Welcome to my bookshop

If you like to read about interesting people in interesting situations then you’ve come to the right place.

If you’re put-off gambling just on the basis of a back cover blurb then you’ve come to the right place.  All books have free downloadable previews in two formats.

If you want to be engrossed in unexpected turns, layers of ironic social commentary, personal challenges and triumphs, odd dysfunction that actually works in novels, or short stories and poems where ‘twee’ is a dirty word, then you’ve come to the right place.

When people ask me what sort of books I write all I can say is “interesting”.  Mediaeval adventures of a horribly disfigured and crippled girl, character studies, speculative fiction (‘science’ without the blinking lights and superpowers), Essex-based crime mysteries which are more about celebrating local attitudes than ‘procedure’, an optimistic approach to assisted dying and 1920’s crime and corruption in the context of dark political times. Adventures and ‘situations’ are all very gripping but leaders and families are what we care about.

Now browse the catalogue, download some free beginnings and then follow the purchasing links.

Choice of formats Nowadays practically all devices can read properly formatted PDF files instead of the various simplified and tied-in ebook formats. Choose the format to suit your device.
Click here to compare PDF formats

You can still buy traditional paperbacks.


Merlin Smallbone is the writing name of Peter Fox, ex-programmer from Devon.

Your author

Peter lives in Totnes, South Devon, and writes when he’s not programming computers. He is what they call a character, but whether it’s a ! or ? remains a mystery. Most of his leading characters are strong and positive, although of course the interesting bits are their weaknesses and doubts. A glance at the catalogue shows a wide range of settings. Typically he writes interesting characters in interesting situations so that ‘stuff happens’ but there will be ideas and issues that hover in full view yet in the background until spotlighted when for many readers that’s the moment they realise they’ve been reading a proper book not just a story.

You can visit his eclectic cornucopia of science, songs, cycling, ideas, and useful tools at vulpeculox.net