Handsome young art teacher Edward Gamble has an appetite for mysteries which is insatiable at the best of times, but a chance encounter at a New Year's Eve party sets him on a path to track down what remains of his late mother's paintings. This irresistible desire to reconnect with his past exposes a crime which Edward is determined to solve, aided by his best friend the faithful, if somewhat reluctant, Charlie Cutler. Our irrepressible sleuth even finds time to turn his talents to unravelling a few other mysteries along the way, sometimes with unexpected consequences

The idyllic village of Hadenville doesn't turn out to be quite as peaceful as Charlie Cutler expects when he moves there to stay with friend and fellow teacher, Edward Gamble. Edward has a talent for solving crimes. Unfortunately he also has a knack for getting into trouble, and Charlie finds himself drawn into some intriguing, and even dangerous, situations. When Edward uncovers details of a crime which his late father had been investigating he can't resist the urge to dig a little deeper, and resolves to finish what his father had begun years before. With just a handful of cryptic clues he...

Fire rips through Willow Cottage. Edward Gamble and his friend Charlie Cutler at first seem lucky to escape; until they discover it was no accident. Even worse Edward learns the fire that killed his parents many years before may also have been deliberate. Could these two incidents be connected? Edward and Charlie weave their way through clues and suspects. Why did his parents have to die? Why, twenty years later, did history seem to be repeating itself? If someone had something to hide they were going to great lengths to cover up the truth