A gripping novella from the New York Times bestselling author of the Inspector Banks Mysteries and a 'master of the art' (Boston Globe)
Retired Cambridge professor Donald Aitcheson loves scouring antiquarian bookshops for secondhand treasures-as much as he loathes the scribbled marginalia from their previous owners. But when he comes upon an inscription in a volume of Robert Browning's poetry, he's less irritated than disturbed. This wasn't a gift to an unwitting woman. It was a threat-insidious, suggestively sick, and terribly intriguing.
Now Aitcheson's imagination is running wild. Was it a sordid teacher-pupil affair that ended in betrayal? A scorned lover's first salvo in a campaign of terror? The taunt of an obsessive psychopath? Then again, it could be nothing more than a tasteless joke between friends.
As his curiosity gets the better of him, Aitcheson can't resist playing detective. But when his investigation leads to a remote girls' boarding school in the Lincolnshire flatlands, and into the confidence of its headmistress, he soon discovers the consequences of reading between the lines.
The Summer That Never Was is the thirteenth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Aftermath.
A skeleton has been unearthed. Soon the body is identified, and the horrific discovery hits the headlines.
Fourteen-year-old Graham Marshall went missing during his paper round in 1965. The police found no trace of him. His disappearance left his family shattered, and his best friend, Alan Banks, full of guilt.
That friend has now become Chief Inspector Alan Banks, and he is determined to bring justice for Graham. But he soon realizes that in this case, the boundary between victim and perpetrator, between law-guardian and law-breaker, is becoming more and more blurred.
Playing With Fire is the fourteenth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from The Summer That Never Was.
In the early hours of a cold January morning, two narrow boats catch fire on the dead-end stretch of the Eastvale canal. When signs of accelerant are found at the scene, DCI Banks and DI Annie Cabbot are summoned. But by the time they arrive, only the smouldering wreckage is left, and human remains have been found on both boats.
The evidence points towards a deliberate attack. But who was the intended victim? Was it Tina, the sixteen-year-old who had been living a drug-fuelled existence with her boyfriend? Or was it Tom, the mysterious, lonely artist?
As Banks makes his enquiries, it appears that a number of people are acting suspiciously: the interfering 'lock-keeper', Tina's cold-hearted step-father, the wily local art dealer, even Tina's boyfriend . . .
Then the arsonist strikes again, and Banks's powers of investigation are tested to the limit . . .
Peter Robinson's psychological thriller Caedmon's Song follows two characters and their mysterious connection.
On a balmy June night, Kirsten, a young university student, strolls home through a silent moonlit park. Suddenly her tranquil mood is shattered as she is viciously attacked.
When she awakes in hospital, she has no recollection of that brutal night. But then, slowly and painfully, details reveal themselves - dreams of two figures, one white and one black, hovering over her; wisps of a strange and haunting song; the unfamiliar texture of a rough and deadly hand . . .
In another part of England, Martha Browne arrives in Whitby, posing as an author doing research for a book. But her research is of a particularly macabre variety. Who is she hunting with such deadly determination? And why?
Strange Affair is the fifteenth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Playing With Fire.
When Alan Banks receives a disturbing message from his brother, Roy, he abandons the peaceful Yorkshire Dales for the bright lights of London, to seek him out. But Roy seems to have vanished into thin air.
Meanwhile, DI Annie Cabbot is called to a quiet stretch of road just outside Eastvale, where a young woman has been found dead in her car. In the victim's pocket, scribbled on a slip of paper, police discover Banks' name and address.
Living in Roy's empty South Kensington house, Banks finds himself digging into the life of the brother he never really knew, nor even liked. And as he begins to uncover a few troubling surprises, the two cases become sinisterly entwined . . .
'The Banks novels are, simply put, the best series now on the market' Stephen King
The Sunday Times bestseller, Aftermath, is the twelfth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Cold is the Grave.
Number thirty-five The Hill is an ordinary house in an ordinary street. But it is about to become infamous. When two police constables are sent to the house following a report of a domestic disturbance, they stumble upon a truly horrific scene. A scene which leaves one of them dead and the other fighting for her life and career. The identity of a serial killer, the Chameleon, has finally been revealed. But his capture is only the beginning of a shocking investigation that will test Inspector Alan Banks to the absolute limit.
