Love Like Blood: A Tom Thorne Novel (DI Tom Thorne Series, 14) - Softcover

Billingham, Mark

Softcover

ISBN 10: 080212786X ISBN 13: 9780802127860

Publisher: Grove Press, 2018

Synopsis

In this "chilling and moving" international bestseller, two of London's toughest detectives investigate the savage world of honor killings (The Times, London).

In Love Like Blood, DI Tom Thorne, "the next superstar detective," teams up with perfectionist DI Nicola Tanner, the protagonist of Billingham's acclaimed stand-alone thriller Die of Shame (Lee Child).

When her domestic partner Susan is brutally murdered, Nicola Tanner is convinced that she was the intended target. The murderer's motive is likely connected to her recent work on a string of cold case honor killings. Despite being placed on leave, Tanner insists on pursuing justice for Susan—and she turns to fellow DI Tom Thorne for help.

Agreeing to take the case, Thorne quickly finds that working in such controversial territory among London's Hindu, Muslim, and Sikh communities can be dangerous in more ways than one. But when a young Bangladeshi couple goes missing, Tanner and Thorne must put everything on the line to investigate a case that is anything but cold.

"Brilliant." —The Independent

"Groundbreaking . . . a gripping, unsensational take on a type of crime that is happening more frequently than many of us realize." —The Sunday Times

About this title

About the Author

Mark Billingham has twice won the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year Award, the Sherlock Award for the best detective created by a British writer, and in 2026, he was awarded the Crime Writers’ Association Diamond Dagger for an outstanding lifetime contribution to the genre. His books, which include the critically acclaimed Tom Thorne series, have been translated into twenty-five languages and have sold more than six million copies. He lives in London.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

They moved out of the shadows and across the road as the woman turned on to her front path. Quickly, but not too quickly, trying to time it right; heads down and hooded, ready to turn and walk casually away should anyone come along. A dog walker, a nosy neighbor. Emerging from between cars, they were coming through the gate as the woman pushed in her door key and one of them was calling out her name as she bent to pick up her bags from the step.

They had the water pistols out by the time she turned round.

She opened her mouth, but the words, the scream, were quickly silenced by the twin jets of bleach and a few seconds after she staggered back, blinded, and fell into her house, they were on her.

Inside.

The water pistols were shoved back into pockets and the bags that had been dropped just over the threshold were kicked aside, so that the door could be shut. Folders and files spilled out on to the hall carpet, a bottle of orange juice, a notebook, pens. They stood and watched as the woman spluttered and kicked out at them, inching herself across the floor towards the foot of the stairs.

"Where does she think she's going?"

"She's not going anywhere."

Edition details

• Publisher: Grove Press
• Publication date: 2018
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 080212786X
• ISBN 13: 9780802127860
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 432