Fear of Drowning

London: HarperColins Publishers, 1999. BH5 - A first British edition hardcover book in very good condition in very good dust jacket. Dust jacket and book have some bumped corners, light tanning and shelf wear. Although not marked in any way, this copy comes from the personal collection of Otto Penzler, legendary editor and founder of the Mysterious Press, an award-winning icon in the genre. 8.75"x5.5", 169 pages. Satisfaction Guaranteed. A middle-aged couple, Max and Amanda Williams, disappear. They enjoyed a modest but comfortable lifestyle, seemed to have no enemies, and had two adult, successful children. Detective Inspector George Hennessey of the City of York Police instinctively feels from the outset that there has been foul play, and his suspicions are confirmed when the bodies of the missing couple are found in a shallow grave. but the discovery of the bodies is only the beginning of a case that will test the police to their limits. For a start, it appears that no one could benefit from their murder as they had lost a fortune in a short space of time. And then both, apparently unknown to the other, had been involved in illicit liaisons, one sexual, the other financial. Added to this is the strange behaviour of the couple's son and a mystery in the family's past. Hennessey, a man haunted by a tragedy in his own life, finds the road to a solution littered with conflicting clues and misinformation. From the position of having no suspects at all, he soon finds there are all too many people who wished the Williamses harm. A compelling and grittily authentic novel from the author of the acclaimed P Division series.. First British Edition. Hardcover. Very Good/Very Good. 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall.