The Shell House detectives
Description
"A cleverly plotted and thoroughly enjoyable book about dark deeds in beautiful places."—Elly Griffiths
Welcome to the coastal paradise of Porthpella, where murder lurks among the dunes…
Late one night, a distraught young man knocks on the door of retired and recently widowed Ally Bright’s remote home on the Cornish coast. But before she can make sense of his confused words, he’s gone—not to be seen again until he’s found the next morning at the foot of the nearby cliffs.
In an instant, the peace of Ally’s beachcombing life is shattered. Feeling responsible for the young man’s fate, she wants to help find answers—as does ex-cop Jayden Weston, whom Ally meets at the scene. He shares her certainty that there’s more to the story than attempted suicide. When it emerges that the man is newly released ex-offender Lewis Pascoe, and that Helena, the wealthy new owner of his grandmother’s home, has subsequently disappeared, the tight-knit community of Porthpella is thrown into turmoil.
Driven by their need to know more, the duo decide to investigate the mystery together. Is there a connection between the Pascoe family’s tragic history and Helena’s disappearance? And if there is a killer stalking Porthpella, do Ally and Jayden have what it takes to catch them?
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Published Reviews
Kirkus Book Review
A police detective's widow in a Cornwall town develops an unlikely friendship as she tries to learn what happened to a young man whose plea for help she spurned. Ally Bright has been a bit of a recluse since the death of her husband, Bill, last year. Though Bill was a well-regarded police detective in Porthpella, Ally prefers to spend her time at home in Shell House, fabricating sculptures from trash washed up by the sea, and isn't close to her neighbors. When her daughter, Evie, tries to convince her to move to Australia, Ally--who has a hard time even leaving Shell House--is hard-pressed to answer Evie's question about what's left for her in the town. Jayden Weston, a newcomer to Porthpella, is wondering about his own place in the world. He's come to the family home of his wife, Cat, so the two can raise their baby, who's due any day now. Ally's and Jayden's paths cross one morning when they meet over Lewis Pascoe's body on the seashore. Lewis is rushed to the hospital, but the police think he's unlikely to recover from what they deem a botched suicide attempt. Ally's left in shock. Lewis had come to her house just last night begging for help from Bill. Unprepared for his visit, Ally had turned him away. Jayden isn't sure that what happened to Lewis was of his own doing, and he senses that Ally shares his doubts. Whether or not it's because Jayden was once a police officer, he's determined to find the truth, and he teams up with Ally in an improbable duo whose kinship warms their investigation. Despite the familiar salt-and-pepper premise, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.