Near the dying English seaside town of Ilmarsh, local police detective Alec Nichols discovers sixteen horses' heads on a farm, each buried with a single eye facing the low winter sun. After forensic veterinarian Cooper Allen travels to the scene, the investigators soon uncover evidence of a chain of crimes in the community - disappearances, arson and mutilations - all culminating in the reveal of something deadly lurking in the ground itself.
In the dark days that follow, the town slips into panic and paranoia. Everything is not as it seems. Anyone could be a suspect. And as Cooper finds herself unable to leave town, Alec is stalked by an unseen threat. The two investigators race to uncover the truth behind these frightening and insidious mysteries - no matter the cost.
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Tufts of cloud burned black before the sunrise, the horizon littered with the flotsam of old and rusted silhouettes. 1
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(@MantleBooks, 29 April 2021, ebook, 463 pages, borrowed from @GlasgowLib via @OverDriveInc)
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This is a new author for me. I've been dying to read Sixteen Horses since it featured on Between the Covers but it's constantly been on loan for months. I jumped at the chance to read it when it finally became available. I really loved this book. It gripped from the opening pages when the horse's head are found. You're plunged into a strange mystery - who cut off the head's and why? Alec and Cooper discover that the heads are just a part of the picture and something far more sinister is going on. My kind had flames coming out of it because I was turning the pages so fast. I can't recommend Sixteen Horses enough.