When British lieutenant Charles Acland returns home from Iraq, his serious head injuries are the outward manifestation of a profound inner change: he may be suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder, or it may be, as his psychiatrist suggests, "the prolonged destruction of a personality."Though previously well adjusted and known as an extrovert, Acland now withdraws into himself. As he begins his recovery in a dismal provincial hospital, crippled by migraines and suspicious of his doctors, he grows uncharacteristically aggressive-particularly against women, and most particularly against his ex-fiancée. Finally, rejecting medical advice to undergo cosmetic surgery-opting, instead, to accept his disfigurement-and cutting all ties to his former life, he moves to London. There, alone and unmonitored, he sinks into a quagmire of guilt and paranoia-until an outburst of irrational, vicious anger brings him to the attention of the local police: they are investigating three recent murders, all of them apparently motivated by the kind of extreme rage that Acland has exhibited.Now under suspicion, Acland is forced to confront the issues behind his desperate existence before it's too late: Has he always been the duplicitous chameleon that his ex-fiancée accuses him of being? Can he control this newly apparent sinister side of his personality? And why, if he truly hates women, does he in the end seek help from a woman-someone as straightforward and self-disciplined as he is unsure and seemingly out of control-to repair the damage to his mind?In its timeliness, its psychological complexity, and its unstoppable suspense, The Chameleon's Shadow is a thriller of the first order.

The Chameleon's Shadow (Vintage Crime/Black Lizard)

Walters, Minette

Minette Walters

Golden Books Publishing Company, Incorporated

Vintage Crime/Black Lizard

Random House, Incorporated

Vintage Books

1st Vintage Crime/Black Lizard ed., New York, New York State, 2009

United States, United States of America

Reprint, 2009

Could severe head injuries turn a man into a killer? When an injured soldier returns from Iraq, he appears to undergo a complete change in personality in the latest dark, complex thriller from the Queen of Crime now in paperback.How could he forget eight weeks of his life? How could thirty hours have turned into eternity? Why had the nurse said his wires were crossed? What was wrong with him? When Lieutenant Charles Acland is flown home from Iraq with serious head injuries, he faces not only permanent disfigurement but also an apparent change to his previously outgoing personality. Crippled by migraines and suspicions of his psychiatrist, he begins to display sporadic bouts of aggression, particularly against women, and especially his ex-fianc e, who seems unable to accept that the relationship is over.After his injuries prevent his return to the army, he cuts all ties with his former life and moves to London. Alone and unmonitored, he sinks into a private world of guilt and paranoid distrust until a customer annoys him in a Bermondsey pub ...Out of control and only prevented from killing the man by the intervention of a 250-pound female weightlifter called Jackson, he attracts the attention of police who are investigating three 'gay' murders in the Bermondsey area which seems to have been motivated by extreme rage.Under suspicion, Acland is forced to confront the real issues behind his isolation. How much control does he have over the dark side of his personality? Do his migraines contribute to his rage? Has he always been the duplicitous chameleon that his ex-fiancee claims?And why - if he hates women - does he look to a woman for help?

When Lieutenant Charles Acland is flown home from Iraq with serious head injuries, he faces not only permanent disfigurement but also an apparent change to his previously outgoing personality. Crippled by migraines and suspicious of his psychiatrist, he begins to display sporadic bouts of aggression, particularly against women, and especially his ex-fiancee, who seems unable to accept that the relationship is over. After his injuries prevent his return to the army he cuts all ties with his former life and moves to London. Alone and unmonitored, he sinks into a private world of guilt and paranoid distrust - until a customer annoys him in a Bermondsey pub. Out of control and only prevented from killing the man by the intervention of a 250-pound female weightlifter called Jackson, he attracts the attention of police who are investigating three 'gay' murders in the Bermondsey area which appear to have been motivated by extreme rage. Under suspicion, Acland is forced to confront the real issues behind his isolation. How much control does he have over the dark side of his personality? Do his migraines contribute to his rages? Has he always been the duplicitous chameleon that his ex-fiancee claims? And why - if he hates women - does he look to a woman for help?

2025-10-24