In the eighth of the successful Simon Serrailler series, the Chief
Superintendent is faced with worse crimes than ever, and the town of
Lafferton is left reeling.
Susan Hill--the Man Booker Prize nominee and winner of the Whitbread,
Somerset Maugham, and John Llewellyn Rhys awards--returns with a
gripping new novel, the latest chapter in one of the most acclaimed
mystery series of our time.
From the outside, the cathedral town of Lafferton seems idyllic, but in
many ways it is just like any other place. It suffers from the same
kinds of crime, is subject to the same pressures from a rapidly changing
world, and has the same hopes and fears as any number of towns up and
down the land.
When Simon Serrailler is called in by Lafferton's new Chief Constable,
Kieran Bright, he is met by two plainclothes officers, who ask him to
take the principal role in a difficult, potentially dangerous undercover
operation. He must leave town immediately, without telling anyone--not
even his girlfriend Rachel, who has only just moved in with him.
Meanwhile, Simon's sister Cat is facing difficult choices at work, as
Lafferton's hospice closes its bedded units--and at home, as her
daughter is presented with a glittering opportunity that they would have
to struggle to afford. And all is not well with Simon and Cat's
stepmother, Judith, either.
To complete his special operation, Simon must inhabit the mind of the
worst kind of criminal. This takes its toll on Simon and--as the
investigation unfolds--also on the town and some of its most respected
citizens.
