The Judgement of Strangers (The Roth Trilogy, Book 2)

By: Andrew Taylor

Narrated by: to be announced

‘Complex, with lots of sinister implications… moves the traditional crime novel on to some deeper level of exploration’ Jane Jakeman, Independent

It is 1970. David Byfield, a widowed parish priest with a dark past and a darker future, brings home a new wife to Roth. Throughout the summer, the consequences of the marriage reverberate through a village now submerged in a sprawling London suburb.

Blinded by lust, Byfield is oblivious to the dangers that lie all about him: the menopausal churchwarden with a hopeless passion for her priest; his beautiful, neglected teenage daughter Rosemary; and the sinister presence of Frances Youlgreave – poet, opium addict and suicide – whose power stretches beyond the grave.

Soon the murders and blasphemies begin. But does the responsibility lie in the present or the past? And can Byfield, a prisoner of his own passion, break through to the truth before the final tragedy destroys what he most cherishes?

Critic reviews

‘An intelligent, exciting psychological drama… A powerful feeling of something nasty just around the corner prevails’
Daily Mail

‘This author knows precisely how to wield suspense’
Independent

‘Taylor is a major thriller talent’
Time Out