carole Seddon and best friend Jude are drawn into the mystery, and their suspicion quickly falls on attractive Philly Rose, a young Londoner newly arrived in the area, whose boyfriend has recently vanished in mysterious circumstances. Meanwhile, Kelvin Southwest, self-appointed ‘ladies’ man’ and caretaker of Smalting’s beach huts, seems to be hiding a dark secret beneath his smooth exterior, while Reginald Flowers, pompous President of the Smalting Beach Hut Association, becomes increasingly defensive about his own history. When the bones under the beach hut are identified, the ghosts of the past are painfully reawakened, and long-hidden secrets begin to surface."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Guns in the Gallery

Simon Brett

Severn House

2011

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Invited to a Private View of the work of controversial artist Denzil Willoughby, the good citizens of Fethering are not quite sure what to expect. And it turns out to be a lively affair, culminating in several embarrassing confrontations. But what no one could have anticipated was that the evening would end in sudden, violent death. The police seem happy to accept that it was suicide, but Fethering residents Carole and Jude remain unconvinced."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Corpse on the Court

Simon Brett

Severn House

2012

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Jude's life has been turned upside-down thanks her new man, Piers Targett, who's keen to get her involved in his hobby - or obsession - of Real Tennis. But when one of Piers' friends dies on the court in suspicious circumstances, Jude finds herself caught up in the police investigation. Meanwhile, Jude's neighbour Carole is trying to identify the human remains known locally as the 'Lady in the Lake.' As the two investigations become intertwined, Carole and Jude's efforts to find the truth look set to lead to more murders."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


Strangling on the Stage

Simon Brett

Severn House

2013

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"When Jude agrees to lend her vintage chaise longue for the local Amateur Dramatics Society's production of George Bernard Shaw's The Devil's Disciple, little does she realize she'll end up in a starring role. It's an ambitious play, culminating in a dramatic execution scene: a scene that's played for real when one of the leading actors is found hanging from the especially-constructed stage gallows during rehearsals. A tragic accident - or something more sinister? Carole and Jude make it their business to find out."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Tomb in Turkey

Simon Brett

Severn House

2014

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Carole Seddon has never enjoyed holidays much. Nevertheless, she has allowed herself to be persuaded by her friend Jude to accept a fortnight’s free accommodation at a luxurious Turkish villa owned by Jude’s property developer friend Barney Willingdon. But from the outset the holiday is marred by a series of menacing incidents: threatening messages daubed on the villa walls; and their host being accosted by a knife-wielding man at a local restaurant. As Carole and Jude launch into what they do best - investigating - it becomes clear that Barney Willingdon has made plenty of enemies, with his ruthless business deals and complicated love life. Matters come to a head when Carole’s sightseeing trip to nearby Pinara is curtailed by the discovery of a body in one of the ancient Lycian tombs."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Killing In The Cafe

Simon Brett

Severn House

2015

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Polly's Cake Shop has been a feature of the shopping parade for many years, but when its owner announces her retirement, the Fethering residents start to worry about the loss of this popular amenity. Alarmed by rumours that the cafe might become a Starbucks, a group clubs together to form the Save Polly's Cake Shop Action Committee. The plan is that Polly's should become a community venture, managed and run by volunteers from the village. Roped in to help, Jude finds the committee meetings fraught with petty power struggles, clashing personalities and monstrous egos. Matters take a turn for the worse when she and Carole come across a badly-decomposed body on Fethering beach - and uncover a link to Polly's. Not only do the two neighbours have to find out whodunit, they are also faced with the thorny question: is it possible to run a business on that most volatile of commodities - goodwill?"
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover


The Liar In The Library

Simon Brett

Severn House

2017

A Fethering novel featuring Carole Seddon and Jude Nichols.

"Having been booked to give a talk at Fethering Library, successful author Burton St Clair invites his old friend Jude to come along. Although they haven't met for twenty years, Jude is not surprised to find that St Clair hasn?t changed, with his towering ego and somewhat shaky relationship with the truth. What Jude hadn't been suspecting however was that the evening would end in sudden, violent death. More worrying, from Jude's point of view, is the fact that the investigating police officers seem to be convinced that she herself was responsible for the crime. With the evidence stacking up against her, Jude enlists the help of her neighbour Carole not just to solve the murder but to prevent herself from being arrested for committing it."
Buy from amazon.co.uk

cover



Last updated May 2018