The Final Beat of the Drum

DCI Monika Paniatowski is forced to think the unthinkable: could a good friend and long-standing colleague be guilty of murder?

On the day of her official retirement from the Force, DCI Monika Paniatowski looks at the two men and one woman who are no longer her team and thinks: Whatever the future holds, I will always be proud of you. She raises a toast. And just like that, her career as a homicide detective is over.

Then, fifteen years later, Monika’s former sergeant, Kate Meadows, makes a terrible mistake.

Monika doesn’t hesitate when Kate turns to her for help. She owes her, and she can hardly let her old friend go down for a crime she didn’t commit.

But as Monika gets deeper into the investigation, she’s forced to ask herself the unthinkable: is Kate really innocent, or is she helping her old friend get away with murder?

Packed with twists that will make you gasp out loud, the fifteenth - and final - DCI Monika Paniatowski mystery is a stunning conclusion to the long-running series. If you haven’t met Monika yet, you’re in for a treat.

Sally Spencer worked as a teacher both in England and Iran - where she witnessed the fall of the Shah. She now lives on the Costa Blanca with her partner, one cat, two dogs and innumerable fruit trees. Having once been an almost fanatical mah-jong player, she is now obsessed with duplicate bridge.

As well as the DCI Monika Paniatowski mysteries, Spencer is also the author of the successful Chief Inspector Woodend mysteries, the Inspector Blackstone series and the Jennie Redhead series.