THE INSPECTOR RAVENSCROFT MYSTERIES six captivating historical murder mysteries

Inspector Ravenscroft

by Kerry Tombs

GET BOOKS ONE TO SIX OF KERRY TOMBS’ BEST-SELLING MYSTERY SERIES IN THIS BRILLIANT BOX SET. YOU GET *SIX* HISTORICAL WHODUNITS FULL OF CLEVER TWISTS, UNFORGETTABLE CHARACTERS AND SLY HUMOUR. What readers are saying about Kerry Tombs’ books “A must read for lovers of British Crime mysteries.” Brian “Detecting at its best in Victorian England.” Lynne “Very absorbing and hard to put down.” Berys “Brilliant series of books. Buy them.” Tina “Realistic characters, interesting plot . . . kept me guessing to the very end!.” Marine “Draws us into the seamy side of nineteenth-century London.” Sheila IN THIS SIX-BOOK BOX BOOK 1: THE MALVERN MURDERS Inspector Ravenscroft has the worst record in the force. He is banished to Malvern to recuperate. But murder follows him. He accepts an invite to dine with a new acquaintance. Before the dinner gong can sound, his host is found dead. His death has all the hallmarks of a poisoning. But the local police don’t want to believe it. Can Ravenscroft solve the case before it’s too late? BOOK 2: THE WORCESTER WHISPERERS Murder in the cathedral? A librarian vanishes from Worcester Cathedral — along with a priceless medieval manuscript. Inspector Ravenscroft is called up to investigate. Before long, he soon discovers that behind the cathedral’s facade lurks a dark world of murder, lies and deceit. Can he and PC Tom Crabb unravel the truth in time to save the librarian and his precious tome? BOOK 3: THE LEDBURY LAMPLIGHTERS A mystery man comes to sleepy Ledbury, offering solicitor Anthony Midwinter a huge sum to guard a package. It must stay sealed, no questions asked. England’s future depends on it. Elsewhere, a businessman is slain in full view of New Year’s Eve revellers. Inspector Ravenscroft must track his ruthless killer, a man whose deadly plot threatens the stability of the entire country. BOOK 4: THE TEWKESBURY TOMB Six strangers meet on the doorstep of Tewkesbury Abbey. What they find inside is deeply shocking. They were seeking holy relics. But the body they uncover is barely cold. And the ancient bones of Sir Roger de la Pole are missing. Inspector Ravenscroft is on the case. Can he decipher the coded letters on the tomb to stop the killer in his tracks? BOOK 5: THE DROITWICH DECEIVERS A nine-year-old girl vanishes from Droitwich churchyard. Her father is salt tycoon Sir Charles Chilton. And there’s no price he won’t pay for her safe return. Can Inspector Ravenscroft uncover the truth in time to save Chilton’s daughter and one other innocent child? BOOK 6: THE PERSHORE POISONERS No one ever died from dining at Talbots' Lodging House — until now. Everyone who tasted the soup du jour is left with a nasty case of food poisoning. But the man who refused it is dead. Inspector Ravenscroft is called in to investigate. Can he solve the case before more victims are served a deadly fate? THE DETECTIVES Inspector Samuel Ravenscroft, single and over forty, works in the Whitechapel branch of the Met. Painfully asthmatic, he is often overlooked by his superiors. But he is keen to prove himself and what he lacks in physical prowess he makes up for in insight and intuition. Ravenscroft and Constable Tom Crabb are a powerful crime-solving duo. Their quest to bring criminals to justice takes them to every corner of the Three Counties.

Genres: Mystery

1428 pages, Kindle Edition

Published July 20, 2020

About the author

Kerry Tombs was born in Smethwick in 1945, and after a career in teaching in both England and Australia, moved to Malvern in 1982, where he became a genealogist, lecturer and bookseller. He has set THE MALVERN MURDERS in a variety of Malvern locations including St.Ann's Well, Malvern College, British Camp and Priory Church - and in the nearby villages of Colwall and Mathon and town of Ledbury. Kerry moved to Brittany in 2005.

Reviews

[MRS G · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very easy reading, a series of gentle crime mysteries centred around Detective Inspector Ravenscroft. These stories are set during the 1800's. So no mobile phones - just good old telegrams.

