Books by Cath Staincliffe

From the author of the Scott and Bailey series, Running Out of Road is a novel about family and betrayal, injustice and violence, fear and love, resilience, kindness and hope.

From the author of the Scott and Bailey series, Quiet Acts of Violence is a novel about family and betrayal, injustice and poverty, the ties that bind and those that break us.

A moment's madness, a lifetime of regret. A harrowing and heart-breaking story of the splinters that can tear mothers and daughters, husbands and wives - and friends - apart.

How far would you go to protect your child?

How do you survive the unthinkable?Passengers boarding the 10.35 train from Manchester Piccadilly to London Euston are bound for work, assignations, reunions, holidays or new starts, with no idea that their journey is about to be brutally curtailed. Holly has just landed her dream job, which should make life a lot easier than it has been, and Jeff is heading for his first ever work interview after months of unemployment. They end up sitting next to each other. Onboard customer service assistant Naz dreams of better things as he collects rubbish from the passengers. And among the others travelling are Nick with his young family who are driving him crazy; pensioner Meg and her partner setting off on a walking holiday and facing an uncertain future; Caroline, run ragged by the competing demands of her stroppy teenage children and her demented mother; and Rhona, unhappy at work and desperate to get home to her small daughter. And in the middle of the carriage sits Saheel, carrying a deadly rucksack . . .'Cath Staincliffe gets into the heads of ordinary people and makes them extraordinary' Ann Cleeves'Harrowing and humane. A real knockout' Ian Rankin'Complex and satisfying' Sunday Times

A community on the brink. An abandoned chapel burns. But this time, the body of a man lies inside. And it's down to Scott and Bailey to save them all... Detective Constable Rachel Bailey is struggling to come to terms with huge change, just as her partner, DC Janet Scott grapples with a horrifying tragedy.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE ITV3 CRIME THRILLER BOOK CLUBGrandmother Ruth Sutton writes to the man she hates more than anyone else on the planet: the man who she believes killed her daughter Lizzie in a brutal attack four years earlier. Ruth's burden of grief and hatred, has only grown heavier with the passing of time, her avid desire for vengeance ever stronger. In writing to him Ruth hopes to exorcise the corrosive emotions that are destroying her life, to find the truth and with it release and a way forward. Whether she can ever truly forgive him is another matter - but the letters are her last, best hope.Letters To My Daughter's Killer exposes the aftermath of violent crime for an ordinary family and explores fundamental questions of crime and punishment. How do we deal with the very human desire for revenge? If we get justice does reconciliation follow? Can we really forgive those who do us the gravest wrong? Could you?

Can Sal break the conspiracy of silence that surrounds her latest case?Sal Kilkenny is asked to discover the whereabouts of Jennifer Pickering, disinherited twenty years ago. But it seems that now Jennifer does not want to be found. And as she spends her days tracing Jennifer, Sal's nights are shattered by a dangerous stint with the Neighbour Nuisance Unit on one of Manchester's toughest housing estates. In this highly charged atmosphere it's not surprising when tempers flare... and as properties start to burn, Sal's two cases spiral out of control and events, past and present, collide with deadly intensity.Praise for Cath Staincliffe:'Gritty, intelligent, humane and involving' Big Issue'Deftly organised, with several surprising twists.' Evening Standard'An engrossing read.' Sunday Telegraph'Real people, real problems... Staincliffe writes brilliantly and compassionately about things that matter. Seriously good.' Literary Review'Modest, compassionate... a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail' Literary Review'Complex and satisfying' The Sunday Times'about as good as the British private eye novel gets' Time Out

She's a single parent. A private eye. And liking it. Until, that is, Mrs Hobbs turns up asking Sal Kilkenny to find her missing son. Sal's search takes her through the Manchester underworld, a wasteland of deprivation and petty theft, of well-heeled organised crime and, ultimately, murder. Would she have taken the job on if she had known what she was getting herself into?Actually, yes. Sal is on fire with a desire to see justice done and to avenge the death of a young lad whose only crime was knowing too much . . . This is the first Sal Kilkenny mystery, serialised on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour.Praise for Cath Staincliffe:'A book about courage and compromise, about how sometimes it's kinder and braver to lie.Stunning.'Anne Cleeves'Modest, compassionate... a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail'Literary Review'Complex and satisfying' The Sunday Times'about as good as the British private eye novel gets' Time Out'It's always exciting to see a writer get better and better, and Cath Staincliffe is doing just that'Val McDermid'an engrossing read'Sunday Telegraph

