The Dentist
A DS George Cross Mystery
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4.0 • 5 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
The first book in Tim Sullivan’s bestselling series starring the brilliant Detective Sergeant George Cross, with over 700,000 copies sold, now published for the first time in the US
George Cross is on the autism spectrum. He struggles with simple daily interactions but his single-mindedness, attention to detail and fierce persistence make him the most successful detective in the Bristol station with a 97% conviction rate.
When the body of an elderly homeless man is discovered on the edge of Clifton Downs, George insists on scrutinizing the smallest details, even after his fellow officers dismiss the murder as an act of random violence. As he delves into the dead man’s past, he discovers a connection to a case that has been cold for fifteen years. The same tragedy that led to the victim’s homelessness may have also led to his death. Despite skepticism from his colleagues, including his partner Josie who as usual is both exasperated by and protective of George, he is determined to solve both cases – and finally arrest the murderer who has roamed free.
A “perfect detective for our time and for all time” (Stephen Fry), George Cross has been embraced by authors, booksellers, reviewers, and readers across the UK. The Dentist marks the launch of Tim Sullivan's brilliant series in the US, where it is certain to find a wide audience.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Screenwriter Sullivan debuts with an excellent procedural centered on a neurodivergent investigator. Det. Sgt. George Cross's eccentric behavior and strict adherence to department rules grate on his colleagues, but his superior sleuthing comes in handy when an old man is found strangled in the street. The responding officers are quick to dismiss the death as a case of homeless-on-homeless crime, but Cross isn't convinced. The victim's bag, for instance, contains valuable items that Cross suggests a financially insecure killer would have stolen. He becomes fixated on the case, in part because he identifies with a victim who "was easier not to engage with, to walk past, avoid." Eventually, the dead man is identified as Lenny Carpenter, who'd been living out of a seedy hostel in recent weeks. More digging reveals that Lenny's wife, Hilary, an author, was murdered long ago, and that Lenny was declared dead years before his actual death. Realizing something larger is at play, Cross reopens Hilary's cold case and uncovers a conspiracy stretching back decades. Sullivan strikes gold his first time out, injecting investigative scenes with a cinematic flair and firmly establishing Cross as a quirky, lovable lead. Readers will be eager for the sequel.
