Flowering Judas

(Gregor Demarkian)

Plot

“Stellar...pitch-perfect.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)Twelve years ago, Chester Morton disappeared from his hometown with barely a trace and was never heard from again. For the past twelve years, his mother has kept the search for her son alive—paying for a billboard overlooking the local community college, putting up fliers around town every week, hounding law enforcement agencies. Mrs. Morton’s determination has not only made Chester’s disappearance very high profile, it’s also been damaging to her marriage, her remaining children, and herself.“another engaging…story with characters who could walk right off the page.”—Charlotte ObserverNow, long after everyone else has given up hope, Chester’s body is finally found—hanging from the very billboard that has been advertising his disappearance. Chester’s corpse, however, is fresh—meaning that he had been alive, somewhere, until very recently. Under pressure and with limited resources, the local police turn to Gregor Demarkian, a former FBI agent and a frequent consultant, to find out once and for all what really happened all those years ago…and to unravel the truth buried within this very complex and tragic case.  “Ought to establish Haddam as America’s P. D. James once and for all.” —Baltimore Sun