by Cara Hunter
First published 2022
DI Adam Fawley arrives at an isolated farm outside Oxford where an elderly couple claims they shot an intruder in self defense. The scene troubles him immediately. The dead man carries no burglary tools or gloves. The homeowner delayed calling police. The wife already washed bloodstained clothing. Fawley's instincts tell him the couple is lying about what happened in their kitchen at midnight. His investigation uncovers connections to an old child murder case that divided public opinion about whether justice was served. The discovery ignites media attention and political pressure. Fawley must navigate the explosive combination of past grievances and present deception while his superiors demand quick results. The detective faces a community still wounded by the earlier crime as he works to expose what really occurred on the farm and whether the shooting represents delayed justice or calculated murder.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, emotional, fast-paced, suspenseful
Tropes: past-haunts-present, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Oxford
416 pages · Paperback · Penguin Books Ltd
Content warnings: death, murder