Synopses & Reviews
For years, a middle-aged, middle-of-the-road couple, Max and Amanda, had enjoyed each other's company in their modest home. With adult children, the two seemed to have everything they could want: health, some wealth and happiness. Until one day when they vanish, leaving behind no trace.
Called in for the case, Detective Inspector George Hennessey, whose own life bespeaks horrible tragedy, automatically suspects foul play. His hunch proves a keen one when the bodies of the missing couple turn up in a shallow grave. But this macabre discovery is only the beginning of a case that will test the mettle of the entire police force. For one thing, no murderer would have killed them for their money since the couple had lost a small fortune right before their death. For another, the couple, apparently unbeknownst to the other, had been involved in illicit liaisons. For some reason, their only son has been acting strangely and to top these off, in the midst of the fracas a family secret arises.
In search of a road to answers, Hennessey instead finds a maze littered with conflicting clues and misinformation. And instead of lacking any suspects at all, the detective finds there are all too many people who had wished the deceased couple harm.
A compelling and grittily authentic novel from the author of the acclaimed P Division series.
Review
"The author, known for his realistic police procedurals, hasn't ventured too far afield here: this is the story of Hennessey's step-by-step investigation of the murder of a husband and wife. What makes a good police procedural work and what makes so many inferior ones fail is not the procedural details themselves but the way the author constructs the characters. Since procedurals rely heavily on dialogue, the speakers (especially the lead) must be compelling, and the things they say must be worth hearing. On both counts, Turnbull succeeds completely. Hennessey is a man we want to know more about, and the supporting players are uniformly interesting. This is most definitely a formula novel, but Turnbull uses the formula as it was meant to be used." Booklist
Review
"Though the killer's identity becomes obvious before the climax, Turnbull closes on a quietly chilling scene of confession, the perfect end to a subtle novel rich in character, as well as in Yorkshire wit and wisdom." Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
A husband and wife disappear from their condominium in an affluent suburb of York and a farmer uncovers their bodies several days later. In this kickoff to an authentic new series, Inspector Hennesey and his sidekick, Lieutenent Yellich, must weed through several suspects in order to find the guilty party.
About the Author
Peter Turnbull was born and raised in Yorkshire, England. He has had a variety of jobs--in a former incarnation he was a social worker for twenty-three years, an occupation he gave up to become a full-time writer.
Fear of Drowning is his twelfth novel.