The heart-stopping new Inspector Banks mystery.
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 grew up in Yorkshire, and now lives in Canada. His bestselling, critically acclaimed Inspector Banks series has won numerous awards in Britain, the United States, Canada and Europe, and has sold over a million copies. His first novel, Gallows View, published in 1987, was short-listed for a best first novel award in Canada and for the John Creasey Award in the UK. Since then, Robinson has published a further 14 novels starring Inspector Banks and his successful career as a policeman, following him through marriage and divorce, and increasingly dark and suspenseful cases.
