DI Munro & DS West Books In Order
Book links take you to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate I earn money from qualifying purchases.Publication Order of DI Munro & DS West Books
She | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Avarice | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Enmity | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Duplicity | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Terminus | (2017) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Talion | (2018) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Perdition | (2018) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Rancour | (2018) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Penitent | (2019) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Turpitude | (2019) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Hubris | (2020) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Penury | (2021) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
Ruse | (2022) | Description / Buy at Amazon |
DI Munro & DS West Series
The author of the DI Munro & DS West series is Pete Brassett. The Scotland-born mystery writer, who debuted in 2000, has also worked in the design industry. Brassett’s literary influences range from English author William Horwood to American writers John Steinbeck, Jim Dodge, and Jack Kerouac.
Books in the DI Munro & DS West Series
Brassett’s bibliography consists of several standalone novels, although he is famed for the DI Munro & DS West series that has a predominantly Scottish setting. The series’ title is borrowed from the initialized ranks of its two protagonists who are officers in the Police Service of Scotland—Detective Inspector James Munro who is partnered with Detective Sergeant Charlotte “Charlie” West.
First dated February 28, 2016, She is the first book. The external conflict is the report of a missing male called Harry Farnsworth-Brown, where the investigative duo finds that the bartending Harry—murdered in his own bathroom—bled to death before his killer mutilated his corpse. Soon, the murder segues into serial killings committed by a mysterious female serial murderer(s) codenamed She, thus the title.
Later on, the killer is identified as Aileen MacAdam whose motive was revenge. Apparently, Harry influenced the arrest and prosecution of a Scottish thug, prompting the convict’s arsonist daughter Hannah Lawson to burn Harry’s wife to death. Harry kills the arsonist, prompting Aileen to murder him in a cyclic vendetta.
Initially dated July 14, 2016, Avarice is book two. DS West prompts the then retired DI Munro to resume duty, where they are required to conduct a homicide investigation within five days; their investigation concerns a female victim called Frieda Kappelhoff whose mud-covered corpse has been found half sunken by a river within the Daff Glen woodland.
Divorcee Frieda, who was poisoned with antifreeze and struck on the head using a hammer, wherein the motives include a love triangle, bank fraud and inheritance.
Originally dated November 7, 2016; Enmity is book three. The duo is tracking a serial murderer whose victims include the drunkard Agnes Craig, 22, (whose father was Munro’s dead workmate) who was restrained before her mutilation at her residence. Then there is the beachside murder of the victim’s friend, Mary.
There are video recordings of suspect Andrew Max Stewart’s presence in both occasions, which are coincidental because—for example—he chanced on, and volunteered, to escort Agnes home. Andrew is no longer a person of interest, prompting the detectives to find the real killer.
First dated May 9, 2017, Duplicity is book four. The duo is investigating elderly businessman Angus Buchanan’s violent murder shortly after—together with his wife Heather—a customary dining with a rival business family, including members Remo Carduccuis and Anita Carduccuis, with whom he had a love-hate friendship. The investigation reveals: Angus went missing while fetching wine from his Porsche car, had a drug overdose, and was dumped in a taxicab; business rivalry, and criminal activities.
Initially dated August 27, 2017, Terminus is book five. Munro—the outpatient is recovering from a seemingly relatable car accident—and West are investigating will forgery at the request of Father Callum Dalgetty who is wary of his dead female friend Margaret Forsyth’s estate, in a case that relates to a notorious care home manager called Alison Kennedy.
Originally dated January 17, 2018, Talion is book six. Detectives Munro—his house explodes while dealing with a thug—and West are investigating the beachside murder of a man whose corpse was found by child Cam Brodie. The duo identifies the victim—he was involved in organized crime—and is now tracking the killer who threw him from a cliff near a castle.
First dated June 23, 2018, Perdition is book seven. Investigators Munro—he is volunteering—and West’s newest case involves the murder of Alan Byrne, a Scottish who used to work in the investment banking sector. Alan’s corpse was found inside his vehicle and the ensuing investigation connects the drug overdose-related murder to a goat killed with an arrow, drug trafficking, and financial fraud.
Initially dated December 9, 2018, Rancour is book eight. Munro and West’s homicide investigation concerns: one, a hiking-related death of a female student—her schoolmates aborted the hiking but she pressed on alone, where she was murdered using Rohypnol drug before rescuers reached her; and, two, tracing a missing female concertgoer at her father’s behest, wherein the woman’s companion is found dead.
Originally dated May 30, 2019; Penitent is book nine. Investigators Munro—amid his recovery from a heart surgery—and West’s next homicide case involves a blunt force trauma-related woman’s murder at a swimming pool, which relates to a long-missing postmaster’s widow Flora MacDonald, 64, and an underachieving amateur boxer Craig McPherson, 22.
First dated September 29, 2019, Turpitude is book ten. The duo’s investigation involves stolen mopeds, a man chopped fingers (which are found dumped) alive, and the head bashing-related murder of a jeweler at his workplace. Initially dated March 23, 2020, Hubris is book eleven.
The detectives’ case concerns a man stabbed to death and disemboweled in a fishing boat in a homicide case that not only relates to a missing girl but also implicates the boat owner. Originally dated June 20, 2021, Penury is book twelve, where the duo is now dealing with the double murder of a woman and her associate in a case that possibly implicates a recently freed drug trafficker.
Other Books You May Like
In J.D. Kirk’s December 2019 novel Blood and Treachery—fourth in the serialized DCI Logan Crime Thrillers—a search-and-rescue mission for a lost mountaineer unexpectedly yields a stranger’s body, ushering in protagonist DCI Jack Logan’s investigation of extensive gang-related executions.
In L.J. Ross’s October 2019 book Impostor—first book in the Alexander Gregory Thrillers—the London-based protagonist Dr. Alexander Gregory is a forensic psychologist who not only treats patients, but also uses his profiling expertise to track an Irish serial murderer.
John Carson’s February 2020 book Hour of Need—fourth in the DCI Harry McNeil series—features protagonist DCI Harry McNeil whose homicide investigations relate to the family wrangles in both his father’s and step-father’s sides.