Fever of the Bone, Vel McDermid

Meet Tony Hill's most twisted adversary - a killer with a shopping list of victims, a killer unmoved by youth and innocence, a killer driven by the most perverted desires ...

When teenager Jennifer Maidment's murdered and mutilated body is discovered, it is clear that there is a dangerous psychopath on the loose. But it's not long before Tony and DCI Carol Jordan realise it's just the start of a brutal and ruthless campaign targeting an apparently unconnected group of young people. Their chameleon-like killer is chatting with them online, pretending to share their interests and beliefs - and then luring them to their deaths.

But just when Tony should be at the heart of the hunt, he's pushed to the margins by Carol's cost-cutting boss and replaced by a dangerously inexperienced profiler. Struggling with the newly awakened ghosts of his own past and desperate for distraction in his work, Tony battles to find the answers that will give him personal and professional satisfaction in his most nerve-shattering investigation yet.

Psychologically gripping and relentlessly paced, 'Fever of the Bone' is the perfect introduction for those who have not yet discovered the damaged but brilliant criminal profiler Tony Hill and DCI Carol Jordan, best known from ITV's award-winning 'Wire in the Blood'.