NEWS AND SCHEDULE: latest news from author Keith Brooke

Most recent, and forthcoming

"Gravitas"
(Forthcoming. Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine.)
(Writing as Nick Guthrie.) He reached for an evidence bag and carefully tipped the contents of the envelope into it. There was only a single item. A finger, severed at the base. Slim, the nails short but carefully shaped and painted red, a dress ring set with a smooth, oval stone. "An opal," Sturridge helpfully informed him. "A gem considered unlucky by some." Including the owner, Redpath would hazard. ...A DI Redpath police procedural.

"Wrong Notes"
(Forthcoming. Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine.)
(Writing as Nick Guthrie.) Gunshot wounds - two to the chest, one to the shoulder, one to the left arm where it had drawn up defensively, and one to the head. "It's not domestic, is it?" Redpath said. ...A DI Redpath police procedural.

"Protection"
(October 2024. Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine (November/December 2024).)
(Writing as Nick Guthrie.) What are armed police doing in the wilds of Northumberland? DI Redpath knows he should steer clear. He's off-duty, 300 miles north of his own jurisdiction. But when one of the officers is found murdered just across the valley, everything changes. ...A DI Redpath police procedural.

"Enigma Exposed" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(August 2024. Novella published. PS Publishing.)
Book two in our four-novella series published by PS Publishing.

"Untold"
(May 2024. To the Stars and Back: Stories in Honour of Eric Brown edited by Ian Whates. Newcon Press.)
A story of tales untold and life beyond the pages of the book, featuring some of Eric's best-loved and most iconic characters.

"Farewell, Pavonis" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(October 2022. ParSec. PS Publishing.)
Another collaboration with Eric, this is a more traditional tale of far-away planets, aliens, and new beginnings.

"Belle and Donna"
(July 2022. The Book of Extraordinary Femme Fatale Stories edited by Maxim Jakubowski. Mango.)
My first venture into retro crime fiction, set in 1980 but triggered by events in the early 1970s. The story of a woman who comes home from work to find her house sealed off by the police and a body on the living room floor. Detective Sergeant Fletcher is a character who leapt out of the page for me as soon as I started to write him, and he will feature in more stories, I'm sure.

"Kon-Tiki Coda" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(July 2022. standalone. PS Publishing.)
A bonus story in the Kon-Tiki sequence: iterations of Kat and Travis return to Newhaven and much has changed...

Also: see criticality for my latest reviews.

Older

"Assets" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(July 2022. Night, Rain and Neon edited by Michael Cobley. Newcon Press.)
When we heard that Mike Cobley was compiling a cyberpunk anthology, of course we had to give it a shot: Mike's a lovely guy, with a clear vision, so it's definitely an anthology to look out for. Our story is the account of a mega-rich thrill-seeker with no scruples and even less empathy for those around her... It was fun to write!

"Trace Evidence"
(March 2022. Sherlock Holmes Mystery Magazine.)
The sun was shining, the sky blue. It was a fine day and everything so far had gone precisely to plan. It really had been the perfect day. Right up until I found the body. ...A police procedural, the second story featuring DI Redpath, and my 100th published short story.

"Drive Through"
(January 2022. Mystery Weekly.)
Carrie looked down into the open top of her shopping bag again, and when she looked up again the man was... gone. Simply vanished. Not there. It took her a second or two to rewind events in her mind, play forward again, and piece together what had actually happened. ...A police procedural, the first story featuring DI Redpath.

"Session Man"
(September 2021. No More Heroes edited by Ian Whates. PS Publishing.)
Written for an anthology of stories related in some way to musicians no longer with us. For me, Amy Winehouse's tragic last show in Belgrade summed up the triumph and tragedy at the heart of this project - a tribute to an extraordinary artist, and to all those who push themselves to the limits and beyond.

"CareFree"
(April 2021. Fictions. Future Care Capital.)
My third contribution to the Fictions project, run by the Future Care Capital charity, a story about the difficult choices required from carers, and the dangers of making assumptions. With stingrays.

"The Enigma Quartet four-novella series" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(February 2021. Contracts signed. PS Publishing.)
Eric Brown and I have just signed with PS Publishing for a new four-novella series. More details to follow soon.

