Like Bottled Fire: A PI Daniel Beckett Short Story: A missing piece of the jigsaw

by Dominic Piper

Before London
Before Private Investigation
There was Rome, and a beautiful woman
But this is not a romance. Not quite...

‘I felt quite faint. It was as if someone had been reading my mind and created a woman from my most secret and lascivious fantasies. I thought I had been found out.' ~ PI Daniel Beckett

Like Bottled Fire takes place a few years before Daniel Beckett appeared in London working as an unlicensed private investigator and is an ingeniously constructed standalone short story that incorporates Dominic Piper’s usual fusion of intriguing mystery, suspense, danger, red-hot sensuality, beautiful women, and ruthless amorality.

A lethal drug overdose that guarantees death within five seconds. Beckett takes on a high-risk assignment in an exclusive restaurant in Rome, accompanied by a ravishing Italian woman who may not realise she’s being used as cover. But not everything goes to according to plan, and perhaps the woman is not what she seems.

For fans of sophisticated and imaginative crime fiction, Like Bottled Fire introduces readers to the world of enigmatic private investigator Daniel Beckett and is a unique and thrilling introduction to the bestselling and critically appraised full-length novels.

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ALL BOOKS by DOMINIC PIPER

PI Daniel Beckett Series
Standalone detective thrillers that can be enjoyed in any order.

★★★★★ "An incredible series of thrillers - innovative, exciting, violent and super-sexy."
★★★★★ "Dominic Piper is a top-drawer thriller writer. Miss his books at your peril."

Like Bottled Fire
Kiss Me When I’m Dead
Death is the New Black
Femme Fatale
Bitter Almonds & Jasmine
Acid Yellow

Dominic Piper is a bestselling author living in London

Genres: Crime

60 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 20, 2025

About the author

Dominic Piper is an author, film and television writer, journalist and script editor. He lives in London, UK. He is the author of the best-selling, critically acclaimed thrillers Kiss Me When I'm Dead, Death is the New Black, Femme Fatale, Bitter Almonds & Jasmine, and Acid Yellow, all featuring the enigmatic, London-based private investigator Daniel Beckett. All five novels are published by Opium Den Publishing.

Reviews

[Anna Casamento Arrigo · Rating 5 out of 5]

A thrilling read!

Another fantastic literary piece! I’m always so impressed by the brilliant and well-woven work by Piper. A short read that packs a punch!

[Michael Bennett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'd never heard of this author before, but will now seek out the full length novels, which I think are a series of five. This is a short story, a teaser if you like, and takes place before the novels start, which are London-based contemporary detective thrillers. Daniel Beckett is a fascinating, manipulative character, obviously involved in some very dodgy situations, and as a short story it's concise, clever, intriguing, and smartly put together. As a writer myself, I could only admire (with a certain amount of jealousy) the character development and plotting in such a limited form. It was also free to download! Very good indeed.

[Susan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining short story.

Loved this short story. Well written and entertaining to the end. And the twist at the end was a surprise. Well done.

[Barbara Daniels Dena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thrilling style by the author

Author Dominic Piper brings a thrilling short story about his famous protagonist, P.I. Daniel Beckett, to his followers and new readers. He wets the appetite of his avid readers by giving them a good taste of quirky dialogue and an intriguing female character which basically helps fill in a piece of the puzzle for his series. This story can be read in one sitting.

[Marie Keates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Set in Rome, and a kind of short story prequel to the other Daniel Beckett novels I’ve enjoyed so much, this was a well written fast paced little number. It had all the ingredients I’ve come to expect from Mr Piper, including a nice little twist at the end. What’s not to like?

[Roy Murry · Rating 5 out of 5]

LIKE BOTTLED FIRE
DOMINIC PIPER

Review by Author Roy Murry

I enjoyed reading several of Mr. Piper's novels, and his writing kept me on the edge of my seat. This read is my first short story.

After he purchases a deadly item, the man goes to eat, flirts with his waitress, and asks her out to dinner. They go out: The food, the company, the kissing, and the guessing game culminate before dessert.

