It all began for Mike Travis with a helicopter crash in war-torn Afghanistan that resulted in his being declared clinically dead, before expert combat medics brought him back to life.
But he came back with a gift: He could see ghosts.
These five short stories bridge the gap between what happened in the immediate aftermath of the crash to his arrival in Crowsmoor, Cornwall, where his help has been summoned in an effort to prevent the return of an ancient evil.
Beginnings charts his progress from his first encounter with a ghost to his becoming a recognised investigator into all things paranormal. For readers of the series, these five short stories will be familiar territory. If you haven’t yet met Mike, Beginnings can be read as a stand-alone collection of short stories. Or it may just invite you into Mike’s paranormal world.

Review on amazon:

Being a big fan of Jans Mike Travis series of books, this one had somehow managed to escape me unknowingly. However, once found, I had to read it to find out all that had gone on before the first proper Mike Travis book, The Crowsmoor Curse. Although the stories are much shorter than the books, they still draw you in just as easily and are equally as exciting and interesting. Well recommended as prelude to the whole series. I for one can't wait for the next book in the saga to come out, which I believe is due soon. Five stars and well worth it.

The dead of Crowsmoor are light sleepers.
Some say they sleep with one eye open, keeping watch over the restless ones.
When Beth Trevithick is sent as parish priest to the isolated and scattered community of Crowsmoor, in the middle of bleak Bodmin Moor, Cornwall, she finds a community entrenched in fear and superstition and belief in an ancient curse born of dark magic.
She gets unexpected help in the form of Mike Travis, ex RAF helicopter pilot medically discharged after crashing in war torn Afghanistan, he has turned to his other love, the paranormal, devoting all of his time to paranormal investigation.
Beth soon discovers the fear and superstition in Crowsmoor are well founded and together with Mike fights for her own sanity and her life.

Review on amazon:

I read the first book Beginnings, and then got the subsequent books, just finished this one. Haven`t been able to put them down, probably reading when I should have been doing something else. Great story, got me reading "oh just one more chapter, got to know what happens", if you know what I mean. Really well written, its good to read an author with lovely vocabulary. well worth a read, good characters, interesting plot. Got it on my kindle, any time any where read. This is my first try with this author, I have read Stephen King and Dan Brown, and other notable authors and these novels are up there with the best.

When paranormal investigator, Mike Travis and his pregnant wife Beth relocate to an idyllic cottage in rural Monmouthshire, they didn’t bargain for a sitting tenant. The spirit of Adain Powell, brutally murdered by the lecherous and ruthless Judge Llewellyn in 1654, still haunts the cottage and adjoining wood, unable to rest until the truth surrounding her death and the wrongful accusation of her husband for her murder are brought to light.

In the cellar of The Black Mountain Inn, another is stirring. Judge Thomas Llewellyn’s grave is unearthed and his old bones, his very old bones, are the focus of a black magic ritual intending to bring about his return.
It is soon more than Mike and Beth’s new home that is at stake; it is their lives and the life of their unborn daughter.
Long Shadows is a story of both ancient and present day evil: to be read with the lights on.

Review on amazon:
Absolutely AWESOME! - all the way through it is a fantastic read from the very first page, with just the right amount of dry humour peppered through it. It keeps you reading on and on ignoring all around you, grabbing a page here and a page there when you can't be really reading it,and as it gets towards the end.....oh fabulous, didn't care what time it was I HAD to keep reading, through the tears as well. I completely lost myself at the end and kept turning pages until I was barely breathing.....only problem is now I have finished it, what now???....hurry up with the next one. This would make one heck of a film!!!

To the author........brilliantly written, I loved your other books but this one is my favourite! you are truly a wonderful writer and every bit as good as those who have been around for years!

I have read the diary from cover to cover and now I wonder if there is an element of reality in what she has written and that in fact the truth is more terrifying than anything she could imagine.
I have enclosed her diary so that you can decide for yourself whether or not there is something happening that would explain her situation and perhaps even find some small way to help her. I am sure that somewhere inside her is the mother that I once knew.

