Nicholas Rhea

Page Updated: 14/11/2006

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Nicholas Rhea - Page 5

Constable Under the Gooseberry Bush

Superstitious Death

Confession

Constable at the Gate

Constable at the Dam

Constable Under the Gooseberry Bush
Featuring characters from the latest Heartbeat TV series, including the newly arrived Sergeant Craddock and garage man Bernie Scripps, this is a tale of rural drama laced with humour, pathos and very large gooseberries
When Joseph Marshall decided to retire after forty years as president of the Aidensfield Old Gooseberry Society he thought he might find time to nurture some prize-winning gooseberries. He'd always been too busy running the society to win prizes. Just before his impending retirement, however, Joseph's health rapidly deteriorates and the people of Aidensfield raise funds to send him to Lourdes, hoping for a miracle cure.
Also, a crimewave involving stolen bicycles strikes the area, with the new sergeant's own valuable racing machine being amongst those taken, Constable Nick finds himself coping with a variety of rustic problems in Aidensfield in his own inimitable way.

First British Edition Constable (1998)

Superstitious Death
See Review by John Boyles
When Mrs. Cholmondeley's bay tree withered and died for no apparent reason, the highly superstitious Detective Inspector Montague Pluke knew that a death was imminent. The subsequent discovery of a shallow grave containing the body of an unknown young woman confirmed his belief and the mirror in the grave told him it was not a routine investigation. But Pluke's problems increased when the Security Services told him to end his enquiries as secrets in the life of a local philanthropist began to emerge.
'Twists and turns are skilfully handled in this police procedural with amusing overtones.'Yorkshire Gazette and Herald, Bill Spence

First British Edition Constable (1997)

Confession
Detective Superintendent Mark Pemberton is first on the scene when a young man loses control of his bright red sports car and crashes into a ditch. As Pemberton and his fellow passengers reach the wreck of the car the driver is still alive - just. And when the injured man sees that Mark Pemberton is accompanied by a priest he becomes extremely agitated. With his dying breath, the driver confesses to a murder. Pemberton is baffled. The priest, Father Flynn, is bound by the secrets of the confessional so cannot reveal more, but Pemberton cannot ignore the fact that he has heard a wholly voluntary admission of murder - a freely made statement of the finest kind, a firm admission of guilt. But to which murder was the dead man referring! No suspicious deaths have been reported recently. Among the unsolved cases on the police books are the murders of several prostitutes, the work of the so-called 'sandal strangler', who always takes away the shoes of the dead women. Could the car crash victim be a serial killer! Pemberton and his colleagues find themselves in the strange position of working backwards from the killer to the crime and must use all their investigative powers to get to the strange and chilling truth.

First British Edition Hale (1997)

Paperback - Headline

Constable at the Gate
In a book rich with characters featured in ITV's hit series, Heartbeat, Nicholas Rhea continues his story of a village policeman's work on the North York Moors during the 1960s.
The tales range from the celebration of a horse's birthday in the local pub to a small boy's hunt for the legendary silver hawk which once inhabited the moors above Aidensfield. In the latter case, the child played truant - but his determination to find and protect the rare bird also helped Constable Nick solve some crimes.
Claude Jeremiah Greengrass and his dog, Alfred, continue their rather dodgy means of earning a living, venturing into the bed-and-breakfast business with unsatisfactory results and indulging in some strange horse-trading with gypsies. When Alfred falls into a disused pitshaft full of water, however, it is Constable Nick who rescues the dog - to the horror of Sergeant Blaketon because it was witnessed by journalists compiling a feature about the work of the constabulary!
Another local journalist highlights her devotion to Sergeant Blaketon in her press reports while Nick copes with village gossips and finds himself searching for old folks who have wandered from home. His action at the scene of a road accident near a stately gate results in a joyful family reunion while the buyer of a country cottage does not bring much happiness to the constable and people of Aidensfield. Jacket illustration by Barbara Walton.

Paperback - Headline (1998)

First British Edition Hale (1997)

Constable at the Dam
The construction of a dam and reservoir brings a whole new set of problems to the resident constable of Aidensfield. Apart from worries about an increase in traffic, lawlessness and crime, Claude Jeremiah Greengrass creates concern when he finds a skeleton, and his attempts to build a caravan site are frustrated by an ever-increasing mountain of fresh earth. And then someone begins to steal Claude's mountain of earth while there is a nationwide crime wave involving stolen mobile cranes.
Florrie the shoplifter gives police and shopkeepers a run for their money as the local lads are challenged by the reservoir workers to a cross-country race fuelled by pints of beer. Meanwhile, Nick ponders the will of the eccentric Warwide Humbert Ravenswood whose last wish is to be buried at the bottom of the new reservoir.
However, it is the artist, Gordon Precious, who gives Nick his greatest challenge. When the site foreman begins a love affair with Gordon's wife, the artist vows to destroy the dam and the reservoir - and steals a cache of explosives to carry out his threat.
Jacket illustration by Barbara Walton.
'These books...do for the police service in north Yorkshire what James Herriot did for vets there... Very relaxing, very readable' Manchester Evening News
'Recommended if it's laughter you're after' Bolton Evening News
'Richly entertaining' Yorkshire Evening Post