London, 1942. Miss Jane Treen is at her desk in Whitehall sipping a strong coffee when she receives an urgent message about her colleague, codebreaker Arthur Cilento. He’s in danger in Devon, and Jane needs to get there sharpish. But before her bags are properly unpacked, the local teashop owner in Arthur’s village is found lying amidst the scones and teacakes… and she’s dead.

When Jane arrives, it quickly becomes clear that the murder is a half-baked attempt to curdle Arthur’s current codebreaking mission – but how? There seem to be suspects at every turn. Is Arthur’s boss be going to extremes to cover up his incompetence? Can the teashop customers be trusted? And what about the secretary, who seems to have secret links to the village teashop…

Spurred on by scones and clotted cream, Jane and Arthur start to whip up a theory as to who the killer could be. But just they begin to make progress, someone else is murdered – and it looks like Arthur could be next. It’s clear they need to solve this case quickly, before teatime is over and Arthur meets a sticky end…

If you love twisty crime novels, top-secret intrigue and the very best of Golden Age mysteries, then you will adore Helena Dixon’s utterly gripping cozy novel, perfect for fans of Agatha Christie, T.E. Kinsey and Verity Bright!

What readers are saying about The Secret Detective Agency series:

‘I ATE this up. what more could I ask for???… Loved it.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Hooked from start to finish… This book is an absolute delight!’ reading_barefoot_on_the_beach

‘DANCE WITH BOOK GLEE AND READ HAPPILY!!… I love the characters! One moment I thought I knew who it was! The next minute a dead body shows up! I devoured it!… Must Read!… Bravo!!! 🍭’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Absolutely hooked from the start. Full of action but cosy!’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘The reveal. WHOOSH! THAT was unexpected. I was so sure of who it was… I was V E R Y wrong 🙂 . A really great read!’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I just loved this book! I read this book within a couple of hours in one sitting as I couldn’t put it down.’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘I was hooked from the very beginning. I LOVED the cat. I need more Marmaduke!’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Oh my goodness what a journey. So ridiculously good.’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Terrific! Wonderfully paced and beautifully written, kept me enthralled for the entire book.’ Novel Kicks, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Reels you in, I didn’t want to put it down… Kept me guessing and on the edge of my seat!’ NetGalley reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘Keeps you racing and guessing through every moment! Absolutely loved it!’ writergirl5786

‘I devoured The Secret Detective Agency in a single sitting—it was that good! The twists really kept me guessing!’ NetGalley reviewer

‘Oooh! A Second World War spy thriller-cum-murder mystery! Who could resist?’ Reading, Writing, Wandering, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

‘A joy to read! I was glued to the pages!’ Goodreads reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