Laying Out the Bones

DI Lockyer is called in to investigate a human skeleton found in a flash flood, which turns out to be that of Lee Geary, a man with learning disabilities who had been missing for nine years. Lockyer discovers that Geary was questioned in relation to another crime, the murder of Holly Gilbert, and that two other persons of interest in the case have also died or disappeared.

Format: Hardback
Length: 480 pages
Publication date: 18 January 2024
Publisher: Quercus Publishing

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The second twisty and atmospheric Wiltshire-set crime novel in the DI Lockyer Series. Perfect for fans of Ann Cleeves and Val McDermid.

A long, hot summer in Wiltshire is broken by a sudden downpour. Flash floods bring something sinister to the surface – a human skeleton. When forensic testing matches the bones to a man named Lee Geary, reported missing nine years earlier, the case is passed to DI Matt Lockyer.

Geary was a known drug user, so it could be a simple case of misadventure, but Lockyer isn't so sure. Geary was a townie, and had learning disabilities, so what was he doing out on the Plain all alone? Lockyer soon learns that the year he disappeared, Geary was questioned in relation to another crime – the murder of a young woman named Holly Gilbert.

With the help of DC Gemma Broad, Lockyer begins to dig deeper, and discovers that two other persons of interest in the Holly Gilbert case have also either died or disappeared in the intervening years. A coincidence? Or a string of murders that has gone undetected for nearly a decade?

Praise for Laying Out The Bones:

Compassionate, transporting, and intricately plotted... I'm a huge fan.

Emylia Hall, author of The Shell House Detectives:

Unputdownable... I didn't want it to end.

Jenny Ashcroft, author of The Echoes of Love:

Twisty and satisfying.

Kate Riordan, author of Summer Fever:

Weight: 732g
Dimension: 164 x 241 x 42 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781529421286