Juggling the school run with private investigating, Sal Kilkenny's life is a strange mix of the dramatic with the domestic.Sal has two new clients:Jimmy Achebe wants her to confirm his suspicions of his wife's infidelity and Agnes Donlan fears for her friend Lily, who has undergone a swift decline in her new nursing home.Sal soon finds herself in treacherous territory which threatens to impinge on her private life...Praise for Cath Staincliffe:'A book about courage and compromise, about how sometimes it's kinder and braver to lie. Stunning.'Anne Cleeves'Modest, compassionate... a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail'. Literary Review'Complex and satisfying.' The Sunday Times.'about as good as the British private eye novel gets' Time Out.'It's always exciting to see a writer get better and better, and Cath Staincliffe is doing just that.' Val McDermid.'an engrossing read'. Sunday Telegraph

No one knows what he's going to do next... A professional frontDC Janet Scott has survived a terrifying attack, and is now having second thoughts about her life and steady marriage - but if she acts on her feelings she risks tearing her family apart.

A split second is all it takes to make a decision - but what if it is the wrong one?A winter's evening and a trio of unruly youths board a bus and gang up on teenager Luke Murray, hurling abuse and threatening to kill him. The bus is full but no one intervenes until Jason Barnes, a young student, challenges the youths with devastating consequences.Split Second tackles questions of bravery, fear and kindness and explores the real human impact of violent crime.Praise for Cath Staincliffe,A book about courage and compromise, about how sometimes it's kinder and braver to lie. Stunning. Anne Cleeves.Modest, compassionate...a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail.' Literary Review'Complex and satisfying.' The Sunday Times'About as good as the British private eye novel gets.' Time Out'An engrossing read'. Sunday Telegraph

Rachel's boss thinks her new recruit has bags of raw talent but straight-laced DC Janet Scott, her reluctant partner, has her doubts. Together Scott and Bailey must hunt a killer, but a life fighting crime can be no life at all...

In a heartbeat, life changes.A sunny, Sunday afternoon, a family barbecue, and Naomi Baxter and her boyfriend Alex celebrate good news. Driving home, Naomi's recklessness causes a fatal accident, leaving nine-year-old Lily Vasey dead, Naomi fighting for her life, Alex bruised and bloody and the lives of three families torn apart.Traumatised, Naomi has no clear memory of the crash and her mother Carmel is forced to break the shocking truth of the child's death to her. Naomi may well be prosecuted for causing death by dangerous driving. If convicted she will face a jail term of up to 14 years, especially if her sister's claim that Naomi was drink-driving is proven.In the months before the trial, Carmel strives to help a haunted and remorseful Naomi cope with the consequences of her actions.Blink of an Eye is a novel about the nightmare that could be just around the next bend for any one of us.Praise for Cath Staincliffe,'A book about courage and compromise, about how sometimes it's kinder and braver to lie. Stunning.' Anne Cleeves.Modest, compassionate...a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail.' Literary Review'Complex and satisfying.' The Sunday Times'About as good as the British private eye novel gets.' Time Out'An engrossing read'. Sunday Telegraph.'a page-turning, insightful thriller.' Big Issue.

Four bystanders in the wrong place at the wrong time. Witnesses to the shocking shooting of a teenage boy. A moment that changes their lives forever.Fiona, a midwife, is plagued by panic attacks and unable to work. Has she the strength to testify?Mike, a delivery driver and family man, faces an impossible decision when his frightened wife forces him to choose - us or the court case.Cheryl, a single-mother, doesn't want her child to grow up in the same climate of fear. Dare she speak out and risk her own life? Zak, a homeless man, offers to talk in exchange for witness protection and the chance of a new start.Ordinary people in an extraordinary situation. Will the witnesses stand firm or be prevented from giving evidence? How will they cope with the emotional trauma of reliving the murder under pitiless cross-examination? A compassionate, suspenseful and illuminating story exploring the real human cost of bearing witness.Praise for Cath Staincliffe:'Cath Staincliffe gets into the heads of ordinary people and makes them extraordinary' Ann Cleeves'Modest, compassionate... a solid ingenious plotter with a sharp eye for domestic detail' Literary Review'Complex and satisfying' The Sunday Times'It's always exciting to see a writer get better and better, and Cath Staincliffe is doing just that' Val McDermid'This powerful, often harrowing story will move you to tears' My Weekly on Fear of Falling'Harrowing and humane. A real knockout' Ian Rankin on Fear of Falling'An intelligent and emotionally engaging moral workout' Daily Telegraph