A Suburban Death — Meg Elizabeth Atkins

The suburban area of Bankhill is a seemingly quiet, affluent area, yet Detective Chief Inspector Sheldon Hunter finds his perceptions of this 'tamed arcadia' dramatically changed as he is drawn into the secrecy and deception surrounding the prominent Mannering family.

As a child, Daisy Donovan followed her mother from country to country in her pursuit of an acting career. Yet her mother's best friend, Floy Mannering, always provided a sense of security and care for the young girl. With her mother living in Portugal, Daisy moves into Floy's home, the grand ancestral house of Fairmead. Wealthy, charming and caring, Floy looks after Daisy amongst her other friends and family. This provokes the need in Daisy to protect the older woman and leads her to resent the orphaned Edward Skinner's claims on the Mannering family. Yet how far will Daisy go to protect Floy?

The sudden death of a lover sparks more manipulation, suspicion, and jealousy than is typical at Fairmead -- Hunter grudgingly sorts through his developing allegiances to solve a murder. But has Hunter been deceived himself, his vision blurred by this arcadian romance, sending him in every direction but the correct one?