SASKIA VAN DER ZEE

A body found in a bottomless pool. A second victim, meticulously staged and left for dead. In the desolate hills of Shropshire, a killer has arrived, and for local bunkhouse owner Marianne Leonard, the investigation is personal. When the police discover her own criminal past, her fragile new life is on the line, and she knows she's not just a witness—she's a suspect.

As DI Georgie Fraser, a detective with a haunted past of her own, delves into the dark history of the Devil's Chair, every resident of the bunkhouse becomes a person of interest. There's the blustering walking group leader, the enigmatic archaeologists, and a mysterious young man who seems to know more than he's letting on. Trust is a luxury Marianne cannot afford, for the killer is not only stalking their next victim but also unraveling Marianne's secrets one by one. Can she unmask the murderer before her life is completely destroyed?

The wild and unforgiving Shropshire landscape provides a brutal and beautiful setting for this gripping and atmospheric British crime novel that explores themes of secrets, atonement, and finding a place to belong. Perfect for fans of atmospheric mystery thrillers and detective fiction set in the Long Mynd and Stiperstones area.

A body has been discovered at the Shropshire Geoscience Trust, spread-eagled beneath a twelve-foot mammoth skeleton, drained of blood, and stabbed with Bronze Age artefacts in what looks disturbingly like a ritual sacrifice. DI Georgie Fraser has a venue full of suspects—the bitter ex-fiancée, a professional rival, a man nursing a grudge that stretches back to schooldays, and a trail of women who'd suffered at the victim's hands—but the elaborate staging tells its own story. Someone wanted this man humiliated, and the killer may not be the person who landed the fatal blow.

As Georgie unpicks layers of academic fraud, old abuse, and fierce maternal love, her partner Marianne finds herself uncomfortably close to the investigation. In the tight-knit villages of the Shropshire hills, where ancient landscapes hold long memories and everyone knows everyone's business, the truth is rarely straightforward—and protecting someone you love can make you capable of terrible things.