Reginald Hill is a joy to read. His plotting is superb, his use of dialogue is better than most contemporary writers and his mixture of pathos and comedy advances his storyline. He creates images that stay with you from book to book. This is as good as any of his previous offerings.

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Reginald Hill is a master. In this recent installment of the cases of Fat Andy Dalziel and Peter Pascoe of the Mid-Yorkshire CID, a mystifying series of events challenge their great crime-solving minds. Hill's books are not just mysteries; they are literature.

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Prominent businessman Pal Maciver locked himself in his study and shot himself. It's an open-and-shut case, as far as Detective Superintendent Andy Dalziel is concerned. Except...Maciver's father died in an almost identical manner ten years earlier, and "Fat Andy" was the investigating officer. Pal's strange and strained relationship with his beautiful, enigmatic stepmother, Kay Kafka, also raises warning flags. And the family's shady corporate dealings carry two apparent acts of self-slaughter far beyond the borders of Yorkshire, causing policeman Peter Pascoe to question his superior's reticence...and his motives. (from back cover)

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