Date with Deceit, 6Paperback, 1 August 2021

Julia Chapman's sixth Dales Detectives Agency novel, Date with Deceit, sees Delilah going undercover at a shoot involving dangerous criminals and where a man is shot. Perfect for fans of M.C. Beaton and Gervase Phinn.

A woman in tears in the Dales Detective Agency is never the best way to start the week. But when that woman is the wife of Bernard Taylor, town mayor and eminent businessman, there is even more cause for alarm. So when she asks the detectives to discover whether her husband is having an affair, Samson O'Brien and Delilah Metcalfe know they will have to tread carefully as they proceed to take on the case.

The case however, proves to be more complex than even they had imagined. While Delilah is undercover at the local shoot to better keep tracks on the errant husband, she unwittingly becomes a witness when a man is shot. When Samson to help the police with their investigations, it's not long before the Dales Detective Agency is embroiled in far more than simply keeping tabs on the town's mayor. The detective duo will soon discover that deceit is rife in Bruncliffe. And it may well prove deadly.