Emily Brightwell

Author Information
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  • Bibliography:
    41 Books (1 Series)
  • First Book:
    February 1993
  • Latest Book:
    August 2023
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About the Author

Cheryl Lanham was born on 11 October 1948 in the Appalachian mountains of West Virginia, USA. Her family moved to Southern California in 1959 and she grew up in Pasadena. After graduating from California State University, she decided to work her way around the world and took off for England. She didn’t get much further because she met Richard James Arguile, the Englishman who became her husband, got married on May 1976, and had two children, Matthew and Amanda. While working in international shipping, she decided to pursue her dream and become a writer – which, of course, is the best job ever. She has written romance novels as Sarah Temple, and Young Adult novels as Cheryl Lanham. As Emily Brightwell, she is the author of the “Mrs. Jeffries” mysteries.

Cheryl Lanham Arguile returned to California, where she lives with her husband and a cranky old cat named Kiwi.

Full Series List in Order

A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery

1 - The Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries (Feb-1993)
2 - Mrs. Jeffries Dusts for Clues (Jun-1993)
3 - The Ghost and Mrs. Jeffries (Oct-1993)
4 - Mrs. Jeffries Takes Stock (Jun-1994)
5 - Mrs. Jeffries on the Ball (Dec-1994)
6 - Mrs. Jeffries on the Trail (Apr-1995)
7 - Mrs. Jeffries Plays the Cook (Nov-1995)
8 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Missing Alibi (Apr-1996)
9 - Mrs. Jeffries Stands Corrected (Dec-1996)
10 - Mrs. Jeffries Takes the Stage (Mar-1997)
11 - Mrs. Jeffries Questions the Answer (Nov-1997)
12 - Mrs. Jeffries Reveals Her Art (Mar-1998)
13 - Mrs. Jeffries Takes the Cake (Oct-1998)
14 - Mrs. Jeffries Rocks the Boat (Sep-1999)
15 - Mrs. Jeffries Weeds the Plot (Nov-2000)
16 - Mrs. Jeffries Pinches the Post (Jun-2001)
17 - Mrs. Jeffries Pleads Her Case (Apr-2003)
18 - Mrs. Jeffries Sweeps the Chimney (Jan-2004)
19 - Mrs. Jeffries Stalks The Hunter (Oct-2004)
20 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Silent Knight (Oct-2005)
21 - Mrs. Jeffries Appeals the Verdict (May-2006)
22 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Best Laid Plans (May-2007)
23 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Feast of St. Stephen (Oct-2007)
24 - Mrs. Jeffries Holds the Trump (Jun-2008)
25 - Mrs. Jeffries in the Nick of Time (Mar-2009)
26 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Yuletide Weddings (Nov-2009)
27 - Mrs. Jeffries Speaks Her Mind (Jun-2010)
28 - Mrs. Jeffries Forges Ahead (May-2011)
29 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Mistletoe Mix-up (Nov-2011)
30 - Mrs. Jeffries Defends Her Own (May-2012)
31 - Mrs. Jeffries Turns the Tide (May-2013)
32 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Merry Gentlemen (Nov-2013)
33 - Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away (Feb-2015)
34 - Mrs. Jeffries Wins the Prize (Mar-2016)
35 - Mrs. Jeffries Rights a Wrong (May-2017)
36 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise Women (Oct-2017)
37 - Mrs. Jeffries Delivers the Goods (Mar-2019)
38 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Alms of the Angel (Sep-2019)
39 - Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice (Feb-2021)
40 - Mrs. Jeffries and the Midwinter Murders (Nov-2021)
41 - Mrs. Jeffries Aims to Win (Aug-2023)

Book List in Order: 41 titles

  • The Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 1

    IS THERE A DETECTIVE IN THE HOUSE? She keeps house for Inspector Witherspoon... and keeps him on his toes. Everyone is astonished by the inspector's Scotland Yard successes--but they don't know about his secret weapon. In fact, even he doesn't kno...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Dusts for Clues

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 2

    THE CASE WASN'T CLOSED YET... A servant girl's gone missing ... along with a valuable brooch. When the Inspector finds the brooch, pinned to the gown of a murdered woman, one mystery is solved --but another begins. Fortunately, Mrs. Jeffries isn't t...

  • The Ghost and Mrs. Jeffries

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 3

    A VISION OF DEATH At the seance, Mrs. Hodges was a bit taken aback by the medium's dire prediction. But she soon dismissed it as stuff and nonsense. After all, she was a woman who knew her own mind-and minded everyone else's business. But that very ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Takes Stock

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 4

    PINCHING PENNIES Mrs. Jeffries is keeping the household on a tight budget -- and the Inspector is suffering for it. Even worse, he's got a new murder case on his hands. The victim, a businessman, may have cheated his stockholders out of a princely...

  • Mrs. Jeffries on the Ball

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 5

    DINNER, DANCING ... AND DEATH The Jubilee Ball in honor of Queen Victoria was meant to be a festive affair... but for Hannah Greenwood, it was a fatal event. Since the victim belonged to the prestigious Hyde Park Literary Circle, the shadow of suspi...

