Part of Inspector Banks, book 1
First published 2000
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks arrives in the Yorkshire town of Eastvale to start fresh after leaving London behind. His new position promises a quieter pace, but that hope vanishes when a peeping tom case escalates into something far more serious. Banks must navigate small-town politics and suspicious locals while pursuing leads that connect voyeurism to burglary and worse crimes. As he works to establish himself in the tight-knit community, Banks discovers that rural crime can be just as complex and dangerous as anything he faced in the city. The investigation tests both his detective skills and his ability to build trust with his new colleagues. Banks learns that starting over means confronting not just new mysteries but also the challenge of belonging somewhere unfamiliar.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, starting-over
Setting: Eastvale, Yorkshire
Period: 20th-century
336 pages · Avon