The Hanging Valley

The discovery of a faceless, maggot-ridden corpse leads Chief Inspector Banks to search for clues in a mystery that involves a five-year-old murder, the disappearance of a woman, and more. 15,000 first printing. $15,000 ad/promo.

When a faceless body is found in a tranquil valley just south of the village of Swainshead, Chief Inspector Alan Banks soon finds that no one in the village is willing to talk about it, except to say, “Not again.” An unsolved murder from five years before and the unsolved disappearance of a prominent local man’s girlfriend appear to be connected. As Banks delves deeper into the mystery, someone begins to intentionally slow down the investigation. When events take a turn, Inspector Banks must track his killer across the Atlantic and find a way to make a break in the case before time runs out. Fourth in the critically acclaimed Inspector Banks Mystery Series.

It began with a faceless, maggot-ridden corpse in a tranquil, hidden valley above the village of Swainshead. Or did it really begin with the unsolved murder in the same area over five years earlier? The villagers, especially those who frequent the White Rose, are annoyingly silent. Among the suspects are the Collier brothers, Stephen and Nicholas, from the wealthiest and most powerful family in Swainsdale; John Fletcher, a local farmer; Sam Greenock, owner of the village's best guest house; and his unhappy wife, Katie, who knows more than she realizes. When the Colliers use their influence to slow down the investigation and the others clam up, Inspector Banks heads for Toronto to track down the killer. He soon finds himself in a race against time as events rush towards the shocking conclusion.

From New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-winning author Peter Robinson, a fascinating thriller—perfect for fans of Louise Penny and Elizabeth George—that leads Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks on a harrowing journey into a town’s sordid past where a diabolical killer lies in wait. Visitors have long been drawn to the beauty and serenity of the Yorkshire countryside. Some never leave—like the hiker whose decomposing corpse is discovered in a wooded valley outside the tiny village of Swainshead. It is the second such homicide to plague the region in recent years, and it is pulling investigating Detective Chief Inspector Alan Banks into a dangerous mire of dark pasts, local power, and private shames. For a shocking truth and cold-blooded killer are waiting there…and Banks is determined to walk into a valley of death to expose them both. An arresting, electrifying novel of suspense, The Hanging Valley will remain etched in readers’ minds.

A policeman is stabbed to death at an anti-nuclear demonstration outside the Eastvale Community Centre in Yorkshire. In a politically motivated move, Detective Superintendent Richard “Dirty Dick” Burgess is pulled in from London to run the investigation. With a long list of suspects and an old enemy breathing down his neck, the odds are against Chief Inspector Alan Banks as he races to find the killer before Burgess and save his career. Third in the critically acclaimed Inspector Banks Mystery Series.

‘The Alan Banks mystery-suspense novels are the best series on the market. Try one and tell me I'm wrong’ Stephen King The Hanging Valley is the fourth novel in Peter Robinson's bestselling Inspector Banks series. TWO MURDERS. A MISSING PERSON. A VILLAGE WITH A TERRIBLE SECRET. A faceless corpse is found in a tranquil, hidden valley below the village of Swainshead, the victim’s identity deliberately obscured. And when Chief Inspector Alan Banks arrives, he finds that no-one is willing to talk. Banks's frustration only grows when he suspects his latest case might be connected with an unsolved murder and a missing local woman, which occurred in the same area five years ago. Among the silent suspects are the Collier brothers, the wealthiest and most powerful family in the area. When they start using their influence to slow down the investigation, Banks finds himself in a race against time . . . The Hanging Valley is followed by Past Reason Hated in the Inspector Banks series.

From New York Times bestselling and Edgar Award-winning author Peter Robinson comes a suspenseful and frightening tale of the connection between a missing child and the murder of a young man in the sixth book of the critically acclaimed Inspector Banks Mystery Series. A well-dressed couple claim to be social workers responding to abuse allegations and pressure Brenda Scupham into allowing them to take her seven-year-old daughter, Gemma, into protective care. When they fail to return, Brenda realizes her catastrophic mistake, and soon Chief Inspector Alan Banks is on the case. As days pass, Banks and his colleague, Detective Superintendent Gristhorpe, begin to lose hope, but then a body is found in the ruins of a nearby lead mine, and the two cases begin to connect in a chilling, horrifying way.