Former Lancaster bobby and novelist launches his tenth book

It is entitled 'Half an Hour to Kill,' and is a portfolio of ten contemporary, short crime stories.

He has previously used Lancaster places in which to set his stories, and this time he has revisited this rich source again as several of the new stories take place in, around and above the city.

Having retired from Lancaster police, Barry gained an honours degree in English and Creative Writing at the Lancaster campus of the University of Cumbria at Bowerham Road, before becoming a lecturer in Policing and Criminology.

Having written nine full length stories, three of which have been published in the United States, Barry is venturing into a new area with the shortened variety.

"I was fortunate to have a short story published in a collection in Australia. I enjoyed this new discipline so much, I wrote an entire volume of them," said Barry. "It has been a temporary departure from my usual offerings. I am currently writing another full length novel for release in 2025."

The brief tales of villainy told in 'Half an Hour to Kill,' include a murder in a field near to the Lancaster Canal, whilst and another bears a distinct similarity to Lancaster Castle's days as a prison.

The Saturday park run in Williamson Park provides the origins of another grizzly homicide and the Vale of Lune rugby club sees some skulduggery on the pitch on a matchday.

Besides the local connections, there is an international flavour to some of the stories too.

A Covid quarantine fraud in Sierra Leone, a mystifying murder in a Parisian Hotel and the inner thoughts of a pickpocket on the London Underground also add to the diversity of the collection.

The new book is now available to buy in paperback at Proper Lovely craft and gift shop on Marketgate, Lancaster, as well as at Kindle Books online.