  • Mrs. Jeffries on the Trail

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 6

    THE SEEDS OF MURDER Nobody was walking the streets of London at night after that afternoon's riots. And flower sellers usually did their best business early in the evening. So why was Annie Shields out selling flowers at ten o'clock on one of the fo...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Plays the Cook

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 7

    STICKY FINGERS, HELPING HANDS... Minerva Kenny is a dear woman, but her tendency to "borrow" things without asking has finally caught up with her. William Barrett has learned Minerva's shameful secret, and he's holding it over her head. Mrs. Jeffrie...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Missing Alibi

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 8

    INSPECTOR WITHERSPOON...THE MURDERER? It was one of the most brazen murders anyone could remember. The killer walked right into Peter Hornsley's office, hit him with a policeman's truncheon, and strangled him. He even told the night watchman his n...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Stands Corrected

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 9

    TROUBLE IS BREWING... When a local publican is murdered, stabbed in the back in his own pub, Inspector Witherspoon finally takes Mrs. Jeffries's advice to heart. He's going to trust his own instincts and listen to his inner voice. Only that keeps Mr...



  • Mrs. Jeffries Takes the Stage

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 10

    POISONED PEN It was a most peculiar murder. A man's body was found in the canal -- but the evidence showed that he had drowned in a bathtub. A theatre critic known for his savage reviews, the victim had had a full cast of enemies. While Inspector Wi...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Questions the Answer

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 11

    A FRIEND FOR DEATH It was true. Hannah Cameron was not well-liked. But were her friends or family the sort to stab her in the back? To almost everyone, the answer is clear: She was killed by a burglar. And since Inspector Witherspoon is not a burgla...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Reveals Her Art

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 12

    PAINTED INTO A CORNER The artist's model never even showed up to Neville Grant's house--nor was expected according to the cranky Mr. Grant. But with all of his ranting and raving, it was hard getting a straight answer. Then, one of Grant's housegues...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Takes the Cake

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 13

    SERVED COLD The evidence was all there: a dead body, two dessert plates, and a gun. As if poor Mr. Ashbury had been sharing a bit of cake with his own killer! The old bloke had plenty of enemies. The neighbors called him a snoop. Even his own daught...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Rocks the Boat

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 14

    DEADLOCKED Mirabelle Daws traveled all the way from Australia to Sheridan Square to visit her sister--only to be stabbed to death in the middle of a locked garden. The residents of Sheridan Square all have their own key to the garden, but the more I...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Weeds the Plot

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 15

    A BONE TO PICK Eccentric Annabeth Gentry pretty much keeps to herself. Besides her recent inheritance-and the attention her bloodhound gets for digging up the body of a murdered thief--her life is, in fact, rather dull. So why does she think that ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Pinches the Post

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 16

    A RUTHLESS END FOR A RUTHLESS MAN Harrison Nye may have been involved in some dubious business dealings, but no one ever expected him to be murdered. Now Inspector Witherspoon must root out the perpetrator of the underhanded deed. Nye's business a...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Pleads Her Case

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 17

    FOUL PLAY It took no time at all for the magistrate to rule the death of Harlan Westover a suicide. But not everyone is convinced by the result of what may have been a slip-shod investigation. Inspector Witherspoon is treading dangerous political ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Sweeps the Chimney

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 18

    A DIRTY BUSINESS Inspector Witherspoon is perplexed. No one seems to know the identity of the dead man dressed like a vicar and propped up against the outside wall of St. Paul's Church. A paper clutched in the corpse's hand reveals the address of ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Stalks The Hunter

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 19

    STALK THIS WAY... Sir Edmund Leggett has a stalker--a young lady whose attentions have turned from puppy love to obsession. Rather than be alarmed, Sir Edmund is somewhat flattered. That is, until his engagement party, when someone murders him in ...



  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Silent Knight

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 20

    ALL IS NOT CALM Sir George Braxton was found lying face down in a frozen fountain with the back of his skull bashed to bits. The case is complicated by a distinct lack of holiday cheer in the victim's three argumentative middle-aged daughters and th...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Appeals the Verdict

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 21

    GUILTY BYSTANDERS After a perfectly decent local woman is killed during a robbery, the Witherspoon household receives a surprising visit from a stranger named Blimpey Groggins. He claims his best buddy was convicted of the crime. He also claims th...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Best Laid Plans

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 22

    HOT UNDER THE WHITE COLLAR Banker Lawrence Boyd didn't waste his time making friends, which is why hardly anyone grieves when he's found dead in his burnt-out studio. And when a gash in the old miser's head is discovered--pointing to murder--the l...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Feast of St. Stephen

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 23

    DEAD IN DECEMBER 'Tis the season to make merry, and a Yuletide dinner in West Brompton should prove a festive occasion for all. But the good cheer disappears when the host, wealthy Stephen Whitfield, dies before the second course. The case is a blot...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Holds the Trump

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 24

    NOT-SO-GENTLY DOWN THE STREAM Michael Provost lived a quiet life, yet this successful owner of a medical supply company was spotted floating facedown off the Chelsea Vestry Wharf. His servants adored him, and he had no greedy relatives or business...

