"It's nearly May Day and deep in the Dark Peak lies the village of Withens. Not a tranquil place but one troubled by theft, vandalism, strange disappearances and now murder. A young man is killed, battered to death and left high on the desolate moors for the crows to find. Ben Cooper, part of the investigating team, meets an impenetrable wall of silence from the man's relatives who form Withens' oldest family. The Oxleys are descendants of the first workers who tunnelled beneath the Peak. They stick to their own area, pass on secret knowledge through the generations, and guard their traditions from outsiders. Detective Diane Fry is in Withens on other business - looking into the disappearance of Emma Renshaw. The student vanished into thin air two years ago, but her parents are convinced she is still alive and act accordingly ... which doesn't help Fry in her efforts to re-open the case following an ominous discovery in remote countryside. But there are other secrets in Withens and more violence to come. The past is stretching, its shadow over the present, not just for the inhabitants of Withens but for Cooper and Fry as well"--Page 2 of cover.

Booth, Stephen, 1952-

Clipper Large Print

Clipper Audio Books

W F Howes Ltd

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

Rothley, 2003

On The Desolate Moors Of Dark Peak, Villagers Of Withens Are Being Murdered. And One Has Been Dead For Two Years - Though Not Everyone Will Believe It. As Far As The Parents Of Missing Student Emma Renshaw Are Concerned, Their Daughter Is Alive - Which Doesn't Help Ds Diane Fry In Her Efforts To Re-open The Case. Dc Ben Cooper's Attempts To Solve The Killings Come Up Against An Equally Impenetrable Barrier In The Shape Of The Oxley Family. They Stick To Their Own Area Like The Hefted Sheep On The Hillsides, Passing On Secret Knowledge Through Generations And Guarding Their Traditions From The Likes Of Cooper.

728 pages (large print) ; 25 cm
"Clipper large print."
Originally published: HarperCollins, 2003

2023-06-28