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Welcome
I write crime stories to explore the road less travelled.
An engineer turned writer, I’m your science and technology tour guide to the global world of manufacturing. From mining to recycling, agriculture to power generation, medicines to chemical weapons, I take you to the places other fear to tread.
Put your feet up and grab a book .
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Tunnel of terror
Losing Control
Terror in Teesside
A dead body washes up in Hartlepool Historic Quay. The autopsy reveals he was murdered. Police officers trace the scene of crime to the south bank of the River Tees where night watchman, Alf, keeps watch over a shrine. A woman comes forward to identify the victim, claiming to be his sister. The murder weapon is found in the possession of the colleague who reported him missing. It seems that the case can be closed. But DI Julie Cadell is not so sure.
An unexpected gem
Phosphate Rocks: A Death in Ten Objects
A Death in Ten Objects
When the old chemical works in Leith are demolished, a long deceased body is uncovered. Seated at a card table, encrusted in phosphate rock, ten objects are positioned in front of the mummified corpse. DI Rose Irving from Police Scotland is tasked with making sense of this eerie scene, and sets out to find someone familiar with the history of the site. Enter retired shift foreman John Gibson, a veritable mine of information. DI Irving certainly gets more than she bargained for: a history of technology, a lesson in chemistry and an unusual insight into the people who worked in …
‘Quite possibly the best mystery novelist ever to have taken up the quill in the name of chemistry.’
Engineering and Technology
Classic 007-style action - a genuine goldmine of a thriller
The Chemical Code
Jaq Silver spicy engineering thriller Book #4
Jaq Silver is back in Brazil and this time she has a single missionâvengeance. When her enemies take what she treasures most, she will do anything to make them pay. A series of betrayals leave her unsure who to trust.  Jaq becomes increasingly embroiled in a web of international corruption. This is one mission she has to complete alone, but can Jaq be sure she is chasing down the right target? And who is pursuing Jaq?
‘A 21st-century reinterpretation of classic 007-style action, villainy, exotic location and pretzel plotting… a genuine goldmine of a thriller.’
Engineering and Technology
Financial Times Best Summer Book
The Chemical Cocktail
Jaq Silver spicy engineering thriller Book #3
Jaq Silver travels from Portugal to Brazil, amid conspiracies and corruption, to get to the bottom of her family mystery. She is not the only one with an interest in her unusual inheritance. Racing against the clock as the threats to her life increase on all sides, Jaq must use her scientific know-how to save what matters most.
âanother splendidly energetic thriller⊠Packed with fascinating science, thrills, shocks and relationships both touching and horrible, this is a terrific read.â
Literary Review
SHORTLISTED FOR THE STAUNCH PRIZE
The Chemical Reaction
Jaq Silver spicy engineering thriller Book #2
Dr Jaqueline Silver reluctantly accepts a contract in China, but the factory she is due to visit vanishes overnight along with her former student, Dan. After receiving a message in code, Jaq forms an uneasy alliance with a group of athletes daylighting as art thieves. She makes a road trip from the Shaolin Temple – home of Kung Fu – to the rare earth mines of Jiangxi. She outwits corrupt police, duplicitous industrialists, only to come face to face with death near the Banqiao hydroelectric dam, scene of the worst structural failure of the 20th century.
The plot is complex, intelligent and carefully developed and features just the right blend of suspense and mystery, explosions and gorgeous male strippers, theft of multi-million dollar artworks and five-star dining in interesting locations…
Forbes
She blows things up to keep people safe
The Chemical Detective
Jaq Silver spicy engineering thriller Book #1
Dr Jaq Silver. Skier, scientist, international jet-setter, explosives expert. She blows things up to keep people safe. Working on avalanche control in Slovenia, Jaq stumbles across a problem with a consignment of explosives. After raising a complaint with the supplier, a multinational chemical company, her evidence disappears and she is framed for murder. Jaq must find the key to the mystery. But can she uncover the truth before her time runs out?
An audacious, female-led thriller which took the disposable women of the James Bond franchise and flipped the concept entirely on its head
Chemistry World Book Club
Latest updates
Holiday break
Posted on September 4, 2025
I started the week with a wonderful day at the WRITE Festival in South Shields Library. What a great venue! I joined an author panel with Helen Aitchison, CJ Grayson …
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Jaq Silver Thriller Series available again
Posted on August 21, 2025
The fourth book in the Jaq Silver series is now available on-line in paperback under the Snickered Mole imprint. A gold star to anyone who unpicks the anagram. This might …
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Q&A in Chemical Processing
Posted on August 11, 2025
I had a lovely chat with Traci Purdum which was published this week. 5 Quick Questions Aug. 11, 2025 Engineering professor discovers joy in teaching, hypothetically tackles Bhopal cleanup and …
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