In the Dark Places: An Inspector Banks Novel by Peter Robinson

A stolen tractor, blood where it shouldn't be and a missing young man.  It doesn't add up.  Then a truck goes off the road and crashes and among all the dead animals in back being disposed of there are parts of a human body.  Does this all tie together?

William Morrow and Edelweiss gave me the opportunity to read this book for review (thank you).  It will be published August 11th.

Mr. Robinson has done a very good job with the creation of Inspector Alan Banks.  He's smart, looks beyond the evidence or words spoken and can connect the dots very well.  He also has a very good team and depends on them to help.  I like how he mentors his young up and coming cops.  They learn quickly and they teach him some new tricks, too.

The story begins with a report of a stolen tractor (worth about $100,000) and an ex-military man calling in his dog's discovery:  Blood on the floor of an abandoned hanger.  There's no known connection between the two, but coincidences don't usually happen in police work.  They begin plodding along, checking with other residents, known acquaintances and the like.  Then they discover the young "troublemaker" is missing.  He had a Sunday morning meeting and hasn't returned.  Is the blood his or is he one of the tractor thieves?

This story is complex with more than one underlying plot and I greatly enjoyed the read.  It's set in England.  Each time I read a book about a country I haven't visited I learn something about it and it's almost like an armchair travel guide.  I learned about caves in this story, but you won't find me playing there.  I have claustrophobia.  It was an intricate part of the plot in this story and I liked the touch.  This author writes great mysteries.