The Patient
A DS George Cross Mystery
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- Pre-Order
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- Expected Feb 3, 2026
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- $12.99
Publisher Description
“One of the most iconic British fictional detectives of the 21st century . . . a delight.” —Daily Mail
No fingerprints. No weapon. No witnesses. Can DS Cross prove it was murder?
When a young woman is found dead – with no fingerprints, no weapon, and no witnesses –the Bristol Crime Unit is ready to close the case as suicide, especially after the coroner cites the victim’s long history of drug abuse. But her mother is convinced it was murder, saying that her daughter had been clean and sober for over two years.
DS Cross is determined to defy his bosses and re-open the case, even if it costs him his career. Soon he is mired in a labyrinth of potential suspects – but can he solve the case before his superiors shut it down for good?
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Sullivan's third police procedural featuring neurodivergent detective sergeant George Cross (after The Cyclist) is another winner. After noticing the same woman sitting in the reception area of Bristol's Major Crime Unit for three consecutive days, Cross introduces himself. The woman says that she's been written off by the authorities for claiming that her daughter, a recovering heroin addict named Flick Wilson, was murdered via an intentional overdose, despite a lack of concrete evidence. Cross is sympathetic, but he initially chalks up her claims to grief over losing her child to addiction. When he learns that Flick died with her two-year-old child in the next room and made no arrangements for her care, though, it arouses his suspicions, and he's further intrigued when an autopsy reveals that Flick overdosed on medical morphine, which is difficult to obtain on the street. Aiding Cross's inquiry is retired DCI Esther Moffat, whom he meets while visiting his elderly father in a care home. Sullivan continues to find fresh angles on the ways Cross's autism makes him socially awkward but professionally successful, and he delivers a crafty solution to the novel's core mystery. This series deserves a long run.
