The Distant Echo - Hardcover

McDermid, Val

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0312301995 ISBN 13: 9780312301996

Publisher: Minotaur Books, 2003

Synopsis

Four in the morning, mid-December, and snow blankets St. Andrews School. Student Alex Gilbery and his three best friends are staggering home from a party when they stumble upon the body of a young woman. Rosie Duff has been raped, stabbed and left for dead in the ancient Pictish cemetery. The only suspects are the four young students stained with her blood.

Twenty-five years later, police mount a cold case review. Among the unsolved murders they're examining is that of Rosie Duff. But someone else has his own idea of justice. One of the original quartet dies in a suspicious house fire and soon after, a second is killed. Alex fears the worst. Someone is taking revenge for Rosie Duff. And it might just save his life if he can uncover who really killed Rosie all those years ago.

About this title

From the Back Cover:

Praised for her ingenious surprises and masterful twists, Anthony Award-winner Val McDermid has raised the standard for suspense. Now comes her most absorbing and seductive thriller to date-a masterful novel of murder and retribution that will haunt long into the night...

An Unsolved Crime...
It was a winter morning in 1978, that the body of a young barmaid was discovered in the snow banks of a Scottish cemetery. The only suspects in her brutal murder were the four young men who found her: Alex Gilbey and his three best friends. With no evidence but her blood
on their hands, no one was ever charged.

That Was Never Forgotten...
Twenty five years later, the Cold Case file on Rosie Duff has been reopened. For Alex and his friends, the investigation has also opened old wounds, haunting memories-and new fears. For a stranger has emerged from the shadows with his own ideas about justice. And revenge.

Or Forgiven.
When two of Alex's friends die under suspicious circumstances, Alex knows that he and his innocent family are the next targets. And there's only way to save them: return to the cold-blooded past and uncover the startling truth about the murder. For there lies the identity of an avenging killer...

"One of my favorite authors." -Sara Paretsky

"McDermid is the best we've got." -The New York Times

About the Author:

Val McDermid has won the Anthony and Gold Dagger awards, as well as the Los Angeles Times Book Prize. She lives in England.

About this edition

• Publisher: Minotaur Books
• Publication date: 2003
• ISBN 10: 0312301995
• ISBN 13: 9780312301996
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 384