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Cooper & Fry — by Stephen Booth
Cooper & Fry Series in Order: 19 books
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Dancing With the Virgins
Book - 2
A "suspenseful and supremely engaging" police procedural featuring a detective team investigating ritualistic killings of women in the English countryside (Los Angeles Times). As winter closes in on the moors, so does death. The body of a young wo...
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Blood on the Tongue
Book - 3
In this "outstanding" thriller with "a complex and absorbing plot," rival detectives investigate murder by digging into the past of their rural community (Publishers Weekly, starred review). It's a new year for Peak District detectives Ben Cooper ...
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Blind to the Bones
Book - 4
Something sinister is happening on the desolate moors of England's Peak District. The villagers of Withens are dying. Nineteen-year-old Emma Renshaw disappeared two years ago. Her body has never been found, and her parents still cling to the hope tha...
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One Last Breath
Book - 5
Set in England's legendary Peak District, Stephen Booth's acclaimed mysteries tell tales of men and women under siege by both ordinary life and extraordinary crime. Now, in a stunning, fascinatingly intelligent novel, Booth's uneasy young policeman, ...
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The Dead Place
Book - 6
Hailed by the Washington Times as "one of the elite British crime writers," Stephen Booth returns to England's atmospheric Peak District, where Detective Constable Ben Cooper and Detective Sergeant Diane Fry are drawn one cryptic clue at a time to wh...
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Scared to Live
Book - 7
Detective Constable Ben Cooper and Detective Sergeant Diane Fry must uncover the secrets of two grim murder scenes in England's Peak District--one inexplicable...and the other unspeakable. How do you investigate the murder of a woman without a lif...
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Dying to Sin
Book - 8
A chilling police procedural from the award-winning author of Scared to Live. "If you read only one new crime writer this year, he's your man." -- Yorkshire Post You never know what you might uncover . . . While digging the foundation for...
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The Kill Call
Book - 9
On a rain-swept hillside, hounds from the local foxhunt discover the body of a well-dressed man. At that exact moment, an anonymous caller reports the same body . . . lying half a mile away.It's only the first in a series of baffling clues as Ben Coo...
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Lost River
Book - 10
This atmospheric thriller is perfect for fans of Ian Rankin and Peter Robinson.A holiday weekend is ruined by a drowning in a picturesque village. The incident not only traumatizes Detective Cooper, a helpless witness to the tragedy, but leads him to...
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The Devil's Edge
Book - 11
Home is where the bodies lie in this crime thriller packed with nerve-jangling suspense and moody atmosphere from the award-winning author of Claws. The newspapers call them the Savages: a band of home invaders as merciless as they are stealthy. U...
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Dead and Buried
Book - 12
DS Ben Cooper comes closer to death than he ever has before in the new Cooper/Fry case: As moorland fires sweep across the Peak District national park, hundreds of firefighters and park rangers battle to prevent flames reaching a remote inn, once ...
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Already Dead
Book - 13
Some sins won't wash away . . . A summer of endless rain in the Peak District leaves the officers of Derbyshire's criminal investigation department with a problem. They have discovered a man's body lying in shallow water, but torrential downpours ...
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The Corpse Bridge
Book - 14
When it comes to murder, nothing is sacred . . . For centuries, mourners in Derbyshire have used the Corpse Bridge to cross the River Dove and reach their village burial grounds. When a developer plans to deconsecrate the land by turning it int...
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The Murder Road
Book - 15
Welcome to the picturesque English village of Shawhead, where there's one road in and one road out. And on that road this morning is an abandoned vehicle...with an ominous bloodstain inside. It's a mystery. It could be a murder. Where and who is t...
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Secrets of Death
Book - 16
Residents of the Peak District are used to tourists descending on its soaring hills and brooding valleys. However, this summer brings a different kind of visitor to the idyllic landscape, leaving behind bodies and secrets. A series of suicides thr...
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Dead in the Dark
Book - 17
How do you prove a murder without a body? Ten years ago, Reece Bower was accused of killing his wife, a crime he always denied. Extensive police searches near his home in Bakewell found no trace of Annette Bower's remains, and the case against...
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Fall Down Dead
Book - 18
District backdrop prove fatal for one walking party They knew the danger, but they went anyway... "Almost before she'd stopped breathing, a swirl of mist snaked across her legs and settled in her hair, clutching her in its chilly embrac...
