Jane Bettany

Jane Bettany is the author of a cosy crime series featuring amateur sleuth Violet Brewster. The first in the series, Murder in Merrywell, was published by HQ (HarperCollins) in April 2023, followed by Murder at the Book Festival, Murder at Maple Grange, Murder on Bluebell Hill, and A Christmas Murder in Merrywell. The sixth book in the series, Murder at Clover Farm, will be published on 13 August 2026.

Jane is also the author of the DI Isabel Blood crime series. The first novel in the series, In Cold Blood, was published by HQ (Harper Collins) in 2020. Further titles in the series are Without a Trace (2021) and Last Seen Alive (2022). The books are set in Derbyshire in the fictional town of Bainbridge.

In 2019, Jane won the Gransnet and HQ writing competition, which was for women writers over the age of 40 who had written a novel with a protagonist in the same age range. The competition was launched in response to a survey of women over 40, conducted by Gransnet and HQ. The survey showed that almost half of the women taking part felt there weren’t enough books featuring middle-aged or older women as lead characters.

Jane lives in Derby.