Wow, I was completely surprised by what happened next. When the end came. The outcome hoodwinked me.

The story is thrilling from his breakfast to the delicious dessert ending, with conversations that leave you wondering what will come next in their encounter.

[Suzy Davies · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beyond any doubt, this is one of the best stories I have read in a long time. Author Dominic Piper leaves out the bits readers would skip over. His writing is compelling, cinematic and entertaining. I love the colorful characterization, all the little details of the setting in Rome, and the high-octane vibe of the whole thing. The ending was a surprise, and it teased the reader.

[Ivy Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you're the kind of reader who rushes through the pages eager to get to the end, then sadly Bottled Fire by Dominic Piper isn't for you.
This author's writing is sexy, filled with innuendos than never quite cross the line to become disgusting or cheap and the author uses this to build an aura around his favorite PI- Daniel Beckett. The entire series centers around Beckett so I have to say that the author Dominic Piper understands his character very well. They might even be cut from the same cloth. Beckett is cool and collected but guarded and observant. His humorous and casual demeanor is meant to throw his enemies off guard and while on a job he is equally capable of charming the birds off the trees.
PI Daniel Beckett admires and flirts with sensual women, but he does this while tracking a suspect, monitoring a location, plotting to kill someone and even actually killing someone. And if he receives unexpected help, well he accepts it with grace. His methods make it seem that he is very laid back in his style of working but when you closely observe him you will see that he possesses all the tools and tricks of an alert and dedicated PI.
Bottled Fire is a short story to be savored, to be appreciated for its charm, flirtatious language and yes subtle detective action too. Will definitely enjoy more of this author's work.

[Iwan Ross · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dominic Piper, bring it on! I loved reading *Like Bottled Fire*. The first-person perspective, with its Sin City vibe, had me hooked from the start. I was completely drawn in by the protagonist’s introspective nature. The author’s voice is so unique, intriguing, and refreshing.

[Cidney · Rating 2 out of 5]

Daniel Beckett is a private investigator and is in Rome investigating something to do with sticky plaster type things which contain a lethal dose of fast acting poison. He rather likes the waitress at one of the places he eats at and chats her up, she speaks good english and he speaks fairly good italian, so a match made in heaven there then! Daniel has been to see a dodgy elderly guy in a nice apartment to get this patch and it cost a fair amount of money. When he takes the waitress out for a meal he keeps an eye on a man and his wife at the next table who have a bodyguard. It turns out it's the bodyguard he is looking for. The guy goes to the gents and Dan follows, they begin fighting and Dan manages to get the plaster poisonous thing onto his skin and the guard realises what's happened as he slides to the floor. Dan leaves quietly and quickly and pays the bill and he and his new found girlfriend slide out of the doors very casually as the bodyguard's body is discovered in the toilets.

I would've liked to have read this as a long book to get the background on the poisonous plaster and the man who sold it and the guard and also if the waitress was in on this without Dan realising?
I really liked the story and although it was only 60 pages long it the author certainly knows how to pack a punch and I would like to read some books by Dominic Piper!

[Patricia Furstenberg · Rating 5 out of 5]

Like Bottled Fire is a cinematic experience from beginning to end: a quick read that immerses you in the enticing, perilous world of private investigator Daniel Beckett. Dominic Piper's writing is compelling, with sharp wit, dark humour, and evocative, almost tactile descriptions of Rome's backstreets, exquisite dining rooms, and the shadows that exist between them.

The set-up is irresistible: PI Daniel Beckett is on a high-risk job and his companion is an Italian woman who is as intellectual as she is beautiful. Not everything goes as planned. And Piper's dry, well placed humor sparkles: "The waiter who served the bodyguard glanced at the uneaten pizza on the bodyguard's table." I considered asking him to put it in a doggy bag for me, but I believe that would be stretching it."

