When a man wrongly arrested for murder hangs himself, forensic psychologist Jill Kennedy, who helped put him away, leaves her job and moves to a sleepy village. But when the vicar's wife is murdered, Jill discovers village life isn't the retreat she'd hoped to find. And while Jill's excolleague and ex-lover, DCI Max Trentham, sees the case as cut and dried, someone else has other ideas. It seems that Jill's past is coming back to haunt her.About the AuthorShirley Wells was born in the Cotswolds. When she went to live in Cyprus she began writing short stories, and when she moved again, this time to the Orkney Isles, she switched to full length novels, of which she has published a dozen so far.

“Dylan Scott? It’s payback time. You’re going to die.” Somebody is making threatening calls to private investigator Dylan Scott. This is one case with plenty of suspects—a lot of dangerous people would love to see Dylan with a bullet between the eyes. The twisted trail brings Dylan face-to-face with old foes and a few new ones—and they’re all keeping deadly secrets... But as he chases leads across London, his adversary is hunting down victims and is drawing ever closer to his ultimate target: Dylan. Someone from Dylan’s past is on a killing spree, and if he doesn’t connect the dots in time, the dead end will be his.

Before his disgraceful dismissal from the police force, Dylan Scott worked undercover to get close to notorious drug dealer Joe Child. Now, Dylan works as a P.I.—and Child heads up a religious commune near Dawson’s Clough. But after two girls go missing from the refuge, the cops need Dylan’s help to find out if Child is saving souls as a cover for something more sinister. The investigation means going back undercover as a petty crook—a tough gig for a detective who has recently worked some high-profile cases in Lancashire. Even on a remote farm, Dylan’s in constant danger of being recognized. Not to mention the strain his long absences have put on his family life. Still, Dylan won’t rest until he finds the missing girls. But the longer he looks, the harder it is to tell the sinners from the saints. And the truth may be more than this bleak northern town can handle.

Forensic psychologist Jill Kennedy has given up police work for a quiet life in the Lancashire village of Kelton Bridge. But when Martin Hayden, a seventeen-year-old schoolboy, is murdered, DCI Max Trentham, Jill’s ex-colleague, wants her back at work. As they hunt Martin’s killer, they discover that nothing is as it seems. When the killer strikes again, Jill and Max find themselves in a desperate position.

Dylan Scott has problems. Dismissed in disgrace from the police force for assaulting a suspect, he has no job, his wife has thrown him out and--worse luck--his mother has moved in. So when Holly Champion begs him to investigate the disappearance of her mother thirteen years ago, he can't say no, even though it means taking up residence in the dreary Lancashire town of Dawson's Clough for the duration.Although the local police still believe Anita Champion took off for a better life, Dylan's inquiries turn up plenty of potential suspects: the drug-dealing, muscle-bound bouncer at the club where Anita was last seen; the missing woman's four girlfriends, out for revenge; the local landowner with rumored mob connections--the list goes on. But no one is telling Dylan all they know--and he soon finds that one sleepy Northern town can keep a lot of secrets.

Residents of the sleepy Lancashire village of Kelton Bridge, where forensic psychologist Jill Kennedy has made her home, are looking forward to Christmas. But then the body of a young woman is discovered on the bleak hillside and, for some, life will never be the same again. The season of goodwill has bypassed Jill's colleague DCI Max Trentham. Having spent the past four months looking into the disappearance of schoolgirl Yasmin Smith, Max now begins the hunt for Lauren Cole's killer. And all the evidence points to one man. But Max's chief suspect is Jill's neighbour and she refuses to believe him guilty of the brutal murder. Yet, as they delve into his past, Jill to clear her friend's name and Max to secure a conviction, Jill is forced to question her own judgement. And then another body is found...

When two young boys find a woman's body in a quarry, Jill Kennedy and DCI Max Trentham experience a definite feeling of deja vu. Five years earlier, four women were found murdered in exactly the same way. Weirdly, the bodies had each been discovered wrapped in a shroud - so the killer was soon dubbed 'The Undertaker'. Following Jill's profiling the police tried to arrest a loner called Edward Marshall, but the man had fled and, after a high-speed car chase, lost control and went over a cliff. His car was found but his body never was. Now there are three possibilities: Marshall somehow survived that plunge into the sea; Marshall was innocent and the real killer is back - or a copycat is at work. It is up to Jill and Max to work out whether a terrible mistake was made by the police five years ago...or whether the original murderer had an apprentice waiting in the wings.

Forensic psychologist Jill Kennedy and DCI Max Trentham investigate a crime in the quiet Lancashire village where Kennedy has made her home. A man with a dark past has been murdered after moving there from London. While local residents are always wary of newcomers, one in particular seems especially determined to hinder the investigation.From the Hardcover edition.