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Series Premise
The series follows Detective Sergeant Diane Fry and Detective Constable Ben Cooper, two young detectives in Derbyshire Constabulary's CID (later CID teams in Edendale and the Peak District). Each book presents a standalone murder or major crime investigation—often involving rural or isolated settings—while the central tension comes from the uneasy professional and personal relationship between Fry and Cooper. Fry is ambitious, driven, and by-the-book; Cooper is intuitive, community-oriented, and empathetic toward locals. Their conflicting approaches—Fry's urban pragmatism vs. Cooper's rural understanding—create friction that drives both the cases and character development. Investigations frequently involve hidden motives, old secrets, family feuds, or tensions between incomers ("offcomers") and long-time residents. Overarching arcs track Fry and Cooper's careers (promotions, transfers, personal struggles), their evolving dynamic (from rivalry to reluctant respect, with hints of deeper connection), and the changing face of the Peak District (tourism, second homes, economic decline).
Cooper & Fry Series Characters
> Detective Constable/Sergeant/Inspector Ben Cooper: The heart of the series—young, local Derbyshire man, deeply connected to the land and people. Intuitive, empathetic, idealistic; often takes cases personally. Comes from a farming family (father was a police sergeant who died in the line of duty); lives with his mother and brother in a farmhouse. Grows from rookie to experienced officer; represents rural values and community ties.
> Detective Sergeant/Inspector Diane Fry: Cooper's foil and partner—ambitious, sharp, emotionally guarded. From the Black Country (Birmingham area), urban background; sees Cooper's local bias as a weakness. Driven, professional, haunted by her own troubled family past (abusive childhood, missing sister). Evolves from cold and career-focused to more vulnerable and reflective.
Supporting/recurring:
> Ben's family: Mother (Mrs. Cooper), brother Matt (farmer), sister-in-law; represent traditional rural life.
> Diane's sister (Carolyn Fry): Troubled, often in crisis; adds personal stakes for Diane.
> Detective Inspector Stewart Branagh / Superintendent Branagh: Early boss—gruff, pragmatic.
> DS Gavin Murfin: Older detective—cynical, snack-obsessed, comic relief.
> DC Carol Villiers: Later team member—ex-military, capable, becomes close to Cooper.
> Various suspects/victims: Locals, incomers, farmers, tourists—often complex, not purely evil.
Setting of the Cooper & Fry Series
The Peak District in Derbyshire, England—a national park of rugged moorland, limestone dales, stone villages, and dramatic landscapes (High Peak, White Peak, Dark Peak). The fictional town of Edendale serves as the main base—small, market-town feel with police station, pubs, and surrounding countryside. Cases often unfold in isolated farms, abandoned mines, reservoirs, hiking trails, tourist spots (Chatsworth-like estates), or remote hamlets. The setting is a major character: beautiful yet harsh—foggy moors, sudden weather changes, ancient stone circles, and the contrast between timeless rural beauty and modern pressures (second-home owners, tourism, rural crime). The Peak District represents both escape and entrapment—its isolation hides secrets, while its beauty draws outsiders who disrupt local life.
Tone & Themes of the Cooper & Fry Series
Atmospheric, introspective, and quietly dark—modern rural noir with psychological depth and understated melancholy. Booth's tone is realistic and somber: crimes are often brutal but described with restraint, investigations are methodical and detail-oriented, and the mood is reflective rather than sensational. There's little humor—dry irony or grim observations instead—while the writing is lyrical and evocative, especially in descriptions of landscape and weather. The series balances suspense with character exploration: Fry and Cooper's inner lives (Fry's guarded past, Cooper's family ties) add emotional weight, and resolutions are satisfying but bittersweet—justice is served, but not without cost. It's thoughtful and immersive—perfect for readers who enjoy slow-burn procedurals with a strong sense of place and human complexity, rather than fast-paced action or cozy lightness.
The Cooper & Fry series is a masterful modern rural noir—atmospheric, character-rich, and deeply rooted in the haunting beauty of the Peak District. Stephen Booth creates two compelling protagonists in Ben Cooper and Diane Fry: their contrasting approaches and evolving relationship provide the emotional core of a series that transcends standard procedurals. With 18 books of intelligent plotting, evocative landscapes, and thoughtful explorations of crime, community, and human nature, it's essential reading for fans of literary crime fiction (like Ian Rankin or Peter Robinson)—a quietly brilliant saga that rewards patience with rich rewards of suspense, character depth, and a profound sense of place. A standout in British crime writing.
Books in this series fall into the following genres
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