Death's Autograph First in the Dido Hoare Mysteries series. First publication: 1996 UK hard/soft back US hard/soft back German translation Audio book More? Read sample chapter Reviews Buy on-line(coming soon)

In this first book of the Dido Hoare series, we meet Dido: an independent 32-year-old London woman with a recently-failed marriage, a sceptical father (Barnabas Hoare, Emeritus Professor of English at Oxford University) who is keeping a pessimistic eye on her personal affairs, and Mr Spock, her resident ginger tabby - the one with the pointy ears.

Dido is earning her living as a book dealer with her own small shop; and on the night when we meet her she is driving home along a dark country road with a carload of old books for which she has just paid too much: ‘Dido Hoare, the world-famous-soft-touch antiquarian book dealer.’

Perhaps her mind was on other things when she made the deal. But she is jerked into her immediate situation when she realises that a pair of headlights in her rear-view mirror is following her along this deserted road. She is unable to shake off their threat until she reaches the motorway, but she puts the experience down to a couple of drunks playing a stupid game with a woman driver.

Then in the morning her elderly father receives a threatening note which reveals that somebody had known precisely who Dido was, and soon after that the book shop is turned over. Barnabas, a man with a great mind for puzzles, puts the whole business down to his daughter's shady ex-husband, Davey, and he does reappear now, briefly. Davey is up to something, in a mess right over his head; and Dido will be in danger until she works out who wants what from her, and why.