Ellie opens the door to a man who is a stranger but instantly recognisable as the father of her housekeeper's brilliant but difficult young son. Mikey had been conceived at a party during which his mother Vera, a schoolgirl, had been drugged and raped. Abdi hadn't wanted anything further to do with her - then. Twelve years later he is a high-flying consultant whose wife cannot have children, and he aims to pay off Vera and adopt Mikey: a suggestion...

"Ellie's friend on the police force asks her to enquire about some deaths in the community which might or might not be suicide, and various relatives of the deceased confirm their suspicions. Unbeknown to the police, an elderly lady moving in and out of dementia has come across some drugs and is using them to ease people in pain out of their misery. At the same time, the project to turn the quirky, turreted Pryce House into a hotel is dogged by problems...

Ellie is desperate to find someone to look after her elderly housekeeper, Rose. But employing a carer proves to be a mixed blessing, for Claire is heavily involved with a local church with a charismatic pastor, who -- seemingly coincidentally -- is looking to Ellie's charitable trust for financial help. Can Ellie trust Claire and Pastor Ambrose?

Ellie Quicke believes in helping people in trouble. But it would appear that her latest good deed has returned to bite her when she takes in a weeping girl who needs somewhere to stay. Selfish, thoughtless and irresponsible, Angelica is by no means the easiest of house guests, confident that someone else will always pick up the bill. But when a dead body is found in the garden the morning after a riotous party she's organized, Angelica plunges Ellie's...

"While Ellie's away, murder will play . . . Is the death of Ellie's son-in-law really the result of a burglary gone wrong? Ellie's absence abroad is disastrous for her daughter, Diana - when her husband is attacked by intruders and left for dead one night, it falls to Ellie's next-door neighbour, Susan, to reluctantly pick up the pieces and take in Diana's children. Is Evan's death really the result of a burglary gone wrong? Joining forces with her...

"Ellie Quicke returns from Canada to find her home in chaos and her housing charity tearing itself apart. A student has fallen to his death from the top of one of the charity's properties, let through a reputable local estate agency. Accused of corruption, the agency is the victim of a vicious social media campaign. Was the student's death really an accident or something more sinister? Does someone have a grudge against the agency, or are they being...