Darkness and Light

Written by John Harvey

Narrated by Gordon Griffin

Detective Inspector Frank Elder's first case was unsolved. A dead woman, lying on a bed, immaculately dressed. The murderer was never found - free to kill again. Eight years later, Elder's estranged wife contacts him in his Cornish hideaway. Her friend's sister Claire has mysteriously disappeared. Elder reluctantly agrees to help. Then Claire is found dead, arranged with meticulous detail on her bed, and it doesn't take long for Elder to make the connection. It's obviously the work of the same unbalanced individual. And to find the killer, Elder must shine a light into the darkest recesses of human behaviour...

• Language: English
• Publisher: W. F. Howes Ltd
• Release date: Nov 1, 2007
• ISBN: 9781407411743

John Harvey

John Harvey has been writing crime fiction for more than forty years. His first novel, Lonely Hearts, was selected by The Times as one of the '100 Best Crime Novels of the Century' and he has been the recipient of both the silver and diamond dagger awards.

Reviews for Darkness and Light

[greatrakes · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Third of the Frank Elder books. Frank is again working as a consultant to the police and undertaking a missing person investigation for a friend, which itself turns into a murder enquiry. Some elegantly drawn suspects, for a number of different murders, a good read but not as good as Ash and Bone. For the main murder, it was not so much a whodunnit as a 'why did they do it'. Flagging up the murderer early and unravelling the motives is a Harvey speciality.

[smik_3 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

#3 in the Frank Elder series. Frank's ex-wife Joanne has contacted him because a friend's sister has disappeared. As a result Frank agrees to work as a consultant on the case with former colleague Maureen Prior. When the missing woman is found dead, Frank recognises the way the body is arranged from his first case with Serious Crimes Unit, an unsolved case. Frank's visit to London gives him the opportunity to catch up with his daughter Katherine as well as his ex-wife. This title is just as good as the others in the series and I enjoyed the further insights into Frank's detection skills. Frank's former boss Charlie Resnick makes a cameo appearance just as he has in the other 2 titles. Watch out also for the tributes to Rebus and Morse.