Land Kill, by author David L Haigh, features ‘high-stakes drama, layered characters, and a vividly drawn rural Northumbrian setting.’
The book has already garnered five-star reviews, with readers praising its mix of ‘rural charm and gritty urban crime.’
The novel, which is part of the Detective Chief Inspector Jeff Spencer series, introduces the new literary DCI, Jeff Spencer.
The book explores themes of ‘justice, resilience, and the consequences of past choices’, leaving readers with lingering questions about ‘greed, power, and redemption.’
The story follows George Blackwell, a former stockbroker turned pheasant farmer, who was the last known person to speak to a murdered Northumbrian poacher.
DCI Spencer and his team attempt to find the missing links in a chain which the DCI suspects has ties to Blackwell’s time in the city.
As violence and crime continue to target the game bird farm and its owners, Spencer is up against the clock to save a kidnapped travel writer and safeguard the farm’s future.
The author, Mr Haigh, said: “Land Kill is my first novel.
“The idea came from a spell of memory mining.
“From my student days I recalled a regular who frequented the local pub.
“He had taken the brave decision to abandon his lucrative, but stressful life as a city stockbroker to rear pheasants in Essex.
“The DCI’s love of growing crops on his allotment is a reflection of me.
“Having lived near the Cumbria/Northumbria border for twenty years I am familiar with the area in which Land Kill is set.
“The rest of the story stems from my imagination.
“The door is open for the DCI and other officers featured in this book to return in a follow-on novel.
“To this end, I have begun drafting an outline scheme.”