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Content snapshot
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Violence
Some
A baby's remains; a present-day child welfare investigation; Christmas family setting
Language
Barely any
Mild language
Sexual Content
None
No sexual content
Substance Use
Barely any
Mild content
Emotional Intensity
A lot
The specific weight of a child's death — historical and present — and what it means to investigate harm to children through proper channels when the channels are part of the problem
What this book is about
Duncan Kincaid and Gemma James spend Christmas with his family in rural Cheshire, and during the holiday a renovation of an old farmhouse uncovers the mummified body of a baby bricked inside a wall. The discovery — a historic crime of unknown date — coincides with a present-day investigation into the deaths of children in the care system. Deborah Crombie's eleventh Kincaid/James novel braids the historical discovery with the contemporary case, and the Christmas family setting gives the investigation personal stakes that are different from the usual professional distance.
Notes for sensitive readers
Reader-flagged moments and themes that may affect your experience.
eleventh Duncan Kincaid/Gemma James novel by Deborah Crombie; Cheshire setting
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