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38 Phonebox Magazine | November 2025Having fi nished all the books in that series, I decided to try her new outing with Detective Sergeant Ali Dawson and her cold case team. These aren%u2019t so much cold as %u2018frozen%u2019 in that they happened so long ago that they require going back in time to find the evidence. In this story, Ali takes her fi rst steps into 1850s London to fi nd out who killed two women. The person who has always been suspected of the killings is Cain Templeton, the eccentric great-grandfather of MP Isaac Templeton. Ali%u2019s own son Finn works for the MP. Rumour has it that Cain was part of a sinister group called %u2018The Collectors%u2019, and to become a member of the group, you had to kill a woman. Things become complicated when Finn is accused of murder in the modern day, while Ali is in the past and unable to return, and the Reviewed by Jackie WildeThe Frozen People by Elly Griffi thsI%u2019m sure a lot of us were gripped by Elly Griffi ths%u2019 Dr Ruth Galloway series, following the forensic archaeologist through a series of crimes, and her %u2018will they-won%u2019t they?%u2019 relationship with DCI Harry Nelson. novel perfectly blends the historical crime with the contemporary case.%u00a0I wasn%u2019t sure how I felt about the timetravelling element when I began the book, but I soon became wrapped up in the fast-paced storyline and eager to get to the conclusion. I enjoyed how Ali was transformed from a 21st-century powerful woman with red dyed hair and a nose ring into a 19th-century woman who wore corsets and bloomers and didn%u2019t much like the cold houses and the food or behaving deferentially around men.%u00a0I liked the pace of the story, and it had enough intrigue and twists to maintain my interest in whether Ali would be successful in finding the killers in either time frame, and whether she would be able to return %u2018home%u2019.%u00a0 BookshopTel: 01234 714592 | Stanley Court, OlneyBOOK REVIEWThere are lots of hints of a relationship between Cain and Ali in the long-ago past and other loose ends which will no doubt reappear in further books. I have yet to be convinced that this series will outdo the Dr Ruth Galloway collection, but I will certainly be eagerly awaiting the next book, due out in February.Club of the Month: Newport Pagnell Historical SocietyHeritage Week saw a record number of visitors to Newport Pagnell Historical Society%u2019s Museum in Chandos Hall. A special exhibition currently at the museum features a large model of wo r k i n g t ra i n s , Newport Pagnell, Wolverton, and new Bradwell stations, the Royal Train, and a host of model b u i l d i n g s a n d people, including the new Bradwell Silver band.%u201cIt attracted over 400 visitors, and the even better news is that the exhibition will be there for another couple of months and is well worth a visit,%u201d said Geoff Morris, vice chair of the society.%u201cBut to see it, you have to know three things: that we have a museum in Newport Pagnell, where it is and when it is open.%u201dThere has been a museum in Newport Pagnell for nearly 40 years %u2013 a collection of 5,000 items housed in Chandos Hall in Chandos Court. It%u2019s off Silver Street through an archway between numbers 52 and 54. It%u2019s easy to spot when the museum is open because of the signs outside.Inside you%u2019ll find, a warm welcome from volunteers. And, if you visit before the end of November, there%u2019s a chance to see the amazing model of Newport. The museum houses hundreds of fascinating memorabilia of old Newport, mostly donated to the society by kind residents of the town.From a Victorian kitchen to English Civil War memorabilia, an Iron Bridge gas lamp, medical equipment, old games and models of town buildings. Children can play a %u2018Find-the-mice%u2019 game as they go around, so there is something for all the family. %u201cThen fi nish off your visit with a souvenir or perhaps a book to take you further into the history of our wonderful town,%u201d said Geoff .The society also organises regular talks, plus walks in the summer, and there are monthly daytime meetings for those who struggle to get out in the evenings. There is a membership scheme which includes a newsletter.Newport Pagnell Historical Society meets regularly on Tuesdays at the United Reformed Church, Newport Pagnell from 7.15pm. Guests are welcome to visit the museum, go to a talk or chat at an afternoon session. A small admission charge is made for these events. Museum entry is free. More details: www.mkheritage.org.uk/nphs.