This novella is as robust and intense as an excellent Italian espresso, leaving you wanting more. Fans of intelligent and innovative crime fiction will be blown away by PI Daniel Beckett's world and they will undoubtedly be looking for the full-length novels next. I know I will.

[Colin Garrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

In Rome, Daniel Beckett takes on a risky assignment, using an attractive Italian waitress as cover. Unfortunately, Beckett’s plan goes askew, and he discovers his companion may not be what she seems…

This short story is a prequel to the PI Daniel Beckett series and the first I’ve read by this author. The plot is a bit of a slow burner, as the hero flirts with a beautiful waitress while at the same time dropping hints to the reader about what he’s actually up to. Beckett is an interesting and enigmatic character, and Mr Piper’s writing is appropriately clever and witty. The action is a little while in coming but the pace speeds up quickly with an unusual twist that kept me reading. My only niggle would be the author’s overuse of the word ‘that’, but it didn’t spoil my enjoyment.

An entertaining and exciting read.

[Roger Gates · Rating 5 out of 5]

Coming hot on the heels of Piper's excellent last novel (Acid Yellow), this is a brilliantly written short story (free to download on Amazon) which takes us to a day in private investigator Daniel Beckett's life before he turned up in London as an unlicensed PI. Set in Rome, you can actually feel the July heat, and, as is usual with Dominic Piper's writing, the descriptions of the city are excellent. Beckett, though, despite this little insight into his past, remains an intriguing enigma, and it's hard to work out whether he's on the side of the angels or not. All the ingredients in the novels are here - the amorality, the tension, the violence, the beautiful women, the danger, the sparkling, witty, slick dialogue - and this would make a great introduction to the rest of the series. A savvy and exciting reading experience.

[Judy Kemp · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a delightful and fantastically written short story about private investigator Daniel Beckett (a character in five fantastic full-length novels so far) and takes place in Rome, possibly a few years before he moved to London and became the PI we all know and love (and wonder about). It's a tense, edgy thriller, where everyone seems to be using everyone else, and to place a complex concept like this into the context of a short story just confirms Dominic Piper's status as a top-drawer thriller writer. Packed with the usual plot twists, great witty dialogue and the expected sensual undertones, it's a brilliant quick read. I'd say it was well worth the money, but it was free!! Excellent.

[Eeva Lancaster · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just like the other books in the PI Daniel Beckett Series, Like Bottled Fire is witty, humorous, and action-packed. Dominic Piper’s dialogue will have you snickering—it’s just too smooth, too suave to resist. You'll want to meet Daniel Beckett. He loves women... in a beautifully sensitive way. Check it out. It's free. And if you like crime fiction, this is just an introduction to the series. You'll want to read the rest.

[P.S. Winn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Daniel Beckett loves women, but they can be strange, and even dangerous. This is a short, witty tale, that leaves the reader with wonderful impressions of Rome, where the tale takes place. If you haven't read a book by this author, this short story is a good way to experience the author's writing style.

[Erika · Rating 1 out of 5]

How does this have such high ratings? Barely even 50 pages of a very mediocre "romance" story. The characters were one dimensional, the writing was just okay, the story was just one big long shallow lustful sequence, and it was too short to feel anything from anyway.

[Tina-Marie Miller · Rating 5 out of 5]

The author builds up the tension nicely in this short story. Set in Rome, there’s a good mix of intrigue and danger with an unexpected twist at the end. Brilliant.

[Nicola Yeager · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating and thrilling insight to private investigator Daniel Beckett’s pre-London life, which takes place in Rome, and is, I guess, a prequel of sorts. It’s a beautifully written and intriguing mystery thriller that somehow doesn’t feel like it’s a short story at all. Secondary characters are well drawn, and the ‘who’s fooling who’ dynamic between Beckett and the seductive Italian waitress Orabella is both clever and adorable. Even if you don’t usually read short stories, you really must read this one. Marvelous.

[Julia Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

INTERESTING story, Italian language mixed in with English made it intriguing and kept me reading to see what was happening. Twists and turns on their date makes for a great ending and wanting to read the next one.