Laura Vernon, fifteen years old and missing from home since Saturday night.
In the heat of the summer, in the Peak District, the search for Laura is underway. Ben Cooper along with every man in the line is equipped with a wooden pole to sift through the long grass and push aside the dense swathes of bracken and bramble..
Laura's parents Charlotte and Graham, appear at first, distraught at the absence of their daughter but gradually questions arise as to Laura's home life, the family situation, and the secrets they hold..
When Harry Dickinson out walking his dog, finds a trainer, why does he seem so determined to obstruct the police.
The new DC Diane Fry is fresh from Birmingham, determined to be noticed, ambitious and looking for fast promotion. Paired off with Cooper, who has known the villagers all his life, Diane finds herself in an alien world. It seems that everywhere she goes, she is with 'Sergeant Cooper's lad'. Both Diane Fry and Ben Cooper have emotional baggage, but both are suspicious of other people suspecting weakness, and have, each built a wall around themselves which has resulted in them both being locked up in their own world of pain.
This book is rich in emotion and complex relationships on several different levels. In fact the mystery can only be solved when the complexity of relationships are unravelled, much of which lies in the past.. Even when the mystery was solved I felt that there was a great deal yet to be revealed in the human relationships of the main characters. I sincerely hope there is another book, as there is so much still to be said with the main characters, and I want to read more about them and how they each deal with the complex history that they both have.
The sense of place in this book was strong, as was the depth of feeling of small rural communities. For a debut novel, this is a wonderful book. Highly recommended.
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Lizzie Hayes
2 May 2000
For more information oabout Stephen visit his web site at
http://www.stephen-booth.com