Gripping mystery crime novels and thrillers, full of twists and turns

  When an author first starts writing much of it is trial and error until he/she finds what suits them best.  And so it was with me.  My early unpublished attempts were at writing historical sagas, switching the story between a female lead character and a male lead character.  When these failed to find a publisher and when I suddenly woke up to the fact that all my sagas contained a crime element I abandoned sagas and wrote a suspense novel primarily with a female lead.  This got me an agent  (so I was at last on the right track) but failed to find me a publisher. The agent very quickly dropped me.  So back to the drawing board. I realized that I enjoyed writing more from the male character's view point than I did the female.  I'm not sure why. Many people have asked me and the answer is I don’t really know, maybe it’s because I like male heroes. I don't think it matters, it just happens to be my style! That being said there are, of course, some very strong f

OK so some of you are wondering why, having read the originally published DI Andy Horton crime novels, and now revisiting them in their new incarnation with Joffe Books as the Solent Murder Mysteries, that the Eames family name has changed. Or perhaps you haven't even noticed it, and new readers will be totally unaware of this switch. But for those of you who did a sort of double take here is why Lord Richard Eames, (not Andy Horton's favourite person) has changed his name and that of his family. But before I explain ... In case you are wondering what I'm wittering on about, not having got to THE FARLINGTON MARSH MURDERS yet (book 8) when the Eames name is first mentioned, Lord Richard Eames has something to do with the disappearance of Andy Horton's mum, Jennifer, when he was ten years old. What that is I'm not saying because I would spoil the pleasure (I hope it is) of reading all fifteen in the series ( soon to be sixteen- 2022).

⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Pauline Rowson’s books are cleverly plotted with lots of twists and turns. Can’t turn the pages fast enough. For anyone who enjoys a gripping crime novel these are a must.” Darren C.  ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ "Brilliant read. Love all of Pauline Rowson’s books. If you like a good twist, read this, you won't be able to put it down!” Amazon customer  Available on Amazon Kindle and paperback

 I'm delighted to announce that number 9 in the Solent Murder Mystery series, THE OYSTER QUAYS MURDERS is now published on Amazon Kindle and in paperback. (Please note this was previously published as Undercurrent.) It's a wet August night and Inspector Andy Horton is returning from London to Portsmouth when police cars on blue lights race past him on the motorway. Nothing unusual in that but as Horton heads for the small yacht on which he lives he sees the police vehicles pull up outside Portsmouth's Historic Dockyard and draw to a halt. His curiosity gets the better of him and he stops to investigate. Lying face down and sprawled out in Number One Dock is the lifeless body of naval historian Dr Douglas Spalding. Superintendent Uckfield is adamant that Spalding took his own life. But Horton’s not so sure. Then another body is found in similar circumstances in the cockpit of a boat moored at Oyster Quays. Angry at his boss’s inaction, Horton takes matters in

Getting the right name for characters in my crime novels can be a tricky business. Sometimes they come to me completely out of the blue as I am creating a character, other times I will struggle to find the name that best suits that particular character and until I do the personality refuses to come fully alive. So here is how I choose the names for my characters:    1. The name has to fit. If it's not right then the character isn't right.  2. The name also needs to fit with the age and nationality although you can have exceptions.    3. When seeking inspiration for first names I turn to my little book of baby's names or I will look them up on the internet. 4. I also keep an ear out for any unusual or interesting names when meeting people and will jot these down.    5. Cemeteries are also a great inspiration for first names and for surnames although Idon't pick the same first and surname of a deceased person. 6. Looking at rolling credits on films and TV programmes

    Without doubt the struggle for most writers is that of getting published. It took me eighteen long years before I achieved this. Along this journey I had countless rejections and false dawns. Even when I managed to get an agent she failed to get me a publisher and therefore quickly gave up on me. I have to admit though at that time I was still learning my craft and my novels weren't polished enough.  I ploughed on undaunted and hopeful. I learned my craft, perfected my style of writing, found my voice and homed in on my genre - the crime genre. Before this I had written some sagas and a suspense novel but it wasn't until I created DI Andy Horton that I finally hit on it. Read more