Local Gone Missing

Description

Detective Elise King investigates a man's disappearance in a seaside town where the locals and weekenders are at odds with each other, in this rich and captivating new crime novel from the Sunday Times bestselling author of The Widow. Elise King is a successful and ambitious detective - or she was, before medical leave left her unsure if she'd ever return to work. She now spends most days watching the growing tensions in her small seaside town of Ebbing- the weekenders in their fancy clothes, renovating old bungalows into luxury homes, and the locals resentful of the changes. Elise can only guess what really happens behind closed doors. But Dee Eastwood, her cleaner, often knows. She's an invisible presence in many of the houses in town but she sees and hears everything. The conflicts in town boil over when a newcomer wants to put Ebbing on the map with a giant music festival, and a teenage girl ends up dead because of drugs. When a man also disappears the first night of the festival, Elise is drawn back into her detective work and starts digging for answers. Ebbing is a small town, but it's full of myriad secrets and hidden connections that run deeper and darker than Elise could have ever imagined.

Fiona Barton's debut, The Widow, was a Sunday Times and New York Times bestseller, and has been published in thirty-seven countries and optioned for television. Her second novel, The Child, and her third, The Suspect, were both bestsellers. Born in Cambridge, Fiona currently lives on the south coast in West Sussex. Previously, she was a senior writer at the Daily Mail, news editor at the Daily Telegraph, and chief reporter at the Mail on Sunday, where she won Reporter of the Year at the British Press Awards. While working as a journalist, Fiona reported on many high-profile criminal cases and developed a fascination with watching those involved, their body language and verbal tics. She interviewed people at the heart of these crimes, from the guilty to their families, as well as those on the periphery, and found it was those just outside the spotlight who interested her most...

Fiona Barton is a brilliant storyteller, a master of plot and character. I absolutely loved this smart, twisty novel! * Shari Lapena * In the community of Ebbing, Fiona Barton has created a town full of suspense and a cast of characters with so many reasons to keep secrets buried deep. A dark and twisty read. * Nita Prose, bestselling author of THE MAID * Tense and full of reveals and twists. This compulsively dark mystery is a joy to read. Fiona Barton never disappoints! * Lesley Kara, bestselling author of THE RUMOUR * 'I am a huge Fiona Barton fan and she just keeps getting better! I was completely swept up in this story of a seaside town full of dark secrets - the pace was perfect, the characters so skilfully drawn and the ending was masterful. I loved it!' * Katherine Faulkner, bestselling author of GREENWICH PARK * A fab, twisty-turny mystery * The Sun *