Jersey is set to play a starring role in an upcoming crime thriller book which follows two police detectives as they investigate the mysterious death of a World War Two pilot.
Dorset-born David Sharp is set to publish the second addition to his DI Lancaster series called ‘One of the Few’ next month.
The crime thriller follows the neurodivergent detective as he travels to Jersey with DS Marie Vidêt to try and understand the death of retired spitfire pilot Peter Urbawicz.
Mr Sharp, who published his debut novel ‘For All Your Endeavours’ late last year, used his own neurodivergent condition of dyspraxia to influence the story.
The novel is being published by Cranthorpe Milner Publishers.
Explaining the inspiration behind the book, Mr Sharp said he first discovered the stories of recon spitfire pilots during a visit to the Imperial War Museum in Duxford. His father-in-law also flew those missions during the war.
The author said: “The more I delved into these exploits, the more I knew I needed to tell some of the stories that had evolved from my research.”
Mr Sharp added that some of the historical events touched on in the novel are based on true events such as the D-Day landings, resistance in Brittany, and the fall of the Berlin wall.
“All of these events give historical depth to the suspect characters’ stories, and at the same time give DI Lancaster plenty to unpick to find which is wheat and which is chaff,” he added.
“His uniquely autistic way of looking at things, and his way of working through detail and making never-ending lists, makes him the ideal candidate for investigating complex cold cases.”
One of the Few is set to be released in paperback and on Kindle on 29 September.
It is available for pre-order online now from Waterstones and Amazon.
INTERESTED?
Get a feel for the upcoming novel with the book’s blurb below..
With another mysterious cold case on their radar, DI David Lancaster and DS Marie Vidêt travel to the island of Jersey in the English Channel, to investigate the death of Peter Urbawicz, a retired World War II spitfire pilot, whose death twenty years prior was recorded by the island police as ‘accidental’.
With his daughter, Lady Stottard, adamant that her father died in suspicious circumstances, can these two detectives investigate without ruffling any feathers? Can they pick apart the facts and rout out the clues to prove his death was not an accident, when said facts and clues have lain buried for twenty years?
When their enquiries trigger a visit from British Counter Terrorism operatives, the case becomes even more complicated, and they are left wondering how an IRA terrorist, a French boatyard owner, and an ex-East German STASI officer fit into their case…