Crown court judge Peter Murphy has swapped his gavel for a pen, drawing on his legal experience to set his fourth novel in the depths of Huntingdonshire.

Mr Murphy, 68, who lives in Huntingdon, spends his days passing judgement at Blackfriars Crown Court in London and his free time writing high-octane fiction.

Following two political thrillers – Removal and A Test of Resolve – he has returned to the legal world of 1960s’ London, first explored in A Higher Duty, with his new book A Matter for the Jury.

Scheduled for release in July, the book is the first in a series following the life and career of young barrister Ben Schroeder as he faces a capital murder case bound to test him to his limits.

Mr Murphy, who formerly sat in courts at Huntingdon and Peterborough, said: “It’s something I have always enjoyed.

“I started trying to do it seriously in the 1980s but I didn’t have very much time.

“It’s only been in the last few years that I have taken it seriously and tried to get published.

“The trial in the story takes place in the old assize court in the Town Hall and the actual crime is committed on the river by St Ives – it is very much a local book.”

INFORMATION: Visit www.petermurphyauthor.co.uk.