Free from all Danger
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- £4.99
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- £4.99
Publisher Description
Richard Nottingham discovers that a new, more ruthless breed of criminal has colonised the city when he returns as Constable of Leeds.
October, 1736. Lured out of retirement to serve as Constable once again, Richard Nottingham finds Leeds very different from the place he remembers. Many newcomers have been attracted by the town’s growing wealth – but although the faces have changed, the crimes remain the same, as Nottingham discovers when a body is found floating in the River Aire, its throat cut.
What has changed is the fear that pervades the town. With more bodies emerging and witnesses too frightened to talk, Nottingham realizes he’s dealing with a new kind of criminal, someone with no respect for anything or anyone. Someone who believes he’s beyond the law; someone willing brutally to destroy anyone who opposes him. To stop him, Nottingham will need to call in old favours, rely on trusted friendships, and seek help from some very unlikely sources.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in 1736 Leeds, Nickson's superior seventh Richard Nottingham novel (after 2013's Fair and Tender Ladies) finds the retired constable in a somber mood on a visit to the graves of his wife and older daughter. Richard's spirits revive when the mayor asks him to serve in his old position on an interim basis after the unexpected death of the current constable. Richard's return to duty soon causes tensions with the deputy constable, Rob Lister, his prot g and his daughter Emily's lover. His immediate challenge is a series of seemingly unrelated murders that places him in the hot seat with the city's leaders, who fear that the violence will undermine public confidence in them and harm business. When several local pimps disappear, Richard realizes that the players in the Leeds underworld have changed since he left his position. Meanwhile, his nascent efforts to rebuild his family add emotional depth. Nickson is at the top of his game in this fairly clued whodunit.)
