Book description
A compulsively readable thriller that skillfully weaves together past
and present to uncover the sinister secrets buried in the ancient stone
quarries under Bath.
Kit Parry is reluctant to take the job shoring up the ancient quarries
beneath her hometown of Bath - a place as riddled with memories she'd
rather forget as it is with Roman ruins. The miners certainly don't want
her there, and her burgeoning romance with lanky foreman Gary looks
likely to complicate matters even further.
But when dark developments threaten the spa town's placid façade, Kit
must face up to the past she's tried so desperately to bury. Someone
wants her out of Bath - that much is clear - but who was it that brought
her childhood to an abrupt end in the summer of her fourteenth year? Why
has she never been back to Bath, and how did she escape her violent
father? When Kit stumbles across evidence of a lost Mithraic temple, the
mysteries in her own past become entangled with a search for what could
be the archaeological discovery of the decade - and what turns into a
dangerous obsession… 'An amazingly accomplished first novel -
intricately plotted and with a terrific, engaging protagonist. Anyone
who has so much as a hint of claustrophobia or fear of pot holes should
read it only in daylight with the windows open.' Jenni Murray, author
and broadcaster
'Ingenious, well-plotted and…really holds the attention. It's a damn
good read.' Susan Hill
'[A] taut archaeological thriller…Mills gradually leaches out Kit's
unstable history which, combined with the fissured roof, conflicting
loyalties and predatory men, keeps the adrenaline flowing high.'
Financial Times
'The geological and archaeological background lends colour without
overwhelming an elaborate, convincing plot, and the characters are
really believable. This is a remarkably accomplished and well-written
first novel.' Literary Review
'A compelling thriller…When Kit finds evidence of what could be an
amazing archaeological discovery, the secrets of her past become caught
up with the race to uncover the mystery hidden in the mines - which
results in a chilling climax…Ingenious.' Editor's Choice, Closer magazine
'Nail-biting suspense.' Woman & Home
'Jenni Mills weaves together the threads of past and present mysteries
masterfully in this superb, complex story. Be sure to switch off the
phone and bolt the door because this is a genuine page-turner which will
keep you gripped to the end.' Waterstones Books Quarterly Jenni has
worked for nearly thirty years in broadcasting, as a presenter,
interviewer and producer with BBC Radio Four, and in television as a
director for both ITV and BBC. Many of her TV and radio programmes have
tackled human relationships and social issues such as violence, young
runaways, sexual abuse, adoption, drug use and bereavement, but she has
also made several series on landscape archaeology and history.
