A detective ready for a new life
Jake Jackson, high-flying ex-city detective, inherits a rural retreat from his reclusive uncle. Itโs the perfect chance to start anew.
A death that disrupts everything
But then the local annual treasure hunt spirals into terror when a young womanโs bones are discovered. Suddenly, Jake is back to being a detective, as he tries to unearth a dangerous killer in this most unlikely of settings.
โTense but patient, fast but thoughtful, and twisty but substantial โ this is a truly excellent debut, and I want the next installment nowโ Lee Child
โI LOVED this. I found it totally immersive, and couldnโt wait to squeeze some time from my day to return to it. The writing is very classy and the conclusion came as a surprise, which is always a treatโ Ann Cleeves
โGloriously atmospheric and masterfully plotted with such a strong sense of place, this is a huge treat for crime fiction lovers. I canโt wait for the next instalment!โ Lucy Foley
โStylish...a more than promising debutโ The Times
โStylishly written by a skilled wordsmith, and an absorbing taleโ Sun
โA vivid, atmospheric debutโ Daily Mail
โA cosy crime read with an appealing protagonistโ Guardian
Stig Abell loves detective novels above any other literature, films, plays or television. This is the first one he has actually written. Away from books, he presents the breakfast show on Times Radio, a station he helped to launch in 2020. Before that he was a regular presenter on Radio 4โs Front Row and was the editor and publisher of the Times Literary Supplement. At one time or another he has written for almost every newspaper in Britain, and one or two in America as well. He lives in London with his wife, three children and two independent-minded cats called Boo and Ninja (his children named them, obviously).