Cold is the Grave is the eleventh novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, which became the major British ITV drama DCI Banks.
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks has reached a turning point. With his wife now living with another man in London and his career in the doldrums thanks to Chief Constable Riddle, it is time to ring the changes. Perhaps a move to the National Crime Squad? Perhaps a second chance with Sandra? But then late one night he is summoned to Riddle's house - and his plans take a surprising new turn. For the Chief Constable's sixteen-year-old daughter Emily has run away and for once Riddle wants Banks to use his unorthodox methods to find her without fuss.
Continue the bestselling series with In A Dry Season.
Wednesday's Child is the sixth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Past Reason Hated.
When two social workers, investigating reports of child abuse, appear at Brenda Scupham's door, her fear of authority leads her to comply meekly with their requests. Even when they say that they must take her seven-year old daughter Gemma away for tests . . .
It is only when they fail to return Gemma the following day that Brenda realizes something has gone terribly wrong.
At the same time, Banks is investigating a particularly unpleasant murder at the site of an abandoned mine. Gradually, the leads in the two cases converge, guiding Banks to one of the most truly terrifying criminals he will ever meet . . .
Wednesday's Child is followed by the seventh book in this Yorkshire-based crime series, Dry Bones That Dream.
Dry Bones That Dream is the seventh novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Wednesday's Child.
It was 2.47 a.m. when Chief Inspector Alan Banks arrived at the barn and saw the body of Keith Rothwell for the first time. Only hours earlier two masked men had walked the mild-mannered accountant out of his farmhouse and clinically blasted him with a shotgun.
Clearly this is a professional hit - but Keith was hardly the sort of person to make deadly enemies. Or was he? For the police investigation soon raises more questions than answers. And who, exactly, is Robert Clavert?
The more Banks scratches the surface, the more he wonders what lies beneath the veneer of the apparently happy Rothwell family. And when his old sparring partner Detective Superintendent Richard Burgess arrives from Scotland Yard, the case take yet another unexpected twist . . .
Dry Bones That Dream is followed by the eighth book in this Yorkshire-based crime series, Innocent Graves. The series became the major British ITV drama DCI Banks
Innocent Graves is the eighth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Dry Bones That Dream.
One foggy night, Deborah Harrison is found lying in the churchyard behind St Mary's, Eastvale. She has been strangled with the strap of her own school satchel.
But Deborah was no typical sixteen-year old. Her father was a powerful financier who moved in the highest echelons of industry, defence and classified information. And Deborah, it seemed, enjoyed keeping secrets of her own . . .
With his colleague Detective Constable Susan Gay, Inspector Alan Banks moves along the many suspects, guilty of crimes large and small. And as he does so, plenty of sordid secrets and some deadly lies begin to emerge . . .
Innocent Graves is followed by the ninth book in this Yorkshire-based crime series, Dead Right.
Dead Right is the ninth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Innocent Graves.
The broken body of Jason Fox has been found in a dirty alleyway. At first it looks like a typical after-hours pub fight gone wrong. But Inspector Alan Banks soon realizes that the truth is rarely so straightforward . . .
Jason was a member of the Albion League, a white power organization. And there are many people who might have wished him dead: the Pakistani youths he had insulted in the pub that evening; the shady friends of his business partner; or someone within the Albion League itself.
And just as Banks begins to get a grip on the case, an unexpected discovery forces him to reconsider everything he believes . . .
Dead Right is followed by the tenth book in this Yorkshire-based crime series, In A Dry Season.
In A Dry Season is the tenth novel in Peter Robinson's Inspector Banks series, following on from Dead Right.
During a blistering summer, drought has depleted Thornfield Reservoir, uncovering the remains of a small village called Hobb's End - hidden from view for over 40 years. For a curious young boy this resurfaced hamlet is a magical playground . . . until he unearths a human skeleton.
Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks is given the impossible task of identifying the victim - a woman who lived in a place that no longer exists, whose former residents are scattered to the winds. Anyone else might throw in the towel but DCI Banks is determined to uncover the murky past buried beneath a flood of time . . .
In A Dry Season is followed by the eleventh book in this Yorkshire-based crime series, Cold is the Grave.
