"A British police procedural as good as those produced by crime queens Elizabeth George and Ruth Rendell." —USA Today His first three victims ended up dead. His fourth was not so fortunate . . . Alison Willetts is unlucky to be alive. She has survived a stroke, deliberately induced by a skillful manipulation of pressure points on the head and neck. She can see, hear, and feel and is aware of everything going on around her, but is completely unable to move or communicate. Her condition is called locked-in syndrome. In leaving Alison Willetts alive, the police believe the killer made his first mistake. Then DI Tom Thorne discovers the horrifying truth; it isn't Alison who is the mistake, it's the three women already dead. The killer is getting his kicks out of toying with Thorne as much as he is pursuing his sick fantasy, and as the detective zeroes in on a suspect, he finds himself pushed to his personal and professional limits . . . This is the "exceptional" first novel in the long-running series by an international bestselling author (George Pelecanos). "The best thriller debut of the year." —Rocky Mountain News "A world-class crime writer." —Karin Slaughter