Part of Inspector Banks, book 4
First published 2002
A body without a face turns up in a secluded valley beneath the village of Swainshead. Chief Inspector Alan Banks arrives to find a community that refuses to speak. No one will answer his questions. No one will meet his eyes. The silence deepens when Banks learns who the victim was. This death connects to another killing in the same location five years earlier. The Collier brothers control Swainshead through wealth and power. They own the land, the businesses, the loyalty of residents. When they begin interfering with his investigation, Banks realizes he must work faster. The brothers use their connections to create delays and obstacles. Banks faces a community united against him and suspects who believe themselves untouchable. Time runs short as the case threatens to join the growing list of unsolved murders.
Genres: mystery, crime, thriller, detective
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: enemies-to-lovers, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Swainshead, The Collier Brothers
Period: 5 Years Ago
324 pages · Paperback · Pan Books