The Shadows of Hawthorn Vale

In the picturesque Norfolk village of Hawthorn Vale, a locked manor house hides a multimillion-pound fraud-and a secret worth killing for.Investigative journalist Charlie Fitz-Gerald arrives in the quiet village to look into the shady Harebell Heritage Foundation. He plans to pool his research with Arthur Meldrew, a stubborn veteran local reporter who claims to have hard evidence of boundary fraud and a string of suspicious "IT" payments made by prominent villagers.But before Arthur can hand over his proof, he is found dead at the bottom of the stairs inside the abandoned Harebell House. While the killer tried to stage a tragic fall in the dark, a missing torch and a notebook deliberately placed on a woodland stile tell Charlie and the investigating detectives from the Heritage Crime Division, DI Harcourt and DS Redgrave, that Arthur was murdered.Refusing to let the story die, Charlie and his loyal spaniel Reggie dig into the village's darkest corners. They uncover a systematic blackmail ring preying on the locals' deepest shames, alongside a massive corporate property conspiracy orchestrated by ruthless professionals.As the blackmail victims finally step out of the shadows, Charlie must expose the mastermind before he becomes the killer's next headline.