by Steve Mosby
First published 2024
Katie receives the call she has dreaded for years. Detective Laurence Page tells her that her brother Chris is the prime suspect in a brutal murder. The victim is Alan Hobbes, a wealthy philosophy professor found dead in his mansion. The house tells its own story of decay and neglect, half destroyed by an old fire and never repaired despite Hobbes's wealth. Chris was captured on security cameras at the scene, but Page faces troubling questions. Why would a rich man choose to live in ruins? Why did Hobbes seem to expect his death? What drove his fixation on a notorious local serial killer? Katie sees only one thing clearly. She abandoned Chris during a childhood attack that left him scarred, and their family shattered. She walked away when he needed her most. Now she has one final opportunity to protect her brother and repair the damage from that terrible afternoon years ago.
Genres: suspense, mystery, crime, psychological-thriller
Vibes: dark, emotional, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: redemption, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Half Burnt House
400 pages · Paperback · Penguin Books Ltd
Content warnings: murder, violence