When Mike Travis stays at home to finish writing his next book he doesn’t expect to be embroiled in a new case.
A mysterious letter and diary are sent to him and he soon finds himself battling ancient demons with the help of friends old and new.
Who is connected to this ancient evil and which side of the Abyss do they live on? Who can he trust?

Review on amazon:
I love Jan's books, especially the Mike Travis ones. Haunted Diary was brilliant - possibly my favourite so far. Having come on this journey with the characters, I feel that I've got to know them all personnally and feel for them when they are in danger. I loved the introduction of Ben in this one and was really anxious for him at the in the final chapters. I was left breathless at the end of this book as the pace was relentless.Just about to order the next book in the series - keep 'em coming Jan !

A longer pause and then a lowered tone.
“Jesus Christ, Josh. What have you found?”
An even longer pause.
“The Ark of the Covenant.”

When paranormal investigator Mike Travis answers a call for help, he doesn’t anticipate being flung headlong into Ancient Egyptian secrets in The Sacred Ark. An old acquaintance needs his help in his search for proof that his controversial theories are correct, theories which have resulted in him being ridiculed by the world of archaeology. Mike finds himself in the heart of the Sinai desert pursued by government and Vatican hit men, all desperate to find the same thing, the Ark of the Covenant. What secrets does it hide and where will it take him?

Review on amazon:

As this is the first Mike Travis book I have read I probably began at the wrong end of the series but this did not take anything away from my enjoyment of the book.

There was a lot that I would expect from an adventure book that featured the Ark of the Covenant - different factions competing to either hide, destroy or possess the Ark for a range of reasons as well as a good paced story.

What I really liked however was the willingness to begin to ask what the Ark might actually be and to introduce a plot line about this that a reader could sit with and at the end of it then ponder "Could it...? No...! But it sounded...." I liked this aspect as most novels, in my experience that deal with such mythological artefacts stop short of offering such an understanding and stay merely on the action or adventure level.

Mike Travis’s day is about to get way past difficult. His friend, Jack Carter, has been kidnapped, and it all revolves around an old manuscript that was supposedly a copy of one made by Merlin himself before he was magically cast into a crystal cave by his lover and student, Nimue. Who has Jack? And where is he? The trail leads Mike to the Inquisition, alive and well on the fringes of the Vatican. They want the manuscript and what it refers to – Merlin and Excalibur. And they’ll do whatever they have to, to obtain their ends. To save Jack, Mike has to journey back through the veil to Avalon accompanied by Benjamin Lovecraft, ex Catholic Priest and Exorcist, to claim Excalibur and find Merlin. The worlds of magic and legend collide to draw Mike into a quest that leads him to find more than a magician and a sword.

Review on amazon:

Having just read this latest book of Jan's I have to say I am really hoping for the next book. I found this another enthralling read and just could not put it down.
I think this author just might be a famous writer in disguise and if she isn't she should be.

Thanks Jan McDonald for this brilliant read, you have to read this book and you will be hooked like me.

.Mike is displaying all the signs and symptoms of demonic possession with no–one around to help him. On top of which, his old friend and mentor Dai Bricks is also in need of help with only Mike to turn to. Despite his misgivings about his own spiritual and mental health, Mike naturally agrees to go to Dai’s aid. In the Welsh village of Aberth, things are falling apart, as the dead are returning along with an old adversary. With the appearance of traditional death omens, such as the Corpse Candle and Phantom Funeral, the village of Aberth is under siege with the clock ticking towards Samhain, the night of the dead.

Review on amazon:

I have now read all the books about Mike Travis and have loved every single one....I am Welsh and a lot of her books are based in Wales or on its borders...her research is impeccable and the way she writes if someone is speaking in a Welsh accent is so good, isn't it....the characters and their interactions are fabulous and you really feel the bond between them all...the paranormal stuff is good too with demons rising from the dead and ghosts appearing everywhere.....you wont regret reading this series of books and I envy you because you have the excitement to come...I'm now eagerly awaiting the next book.....join Jan on Facebook too, I did and I get free short stories from her from time to time.