Cry of the Children

“Gregson knows when to up the ante . . . in this tense procedural” as two British detectives investigate a shocking case of abduction and murder (Kirkus Reviews).

The last time Anthea Gibson saw her seven-year-old daughter, Lucy, the girl was thrilled to be heading off to her first village fair. Then, a parent’s worst nightmare: Lucy never comes home. As the disappearance stretches from hours to days without any leads, Lambert and Hook cast a wide net over potential suspects: a roustabout well-known for his unsavory habits; a local female loner with a disturbing want for a child; Anthea’s estranged and pitiable husband; her current lover; and even the distraught mother herself who may have a motive for seeing Lucy spirited away.

But when another child vanishes from the area, and something terrible washes up on the shores of the Wye River, the case takes a breathtaking twist. And even the seasoned investigators aren’t prepared for how dark it’s going to get.