The Lost Years

The #1 bestselling Queen of Suspense delivers “a breathless murder mystery and a hunt for what may be the most precious religious and archeological treasure of all time” (BookReporter.com).

Biblical scholar Jonathan Lyons believes he has found the rarest of parchments — a letter that may have been written by Jesus Christ. Stolen from the Vatican Library in the 1500s, the letter was assumed to be lost forever.

Now, under the promise of secrecy, Jonathan is able to confirm his findings with several other experts. But he also confides in a family friend his suspicion that someone he once trusted wants to sell the parchment and cash in.

Within days Jonathan is found shot to death in his study. At the same time, his wife Kathleen, who is suffering from Alzheimer’s, is found incoherent and clutching the murder weapon. Even in her dementia, Kathleen has known that her husband was carrying on a long-term affair. Did Kathleen kill her husband in a rage? Or is his death tied to the larger question: Who has possession of the priceless parchment that has now gone missing? It is up to their daughter, twenty-eight-year-old Mariah, to clear her mother of murder charges and unravel the mystery behind her father’s death.

“Once again Mary Higgins Clark affirms why she is the ‘Queen of Suspense’....Ms. Clark has another winner for her readers to enjoy getting us there with this entertaining taut tale in which the suspense spins from family violence to biblical archeological violence.” Mystery Gazette

“At once a breathless murder mystery and a hunt for what may be the most precious religious and archeological treasure of all time.” BookReporter.com

"Clark, known rightly as the queen of suspense, performs her usual magic....An intriguing blend of religious history and contemporary mystery, 'The Lost Years' confirms Clark’s status as a writer who is willing and able to bend her formula — and to do so successfully — to address topics not often found in the genre.” Richmond Times Dispatch

“If you’re someone who enjoys sharing novels with others, though, beware: lend this book and you may never get it back. That’s because, for mystery fans, ‘The Lost Years’ is truly a keeper.” Pittsburgh Tribune

America's long-reigning Queen of Suspense delivers her most astonishing novel yet — part spine-tingling murder mystery, part breathless treasure hunt.

Just weeks after discovering a letter that may have been written by Jesus Christ himself, biblical scholar Jonathan Lyons is found shot to death in his study. Police suspect his wife, who suffers from Alzheimer's, murdered him in a jealous rage. But the priceless parchment is missing, and Jonathan had recently confided to a family friend his suspicions that someone he once trusted had designs on the ancient document. It is up to his daughter, Mariah, to clear her mother of murder charges and unravel the real mystery behind her father's death — before her own revelations become her last.

#1 New York Times bestselling author Mary Higgins Clark has written thirty-two suspense novels; three collections of short stories; an historical novel, Mount Vernon Love Story; and a memoir, Kitchen Privileges and two children’s books, The Magical Christmas Horse and Ghost Ship. She is the coauthor with Carol Higgins Clark of five suspense novels: Dashing Through the Snow, Deck the Halls, He Sees You When You’re Sleeping, The Christmas Thief, and Santa Cruise. More than 100 million copies of her books are in print in the United States alone, and her books are worldwide bestsellers.