Dr Judith Symonds, Warden of the all-female Gladstone College, is found dead at her home. She had been drugged and murdered.

For John McLeish this is not a simple case. Gladstone College is in a perilous financial state, and his wife and the college bursar, Francesca Wilson, has linked it to unscrupulous financial dealings.

Then two Gladstone students are attacked, and Louise Taylor, a Fellow of the college is found unconscious and badly beaten. Both Louise and Judith had been having an affair with Sir Neville Allason, high ranking civil servant in the Department of Education.

A scandal like this would ruin him.

McLeish is convinced these frenzied attacks are linked to the Symonds murder. It’s a race against time as he tries to discover who wants to silence these women.

Can McLeish solve this case before Fran becomes the next silenced victim?

Fans of P.D. James, Robert Galbraith, Ngaio Marsh and Agatha Christie will devour this classic crime series full of twists.

Please note this was previously published as Death Among the Dons

***A FATAL BLOW WAS WINNER OF THE JOHN CREASY NEW BLOOD DAGGER 1988***