A mystery about a missing girl and a secretive church in a small English village from an author known for “character and psychological insight” (The Washington Post).

On a blistering summer weekend, as all of England rushes to the seashore, Det. Inspector Luke Thanet is looking forward to a few days off to putter around his garden and forget the stresses of his job. A famously soft-hearted detective, Thanet takes every crime personally, and he’s overdue for a break. But when a young girl goes missing, it’s all hands on deck. Thanet will move heaven and earth to bring Charity Pritchard home alive. But do her parents even want her found?
 
Charity’s family belongs to a strict fundamentalist religious order, and they insist that the investigation of her disappearance be left up to God. But when the holy approach fails tragically and Charity is found brutally murdered, Thanet and his partner, the impetuous young Mike Lineham, will tear the church apart to find her killer.
 
“A well-crafted [and] compelling mystery novel,” Close Her Eyes is part of the acclaimed Inspector Thanet series, which includes CWA Silver Dagger winner Last Seen Alive (The Armchair Detective).
 
Close Her Eyes is the 4th book in the Inspector Thanet Mysteries, but you may enjoy reading the series in any order.