Stephen Bentley

Author
Stephen Bentley
Stephen Bentley

Stephen Bentley is an award-winning author. Of his first true crime novel, UNDERCOVER, screenwriter and novelist, writer of 'Julie' BBC Drama, Rob Gittins, said, "The fascinating and extraordinary inside story from the man who was actually there.” 

Of his later fiction works, British crime author, Pat MacDonald said, “I knew when I read the author’s first book ‘Undercover: Operation Julie’ although non-fiction that he could make the transition to writing fiction; I was right. He has an ease of language that lends itself to storytelling; he tells it as if he was there in the plot and why shouldn’t he having been an undercover cop in the real world? Not that Steve Regan is meant to be him, but having the experience means he can do whatever he wants with his fictional characters, and they will always be believable.” 

Like some other authors, his life experience is broad and unconventional. He spent 30 years in the legal system, first as a detective for 15 years then as barrister plying his trade as “a wig for hire” in London and the English provinces. He was a pioneering undercover cop on Operation Julie and as a barrister defended in trials involving murder, rape, drug importation, other serious crimes and defended soldiers at courts-martial. 

He worked in a warehouse. Rode a big motorbike as a London courier. He drove big articulated trucks and taught how to drive them. He also worked as a hospital porter twice. He drove chilled delivery vans in London in the 1990s to fund his law degree and bar school studies. He spent the last two years of his working life driving plant and operating heavy filtration machinery for Europe’s largest water company. His work mates soon recognised his advocacy skills and elected him as their shop steward.

He has now written over twenty books. Two of them have been optioned and in development; one as a TV drama series, and one as a drama doc. 

His wife is a better person than him in all regards and is a source of support in his goal of entertaining readers. She has also made him a better person.

Books

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Dark Web

An Unputdownable Gripping Thriller in the L.A. Cyber Noir Mystery Series (L.A. Cyber Noir Mysteries Book 2)
Book #2 from the series: L.A. Cyber Noir Mysteries

Unmask the darkness where secrets are currency and trust can be fatal.

Detectives Bill Pawson and Sean Wells thought they’d seen the worst humanity had to offer when they brought down the Rose Slayer. But the brutal murders were only the beginning.

Following the conclusion of the Rose Slayer case, a disturbing new threat emerges. Inspired by the...

Manhunt

A Detective Matt Deal Thriller (Detective Matt Deal Thrillers Book 6)
Book #6 from the series: Detective Matt Deal Thrillers

Some debts are paid in blood. Some deals are settled in fire.

When Sheriff Matt Deal sought refuge in the frozen plains of Montana, he hoped to leave his violent past behind. But peace shatters when a relentless private army descends on his quiet town, driven by vengeance and bloodlust.

Outnumbered and outgunned, Deal must rally new and old allies...

The Rose Slayer

An Unputdownable Thriller in the L.A. Cyber Noir Mystery Series
Book #1 from the series: L.A. Cyber Noir Mysteries

A killer with a signature, a city on edge, and detectives racing against time.

For three years, the ‘Rose Slayer’ has haunted Los Angeles, leaving behind a chilling pattern: middle-aged women, living alone with their cats, executed with a single shot, a red rose left as a macabre calling card. But when the seventh victim is found with her...

Praise

I had heard about Operation Julie from a young age as my family knew Eric Wright & his family,

This book gives an amazing insight into the lengths taken & how “big” the operation was. Living near Llanddewi Brefi, it’s interesting and slightly bizarre to read what went on!

Well written with fabtastic detail to make you feel part of the story,

Highly recommend ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

– JMG

This is a real and raw story of the risks and rewards of undercover work.
You'll be amazed by the courage and dedication of the cops who lived it.
I got this book for free and this is my honest opinion.
The narrator has a clear voice and really brings this story to life.

– Tom Casey

Heard about this operation on Changing Lives, I was too young in 1976 to have noticed this at the time. The book is very well written and an excellent account of what happened behind the scenes.
I was saddened that the author and Eric didn’t get a formal recognition for what they did, as I felt that they seriously put their lives at risk and lost so much in the end.

Looking forward to starting the Steve Regan books.

– Miss W Lloyd

Contact

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