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Content snapshot
Flag an inaccuracy →What's in this book, at a glance — five things readers want to know before they start.
Violence
A lot
A sniper killing women at random; community fear; the randomness of the threat
Language
Some
Mild language
Sexual Content
None
No sexual content
Substance Use
Barely any
Mild content
Emotional Intensity
A lot
The specific terror of random violence and the way it changes the behavior of an entire community; Serrailler's difficulty investigating something that offers so little forensic footprint
What this book is about
A sniper is shooting women in Lafferton — apparently at random, with no evident connection between victims. The invisibility of the motive makes it impossible to predict who might be next. DCS Simon Serrailler investigates while the town's women decide whether to change their routines. Susan Hill's fourth Serrailler novel uses the randomness of sniper violence to examine what happens to a community when there is no pattern to protect against — when any woman, anywhere, might be a target. The investigation is procedurally realistic and the town's fear is given full weight.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
fourth Simon Serrailler novel; sniper threatening women
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