"Me Two" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(February 2021. Lightspeed.)
Perhaps sparked by a visit up to Eric's place in the Borders at the start of 2020, we've started bouncing a few new collaborations around again. This is the first of these we've finished, a quiet tale spanning several decades from WW2 about two people with a unique bond. Reprinted in Year's Best British SF 2022.

"The Case of the Air that was Taken"
(November 2020. The Book of Extraordinary Sherlock Holmes Stories edited by Maxim Jakubowski. Mango.)
When Watson noticed his old friend Holmes was looking a trifle peaky, he proposed a break by the sea. Holmes, of course, was at least one step ahead, and before long they were in the thick of a plot of murder and revenge in the genteel setting of Frinton-on-sea.

"Vigorish"
(November 2020. Fictions. Future Care Capital.)
My second story for the Fictions project, run by the Future Care Capital charity, a story of gambling, addiction and manipulation.

"Iterations" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(September 2020. PS Publishing.)
The concluding novella in the Kon-Tiki Quartet, written with Eric Brown, published by PS Publishing.

"Life's Lottery"
(September 2020. Fictions. Future Care Capital.)
This is the first of my three stories for the Fictions project, run by the Future Care Capital charity. Medical care allocation meets reality TV in a near future where you have to do whatever you can to improve your chances of survival.

"By A Thread"
(July 2020. The Book of Extraordinary Impossible Crimes and Puzzling Deaths edited by Maxim Jakubowski. Mango.)
When Superintendent Brightwell collapsed from a single knife wound in the middle of his own retirement party, dying in the arms of one of the town's biggest villains, there could only be one explanation. Except there was no knife, and - despite the people all around - no witness... A closed room mystery, where that room is full of police officers.

"Resolution"
(September 2019. The Book of Extraordinary Amateur Sleuth and Private Eye Stories edited by Maxim Jakubowski. Mango.)
A young man whose life has been ruined by false accusations finds one last thread to cling to... A contemporary crime story set in a fictional version of the seaside town where I spent my first 18 years.

"Dislocations" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(March 2018. PS Publishing.)
A new novella written with Eric Brown, published by PS Publishing. This is the first in a four-part novella series, with the second, 'Parasites', to follow later this year.

"The Kon-tiki Quartet, written with Eric Brown, sells to PS Publishing"
(December 2017. PS Publishing.)
Eric Brown and I have just signed up to write The Kon-tiki Quartet, a set of four novellas to be published by the fabulous PS Publishing. The first, Dislocations, is due out in winter 2018, with the remaining three appearing at six-month intervals.

"A Decent Man"
(December 2016. Mementoes. Newcon Press.)
A short horror story, exclusive to my collection, Mementoes. A story of the dark secrets that may lurk behind apparently ordinary closed doors.

"A Flicker in the Deep"
(December 2016. Mementoes. Newcon Press.)
A new science-fiction piece, exclusive to my collection, Mementoes. This one is the story of a man drawn back into the conflicts of his past, returning to a planet where he had left behind friends and more. A story that dips back into the Fermi Paradox, as many of my more recent SF pieces have done.

"Mementoes - a new collection"
(December 2016. Newcon Press.)
A new collection of short fiction; part of Newcon Press's Imaginings series. Includes the four-part novella 'Memento'.

"Rewrites"
(May 2016. Postscripts.)
Returning to full-time writing, and so having the time to write stories on spec, for some reason my mind turned to horror. I worked in this genre a lot back in the early days, and have a collection of horror stories out, but at some point my dark output dwindled. I was really pleased with this one, a particularly poignant and personal story of loss and fragile mental states. Inspired by the foolish act of Googling your own symptoms...

"Beyond the Heliopause" by Keith Brooke and Eric Brown
(January 2016. Lightspeed.)
Lovely to be working with Eric again! This one asks What's really out there, and is accompanied by an author spotlight where Eric and I discuss the story's background, collaboration, and more. Also selected for reprint in Best of British Science Fiction 2016, edited by Donna Bond.

""The Accord" reprint published at Clarkesworld"
(July 2015. Clarkesworld.)