I saw the house on fire and I know I was there.
Don't make me doubt myself. Just help me please.

When the devastation of an arson attack reveals a fresh corpse alongside remains from nearly twenty years ago, DS Ronnie Blake and Cambridge's special investigations unit, known as the DEAD team, are certain the victims are linked by more than just location.

But when Mariel Quinn pushes a scrawled note into Ronnie's hand, Ronnie learns that the link goes further and deeper than she could ever have imagined. Eighteen years ago, when Mariel was a small child, she was found trapped in the back of an abandoned car, screaming for a mother who never returned. Mariel recalls nothing except a single, haunting phrase, but the sight of the newly burnt-out house is unleashing some painful, fragmented memories . . .

Two bodies, two decades apart. Can DS Ronnie Blake and the DEAD team unravel the mystery that connects them before whoever's responsible takes even deadlier steps to keep the truth concealed?

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Praise for Alison Bruce:

'I was hooked from the very beginning and read it quickly over a couple of days . . . Alison Bruce is a bit of a genius' - Amazon reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Brilliant, lots of intriguing twists, great in-depth characters' - Amazon reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Captivating from start to finish. Couldn't put it down and finished within 24 hours' - Amazon reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Couldn't put this down. Perfect' - Amazon reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Clever, taut & twisty plot page turner...a gripping tale of murder and mystery and a cracking start to a new series' - Amazon reviewer, ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

'Alison Bruce always delivers . . . tense, twisty, terrific' - Ian Rankin

'A powerful and absorbing story that stayed with me long after I'd finished reading. A writer at the top of her game' - Elly Griffiths

'Unpredictable, challenging and compelling' - Sophie Hannah

'Superb! Ronnie Blake will become a household name alongside crime fiction's top protagonists' - Graham Bartlett

'One of our most interesting crime writers' - Daily Mail