About Linda

Before I was a crime author, I was a chambermaid, afternoon tea waitress and worked in burger bar; I’ve done tele sales and qualified as a teacher.  As a civil servant, I worked as a project manager, working with government ministers of both major political parties and then I specialised in learning and development. HR remains my other profession. My favourite job was probably when I worked for the coastguard, but I’ve worked for a few government departments and feel very privileged to have learned from such interesting people and roles.  It’s the wide range of jobs, people I’ve met and places I’ve worked which have stored up tons of experiences for me to draw on.

I write believable characters and am inspired by real places. I add some drama and playfulness by having, for example, a private investigator who is an astrologer. Or a CID team which clears up murders in the New Forest. I like to write about characters who are strong enough to carry the reader’s interest into the next book. 

I grew up in Wallasey in Cheshire, as the youngest and only girl in a very loving family. Reading and stories were a big part of my childhood. Going to the library was a joy for me and Mum and we remained avid lenders, often sharing books, until I left home at 18.  She loved a spy story, science fiction and the golden age detectives such as Carter Dixon and Margery Allingham. I was more into romance and historical fiction in those days.   My brothers also loved books, which I inherited when they left home. 

Studying American literature at university gave me a respect for a pared down, lean way of writing and a love of Ernest Hemingway’s writing!  Travel, work and places still give me inspiration and ideas for plots.  

I’m interested in astrology, politics, walking and the outdoors, fitness especially yoga and dance, cats and cooking and I love to travel.

I live in Worcestershire, England near the Cotswolds and Midlands cities where the Zodiac Mysteries are set. I also lived and worked in and near the New Forest in Hampshire for eight years.

An idea or a seed will start a plot, which becomes a story and possibly a book. I get inspired to write from life happening around me: places, working life and family life, the stories people tell me and the need to make sense of it all.  Placing a murder at the centre of the story becomes a way to explore a theme or an idea, mixed with intriguing and complex characters, and to resolve a mystery.

In the Zodiac Murder Mysteries, each book is aligned to a sign of the zodiac, starting with Forecast Murder, in which Aries provides the theme. Aries, ruled by Mars, the god of war, is associated with impulsiveness and warriorship. The latest book in the series, The Perfect House for Murder is based on the sign of Virgo, a symbol of which is the harvest, in which you reap what you sow. The next one and my current work in progress is Libra, which is the sign for justice. 

Linda (a Leo) has been interested in astrology ever since her brother bought her The Compleat Astrologer for her 16th birthday and she continues to have fun with it.  Each of the books in the Zodiac Murder Mystery (link) series is based on a sign of the Zodiac, starting with Aries. The preoccupations of each sign provide a theme for the book.  

A strong sense of place, memorable characters and a great story.

I also write stories about cats solving crime and one of these was long-listed for the Margery Allingham prize in 2025.  These are fun to write and people love them. Even dog lovers!