Synopses & Reviews
In recent years, the career of Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks has been stalled -- and, in fact, very nearly destroyed -- by the petty animosities of his politically ambitious senior officer Chief Constable Jeremiah "Jimmy" Riddle. But when nude pictures of Riddle's runaway teenage daughter show up on a pornographic website, he turns to Banks for help.
The trail first leads Banks to London' Soho and then to Little Venice, where Emily Riddle is living with a dangerous gangster with ties to the world of rock music. At first refusing to go home, Emily later turns up at Banks's hotel, bruised and frightened and asking for his help. Soon she is back with her family in Yorkshire, and Banks's work appears to be done.
Now there are other concerns occupying Banks's time, thoughts, and conscience. A major reorganization at Eastvale Regional Headquarters has brought DS Annie Cabbot back into his life, carrying with her disturbing memories of their brief shared romance and her own painful secrets. But as they begin an investigation together into the slaying of Charlie Courage -- a low-level local felon and security guard who was executed by persons unknown for reasons unknown -- the "closed" Emily Riddle case is suddenly reopened in a most brutal and unexpected manner.
A gruesome murder occurs in a popular Eastvale club, filling the national tabloids with headlines that scream of scandal, sex, and high-level corruption. It is a cold and savage homicide that shakes Alan Banks to his very core and leads to shocking revelations that suggest the Courage affair is somehow linked to something much closer to home. And now the grim discoveries of his unfolding investigation are leading Banks in a direction he does not wish to go: into the past and private world of his most powerful enemy, Chief Constable Riddle.
Synopsis
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks' life is shaken to the core when he is unexpectedly pulled into the investigation of a young girl's disappearance in this shattering suspense novel from the hand of a modern master.
"Full of twists and surprises....Robinson shows he has only begun to dig into the personality of his tenacious, thoughtful inspector."--Chicago Tribune
When the nude photo of a teenage runaway shows up on a website, the girl's father turns to Detective Chief Inspector Alan banks for help. But these aren't unusual circumstances, for the runaway is the daughter of a man who's determined to destroy the dedicated Yorkshire policeman's career and good name. Still, it's a case that Banks--a father himself--dares not ignore as he follows its trail into teeming London. But when a series of gruesome murders follows soon after, Banks finds himself pulled into the past and private world of his most powerful enemy, Chief Constable Jimmy Riddle.
Peter Robinson is at the height of his storytelling skills in this twisting novel of suspense that proves one can never escape their pasts--especially when there are sordid secrets waiting to be revealed.
Synopsis
After trying to destroy the career of Inspector Alan Banks, Chief Constable Riddle now turns to Banks for help when pictures of Riddle's missing daughter turn up on a pornographic Website. The search for the missing young woman draws Banks deep into London's sordid underbelly of drugs, crime, and sex.
About the Author
Peter Robinson's award-winning Inspector Banks novels have been named a "Best Book of the Year" by Publishers Weekly, a "Notable Book" by the New York Times, and a "Page Turner of the Week" by People. Robinson was born and brought up in Yorkshire, and now divides his time between North America and the U.K.