Part of Inspector Lynley, book 1
First published 1989
Scotland Yard Inspector Thomas Lynley arrives in the Yorkshire village of Keldale with Detective Sergeant Barbara Havers to investigate a brutal killing. Roberta Teys sits in an old stone barn wearing her finest dress, an axe across her lap, beside her father's headless body. She has already confessed with chilling words: "I did it. And I'm not sorry." The case seems straightforward, but Keldale harbors centuries of secrets. Local legend tells of villagers who smothered a crying infant three hundred years ago while hiding from Cromwell's raiders in the abbey. The ghost child's wail still echoes through the green valleys. As Lynley and Havers dig deeper into the Teys family tragedy, they discover a web of hidden scandals that stretches back generations. The peaceful countryside conceals appalling crimes that connect to the present murder in unexpected ways. Their investigation forces both detectives to confront not only Keldale's dark past but also truths about themselves that will change their partnership forever.
Genres: historical-fiction, mystery, crime, detective
Vibes: atmospheric, dark, suspenseful
Tropes: investigation, secrets
Setting: Keldale, Scotland Yard, Yorkshire
Period: 20th-century
413 pages · Mass Market Paperback · Bantam Books