James Runcie

It's the summer of love in the late 1960s. The Apollo 11 astronauts are preparing to land on the moon, the war in Biafra dominates the news and Basil D'Oliveira has just been dropped from the England cricket team before a test series in apartheid South Africa. In the midst of all this change, Sidney Chambers, the loveable English clergyman, continues his amateur sleuthing investigations. A bewitching divorcee enlists Sidney's help in convincing her...

A wonderfully inventive and entertaining journey through time and the history of chocolate! The Discovery of Chocolate is a fabulous tale, as rich and exotic as the gorgeous creation that Diego de Godoy first discovers when he arrives in Mexico with Cortes and his conquistadors. Diego is seeking his fortune in the New World. What he finds is love, and chocolate, and an elixir of life. Separated from his lover, he must wander the world, and the centuries,...

"Our favorite clerical detective is back with four longer mysteries in which Canon Sidney Chambers attempts to stop a serial killer with a grievance against the clergy; investigates the disappearance of a famous painting after a distracting display of nudity by a French girl in an art gallery; uncovers the fact that an "accidental" drowning on a film shoot may have been something more sinister; and discovers the reasons behind the theft of a baby...

It's 1953 and Sidney Chambers is vicar of Grantchester, a village just outside Cambridge, England. Sidney's is a quiet life. He tends to his flock, keeps up with his jazz collection, and does his best to contain his passion for beautiful heiress Amanda Kendall. But when one of his parishioners dies in suspicious circumstances, Sidney quickly finds that people confide things in a parish priest that they would never tell police.

In this startling and intimate memoir of life before death and love after grief, the internationally best-selling author tells the story of his wife's battle with Lou Gehrig's disease and her death, while celebrating her life, in all its color, humor, and brightness.

The year is 1958: Rev. Will Davenport is at odds with his own ideals when Leonard Finch is caught up in a scandal. It will take all of Will's skill and empathy to navigate the choppy waters and help the ones he loves.

The second in a series of detective novels set against the backdrop of 30 years of British history, featuring an unforgettable and unlikely hero, Sidney Chambers.

It's 1957, and it's as if the world of Grantchester has returned to an idyllic state, a metaphorical Garden of Eden. Will believes that everyone can get close to their own Eden through good works and a proactive attitude. But as Geordie knows, every Eden has its snakes. Will's faith will be tested as he and Geordie are reminded that there's darkness lurking in their corner of Cambridgeshire.

Hildegard of Bingen was one of the most remarkable women of the Middle Ages--an abbess and woman of God, a visionary, naturalist, playwright, mystic, political moralist and composer. Yet, despite her outpouring of religious creativity, her visions were called into question, and she was put on trial by the Church in 1148. This is the story of the events leading up to that trial and of the trial itself.

Will's life has changed for the better. He is happily married to the brilliant Bonnie and due to become a father, but his world is about to be rocked by a terrible accident. He's always preached the word of a compassionate God, but how can he do that now?