The Stoke Heath Murders (Martha Gunn #2)

Previously published as Slipknot

Coroner Martha Gunn isn’t one to let her emotions cloud her judgement. But one look at this corpse, laid out beneath the too-bright lights of the morgue, and she can feel herself start to unravel.

Callum Hughes is the same age as Martha’s son. Just thirteen years old. And painfully thin. To Martha’s eye, he has ‘victim’ written all over him.

Yet the way the police tell it, he’s anything but. They say Callum stabbed his classmate in cold blood. And that he got what he deserved: a lengthy stay in Cell 101 of Stoke Heath Young Offenders.

Callum lasted just two nights before he took his own life.

But something about Callum’s death — the unexplained bruises blooming on his face — still snags at Martha’s mind.

Once Martha hears from Callum’s grieving mother, there’s no way she can let this go.

There’s two sides to every story. And, if Martha’s instincts are right, the true killer isn’t six feet under.

They’re very much alive and planning their next move . . .