The DI Ruth Hunter novels interweave Welsh folklore and history. They also feature some mangled place names, such as the fictional town of Llancastell where she is based, somewhere in Denbighshire. For local readers, they provide the opportunity for intense scrutiny: one took to Google Maps to prove it was impossible to drive from Llancastell to Liverpool in 40 minutes. One inspiration was Lynda La Plante’s DCI Jane Tennison from the Prime Suspect series. “But she was depicted as having to adopt masculine traits to survive in a male-dominated police force,” said Simon. “I wanted my characters to use female intuition to become excellent police officers.” Having spent time on Anglesey, it seems to have a different atmosphere than the rest of Wales,” said Simon, married with two children. “The people there have an island mentality and the two bridges that connect to the mainland gives a sense of place that can be closed off.” Starting a new life in Snowdonia was always DI Ruth Hunter's dream. Until a twisted killer turned it into her worst nightmare. The first two books in the Anglesey crime series written by Wrexham author Simon McCleave and featuring hostage negotiator Laura Hart

Not long afterwards, another teacher is killed and the victim also has a spiral carved on their hand.Anglesey suited his plots but the island also had a personal lure. “I’ve spent many weekends on Anglesey, for trips and research visits, and as a family we always holiday there,” said Simon. “For the past 10 years, it’s been our go-to place.”

With film projects, everything always remains in development until the last minute," he said. "When it comes together, things suddenly go a bit crazy."Now the body count is set to soar still further in one corner of our region - but fortunately it is all in the name of fiction as a master storyteller releases his latest crime book. Murder is afoot on Anglesey and this time MI5 and the Real IRA are involved. In under three years, his books have collectively sold 1.5 million copies, an impressive feat for an independent publisher. Simon’s deal with publishing giant Harper Collins was a game-changer, giving him much greater reach. “My books are now in Waterstones, WH Smith and independent stores,” he said. “It’s given me access to a new and bigger audience. With such a complex case, and all the red herrings the author sends your way, guessing who the killer is turns out to be very difficult. The ending is surprising, moving and hard hitting. However, after the reveal there’s a long section of exposition which didn’t quite fit the rest of the storytelling. Perhaps Simon McCleave wanted to tie up as many loose ends as possible, but he could easily have left some of them hanging. Like Hidden, the macabre TV drama serial centred on the rugged hills of North Wales, Simon McCleave’s novels have brought gruesome crime to the last place you’d expect it. His Killings series, featuring DI Ruth Hunter, has sold over a million copies, and a major new TV show based on the books is due to begin shooting in Snowdonia in late 2023.

The sheer amount of ground McCleave attempts to cover is astonishing, and we haven’t even mentioned the setting. Throughout The Snowdonia Killings, the Welsh countryside, culture and heritage are brought out through a peppering of references. Legends of drowned princes, Owain Glyndwr’s war of independence, jokes about English incomers drinking sheep urine – plenty of Welsh flavour here. However, the book’s cover is a little deceiving – there’s no snow whatsoever. Teaming up with an obstinate deputy, Ruth struggles to eliminate suspects from a long line of . But she’s forced to tear up her shortlist when they discover another slain victim with the same cryptic markings…

Detective Inspector Ruth Hunter lives with the pain of her partner’s unsolved disappearance. Now pushing fifty, the veteran police officer trades in the crime-ridden streets of London for a more peaceful post in rural North Wales. But Ruth has barely settled in when the body of a teacher is discovered… with strange symbols carved into her skin.