I enjoyed each book individually, but as an ongoing series, it was so nice to see the progress of DI Ravenscroft life. 💗

[Linda · Rating 4 out of 5]

A total shock to me that I got into these

Reminds me of Sherlock Homes mysteries, but not as sharp. Ravenswood was the smartest detective, and they didn't use weapons nearly enough, but have to hand it to him and Crabb, they always came through. Set in the late 1800s in England meant that I didn't always understand the words, yes, the slang is different, but I still managed to follow along. I would say the one weird thing is using "bought" instead of "brought" throughout the book when a person had to bring something along.

The group of murder cases had some fun twists, like Jack the Ripper. And although Ravenscroft's cases overlapped with these other criminals, he didn't catch on to them or they managed to fool him, they do eventually get their comeuppance...well, other than the last story. I'm hoping Quinton gets his too. 😉

[jeryl thompson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Traditional British read

These stories were basically good. Somewhat wordy and repetitive at times. A main thing I want to know is why did it say "bought" instead of "brought"? Every single time.
Also, in book 4, there were several errors; such as Colonel Dames was called Major; Ms Eames said the Major suggested going to the an st but later it was said she said Jenkins suggested it.

[Gail Rae-garwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most worthy of a read

I would recommend these books to anyone interested in the Victorian Era. The characters are likable and get the job done. I will look for more books in the series.

[Graham Tallents · Rating 4 out of 5]

Quite an enjoyable series with a somewhat bumbling DI who misses the odd clue, fixates on a wrong assumption and runs off on a tangent, only to finally stumble onto the truth in the end. Good character development throughout the series. However, I find that, as usual with a box set, I need to read something else between each episode so as not to become bored with the same characters over and over. As such, while it seems eo have taken me more than two months to read this set, I have averaged only about 6 hours per book.

[Julie Monzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Enjoyable

I have enjoyed these Inspector Ravenscroft novels. The dialogue is very good and the plots are not overly complicated, though not too simple either. They are enjoyable books that are a good escape.

[Gary and Sandra Sims · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very interesting stories

At first Ravenscroft seems like a so so detective, but get him away from his superiors he shines. In each of these cases Ravenscroft eventually brings the murderers to justice and along the way entertains us with good stories and interesting characters.

[David Crellen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't put it down until I finished all 6 books. There were lots of grammar and typo issues. It looked like the copy was dictated to a computer text generator. That would account for some errors (to instead of too) and missing transitional words.

[Christine Newnham · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good story!

Thoroughly enjoyed this book! I liked the twists and turns of the synopsise, which made me keep reading the book.

[Betty Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspector Ravenscroft

Enjoyed each and everyone of the books and couldn't put yhem down, look forward to reading any more Inspector Ravenscroft books

[Leslie Needham · Rating 5 out of 5]

I thoroughly enjoyed reading these books. Set in in the late 19th century in the,"3 counties", the stories are cleverly interwoven as the series of six books develop. Very likeable main characters take you back to more gentle times. I highly recommend these books which are full of plot twists and surprises. Easy comfort reading. (No spoilers from me). Enjoy.

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

These are good books if you like the Victorian era but I had a difficult time getting into them. At times they were a bit repetitive.

[David Elkin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great set of 6 noveks

Fun romp through the Victorian detective genre. A great value for the reader. A must buy for the fans of Holmes and other sleuths of that era.

[Maureen Doyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written, entertaining

The cast of characters is varied and fun. Ravenscroft is a detective, a cross of Holmes and Poirot, only with a social conscience and a caring mien.

[Thomas A · Rating 5 out of 5]

really enjoyed the stories so far and want to read more

[Teddi · Rating 3 out of 5]

I only read books 5 and 6 as I'd listened to the 4 previous ones on Audible. I rated and reviewed them on their own pages

[Rachael Bermingham · Rating 4 out of 5]

An enjoyable and light Victorian detective romp through Worcestershire. I think any alliterative titles beg not to be taken seriously. So I didn’t. The writing may have been a little fluffy but the story lines were interesting and kept me guessing.