  • Mrs. Jeffries in the Nick of Time

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 25

    A MODEL UNCLE Train enthusiast Francis Humphreys was drawing his last breath while his relatives and neighbors were over for tea. But Inspector Witherspoon wonders: If everyone was downstairs, who could have stolen into Uncle Francis' second-story...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Yuletide Weddings

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 26

    OH, UNHOLY NIGHT The week before Christmas, Inspector Gerald Witherspoon's staff prepares for the long-awaited wedding of Betsy and Smythe. But an unwelcome surprise falls in his lap: a Yuletide murder. A quiet, middle-aged spinster has been killed i...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Speaks Her Mind

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 27

    AN ODD BIRD Olive Kettering was always eccentric, but recently her behavior had become downright peculiar. She'd joined an odd religious group, was estranged from her family, worked her servants mercilessly, and even insisted that there were people ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Forges Ahead

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 28

    PRETTY DEAD The marriageable daughters of the upper crust howl in outrage when the rich and handsome Lewis Banfield marries an artist's model. But Arlette Montrose Banfield is more than a pretty face; she's an intelligent and free-spirited modern ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Mistletoe Mix-up

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 29

    Ring in the season with another Mrs. Jeffries tale of holiday homicide. Under a bundle of mistletoe, art collector Daniel McCourt lies with his throat slit, a bloody sword next to his body. Inspector Witherspoon is determined to solve the case-pre...



  • Mrs. Jeffries Defends Her Own

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 30

    BAD BUSINESS When the general office manager of Sutcliffe Manufacturing is murdered, no one is really surprised. Ronald Dearman was anything but a dear man. The tyrannical bully had more than enough enemies to go around. But who hated him enough t...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Turns the Tide

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 31

    If you like Downton Abbey, you'll love Mrs. Jeffries! IN THE WEEDS Beautiful and new in town, Ellen Langston-Jones doesn’t have any enemies. So, when she’s found dead in the communal gardens, Inspector Witherspoon quickly narrows the field...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Merry Gentlemen

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 32

    The holiday season brings a mix of merriment, mayhem, and murder. And it falls to Inspector Witherspoon -- with a significant portion of help from the ever-watchful Mrs. Jeffries -- to find the culprit... THE BUSINESS OF DEATH Orlando Edison ...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the One Who Got Away

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 33

    OLD SINS CAST LONG SHADOWS Normally dead bodies in a graveyard are buried -- but not this one. When a woman is found strangled in a North London cemetery with an old newspaper clipping clutched in her hand, Inspector Witherspoon is surprised to f...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Wins the Prize

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 34

    NIPPED IN THE BUD The ladies of the Mayfair Orchid and Exotic Plant Society are known for a bit of friendly rivalry, but the backstabbing has never been literal -- until now. When Hiram Filmore, an orchid hunter and supplier, is found dead in Mrs...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Rights a Wrong

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 35

    Mrs. Jeffries is back in the New York Times bestselling Victorian Mytery series, perfect for fans of Downton Abbey. Thomas Mundy checks in to London’s Wrexley Hotel, but he never checks out. The maid finds him on the floor of his room, bludgeone...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Three Wise Women

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 36

    As the holidays approach, all is merry and bright for Inspector Witherspoon, Mrs. Jeffries, and the staff at Upper Edmonton Gardens...but murder knows no season. MURDER UPON A MIDNIGHT CLEAR Christopher Gilhaney isn’t a popular man, and he pr...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Delivers the Goods

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 37

    When poison fells an arrogant and rude businessman in public, Mrs. Jeffries and Inspector Witherspoon both realize they are looking for a deranged maniac in this all new installment in the beloved Victorian Mystery series On a cold night in Febru...

  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Alms of the Angel

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 38

    When a wealthy widow is murdered, Mrs. Jeffries investigates what happens when money can't buy your life in this all-new installment in the beloved Victorian Mystery series. Margaret Starling wasn’t the sort of woman anyone expected to be mu...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Demands Justice

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 39

    Mrs. Jeffries always keeps her friends close and now must keep an enemy even closer if she is going to catch a killer. . . .Inspector Nigel Nivens is not a nice man or a good investigator. In fact, he’s terrible at his job and has always done every...



  • Mrs. Jeffries and the Midwinter Murders

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 40

    Mrs. Jeffries and Inspector Witherspoon should be checking off their Christmas present lists but instead they’re listing murder suspects in this latest entry of the beloved Victorian Mystery series.TIS THE SEASON FOR MURDER Harriet Andover was...

  • Mrs. Jeffries Aims to Win

    A Mrs. Jeffries Mystery - 41

    Mrs. Jeffries must help Inspector Witherspoon crack a new case and catch a killer in this next installment of the beloved Victorian Mystery series.Successful businessman Jeremy Marks wasn’t highly regarded by any of the members of the West London A...

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Emily Brightwell has published 41 books.

Emily Brightwell does not have a new book coming out soon. The latest book, Mrs. Jeffries Aims to Win, was published in August 2023.

The first book by Emily Brightwell, The Inspector and Mrs. Jeffries, was published in February 1993.

Yes. Emily Brightwell has 1 series.
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