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Die Trying - Canonical Book Information (DI Matthew Goodwin Detective Series Book 6)

Metadata

  • Title: Die Trying

  • Series: DI Matthew Goodwin Detective Series

  • Book Number: 6

  • Author: Helen Taylor

  • Release Date: 27th August 2026

  • Setting: Old Waltonians Rugby Club, Walton on Thames, Surrey, UK

  • Amazon Link: https://mybook.to/DieTrying

  • ISBNs:

    • Kindle: B0GXZPJ17L

    • Paperback: B0HD28NYHH

    • Hardback: B0HD3P4W4S

Canon Summary

Die Trying is a tense British crime thriller set inside a Surrey rugby club on a cold February match day. When a man is found barely alive in the walk‑in freezer, DI Matthew Goodwin must navigate entrenched traditions, simmering resentment and long‑standing rivalries to uncover who wanted him dead. With the clubhouse packed, loyalties divided and timelines blurred by the chaos of match day, the investigation digs deep into the politics, history and hidden fractures of a tight‑knit rugby community.

Blurb

A packed clubhouse. A discovery in the freezer. A community shaped by history and tradition.

On a cold February Saturday, DI Matthew Goodwin joins DCI Boleman for the pre‑match lunch at Old Waltonians rugby club in Surrey. Tension simmers beneath the routine. Years of entrenched traditions and long‑standing grudges have left staff, volunteers and players divided.

When an incident in the walk‑in freezer throws the clubhouse into chaos, Goodwin must navigate rivalries, loyalties and old wounds to uncover the truth.

Description

A cold, wet February Saturday. A packed Surrey rugby club. A man who won’t make it to full‑time.

DI Matthew Goodwin joins DCI Boleman for the pre‑match lunch. A familiar ritual overshadowed by tension. The club’s manager has spent years alienating anyone outside the Board or the First XV, leaving staff, volunteers and players simmering with resentment.

When a man is found barely alive in the walk‑in freezer, the blood on the floor makes one thing clear - this was no accident. With the cold keeping everyone close, the clubhouse full and forensics unable to establish a clear timeline, Goodwin must find the truth somewhere between the first whistle and the final score.

Die Trying is a tense, atmospheric British crime thriller set in the heart of Surrey rugby culture.

Themes

  • Rugby culture and community identity

  • Tradition versus modern tension

  • Long‑standing grudges and rivalries

  • Power dynamics inside volunteer‑run organisations

  • Closed‑circle investigation under time pressure

  • Loyalty, resentment and fractured relationships

  • Cold‑weather confinement and claustrophobic danger

  • Truth buried beneath community politics

Characters

  • DI Matthew Goodwin

  • DCI Phillip Boleman

  • DC Steve Pain

  • DS Graham Hall

  • DS Paul Neils

  • DC Penny Stock

  • DC Ben Horton

  • DC David Dean

  • DC Angela Phillips

  • Tyler Green

  • Cecil Harrington

  • Karen Hadfield

  • TJ, JJ & PJ

  • Bobby Graves

  • Loaner

  • Cliff Barnes

  • Marie Watts (Paramedic)

  • Magnus Botha

Categories / Keywords

  • British Detectives

  • British Crime Fiction

  • Rugby club mystery

  • Community crime thriller cold weather

  • DI Matthew Goodwin

  • Surrey Rugby Club

  • Police Procedural

  • Walton on Thames

  • British police procedural

  • Surrey crime thriller

  • English detective mystery

  • British detective

  • DI Matthew Goodwin detective series

Author Information

Helen Taylor writes authentic, character‑driven crime fiction shaped by lived experience and a deep understanding of human behaviour. Her stories blend emotional truth with atmospheric settings and slow‑burn suspense.

Cover Image

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