"If you haven't encountered Chief Inspector Alan Banks before, prepare for a crash course in taut, clean writing and subtle psychology. And watch for those twists—they'll get you every time." —Ian Rankin
The second installment in Robinson's internationally bestselling Inspector Banks series
Harry Steadman, a well-respected historian, is brutally murdered, his body half-buried in a farmer's field in the peaceful Yorkshire dales. Who would want to kill the kindly, dedicated scholar? Was it Penny Cartwright, a beautiful folk singer with a mysterious past? Harry's editor? The shady land developer? And is it possible that young Sally Lumb, locked in her lover's arms on the night of the murder, could unknowingly hold the key to the case? Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks investigates his second case in Yorkshire and unearths disturbing secrets behind the idyllic façade of this remote community.

Peter Robinson's profile page

PETER ROBINSON was a beloved crime novelist whose work spanned thirty-five years. His final novel, Standing In the Shadows, is the twenty-eighth installment in the Inspector Banks series. His critically acclaimed books have won numerous awards in Britain, the United States, and Europe, and are published in translation all over the world. He also wrote two collections of short stories, and three stand-alone novels, including the #1 bestseller Before the Poison, winner of the Arthur Ellis Award, Sweden's Golden Crowbar Award, and the Dilys Award given by the Independent Mystery Booksellers Association. In 2020, Robinson was presented with the Grand Master Award by the Crime Writers of Canada. Several Inspector Banks novels have been adapted for television by ITV and have appeared on PBS. Peter, who grew up in the United Kingdom, lived with his wife, Sheila Halladay, in Toronto, Ontario, and Richmond, Yorkshire. Visit www.inspectorbanks.com.

"The atmosphere of the drowsy, slow moving countryside disturbed by alien violence is splendidly evoked." —The Times (UK)

"This story makes you understand why readers get addicted to genre mysteries—when they are good, they are very, very good." —Booklist, starred review