Gargoyle Pixie Dog

by Bill Todd

GARGOYLE PIXIE DOG When young homeless street artist Cat goes missing her rough sleeper friend Hooper asks private investigator Danny Lancaster to find her. But how do you trace someone with no address, job, credit cards, no social media – a woman who lives off the grid? Danny’s only clues are a faded chalk drawing on a pavement and a lost dog. But an angry man is losing control. A frightened man is running for a train. Then an early morning walker finds a girl’s body on the beach. The clock is ticking as Danny hunts the Gargoyle. PLUS six short THE CUCKOLDS When Rebekah Court suspects husband Richard is cheating she hires Danny Lancaster. But the private investigator is out on a limb when infidelity weaves a tangled web. A schoolgirl’s trust is abused when she reluctantly poses for her boyfriend’s intimate photos. Gemma is self-harming, bullied at school, terrified of what her parents and teachers will say. Her best friend Ashley’s last hope is Danny Lancaster. THE HOODIED Student Sophie Medcalf was on the threshold of a new life when she was brutally murdered. The bloody unsolved killing drives her boyfriend Simon to the edge. Danny Lancaster tries to stop him jumping. THE GERMANS CAN’T KILL Melody Hamilton cannot accept that the sudden death of her sick and elderly father Lloyd, a war hero and talented artist, was natural causes. Danny Lancaster must find out who might benefit from Lloyd’s passing. INSIDE Models and fashionistas at a catwalk show are locked in and deprived of their mobiles until Danny Lancaster can find out which one is hiding the Duchess of Brighton. SUDDEN Aging gang boss Big Eddie Archer summons Danny Lancaster when someone starts murdering pals from his criminal past. Danny must hunt down the man behind this vicious vendetta before the body count gets out of control.

280 pages, Paperback

First published July 24, 2015

About the author

I’ve spent most of my working life as a journalist on local and national newspapers.
You meet a lot of people, see things, learn stuff. For a crime writer, it’s a plot factory.
One treasured memory was lunching with colleagues when the bar filled with agitated policemen.
“Who’s he?” said a CID man, pointing.
A good friend didn’t like his tone and announced in her best Lady Bracknell voice, “He’s the editor of the local paper!”
The copper said, “I don’t care who the hell he is. He looks like the guy who just did the bank up the road. How long’s he been here?”
Luckily, the barman provided my alibi.
Before journalism I tried my hand at odd jobs including furniture removals (watch out for the flat-packs, they tend to pack flat when lifted!), photography, teaching and running a magazine group.
I’ve done quite a bit of travel writing. It’s not all cocktails under the palm trees but it is a fantastic job that’s taken me to more than 40 countries, from the white wastes of Arctic Finland to the deserts of Namibia.
People often ask my favourite place. In an age of globalisation, many destinations look the same but Iceland and Namibia are like stepping onto another planet. Go if you can.
I’ve enjoyed a long love affair with Western Crete. The mountains, coastline, food and people make me wonder if I lived there in some previous life. I just have to watch the waxed wings on a hot day.
I was delighted and surprised to receive the Ed Lacy travel award in 2007.
Another interest is my family tree. I’ve traced the ancestors back to William of Byfield, a farmer in 1600s Northamptonshire, just down the road from Shakespeare.
I love maps. They might seem old fashioned in the age of GPS but they tell stories, make promises. I have a ragbag collection of more than 2,000.
I’m also a fan of interesting cheeses, good beer and wilderness. They’re like Marmite, you’re an empty place person or you’re not.
I have written four full-length crime thrillers and a book of short stories featuring Danny Lancaster, a wounded Afghan veteran turned private investigator. They are:
The Wreck Of The Margherita
Death Squad
Rough Diamond
Rock Hard
Gargoyle Pixie Dog
My sixth Danny Lancaster - GODLEFE'S CUCKOO - will be published in March 2018.
I’ve also written three non-fiction books. GUNNER is based on my father's World War Two diary, photos and postcards from Normandy to Hamburg.
PIGTAIL PILOT is the tragic story of Barbara Gubbins, a talented young woman who was nearly the RAF’s first female pilot.
A CROCUS FROM JERUSALEM is the story of a country lad soldiering in 1917 Palestine.
If you fancy a chat I’m easy to find.

Reviews

[Kath Middleton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Sometimes you find a series which you think you will enjoy but you missed out on the start. Do you go to the beginning and hope you’ll get chance to read them all or do you dive in and feel lost? This book, which is full novel length, is a really good way to get a taster of the author’s Danny Lancaster stories. Danny is a private investigator, an ex-soldier who lost a leg in Afghanistan, and, if these stories are typical, he’s never going to get rich. He makes enough to get by but he’s got a soft heart, in spite of some of the things he becomes involved with.

I admit to being seduced by the title, though the reason for it becomes obvious when Danny is trying to trace a missing street girl. This is the main story, although there are shorter stories in the collection. I didn’t find a dud in there and I like the author’s style of writing. He comes up with some excellent phrases and isn’t a slave to cliché. I really hope I’ll find the time to read more Danny Lancaster before too long. A great collection and a lesson to series authors in how to give potential new readers a way in.

[Miss Dizzy Read · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonder why the author did short stories about Danny, prefer the normal ones, still like Danny though, have got the next 2 to read.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gargoyle Pixie Dog is a book made up of short stories that are cases of private investigator Danny Lancaster.

There is actually a series of Danny Lancaster books but don’t let this put you off buying this one if, like me, you haven’t read the rest of the books as this is easily read as a stand alone novel.

It would take me to long to give a brief review for each story so I won’t, but what I will say is that every story has a different style of crime for Danny to investigate. My personal favourite two are Gargoyle Pixie Dog as this is the longest story in the book and through this one the reader really gets a feel for Danny and how he works and who he is. Plus it is a very intriguing story line. My second favourite has to be The Cuckolds Calling which the least said about that one the better as it is a cracker of a story with a very surprising turn of events.

Overall this is a really enjoyable read. Danny is a great character and I love the working relationship between him and Wanda. It certainly left me very intrigued to find out more about these two characters and how they came to be where they are.

I would like to thank the author for giving me a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.