Reply #9: I agree with the recommendation, and be aware that

[Lydia Leftcoast]

it is better than the BBC adaptation that was shown on Masterpiece Theater last year.

The TV adaptation added an unnecessary framing story about the woman reporter with the bratty daughter. In the book, it's the retired policeman who does all the investigating and makes the final discovery.

Also, I didn't truly understand the part about the village being hidden away until I visited a friend in England who actually lives part time in such a village. Due to the hedgerows and winding, hilly roads, you could be within a few hundred yards of such a village and not know it was there.

By the way, Val McDermid sometimes plays cameo roles in TV adaptations of her works. Watch for a short, plump woman with curly white hair.