A Slowly Dying Cause
By (Author) Elizabeth George
Pan Macmillan
Macmillan
16th September 2025
United Kingdom
General
Fiction
Crime and mystery: police procedural
Crime and mystery: women sleuths
Thriller / suspense fiction
Narrative theme: Sense of place
Narrative theme: Death, grief, loss
Paperback
656
Width 153mm, Height 234mm
In Cornwall, a man suffers a violent death - and the killer may lurk within the community . . . Featuring Detectives Barbara Havers and Thomas Lynley, A Slowly Dying Cause is an atmospheric, gripping crime thriller from bestselling author Elizabeth George. Amid the beauty of Cornwall's coastline, the death of a local man shatters the peace with its violence. The body of Michael Lobb was discovered in his family's tin and pewter workshop, and Detective Inspector Beatrice Hannaford is brought in to investigate. Suspicion quickly develops when it emerges that a mining company had been trying to buy the man's land, and Lobb was the only remaining obstacle to the deal going through. But every step of Bea's investigation provokes more questions than answers, and the complexity of the case develops further as Lobb's family life, rife with mistrust and deception, comes to light. With cryptic alibis and shifting motives, the tangled web of intrigue soon draws in her colleagues Thomas Lynley and Barbara Havers, who must search for a killer in a community that has very little trust in outsiders . . . **** 'She writes extremely well, plots brilliantly and reaches an emotional level deeper than most' - The Times 'She's a designer of fastidious mosaics that never fail to intrigue' - Guardian 'Elizabeth George delivers another intelligent, intricate mystery' - New York Times 'Presses all the buttons to make us hoover her stuff up' - Daily Telegraph 'It feels like meeting old friends and that you're almost solving the crime together' - Belfast Telegraph 'Rich with descriptive detail and emotional nuance. Several alternating plot threads unspool at length, all of which weave tightly together with pleasing inevitability' - Wall Street Journal
She writes extremely well, plots brilliantly and reaches an emotional level deeper than most * The Times *
She's a designer of fastidious mosaics that never fail to intrigue - Guardian * Guardian *
Elizabeth George delivers another intelligent, intricate mystery * New York Times *
An essential writer of popular fiction today * The Washington Post *
A superstar of the crime-fiction world * The Seattle Times *
The best plotter in the mystery game, [her] elegant literate flow puts many Brits to shame * Time Out *
Elizabeth George is the no. 1 New York Times, Times and Der Spiegel bestselling author of more than twenty British crime novels featuring Detective Inspector Thomas Lynley. Her novels have been translated into thirty languages and featured on television by the BBC. She has twice been nominated for the Edgar Award and is the recipient of the Anthony Award, the Agatha Award, France's Grand Prix de Littrature Policire and Germany's MIMI.