cover image The Burning

The Burning

M.R. Hall. Pan (IPG, dist.), $14.95 ISBN 978-0-330-52663-0

British author Hall’s tense, atmospheric sixth Jenny Cooper novel (after The Chosen Dead) finds the Bristol coroner spending the holidays in her country cottage alone, until Det. Insp. Gabriel Ryan comes calling with the news of a house fire in Blackstone Ley with three dead people inside. It soon becomes clear that the three victims—Ed Morgan and his two stepdaughters—died from shotgun wounds, but where is Ed’s son, Robbie? A Facebook post from Ed claims that he disposed of the boy to get the ultimate revenge on his long-term partner, Kelly, who’s Robbie’s mother. Meanwhile, Jenny’s colleague Alison, who recently suffered a traumatic head injury while saving Jenny’s life, returns to work. Changes in Alison’s personality may have made her unfit for the job. Jenny’s complicated private life, including a fraught relationship with her pilot boyfriend, adds another layer to this propulsive read. Fans of Kathy Reich’s Temperance Brennan series will find much to enjoy. Agent: Zoë Waldie, Rogers, Coleridge & White (U.K.). (Oct.)