cover image The Ties That Bind

The Ties That Bind

Anthea Fraser. Severn, $28.99 (208p) ISBN 978-0-7278-5058-4

Since Rose Linscott, the matriarch at the center of this straightforward standalone from British author Fraser (Sins of the Fathers), is highly critical of her grown children and their offspring, they keep certain family secrets from her, most of which are relatively trivial and, once revealed, easily resolved. One of Rose’s adult granddaughters, Jess Tempest, who recently ended her engagement, is renting a flat in Bristol, England, with Maggie Haig, whom Jess has just met. When Jess unexpectedly returns to her flat before leaving on a trip, she finds a dead man on the living room floor. After hearing someone outside the flat, she hides and hears two unrecognizable people talking in low voices. When she emerges, the body is gone. Convinced her family and the police will think she’s either guilty or crazy, she keeps this grim discovery to herself, until the body washes ashore and makes front page news. The dead man, no surprise, turns out to have a relationship to Maggie, and nabbing the killer proves as simple as resolving the various family issues. Fraser is unlikely to win new fans with this one. Agent: Juliet Burton, Juliet Burton Literary (U.K.). (Aug.)